Yehoshua 6:18

18 And ye, be shomer to keep yourselves from the cherem, lest ye make yourselves cherem, when ye take of the cherem, and make the Machaneh Yisroel cherem, and trouble it.

Yehoshua 6:18 Meaning and Commentary

Joshua 6:18

And you in any wise keep [yourselves] from the accursed
thing
From laying hold on, secreting, and enjoying as their own, what was devoted to another use:

lest ye make [yourselves] accursed;
or a "cherem", also devoted to destruction:

when ye take of the accursed thing;
any part of it, be it what it will, gold or any other metal, or raiment, and the like:

and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it;
for being done secretly, and not known who did it, the whole body of the people would be chargeable with it, and suffer on account of it, unless discovered and punished, and as more fully appears by an after instance.

Yehoshua 6:18 In-Context

16 And it came to pass on the Shevi’it, when the Kohanim sounded the shoferot, Yehoshua said unto HaAm, Shout; for Hashem hath given you the Ir.

17 And the Ir shall be cherem, even it, and all that are therein, to Hashem; only Rachav the zonah shall live, she and all that are with her in the bais, because she hid the malachim that we sent.

18 And ye, be shomer to keep yourselves from the cherem, lest ye make yourselves cherem, when ye take of the cherem, and make the Machaneh Yisroel cherem, and trouble it.

19 But all the kesef, zahav, and vessels of nechoshet and barzel, are kodesh unto Hashem; they shall come into the Otzar Hashem.

20 So HaAm shouted when the Kohanim sounded the shoferot; and it came to pass, when HaAm heard the kol (sound) of the shofar, and HaAm shouted with a teruah gedolah, that the chomah fell down, so that HaAm went up into the Ir, every ish straight before him, and they took the Ir.