Chapter 7
Israel Defeated at Ai
7:1 But the people of Israel broke faith in regard to the devoted things, for Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things. And the anger of the LORD burned against the people of Israel.
This chapter opens with an ominous disclosure that one Israelite named Achan from the tribe of Judah did not heed Joshua’s warning and took some of the devoted (to destruction for God) things. Note that the disobedience of one person angered God which in turn affected all of the Israelites. We are not given much detail at this time (Achan’s sin will be revealed in verses 20-21) but since these items were in their possession, being a violation of the covenant, the Israelites had a serious problem that Joshua was unaware of.
7:2 Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven, east of Bethel, and said to them, “Go up and spy out the land.” And the men went up and spied out Ai.
The next city to be eliminated was Ai (pronounced ‘āy’ or aye like the Scottish affirmative, meaning “heap of ruins”) believed to be the ruins we can see today at et-Tell in the West Bank region, less than two miles from Bethel (modern-day Beitin) and less than nine miles from Jericho. Beth-aven translates to “house of wickedness,” whose location is unknown but the name will later be used by the prophet Hosea to describe Bethel (see Hosea 4:15; 5:8; 10:5). The reference to Beth-Aven is not recorded in the Septuagint account of this chapter. Joshua sends some men out to spy Ai, like he did earlier for Jericho.
7:3 And they returned to Joshua and said to him, “Do not have all the people go up, but let about two or three thousand men go up and attack Ai. Do not make the whole people toil up there, for they are few.”
The spies return and report that they will only need two or three thousand men to conquer Ai as their number is few (later in Joshua 8:25 we learn that the total population was 12,000). That there was no reason to send everyone to “toil up” to the city, undoubtedly due to the 3,000 plus foot elevation difference between Jericho and Ai.
7:4 So about three thousand men went up there from the people. And they fled before the men of Ai, 5 and the men of Ai killed about thirty-six of their men and chased them before the gate as far as Shebarim and struck them at the descent. And the hearts of the people melted and became as water.
Joshua sent about three-thousand men and engaged in battle, but instead of an assured victory, they were chased away losing thirty-six men in the process. The men of Ai chased them down the hill as far as Shebarim (Hebrew for stone quarries). The Israelites were devastated, rightfully so, as they quickly recognized that God was not with them. As readers, we already knew that the Israelites had a problem, but they were unaware before they went into battle.
7:6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the LORD until the evening, he and the elders of Israel. And they put dust on their heads. 7 And Joshua said, “Alas, O Lord GOD, why have you brought this people over the Jordan at all, to give us into the hands of the Amorites, to destroy us? Would that we had been content to dwell beyond the Jordan! 8 O Lord, what can I say, when Israel has turned their backs before their enemies! 9 For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear of it and will surround us and cut off our name from the earth. And what will you do for your great name?”
Upon hearing of their defeat, Joshua tore his clothes, put ashes on his head, and fell prostrate to the ground before the ark of the LORD until evening. All of the other leaders of Israel did the same. Joshua then asked God why. He asks, why would He bring them across the Jordan to suffer defeat, to destroy them? He then compromises by noting that they would have been content to live on the east side of the Jordan and asks, “What can I say now that Israel has fled from its enemies? For when the Canaanites and all the other people living in the land hear about it, they will surround us and wipe our name off the face of the earth. And then what will happen to the honor of your great name?” (Joshua 7:8-9, NLT) Perhaps understanding how Moses referenced God’s reputation in his interceding for Israel (see Exodus 32:11-13; Numbers 14:20-25) that he would try the same tactic. But Joshua still did not comprehend the nature of God, He will not violate a covenant, He cannot and will not change His mind or lie, but that is what Joshua is accusing Him of doing. Instead of looking to God as being the source of the problem, he should have asked, “What did we do wrong?”
