Imagine. . .The Fall of Jericho Read online

  They had gone on vacation, and his dad said he was going to make Jake ride the coaster to force him to face his fear. The whole debacle of plunging down an insane three-story drop and then around two inverted loops in a tiny car only served to solidify Jake’s terror of being anywhere off the ground. Jake tried facing his fear that day but lost the fight.

  A loud sound like thunder boomed up over the stone walls. Jake jumped in response. “What in the world was that?”

  Dair stared at Jake. “What are you called?”

  “My name is Jake. Jake Henry.”

  “Well, Jakehenry. That noise is the sound of the city gates closing. There is a threat to our safety out on the plains. Come here.” Dair stepped to the edge of the walkway. “Look.”

  Jake forced himself to stand next to Dair. His legs felt weak with the fear of being up so high. He looked down and saw a sea of people flooding the plain. Thousands and thousands marching toward the city. He thought about the Bible story. The Israelites marched against Jericho. Yes, they marched around the city once a day for six days, and on the seventh day …

  This whole city is going to be destroyed!

  “Have they marched around your city at all?” Jake had to know where he was on the timeline of events.

  “They have not,” Levi answered. “Until now, they’ve just stayed out there on the plain.”

  Jake was trapped.

  The gates were shut.

  And there was no way out.

  CHAPTER 3

  There were thousands of men holding weapons. Even though he was so high up, Jake could see that the men in front of the procession were dressed in robes and carrying horns. Behind them, there was something that looked like a big golden box. It was so shiny that it appeared to be glowing. Jake thought about the story and remembered that that was the ark of the covenant! The presence of God.

  “Listen, Dair. I need to tell you something.”

  “What?”

  “We need to get out of here.”

  “Why? This is Jericho. Nothing’s going to happen to this city.”

  Jake considered his options, but there weren’t any others. All he could do was warn Dair. “That army down there …”

  “What about it?”

  “They’re going to march around your city for six days and then—”

  Dair looked at Jake with wide eyes. “Then what?”

  “Then on the seventh day, the whole city is going to be destroyed.”

  Dair laughed.

  “I’m serious. On the seventh day, all the walls are going to collapse and that army is going to take over the city. Everyone is going to be wiped out.”

  “Do you know how crazy that sounds?”

  “I know, but you have to believe me. I don’t understand what I’m doing here, but you—and everyone in this city—are in big trouble.”

  Dair placed a hand on Jake’s shoulder. “I don’t know what you’re doing here either, but I have to go now.”

  Jake still had questions. “Can you at least help me get out of here?”

  “Even if I did get you out, there’s no way you’d survive out there in the wilderness.”

  “Maybe if I get back to the same spot I was out on the plain, I can get back to my time.”

  Dair smiled. “Come on.”

  He took off toward the opening they had just come out of, and Jake followed.

  But before they got to the door, a giant man stepped from the shadows of the doorway, blocking their path.

  Dair tried to change directions, but the man was too fast. His hand shot out and grabbed Dair’s shirt. “I am very sad that you wanted to leave our family.”

  Jake couldn’t believe how tall the man was.

  “Who’s your new friend? Is he the reason you ran away?” The man dragged Dair across the top of the stone wall until they were both inches away from Jake.

  Jake looked for a way out. He started to run down the wall, away from the giant man, but a second man wielding a sword stepped onto the wall, blocking his escape. Jake was in a pickle.

  The man kept his hand on Dair. “Who are you?”

  Jake noticed the man’s eyes. The irises seemed to spark, like green circles of electricity. “I’m Jake.”

  “Hello, Jake. I’m really glad you’re here.” The words weren’t all the way out of his mouth when Jake felt a powerful hand grab him. “You will make a perfect addition to the family.”

  Jake tried to resist, but the man was too powerful.

  The man dragged both boys off the wall, through the same opening they came through earlier, and down the long flight of stone stairs. When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Dair told his captor to let Jake go. “He doesn’t belong here.”

  The sinister man grinned. “All the more reason for Ka’nah to meet him. Let’s go.”

  He pulled the boys out of the dark passage into the light. Jake looked around and saw groups of people gathered and talking to one another. Behind the people were stands, displaying all kinds of foods that Jake guessed were fruit.

  How come no one is trying to stop this guy? Can’t they see we don’t want to go with him?

  Jake tried to think of a way to escape the man’s clutches. Why wasn’t Dair yelling for help? Well, he could!

  “Help!”

  But instead of answering Jake’s plea, the people just stared at him and then turned back to their discussions.

  “Young man, please don’t waste your breath or time. Everyone in this city is on my side because I serve Ka’nah. Even the king does my—”

  Before the evil one could finish his thought, a wooden cane flew in and struck the man’s arm that was holding Jake.

  “RUN!”

  Jake looked down and saw that the man had let go of him, but not Dair. He didn’t have time to stand around. “Dair, I’ll come back and get you. Hang in there!”

  Before the evil one could stop him, Jake took off running.

  Jake saw that the sun was a lot lower in the sky now. He had to have been running for more than an hour. He didn’t think Jericho was that big, but it must have been, because he was still inside the walls.

  He blinked, half hoping that the lake and campground would now be in front of him. The other half of his hope knew better and wasn’t surprised when his eyes opened to the massive walls of Jericho, still rising all around him. Strangely, Jake didn’t feel fear—that unworthy sensation borne from a lack of confidence—at the idea of having to rescue Dair. Rather, the opposite was true. Jake felt strength flow through his veins as he thought about his purpose here. He had to get his new friend out from the evil clutches of the leader named Ka’nah.

  The question was, how could one young boy outwit a grown man whose talent was reaping evil? From where Jake sat on top of the jagged roofline, he had a random thought from his fifth-grade science teacher, Mrs. Myers. She was big on slowing down and making observations. Jake remembered a day last fall. Mrs. Myers came into class wearing a firefighter outfit. When the kids asked her why she was dressed that way, she said she wanted to talk about making observations.

  She said it was very easy to take things around us for granted, even crazy things such as fire hydrants. She asked the class to write down how many fire hydrants they thought there were between their homes and the school. They all wrote down their guesses. Jake couldn’t remember seeing any but guessed two. He remembered Mrs. Myers giving the class a brief lecture on how fires were fought in the early days. There were bucket brigades that would move water from cisterns to the site of the fire, one bucket at a time. It was, according to Mrs. Myers, very tedious. She said that sometime around 1801, the fire hydrant was invented.

  The next day, the class reported back their findings. All the kids were blown away by just how many fire hydrants they saw once they actually paid attention and were looking for them.

  Because of Mrs. Myers, Jake forced himself to look past the obvious and make deep observations of the city he had been trapped in. Jericho.

&nbs
p; How was he supposed to figure out where Dair was? After a good long while of taking mental notes of the paths he’d taken and the different types of structures he’d seen, Jake was more frustrated now than he was earlier when his new friend had been captured. There simply wasn’t a way for Jake to know where Dair had been taken.

  Unless …

  He had to talk to Levi. The old man would know whether his idea would work. After all, he had saved Jake with one stroke of a cane.

  Jake ran back through the twists and turns of the city, headed to Levi’s. He wished he knew what Ka’nah looked like so he could keep his eye out for him, but Jake had to have faith that he was here for a reason. God, please help me get to Levi’s house without getting caught.

  Jake navigated the stone streets and narrow passages between buildings that loomed over him like a slumbering dragon. Careful not to stir the beast, Jake hurried through Jericho always looking over his shoulder for fear of getting caught. Eventually he made his way to the old man’s house, sat down on the stoop, and waited.

  Time passed, along with many people.

  At sunset, Levi returned. He noticed Jake sitting on the stone porch and waved.

  Jake stood to greet him. “Will you help me?”

  “Of course, child. Haven’t I already helped?” Levi shuffled past Jake and led him into a very primitive home. “I will tell you right now, you will not be able to beat Ka’nah. Many before you have tried, but none were successful.”

  “I have to try.”

  Levi nodded in approval. “Yes, young Jake Henry. That’s all any of us can do.”

  Jake shared his idea with the old man. “I can wear a cloak like the people who bring in the daily fruit supply. I’ll hide a second cloak at the bottom of my fruit basket. Once I’m in, I’ll find Dair and give him the extra cloak.”

  Levi looked at Jake.

  “We’ll walk right out the front gate.”

  Levi walked away and came back a few minutes later with a handful of small brown fruit. “We must do it quickly. I was followed. It won’t be long before Ka’nah’s men come looking for us.”

  “What about my idea? Do you think it will work?”

  “It might, but you’ll need a miracle to help you.”

  CHAPTER 4

  The old man shuffled across the dirt floor of his modest stone dwelling. He took a date from the handful he had been carrying and offered it to Jake.

  Jake took the fruit and was surprised at how sweet it tasted.

  Levi ate a date himself and then stood at his entryway. He looked out at the city as he spoke.

  “Ka’nah was known as a gibbor, one of great might. Like the great fortress walls you see outside that make up our city, young Ka’nah spoke powerful words to the people and made them believe he was some sort of messiah.”

  Jake couldn’t believe what was happening to him. He wondered what was happening back at camp. He was a little freaked out that he was somehow experiencing this old Bible story, but he felt comfortable here in Jericho nonetheless.

  “Would you like another date?” Levi was still facing out toward the city.

  Jake didn’t want to be rude, but he really would be okay if he never ate another. “No, thank you.”

  Now Levi turned around to face his guest. “Ka’nah’s parents were poor. They always had to work hard to afford even the smallest meal, and then they became very sick and passed away. This forced Ka’nah to live on the streets. He somehow found enough food to survive.”

  Jake stood and met Levi in the doorway. “I don’t mean to be rude, but your entire city is going to be destroyed. I don’t think we should stay here. We need to find a way to get Dair, and then we need to leave.”

  Levi laughed. “Son, nothing’s going to happen to Jericho.” He shuffled out into the sunlight. Jake followed reluctantly. He wondered if it was a bad move coming here to get the man’s help.

  “Sir, it’s true. Did you see those people marching around the city earlier today? They’re going to march around it for the next six days. On the seventh day, they’ll march around it seven times and then the people will shout and all these walls are going to fall.”

  “You know how ridiculous that sounds, right?”

  Jake thought about it from Levi’s perspective. It did sound ridiculous.

  “Young man, I saw the people marching, but I also see you. So, what is clear to me is that you’ve been sent to save us from them.”

  Jake had to try to convince the guy he was wrong. “Sir—”

  “Just Levi.”

  “Okay. Levi.”

  “Go on.” The old man moved his weathered right hand in a circular motion like Jake had done in science class. Mrs. Myers called it wafting.

  “I’m not here to protect you from the people walking around your city. In fact, I have no idea how I got here or why I’m here. The only thing I do know is that those folks are going to march around the walls seven times in a few days….”

  Levi lifted both hands.

  Jake stopped talking. He used the pause to recall more details from the Jericho story.

  “Boy, where are you coming up with these bizarre ideas?”

  “The Bible.”

  “The what?”

  Jake gave a brief description of the Bible and waited for the information to sink in.

  “Even though I have never heard of a Bible, it’s disturbing how you claim to know future events.” Levi looked shocked. “Young man, if you’re not here to stop the crowd marching, then maybe you’ve been sent to put an end to Ka’nah.”

  Jake closed his eyes for a second. When he opened them, Levi had turned to face him. “Sir, uh, I mean, Levi. I really have no idea what I’m doing here. I did feel a connection to Dair. Dair got captured by Ka’nah, and I want to help get him out.”

  “Okay,” Levi said. “Let me finish telling you about my old friend and maybe we can come up with a plan to get Dair back.”

  Jake listened as his new mentor talked about how Ka’nah went from stealing food to survive to stealing food to thrive. He listened as Levi explained how Ka’nah gathered other street kids to steal for him, eventually giving them part of his growing cache.

  “He came to me one night right here and took me to the edge of the city wall. He knew I was poor, and he wanted to help me. I let him for a while, but then I saw how the wealth was changing him. Ka’nah quickly became selfish and arrogant. Soon the joke was, even though our city had an appointed king, everyone knew who the real king was.”

  Jake didn’t know how all this was going to help get Dair rescued. He waited patiently as Levi recounted more facts about Ka’nah’s descent into a life of darkness. Then, when Jake was sure the old man would keep talking forever, he stopped and asked a question.

  “Young Jake, do you think you have a purpose in life?”

  “Uh, I guess.”

  “Do you believe you were created for a reason?”

  “I don’t know. Back home, I’m nobody. People ignore me. I’m not looking for a pity party, it just doesn’t feel too good.”

  “That’s a lot coming from someone as young as yourself. No one is a mistake. Do you understand me?”

  Jake raised his eyes, shocked at how animated Levi had become. “Yes, sir. But, like I said, I came to you for help rescuing Dair. After that, I need your help getting out of this city, because in a few days this whole place is going to be destroyed, and I’d rather be far away from here when that happens.”

  Levi lifted his hands and put them on either side of Jake’s face. “If this place is going to be destroyed, why bother trying to save Dair?”

  “Well, after I save him, I was hoping you could get all three of us out of here before it all falls apart.”

  “I’ve got an even better idea. Why don’t we help all the kids escape?”

  Jake loved the idea. “Like Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad.”

  “What?”

  “Never mind.”

  “Okay, it’s late, an
d you need to sleep. I will stay up and perfect your plan to get you into Ka’nah’s compound. I’ll also think about how we can get all the kids out, and then I’ll show you how to get out of the city.”

  “Thank you!”

  Jake felt like a new person here in Jericho. Here he had a friend, and here he had a purpose. He held an ounce of worry about not being able to get back to camp, but it wasn’t overwhelming. Here in Jericho, Jake felt like he mattered.

  Levi led him to a spot where Jake got down on the floor and put his head on a folded quilt. God, thank You for being with me and giving me a friend. Thank You for Levi. Please help me get Dair. In Jesus’ name.

  Trying to go to sleep was hard. Jake was excited that, even though it took coming to this faraway place, he finally felt like he had a purpose. He loved feeling connected to Levi and Dair. He embraced the feeling of not being alone anymore!

  He could stay in Jericho forever but knew this place wouldn’t be around too much longer. He hoped for some much-needed sleep and courage to rescue Dair and the others.

  He wondered what was going on back at camp. Were the counselors looking for him? Did anyone care? How long had he been gone? Would they have called his parents by now? Was time the same here in Jericho as it was back home? The endless flood of questions filled Jake’s mind, and at last it made him sleepy. At some point, he gave up questioning things and gave in to the weariness that had overtaken his body.

  Lord, please watch over me.

  Help me get home.

  Amen.

  CHAPTER 5

  Jake opened his eyes. Dream fragments danced in his head. They were like scrambled puzzle pieces just dumped out of the box, begging to be sorted and put together to display the picture they were meant to show.

  He started sorting….