Heb. cherem. This noun can also be translated “a thing” or “a person devoted” either to destruction or to sacred use, and therefore excluded from common use (Lev. 27:28, 29). The noun comes from the verb charam, which means “to shut up” or “to seclude.” Jericho was to be under a ban, with none of its wealth to be devoted to personal use, and all of its living things utterly devoted to destruction. Its metals were to be consecrated to the Lord and brought into His treasury. Jericho was the first fruits of Israel’s conquest, and perhaps in this sense also, dedicated to God.