Considerations
Hearing from God
Joshua proceeded to attack Ai without hearing from God. Prior to the battle at Jericho, Joshua was told first what to do. But we did not see in the text about any interaction between him and God before he ordered the spies to go check out Ai, nor was there any interaction before the attack was ordered. So why did Joshua proceed without hearing from God? While it is true he did receive the command to go over the Jordan and “Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you,” (Joshua 1:3, ESV) and that, “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life.”(Joshua 1:5, ESV), he still needed to be obedient to God and compliant to the covenant. We might think how could Joshua have known about what Achan did? If Joshua would have waited to hear from God, or if he were to pray, God would have told him that the covenant was already broken and to stop and fix the problem first. Prayer is essential for guidance and it is essential to wait for God’s response before proceeding.
The Sin of Achan Revealed
7:10 The LORD said to Joshua, “Get up! Why have you fallen on your face? 11 Israel has sinned; they have transgressed my covenant that I commanded them; they have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen and lied and put them among their own belongings. 12 Therefore the people of Israel cannot stand before their enemies. They turn their backs before their enemies, because they have become devoted for destruction. I will be with you no more, unless you destroy the devoted things from among you.
God tells Joshua to get up, and asks why is he laying there on his face. God tells him that it’s Israel that has sinned and is responsible for revoking the covenant, not God! He is now informed that they took some of the devoted things (belonging to God) and kept them for themselves, a violation of the covenant between them and God. And as a result, the Israelites can no longer stand before their enemies. Therefore, they have become devoted to destruction themselves. God then gave them the chilling words, “I will no longer be with you, unless you destroy what has contaminated you.” (Joshua 7:12b, NET) They have no other option than to find who is responsible, but with so many participants that were involved in the battle at Jericho, it may take some time to investigate. Mercifully, God had the answer.
7:13 Get up! Consecrate the people and say, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow; for thus says the LORD, God of Israel, “There are devoted things in your midst, O Israel. You cannot stand before your enemies until you take away the devoted things from among you.” 14 In the morning therefore you shall be brought near by your tribes. And the tribe that the LORD takes by lot shall come near by clans. And the clan that the LORD takes shall come near by households. And the household that the LORD takes shall come near man by man. 15 And he who is taken with the devoted things shall be burned with fire, he and all that he has, because he has transgressed the covenant of the LORD, and because he has done an outrageous thing in Israel.’ ”
God calls for all of Israel to consecrate themselves and in the morning of the following day they are to gather together by tribal affiliation. Then God will identify the tribe that has possession of the devoted things, then the clan, then the household, and then by the individual. The Hebrew text does not state how this process worked, some Bible versions (such as ESV and NASB) state by lot, perhaps thinking that a similar issue was resolved by lot in 1 Samuel 14:36-43 that process also applied here. According to the Bible the method of drawing (or casting) of lots is not arbitrary, as “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.” (Proverbs 16:33, ESV) Joshua is instructed that once the culprit is identified, that man and all that he has will be burned with fire for they broke the covenant by doing this outrageous act in Israel which resulted in 36 of their men being killed.
7:16 So Joshua rose early in the morning and brought Israel near tribe by tribe, and the tribe of Judah was taken. 17 And he brought near the clans of Judah, and the clan of the Zerahites was taken. And he brought near the clan of the Zerahites man by man, and Zabdi was taken. 18 And he brought near his household man by man, and Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken.
The Israelites were gathered by tribe and the tribe of Judah was identified. The clan of the Zerahites was next identified, followed by the household of Zabdi, and then to Achan, the one who took the devoted things.
7:19 Then Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the LORD God of Israel and give praise to him. And tell me now what you have done; do not hide it from me.” 20 And Achan answered Joshua, “Truly I have sinned against the LORD God of Israel, and this is what I did: 21 when I saw among the spoil a beautiful cloak from Shinar, and 200 shekels of silver, and a bar of gold weighing 50 shekels, then I coveted them and took them. And see, they are hidden in the earth inside my tent, with the silver underneath.”
