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

1
But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing: for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed thing: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against the children of Israel. ​
2
And Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is beside Bethaven, on the east side of Bethel, and spake unto them, saying, Go up and view the country. And the men went up and viewed Ai. ​
3
And they returned to Joshua, and said unto him, Let not all the people go up; but let about two or three thousand men go up and smite Ai; and make not all the people to labour thither; for they are but few. ​
4
So there went up thither of the people about three thousand men: and they fled before the men of Ai.
5
And the men of Ai smote of them about thirty and six men: for they chased them from before the gate even unto Shebarim, and smote them in the going down: wherefore the hearts of the people melted, and became as water. ​

Joshua's Lament and Intercession

6
And Joshua rent his clothes, and fell to the earth upon his face before the ark of the LORD until the eventide, he and the elders of Israel, and put dust upon their heads. ​
7
And Joshua said, Alas, O Lord GOD, wherefore hast thou at all brought this people over Jordan, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? would to God we had been content, and dwelt on the other side Jordan! ​
8
O Lord, what shall I say, when Israel turneth their backs before their enemies!
9
For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land shall hear of it, and shall environ us round, and cut off our name from the earth: and what wilt thou do unto thy great name? ​

God Reveals the Sin and Commands Action

10
And the LORD said unto Joshua, Get thee up; wherefore liest thou thus upon thy face? ​
11
Israel hath sinned, and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them: for they have even taken of the accursed thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and they have put it even among their own stuff. ​
12
Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they were accursed: neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you. ​
13
Up, sanctify the people, and say, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow: for thus saith the LORD God of Israel, There is an accursed thing in the midst of thee, O Israel: thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you. ​
14
In the morning therefore ye shall be brought according to your tribes: and it shall be, that the tribe which the LORD taketh shall come according to the families thereof; and the family which the LORD shall take shall come by households; and the household which the LORD shall take shall come man by man. ​
15
And it shall be, that he that is taken with the accursed thing shall be burnt with fire, he and all that he hath: because he hath transgressed the covenant of the LORD, and because he hath wrought folly in Israel. ​

The Identification and Confession of Achan

16
So Joshua rose up early in the morning, and brought Israel by their tribes; and the tribe of Judah was taken:
17
And he brought the family of Judah; and he took the family of the Zarhites: and he brought the family of the Zarhites man by man; and Zabdi was taken:
18
And he brought his household man by man; and Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken.
19
And Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the LORD God of Israel, and make confession unto him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me. ​
20
And Achan answered Joshua, and said, Indeed I have sinned against the LORD God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done:
21
When I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it. ​
22
So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran unto the tent; and, behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it.
23
And they took them out of the midst of the tent, and brought them unto Joshua, and unto all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the LORD.
24
And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor. ​
25
And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the LORD shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones. ​
26
And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the LORD turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto 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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