יהושע, פרק ו׳, פסוק ט״ו

The arrival of the seventh day marks the climax of the siege of Jericho, demanding a level of preparation entirely different from the preceding six days. This momentous day is identified as the Sabbath [רש״י]. Activity began earlier than usual, at the very first glimmer of light in the eastern sky just before sunrise [מצודת ציון]. This early start was driven by a practical necessity. The Israelites had to complete a long and demanding journey of multiple circuits around the city, requiring significantly more time than they had needed on previous days [מצודת דוד, אברבנאל].

The events of the day highlight two distinct aspects of the number seven, a figure representing holiness and completion [מלבי״ם]. First, the morning began with a single circuit performed in the exact same customary manner as the days before [מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. This solitary round was significant because it finalized a continuous sequence of seven days in which the city had been circled exactly once daily [רד״ק, מלבי״ם, אברבנאל].

However, unlike the previous days where the people rested after a single round, the march continued specifically on this day [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. After finishing that initial morning circuit, they did not halt. Instead, they added six more continuous rounds, ultimately circling the city a total of seven times on that final day alone [רד״ק, מלבי״ם, אברבנאל].