Joshua tells Achan to give glory to YHWH, an appeal for him to now tell the truth. Up to this point he still had not admitted that he stole the items, it was God who revealed the truth, the glory of saving Israel from further destruction belonged to Him. He also told him to give praise to God. The Hebrew word that is translated as ‘praise’ is ṯô·ḏā(h)’, which can also be translated as ‘confession’ (as seen in CSB, KJV, NKJV, NLT, etc.) allowing the verse to read, “give glory to the LORD, the God of Israel, and make a confession to him. I urge you, tell me what you have done. Don’t hide anything from me.” (Joshua 7:19b, CSB) Achan responded by saying that he indeed sinned against YHWH and confessed that when he saw a beautiful cloak from Shinar (also known as Babylon, the cloak is believed to be a large robe variegated with the figures of men and animals interwoven in rich colors),[1] 200 shekels of silver, and a bar of gold weighing fifty shekels, he lusted after them and took them. He then told them where to find the objects, they were buried in the ground inside his tent.
7:22 So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent; and behold, it was hidden in his tent with the silver underneath. 23 And they took them out of the tent and brought them to Joshua and to all the people of Israel. And they laid them down before the LORD.
The objects were retrieved and were brought to Joshua and to the people for all to see. They laid them down before YHWH. There is no further description given for this presentation but it was likely a somber moment.
7:24 And Joshua and all Israel with him took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver and the cloak and the bar of gold, and his sons and daughters and his oxen and donkeys and sheep and his tent and all that he had. And they brought them up to the Valley of Achor.
Achan, his family, his livestock, his tent, and everything that belonged to him, as well as the stolen goods[2] were brought to the Valley of Achor, which is often identified with modern-day Buqei‘ah (or al-Buqay’a), approximately ten miles west of Qumran (see also Joshua 15:7; Isaiah 65:10; Hosea 2:15) and approximately fifteen miles from Ai. The name Achan essentially means ‘pain’ (or ’troubler’) and the same applies for the name Achor, it is interesting to note that later in the Bible we find in 1 Chronicles 2:7 that the chronicler possibly got confused and wrote ‘Achar’ for Achan’s name (most modern Bibles put in the correct name Achan in that verse).
7:25 And Joshua said, “Why did you bring trouble on us? The LORD brings trouble on you today.” And all Israel stoned him with stones. They burned them with fire and stoned them with stones. 26 And they raised over him a great heap of stones that remains to this day. Then the LORD turned from his burning anger. Therefore, to this day the name of that place is called the Valley of Achor.
In what could be considered a play on words (since Achan and Achor can be translated as troubler), Joshua first asks a rhetorical question (as Achan already answered why he did what he did) that then turns into a death sentence for Achan and his family (that being the trouble from YHWH). Some note that it is likely that his family would have known about the stolen property as Achan hid them in the ground inside their tent making them equally guilty of the crime. But even if they didn’t, as believers we need to accept the fact that there is only one judge that is truly qualified to determine what is right and what is fair, and that would be God.
All of the people of Israel together stoned Achan and his family (or at least representatives of each tribe and possibly each of the clans as it would require significant effort to arrange for every person of Israel to throw rocks at them) and they were also burned with fire. It should be noted that the burning of people is somewhat unusual for punishment (see similar in Leviticus 20:14; Joshua 15:6; 2 Samuel 23:7) but since the plunder was devoted to God, this crime would be more serious requiring both the burning and stoning. The whole family was then buried under a large mound of stones. This action satisfied God and His anger ceased. As a result of this event the valley was named the Valley of Achor.
Considerations
Names of Locations
The Bible will often refer to a city (or location) by a name before it was officially named that and refer to a people group associated to a region before they have even arrived in that region. In this chapter the Valley of Achor (meaning the “Valley of the Troubler”) was called that before it was officially named that in the last verse. It can be confusing, but there is a reason, ask yourself what would you call something before it had the name you knew it by? In the Bible, something is typically referred to by the name that it was known by the author (or by the audience). For example in Genesis 21:14 we read that Hagar was in the wilderness of Beersheba before it was named Beersheba. Since Moses wrote the book of Genesis well over 600 years after Hagar gave birth to Ishmael, names could have changed several times.
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[1] M’Clintock, J., & Strong, J. (1880). Babylo′nish Garment. In Cyclopædia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature (Vol. 1, p. 606). Harper & Brothers,
[2] Since the Septuagint and several early manuscripts do not mention the stolen cloak, the silver, and the gold being brought to the Valley of Achor in verse 24, it is likely that these words were added at a much later date and therefore it is possible that these items were not taken there.