Did the Battle of Jericho happen at all?

The spectacular fall of Jericho’s walls in Joshua 6 ranks as one of the most memorable stories in the Old Testament. It stands alongside epic tales like the parting of the Red Sea and the battle between David and Goliath. But many consider the description of events in the book of Joshua a litmus test for the Bible’s historical fallibility.

The modern debate over Jericho’s historicity has raged for decades. It’s a complex battleground with strategic assaults from multiple perspectives. Archaeology and chronology are on the controversy’s frontlines.


The Biblical Account

To understand the conflict, we need a clear picture of the chronology of events as recorded in the Bible. Following the exodus from Egypt, Joshua replaced Moses as Israel’s leader (Num 27:18–23; Deut 317–8). He led the conquest of Jericho. According to 1 Kings 6:1, the fourth year of King Solomon’s reign marked 480 years since the exodus.

Solomon’s fourth year is commonly dated to 966 BC, which places the Exodus in 1446 BC (known as the “early” date).1 Israel would have arrived at Sinai a few months later.

According to the Pentateuch, they spent 13 months there before venturing to the promised land, where their spiritual failures prompted God to sentence them to wander the desert for forty years (Num 10:11; 14:26–33). About forty years later Israel once again prepared to enter the land under Joshua (Deut 2:14). This literal reading of the chronology, particularly 1 Kings 6:1, places the fall of Jericho around 1400 BC.


The Archaeological View

Since the mid-20th century, many archaeologists who focus on the biblical world have argued that it is impossible to reconcile the timeline of the biblical account with archaeological data. They argue that (1) Jericho was destroyed in 1250 BC, but the city had no walls; (2) there was no walled city in 1400 BC when the book of Joshua reports Jericho’s walls falling—in fact the city was unoccupied; and (3) there is little evidence of a broader Israelite conquest of Canaan in 1250 BC.

These archaeologists claim the evidence for Jericho’s fall points to date nearly 200 years later—around 1250 BC, near the end of the Late Bronze Age (1550–1200 BC). Archaeological work on Jericho has shown that the city was uninhabited from 1550 BC to about 1300 BC.

Furthermore, the archaeological record shows the city had no walls, which contradicts (and, they argue, corrects) archaeological work conducted in the early 20th century that revealed burned walls dating to around 1400 BC (see Josh 7:24). However, later research re-dated those walls much earlier than where the literal chronology of the Bible places the destruction of Jericho. Furthermore, the archaeological record of other cities allegedly conquered by Joshua shows no sign of destruction.3


The View from Another Bunker

Yet, other evidence mars this argument. Pottery from Jericho dating to around 1400 BC, apparently ignored or unrecognized by some archaeologists, does indeed exist.

The same can be said for city walls, specifically walls that had collapsed, not broken down into the city. Egyptian scarabs found in Jericho cemeteries etched with names of pharaohs who reigned from the 1700s through the 1300s BC, contradict the claim that the city was unoccupied in 1400 BC. The level of the city (Jericho IV) corresponding to the 1400 BC date shows evidence of sudden siege. The biblical account says Joshua’s attack took place in early spring, after the harvest (Josh 2:6; 3:15; 4:9; 5:10).

Several large storage jars still full of harvested food were found among the ruins in level IV.

Furthermore, the conquest account in Joshua does not say that all the cities taken by Israel were destroyed or burned. In many instances, the account merely says the inhabitants were “driven out” and the cities occupied by Israelites. This would explain the lack of evidence of Canaanite cities being destroyed. Consequently, some archaeologists still argue for the integrity of the biblical account according to the literal chronological reading that renders the early (1446 BC) date for the exodus and a 1400 BC conquest.


The Figurative View

Some biblical scholars present a third option. They lobby for the accuracy of the Joshua account but are content to go with the 1250 BC date held by most archaeologists—arguing that the archaeological record is consistent with military campaigns described in Joshua since the book describes the destruction of only particular sites.5 In this view, the 480 years of 1 Kings 6:1—which supplies a chronology for the exodus—is taken as a figurative number, not a literal one. The 480 years described in this passage are divisible by 40 (12 × 40).

The number 40 occurs more than 100 times in the Old Testament. The reigns of many judges and kings seem to be 40 years, and so scholars suspect that the number is a deliberate marker for a generation or transition (e.g., Judges 3:11, 31; 8:28; 1 Sam 4:18; 2 Sam 2:10; 5:4; 1 Kgs 2:11; 11:42). As a result, the dates of the exodus and conquest may be flexible.

It’s important to remember that, while the battle over Jericho still rages, it’s not a death match for biblical inerrancy.


Heiser, M. S. (2017). The Bible Unfiltered: Approaching Scripture on Its Own Terms (pp. 87–90). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.