Joshua 6:7
in Joshua 6And he told the people, “Advance and march around the city, with the armed troops going ahead of the ark of the LORD.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And they said unto the people, Pass on, and compass the city, and let the armed men pass on before the ark of Jehovah.
KJV
And he said unto the people, Pass on, and compass the city, and let him that is armed pass on before the ark of the Lord.
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This verse in Joshua 6
Commentary
3 notes on this verseAnd he said unto the people, pass on, and compass the city,.... The women and children, the young men under twenty years of age, the unarmed part of the camp, as distinguished from the armed men: and let him that is armed pass on before the ark of the Lord; to guard the ark, protect the priests, and defend the people, should any sally be made by the enemy upon them.
This site's exposition
Joshua the son of Nun
on Joshua 6:6-7
Joshua gives the orders back in the words he received them, and the ark sits inside the column rather than behind it. The ark had gone before the people into Jordan at 3:6 and 3:11, and Numbers 10:35 gives the words said over it whenever it set forward, Rise up, Lord, and let thine enemies be scattered. The armed men walk ahead of it and the rest walk behind it, so the fighting men are an escort around a chest.
The record, by era
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
He said - The reading in the Hebrew text is “they said.” Joshua no doubt issued his orders through the “officers of the people” (compare Jos 1:10). Him that is armed - i. e. the warriors generally, not a division only. “The rereward” Jos 6:9 was merely a detachment, and not a substantial portiere of the host; and was told off, perhaps, from the tribe of Dan (compare the marginal reference) to close the procession and guard the ark from behind.
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ | vaiyomeru | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| הָעָ֔ם | haam | the people | H5971 → | 1873 times |
| עִבְר֖וּ | ʾivru | pass on | H5674 → | 556 times |
| וְסֹ֣בּוּ | vesobu | and go round | H5437 → | 161 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הָעִ֑יר | hair | the city | H5892 → | 1090 times |
| וְהֶ֣חָל֔וּץ | vehechalutz | and the armed [man] | H2502 → | 44 times |
| יַעֲבֹ֕ר | yaavor | he will pass on | H5674 → | 556 times |
| לִפְנֵ֖י | lifnei | <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| אֲר֥וֹן | ʾaron | [the] ark of | H727 → | 202 times |
| יְהוָֽה׃ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙and he said
vaiyomeruH559 →5305 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
הָעָ֔םthe people
haamH5971 →1873 times
עִבְר֖וּpass on
ʾivruH5674 →556 times
וְסֹ֣בּוּand go round
vesobuH5437 →161 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הָעִ֑ירthe city
hairH5892 →1090 times
וְהֶ֣חָל֔וּץand the armed [man]
vehechalutzH2502 →44 times
יַעֲבֹ֕רhe will pass on
yaavorH5674 →556 times
לִפְנֵ֖י<to> before
lifneiH6440 →2123 times
אֲר֥וֹן[the] ark of
ʾaronH727 →202 times
יְהוָֽה׃Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Joshua 6:3March around the city with all the men of war, circling the city one time. Do this for six days.
it leads to
- 2 Corinthians 4:7
Now we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this surpassingly great power is from God and not from us.
- Numbers 14:9
Only do not rebel against the LORD, and do not be afraid of the people of the land, for they will be like bread for us. Their protection has been removed, and the LORD…
- 2 Corinthians 4:7
Through
Joshua 4:13About 40,000 troops armed for battle crossed over before the LORD into the plains of Jericho.
it leads to
- Ephesians 6:11
Put on the full armor of God, so that you can make your stand against the devil’s schemes.
- Jeremiah 52:8
but the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was separated from him.
- Jeremiah 39:5
But the army of the Chaldeans pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. They seized him and brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of…
- 2 Kings 25:5
but the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was separated from him.
- Ephesians 6:11
Through
Joshua 1:14Your wives, your young children, and your livestock may remain in the land that Moses gave you on this side of the Jordan. But all your mighty men of valor must be armed for…
it leads to
- Exodus 13:18
So God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the Israelites left the land of Egypt arrayed for battle.
- Deuteronomy 20:8
Then the officers shall speak further to the army, saying, “Is any man afraid or fainthearted? Let him return home, so that the hearts of his brothers will not melt like his own.”
- Exodus 13:18
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies5
On this verse
About Joshua

This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
