Why were the walls of Jericho shut up tight?
Joshua 6:1
ESV - 1 Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel. None went out, and none came in.
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Asked April 10 2014
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Angela Williams
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Seth Freeman
Because they were at war. We wouldn't expect their gates to be wide open knowing there was an enemy force outside that wanted to come in and kill every single living soul. The story of the walls tumbling down is a lovely children's story until the part where the walls come down and all the Israelites running and killing everyone - women and children included... Imagine if a modern day army did that...
Olayinka Obadimu
In the ancient day I believed that every town or city is surrounded with walls because of the enemies that might want to encroach the land. The issue of Jericho walls are for protection against the enemies. The Bible says 'Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in. They did this because of the children of israel for they had heard how the Lord had led them out of Egypt and dried the Jordan river
Steve Friesen
When Joshua sent the two spies in earlier and they encountered Rahab, she said to them: "I know that the LORD has given you the land, and that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land have melted away before you. “For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. “When we heard it, our hearts melted and no courage remained in any man any longer because of you; for the LORD your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath. (Joshua 2:9 - 2:11 NASB) The people living in Jericho were terrified of the Israelites because they realized that God was fighting for them. I imagine that even though they expected to be defeated, closing the gates was customary when being attacked by an enemy just because it would eliminate the easiest route in.
Jack Gutknecht
People mainly worked outside Jericho and returned at night for housing and SAFETY. Jericho was a double-walled city. The outer wall was 6 feet thick and the inner wall 12 feet. The walls stood 15 feet apart and rose 30 feet above the ground. There were probably about 3,000 persons, with the area of the city being about 10 acres.
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