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‘And the Walls Came Tumbling Down’ – The History and Historicity of the Biblical Account of Jericho

Khalid Elhassan May 16, 2025 16 min

Jericho - Depiction of the Old Testament's description of Jericho's walls miraculously falling down — Depiction of the Old Testament's description of Jericho's walls miraculously falling down. Pinterest

10. Cursing the City

Jericho - Burning Jericho — Burning Jericho. K-Pics

Jericho was placed under a curse – Joshua declared that anyone who tried to rebuild it would do so at great personal cost. The fall of Jericho is symbolic in several ways. It demonstrates God’s power to intervene in human affairs and deliver victory through faith and obedience, rather than brute force. The Israelites’ success was not due to military strength but to their trust in God’s commands.

The story emphasizes that victory belongs to the Lord and that faithfulness and courage are rewarded. Rahab’s inclusion in the story highlights the theme of redemption. Though she was not an Israelite and had a questionable social status, her faith and actions earned her a place among God’s people. She later appears in the genealogy of Jesus Christ in the New Testament, Matthew 1:5, making her story also significant in Christian tradition.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.