Depending upon the restructuring of the last sentence in verse 4, they may need to be rendered “the priests.” In fact the first sentence of this verse may need to be made more explicit: “When everyone has marched around the city seven times, the priests are to sound one long note on their trumpets.”

As soon as you hear it, all the men are … may need to be translated “As soon as you and the men hear it, all of them are…” or “… all of you are….”

It may be more effective to indicate the fall of the city walls by a new sentence: “The city walls will collapse, and the whole army will go straight into the city.” The whole army is the same group as all the men, and some languages may require clear identification. The Hebrew is something like Revised Standard Version, “and the people shall go up every man straight before him,” which seems to focus more upon the individuals within the groups than upon the group acting together. Accordingly the text may be translated, “Then the walls will collapse, and every man can go up into the city from the place where he happens to be standing.”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Newman, Barclay M. A Handbook on Joshua. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .