Joshua7

After the victory at Jericho, Israel suffered a defeat at Ai, causing Joshua great distress. The LORD revealed that this setback was due to a trespass: Achan had secretly taken accursed spoils from Jericho, violating God's command. Following divine instruction, Achan was identified and confessed his sin. He was subsequently stoned and burned with his family and possessions in the Valley of Achor, thus appeasing the LORD's anger.

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Achan's Sin and Defeat at Ai

The Israelites, however, acted unfaithfully regarding the things devoted to destruction. Achan son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of what was set apart. So the anger of the LORD burned against the Israelites.

Meanwhile, Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven to the east of Bethel, and told them, “Go up and spy out the land.” So the men went up and spied out Ai.

On returning to Joshua, they reported, “There is no need to send all the people; two or three thousand men are enough to go up and attack Ai. Since the people of Ai are so few, you need not wear out all our people there.”

So about three thousand men went up, but they fled before the men of Ai.

And the men of Ai struck down about thirty-six of them, chasing them from the gate as far as the quarries and striking them down on the slopes. So the hearts of the people melted and became like water.

Joshua's Lament and Intercession

Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown before the ark of the LORD until evening, as did the elders of Israel; and they all sprinkled dust on their heads.

“O, Lord GOD,” Joshua said, “why did You ever bring this people across the Jordan to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites to be destroyed? If only we had been content to stay on the other side of the Jordan!

O Lord, what can I say, now that Israel has turned its back and run from its enemies?

When the Canaanites and all who live in the land hear about this, they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. Then what will You do for Your great name?”

God Reveals the Sin and Commands Action

But the LORD said to Joshua, “Stand up! Why have you fallen on your face?

Israel has sinned; they have transgressed My covenant that I commanded them, and they have taken some of what was devoted to destruction. Indeed, they have stolen and lied, and they have put these things with their own possessions.

This is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies. They will turn their backs and run from their enemies, because they themselves have been set apart for destruction. I will no longer be with you unless you remove from among you whatever is devoted to destruction.

Get up and consecrate the people, saying, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: Among you, O Israel, there are things devoted to destruction. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove them.

In the morning you must present yourselves tribe by tribe. The tribe that the LORD selects shall come forward clan by clan, and the clan that the LORD selects shall come forward family by family, and the family that the LORD selects shall come forward man by man.

The one who is caught with the things devoted to destruction must be burned, along with all that belongs to him, because he has transgressed the covenant of the LORD and committed an outrage in Israel.’”

The Identification and Confession of Achan

So Joshua arose early the next morning and had Israel come forward tribe by tribe, and the tribe of Judah was selected.

He had the clans of Judah come forward, and the clan of the Zerahites was selected. He had the clan of the Zerahites come forward, and the family of Zabdi was selected.

And he had the family of Zabdi come forward man by man, and Achan son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was selected.

So Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the LORD, the God of Israel, and make a confession to Him. I urge you to tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me.”

“It is true,” Achan replied, “I have sinned against the LORD, the God of Israel. This is what I did:

When I saw among the spoils a beautiful cloak from Shinar, two hundred shekels of silver, and a bar of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. They are hidden in the ground inside my tent, with the silver underneath.”

So Joshua sent messengers who ran to the tent, and there it all was, hidden in his tent, with the silver underneath.

They took the things from inside the tent, brought them to Joshua and all the Israelites, and spread them out before the LORD.

Then Joshua, together with all Israel, took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the cloak, the bar of gold, his sons and daughters, his oxen and donkeys and sheep, his tent, and everything else he owned, and brought them to the Valley of Achor.

“Why have you brought this trouble upon us?” said Joshua. “Today the LORD will bring trouble upon you!” And all Israel stoned him to death. Then they stoned the others and burned their bodies.

And they heaped over Achan a large pile of rocks that remains to this day. So the LORD turned from His burning anger. Therefore that place is called the Valley of Achor to this day.

