Joshua

Y'hoshua said to 'Akhan, "My son, swear to ADONAI, the God of Isra'el, that you will tell the truth and confess to him. Tell me, now, what did you do? Don't hide anything from me."

'Akhan answered Y'hoshua, "It is true: I have sinned against ADONAI, the God of Isra'el. Here is exactly what I did:

Y'hoshua sent messengers, who ran to the tent. It was all there, hidden in his tent, including the silver underneath.

They took the things from inside the tent, brought them to Y'hoshua and all the people of Isra'el, and put them down before ADONAI.

Y'hoshua, together with all Isra'el, took 'Akhan, the son of Zerach, with the silver, the robe, the gold wedge, his sons, his daughters, his cattle, his donkeys, his sheep, his tent, and everything he had, and brought them up to the Akhor Valley.

Y'hoshua said, "Why have you brought trouble on us? Today ADONAI will bring trouble on you!" Then all Isra'el stoned him to death; they burned them to ashes and stoned them.

ADONAI said to Y'hoshua, "Don't be afraid or fall into despair! Take all the people who can fight with you, set out, and go up to 'Ai; because now I have handed over to you the king of 'Ai, his people, his city and his land.

So Y'hoshua set out for 'Ai with all the people who could fight. Y'hoshua chose 30,000 men, the most courageous of his troops, and sent them out by night.

Y'hoshua sent them out; and they went to the place for the ambush, staying between Beit-El and 'Ai, to the west of 'Ai; while Y'hoshua camped that night with the people.

Y'hoshua got up early in the morning, mustered his men and went up to 'Ai ahead of the people, he and the leaders of Isra'el .

Thus the people arrayed themselves, with all the army to the north of the city, and their rearguard lying in wait to the west of the city. Y'hoshua spent that night in the valley.

Y'hoshua and all Isra'el made as if they had been defeated before them and ran off on the road to the desert.

All the people in 'Ai were summoned together to pursue them, so they chased Y'hoshua and were drawn away from the city.

Then ADONAI said to Y'hoshua, "Point the spear in your hand toward 'Ai, because I will hand it over to you." Y'hoshua pointed the spear in his hand toward the city.

When Y'hoshua and all Isra'el saw that the ambush had captured the city and that the smoke of the city was going up, they turned back and slaughtered the men of 'Ai;

But they took the king of 'Ai alive and brought him to Y'hoshua.

For Y'hoshua did not withdraw his hand, which he had used to point the spear, until he had utterly destroyed all the inhabitants of 'Ai.

Only the livestock and the spoil of that city did Isra'el take as booty for themselves, in keeping with the order ADONAI had given Y'hoshua.

So Y'hoshua burned down 'Ai and turned it into a tel forever, so that it remains a ruin to this day.

The king of 'Ai he hanged on a tree until evening; at sundown Y'hoshua gave an order, so they took his carcass down from the tree, threw it at the entrance of the city gate and piled on it a big heap of stones, which is there to this day.

Then Y'hoshua built an altar to ADONAI, the God of Isra'el, on Mount 'Eival,

There was not a word of everything Moshe had ordered that Y'hoshua did not read before all Isra'el assembled, including the women, the little ones and the foreigners living with them.

they joined forces to fight together against Y'hoshua and Isra'el.

But when the inhabitants of Giv'ah heard what Y'hoshua had done to Yericho and 'Ai,

Then they went to Y'hoshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and the men of Isra'el, "We have come from a country far away. Now, make a covenant with us."