Joshua7
New International Version
1But the Israelites were unfaithful in regard to the devoted things; Achan son of Karmi, the son of Zimri, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of them. So the Lord’s anger burned against Israel.
2Now 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 region.” So the men went up and spied out Ai.
3When they returned to Joshua, they said, “Not all the army will have to go up against Ai. Send two or three thousand men to take it and do not weary the whole army, for only a few people live there.”
4So about three thousand went up; but they were routed by the men of Ai,
5who killed about thirty-six of them. They chased the Israelites from the city gate as far as the stone quarries and struck them down on the slopes. At this the hearts of the people melted in fear and became like water.
6Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord, remaining there till evening. The elders of Israel did the same, and sprinkled dust on their heads.
7And Joshua said, “Alas, Sovereign Lord, why did you ever bring this people across the Jordan to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us? If only we had been content to stay on the other side of the Jordan!
8Pardon your servant, Lord. What can I say, now that Israel has been routed by its enemies?
9The Canaanites and the other people of the country will hear about this and they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. What then will you do for your own great name?”
10The Lord said to Joshua, “Stand up! What are you doing down on your face?
11Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenant, which I commanded them to keep. They have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen, they have lied, they have put them with their own possessions.
12That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction.
13“Go, consecrate the people. Tell them, ‘Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow; for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There are devoted things among you, Israel. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove them.
14“‘In the morning, present yourselves tribe by tribe. The tribe the Lord chooses shall come forward clan by clan; the clan the Lord chooses shall come forward family by family; and the family the Lord chooses shall come forward man by man.
15Whoever is caught with the devoted things shall be destroyed by fire, along with all that belongs to him. He has violated the covenant of the Lord and has done an outrageous thing in Israel!’”
16Early the next morning Joshua had Israel come forward by tribes, and Judah was chosen.
17The clans of Judah came forward, and the Zerahites were chosen. He had the clan of the Zerahites come forward by families, and Zimri was chosen.
18Joshua had his family come forward man by man, and Achan son of Karmi, the son of Zimri, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was chosen.
19Then Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the Lord, the God of Israel, and honor him. Tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me.”
20Achan replied, “It is true! I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel. This is what I have done:
21When I saw in the plunder a beautiful robe from Babylonia, 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.”
22So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent, and there it was, hidden in his tent, with the silver underneath.
23They took the things from the tent, brought them to Joshua and all the Israelites and spread them out before the Lord.
24Then Joshua, together with all Israel, took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the robe, the gold bar, his sons and daughters, his cattle, donkeys and sheep, his tent and all that he had, to the Valley of Achor.
25Joshua said, “Why have you brought this trouble on us? The Lord will bring trouble on you today.” Then all Israel stoned him, and after they had stoned the rest, they burned them.
26Over Achan they heaped up a large pile of rocks, which remains to this day. Then the Lord turned from his fierce anger. Therefore that place has been called the Valley of Achor ever since.
Study Guide
Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Joshua 7.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: The Israelites smitten at Ai. (1–5). Joshua's humiliation and prayer. (6–9). God instructs Joshua what to do. (10–5). Achan is detected, He is destroyed. (16–26).
vv1-5
Achan took some of the spoil of Jericho. The love of the world is that root of bitterness, which of all others is most hardly rooted up. We should take heed of sin ourselves, lest by it many be defiled or disquieted, Heb 12:15; and take heed of having fellowship with sinners, lest we share their guilt. It concerns us to watch over one another to prevent sin, because others' sins may be to our damage. The easy conquest of Jericho excited contempt of the enemy, and a disposition to expect the Lord to do all for them without their using proper means. Thus men abuse the doctrines of Divine grace, and the promises of God, into excuses for their own sloth and self-indulgence. We are to work out our own salvation, though it is God that works in us. It was a dear victory to the Canaanites, whereby Israel was awakened and reformed, and reconciled to their God, and the people of Canaan hardened to their own ruin.
vv6-9
Joshua's concern for the honour of God, more than even for the fate of Israel, was the language of the Spirit of adoption. He pleaded with God. He laments their defeat, as he feared it would reflect on God's wisdom and power, his goodness and faithfulness. We cannot at any time urge a better plea than this, Lord, what wilt thou do for thy great name? Let God be glorified in all, and then welcome his whole will.
vv10-15
God awakens Joshua to inquiry, by telling him that when this accursed thing was put away, all would be well. Times of danger and trouble should be times of reformation. We should look at home, into our own hearts, into our own houses, and make diligent search to find out if there be not some accursed thing there, which God sees and abhors; some secret lust, some unlawful gain, some undue withholding from God or from others. We cannot prosper, until the accursed thing be destroyed out of our hearts, and put out of our habitations and our families, and forsaken in our lives. When the sin of sinners finds them out, God is to be acknowledged. With a certain and unerring judgment, the righteous God does and will distinguish between the innocent and the guilty; so that though the righteous are of the same tribe, and family, and household with the wicked, yet they never shall be treated as the wicked.
Key Words
בֵּן: a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etc., (like father or brother), etc.)
יִשְׂרָאֵל: Jisrael, a symbolical name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity
מָעַל: properly, to cover up; used only figuratively, to act covertly, i.e. treacherously
מַעַל: treachery, i.e. sin
חֵרֶם: physical (as shutting in) a net (either literally or figuratively); usually a doomed object; abstractly extermination
עָכָן: Akan, an Israelite
כַּרְמִי: Karmi, the name of three Israelites
זַבְדִּי: Zabdi, the name of four Israelites
זֶרַח: Zerach, the name of three Israelites, also of an Idumaean and an Ethiopian prince
מַטֶּה: a branch (as extending); figuratively, a tribe; also a rod, whether for chastising (figuratively, correction), ruling (a sceptre), throwing (a lance), or walking (a staff; figuratively, a support of life, e.g. bread)
Cross References
Joshua 7Explicit warning concerning the accursed/devoted thing (cherem) which Achan violated, bringing trouble on Israel.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole, John Calvin, JFB
The Mosaic warning that bringing an accursed thing into one's house makes them accursed like it.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Prophetic reversal where the 'Valley of Achor' (trouble) is transformed into a 'door of hope'.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Genealogical record designating Achan as 'Achar, the troubler of Israel' for his trespass.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
New Testament warning against a root of bitterness defiling many, applied to Achan's communal impact.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Parallel use of the divine lot to systematically narrow down a hidden national transgressor.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Verbal idiom 'give God the praise' (or glory) used as a solemn oath to confess truth.
Supported by JFB
Parallel progression of sin (saw, coveted, took) matching Eve's temptation in Eden.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Classic expression of mourning and deep distress shown by renting clothes.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Ananias and Sapphira's secret sacrilege and dissimulation early in the New Covenant era.
Supported by John Calvin
The warning that 'your sin will find you out' realized in Achan's exposure.
Supported by JFB
Gehazi's secret greed, theft, and subsequent hiding of silver and garments mirror Achan's sin.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Law requiring destruction of devoted things so that the Lord may turn from His fierce anger.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Moses appeals to God's great name and reputation among Egyptians, mirroring Joshua's intercession.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Jacob's lament that Simeon and Levi had 'troubled' him, using the same Hebrew root.
Supported by Matthew Henry