Study Notes for Joshua 7

Verse 1

The term 'accursed thing' (Hebrew: *ḥērem*) refers to the spoils of Jericho that were devoted entirely to God for destruction or placement in the sanctuary treasury. Achan’s transgression constituted a covenant violation and theft from God, resulting in corporate guilt for the whole community.

Verse 2

Ai was a small but strategically important city about ten miles northwest of Jericho. The initial plan was to test the defenses of Ai before committing the full army.

Verse 3

The scouts’ advice, based purely on human assessment of Ai's size, reflects overconfidence. They failed to recognize that success depended entirely on God’s presence, which had been withdrawn due to Achan’s sin.

Verse 5

The loss of thirty-six men was devastating, not just militarily, but psychologically. The phrase 'hearts... melted, and became as water' indicates deep fear, mirroring the despair the Canaanites felt toward Israel (Josh 2:11) and highlighting the reversal of Israel's spiritual advantage.

Verse 6

Rending clothes, falling before the Ark, and placing dust on the head were traditional signs of profound mourning, humiliation, and desperate intercession, indicating Joshua understood the defeat as a spiritual catastrophe.

Verse 7

Joshua’s lament, common in biblical prayer, questions God’s purpose in bringing them across the Jordan only to suffer defeat. He is struggling to reconcile God's promise of victory with the reality of failure.

Verse 9

Joshua appeals to God's 'great name,' arguing that Israel's destruction would dishonor the Lord among the surrounding nations. This echoes Moses' theological argument that God must preserve Israel for the sake of His own reputation.

Verse 10

God abruptly halts Joshua's lament, indicating that the time for mourning is over and the time for action and purification has begun. The defeat was not a failure of God's power but a violation of His covenant.

Verse 11

God diagnoses the problem as communal guilt resulting from individual transgression. Achan sinned three ways: he took the accursed thing, he stole, and he dissembled (lied) by hiding it secretly among his own property.

Verse 12

Israel could not stand because they themselves had become 'accursed' (*ḥērem*) by harboring the forbidden thing. God’s presence, which guaranteed victory, was contingent upon Israel’s holiness and obedience.

Verse 13

The command to 'sanctify yourselves' requires ritual cleansing and spiritual preparation, emphasizing that the people must be holy to properly execute God's judgment and remove the defilement.

Verse 14

The process of identification moves systematically from the general to the specific (tribe, family, household, man). This public, methodical selection confirmed that the culprit was identified by divine, authoritative means.

Verse 15

The phrase 'wrought folly in Israel' refers to a severe, public moral offense that undermines the community’s integrity. The prescribed punishment of burning signifies the complete removal of the defilement from the camp.

Verse 19

Joshua urges Achan to 'give glory to the LORD' by confessing his sin before judgment is executed. A full, truthful confession acknowledges God's omniscience and justice (cf. 1 Sam 6:5).

Verse 21

Achan’s confession reveals that his sin began with covetousness ('When I saw... then I coveted them'). The items—a rich Babylonian garment, silver, and gold—represented high material value, prioritizing personal gain over covenant obedience.

Verse 24

Achan's entire household and possessions were included in the judgment. This reflects the ancient principle of corporate solidarity in cases of severe covenant violation, where the family shared responsibility for the actions of its head.

Verse 25

Joshua uses wordplay: Achan (which sounds like the Hebrew root *‘akar*) means 'troubler.' Achan troubled Israel through his sin, and now the LORD troubles him through judgment. Stoning was the common method of execution for high offenses, followed by burning to signify purification.

Verse 26

The heap of stones served as a permanent memorial and warning. The name 'Valley of Achor' (Valley of Trouble) memorializes the consequence of disobedience, confirming that the judgment satisfied divine justice and restored God's relationship with Israel.

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Joshua7

Achan's Sin and Defeat at Ai

Joshua's Lament and Intercession

God Reveals the Sin and Commands Action

The Identification and Confession of Achan

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