Joshua 6:17

Joshua 6:17 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the city shall be accursed, even it, and all that are therein, to the Lord: only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all that are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent.
• New International Version (NIV)The city and all that is in it are to be devoted to the Lord. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall be spared, because she hid the spies we sent.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the city and all that is within it shall be devoted to the Lord for destruction. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Now the city shall be doomed by the Lord to destruction, it and all who are in it. Only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all who are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent.

Context of Joshua 6:17

15On the seventh day, they got up at dawn again. They marched round the city as they had done before. But this time they did it seven times. 16The seventh time, the priests made a long, loud noise on their trumpets. Joshua told the people, ‘Shout aloud to attack! The Lord has given the city to you! The city and everything that is in it belongs to the Lord, so destroy it all. Only the prostitute Rahab and all the people who are with her in her house will live. This is because she hid the two men that we sent. 18Be careful! Do not take for yourselves the valuable things that belong to the Lord. If you do that, you will cause bad trouble to come to the whole Israelite army. The Lord will destroy us all. 19Everything that is made from silver, gold, bronze and iron belong to the Lord as his holy things. You must store them with his other valuable things.’

Joshua 6:17 word by word

וְהָיְתָ֨ה הָעִ֥יר חֵ֛רֶם הִ֥יא וְכָל־אֲשֶׁר־בָּ֖הּ לַֽיהוָ֑ה רַק֩ רָחָ֨ב הַזּוֹנָ֜ה תִּֽחְיֶ֗ה הִ֚יא וְכָל־אֲשֶׁ֣ר אִתָּ֣הּ בַּבַּ֔יִת כִּ֣י הֶחְבְּאַ֔תָה אֶת־הַמַּלְאָכִ֖ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר שָׁלָֽחְנוּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• shall be accursedחֵ֫רֶםchêrem cherem · devoted thingH2764
• therein, to the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• only Rahabרָחָבrâchâb · RahabH7343
• the harlotזָנָהzânâh · to fornicateH2181
• shall liveחָיָהchâyâh · to liveH2421
• with her in the houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: homeH1004
• because she hidחָבָאchâbâ' · to hideH2244
• the messengersמַלְאָךְmal'âk · messengerH4397
• that we sentשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971

Cross-references for Joshua 6:17

• Joshua 7:1The Israelites did not obey what Joshua had said about the valuable things that belonged to God. Achan took some of these things for himself. He was Carmi's son, who was the son of Zimri, who was the son of Zerah. They were from the tribe of Judah. The Lord was very angry with the Israelites.
• Leviticus 27:28A man might give to the Lord something that the man has. Everything that a man gives like that is holy. It might be a person, an animal or land. The priest must not sell it. A man cannot take it back. Everything that someone gives to the Lord is most holy.
• Numbers 21:2The Israelites made this promise to the Lord: ‘If you put these people under our power, we will destroy their towns for you.’
• 1 Corinthians 2:7No, the wise thoughts that we speak about belong to God. He has hidden them from people until now. But before God made the world, he decided to let us know these secrets. He wanted us to enjoy his glory.
• Ezra 10:8If they did not arrive in three days, they would lose everything that belonged to them. They would no longer be part of the Israelite people. That is what the leaders and officers had decided should happen.
• Isaiah 34:6The Lord's sword has blood all over it! It is the blood of young sheep and goats. It has the fat of meat on it. It is the fat from sheep's kidneys. Yes! The Lord is killing animals for a sacrifice in Bozrah. He will kill many people in Edom.
• Jeremiah 46:10But it is the Lord God Almighty who will win! It is the day when he will punish his enemies. His sword will completely destroy them, like a hungry person who cannot stop eating! His sword will cause a lot of blood to pour out. The Lord God Almighty will accept his enemies as a sacrifice. That is what will happen in the northern land beside the Euphrates river.
• Ezekiel 39:17Son of man, this is what the Lord God says: Shout to all kinds of birds and wild animals, “Come here from all the country to eat the meal that I have prepared for you. It is a great sacrifice on Israel's mountains. There you will eat meat and you will drink blood.
• Micah 4:13‘People in Zion, get up and fight your enemies,’ God says to you. ‘Hit them like people thresh the wheat. I will make you very strong. Then you will be like dangerous animals with iron horns and metal feet. You will beat enemies from many countries, as men crush things into small pieces. The people from those countries became rich, because they did bad things. But you will bring their riches to me, because I am the Lord of all the earth.’
• 1 Corinthians 16:22If anyone among you does not really love the Lord, I pray that God will curse that person. Our Lord, come now! We are waiting for you!
• Galatians 3:10But some people try to obey all the rules of God's Law. They think that they will become right with God if they do this very well. But God will speak against people like that and he will punish them. It is written in the Bible: ‘God will punish everyone who does not always obey all the rules in his Law completely.’
• Joshua 2:1Then Joshua sent two men to go out from Shittim. He sent them in secret to see what the land was like. He told them, ‘Go! Look at all the land. Look very carefully at Jericho city.’ When they came to Jericho city, they arrived at the house of a prostitute. Her name was Rahab. They stayed there.
• Joshua 6:22Joshua said to the two men that Rahab had hidden, ‘Go into her house. Bring her out, with all her family who are there with her. That is what you promised to do for her.’
• Joshua 2:4But Rahab had hidden the two men. She replied, ‘Yes, some men did come to me. I did not know where they had come from.
• Genesis 12:3I will bless those people who bless you. But I will curse anyone who insults you. Through you, I will bless all the families of people on the earth.’
• 1 Samuel 15:6Saul said to the Kenite people, ‘Go away from here! I will kill the Amalekites, but I do not want to kill you. You were kind to the Israelites when they came out from Egypt.’ So the Kenites moved away from the Amalekites.

Commentaries on Joshua 6:17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17The city shall be accursed - That is, it shall be devoted to destruction; ye shall take no spoils, and put all that resist to the sword. Though this may be the meaning of the word חרם cherem in some places, see the note on Leviticus 27:29, yet here it seems to imply the total destruction of all the inhabitants, see Joshua 6:21; but it is likely that peace was offered to this city, and that the extermination of the inhabitants was in consequence of the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 17Accursed - Better as in margin, (“devoted” (Leviticus 27:28 note). In other cases the inhabitants only of the towns were slain; their cattle and property became the booty of the victors. But Jericho, as the first Canaanite city that was captured, was devoted by Israel as first-fruits to God, as a token that Israel received all the land from Him. Every living thing was put to death (Rahab and her household excepted) as a sacrifice to God, and the…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 17-27Verses 17-27 Jericho was to be a solemn and awful sacrifice to the justice of God, upon those who had filled up the measure of their sins. So He appoints, from whom, as creatures, they received their lives, and to whom, as sinners, they had forfeited them. Rahab perished not with them that believed not, He 11:31. All her kindred were saved with her; thus faith in Christ brings salvation to the house, Ac 16:31. She, and they with her, were plucked as…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17devoted to the LORD for destruction: Joshua reminded his troops that the town and everything in it belonged to God as the firstfruits of their inheritance in the land of Canaan. See Leviticus 27:28–29; 1 Samuel 15:3. Rahab: See Joshua 2:12–21.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 17-1917-19. And the city shall be accursed--(See on Le 27:28). The cherem, or "anathema," was a devotion to utter destruction (De 7:2; 20:17; 1Sa 15:3). When such a ban was pronounced against a hostile city, the men and animals were killed--no booty was allowed to be taken. The idols and all the precious ornaments on them were to be burned (De 7:25; compare 1Ch 14:12). Everything was either to be destroyed or consecrated to the sanctuary. Joshua pronounced…Read the comment

Topics related to Joshua 6:17

• Accursed
• Ark
• Harlot (Prostitute)
• Hospitality
• Rahab
• Trumpet

In the dictionaries

• Rahab
• Rahab, or Rachab
• Accursed
• Adjure
• Anathema
• Compass
• Consecrate
• Dawn
• Harlot
• Jericho

Commentaries on Joshua 6

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings