In his days Hiel the Bethelite built Jericho; he laid its foundations with the loss of Abiram his firstborn, and set up its gates with the loss of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.Joshua spoke that curse, what, two or three centuries before this point? All that time, and God still held that city to be condemned. Here was someone who decided to rebuild Jericho, and God kept his promise. He is always faithful, even when we really, really wish he wouldn't be.
However, one thing I do wonder is whether Hiel even knew about the curse? Israel has pretty much turned its back on God, so might the curse have been lost? (I guess I should have looked up first with country Bethel is in, but I assume from the placement in the text that it was Israel, not Judah.) Could he have lost his sons to a curse he didn't even know existed? If so, it is his people's fault, as well as his own, but that doesn't make the curse any less valid.
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