2 And Joshua sendeth men from Jericho to Ai, which 'is' near Beth-Aven, on the east of Bethel, and speaketh unto them, saying, 'Go up and spy the land;' and the men go up and spy Ai, 3 and they turn back unto Joshua, and say unto him, 'Let not all the people go up; let about two thousand men, or about three thousand men, go up, and they smite Ai; cause not all the people to labour thither; for they 'are' few.' 4 And there go up of the people thither about three thousand men, and they flee before the men of Ai, 5 and the men of Ai smite of them about thirty and six men, and pursue them before the gate unto Shebarim, and they smite them in Morad; and the heart of the people is melted, and becometh water.
6 And Joshua rendeth his garments, and falleth on his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah till the evening, he and the elders of Israel, and they cause dust to go up on their head. 7 And Joshua saith, 'Ah, Lord Jehovah, why hast Thou at all caused this people to pass over the Jordan, to give us into the hand of the Amorite to destroy us?—and oh that we had been willing—and we dwell beyond the Jordan! 8 Oh, Lord, what do I say, after that Israel hath turned the neck before its enemies? 9 and the Canaanite and all the inhabitants of the land do hear, and have come round against us, and cut off our name out of the earth; and what dost Thou do for Thy great name?'
10 And Jehovah saith unto Joshua, 'Rise for thee, why 'is' this?—thou 'art' falling on thy face? 11 Israel hath sinned, and also they have transgressed My covenant which I commanded them, and also taken of the devoted thing, and also stolen, and also deceived, and also put 'it' among their vessels, 12 and the sons of Israel have not been able to stand before their enemies; the neck they turn before their enemies, for they have become a devoted thing; I add not to be with you—if ye destroy not the devoted thing out of your midst. 13 'Rise, sanctify the people, and thou hast said, Sanctify yourselves for to-morrow; for thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, A devoted thing 'is' in thy midst, O Israel, thou art not able to stand before thine enemies till your turning aside of the devoted thing out of your midst; 14 and ye have been brought near in the morning by your tribes, and it hath been, the tribe which Jehovah doth capture doth draw near by families, and the family which Jehovah doth capture doth draw near by households, and the household which Jehovah doth capture doth draw near by men; 15 and it hath been, he who is captured with the devoted thing is burnt with fire, he and all that he hath, because he hath transgressed the covenant of Jehovah, and because he hath done folly in Israel.'
16 And Joshua riseth early in the morning, and bringeth Israel near by its tribes, and the tribe of Judah is captured; 17 and he bringeth near the family of Judah, and he captureth the family of the Zarhite; and he bringeth near the family of the Zarhite by men, and Zabdi is captured; 18 and he bringeth near his household by men, and Achan—son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah—is captured. 19 And Joshua saith unto Achan, 'My son, put, I pray thee, honour on Jehovah, God of Israel, and give to Him thanks, and declare, I pray thee, to me, what thou hast done—hide not from me.' 20 And Achan answereth Joshua, and saith, 'Truly I have sinned against Jehovah, God of Israel, and thus and thus I have done; 21 and I see among the spoil a goodly robe of Shinar, and two hundred shekels of silver, and one wedge of gold, whose weight 'is' fifty shekels, and I desire them, and take them; and lo, they 'are' hid in the earth, in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it.' 22 And Joshua sendeth messengers, and they run unto the tent, and lo, it is hidden in his tent, and the silver under it; 23 and they take them out of the midst of the tent, and bring them in unto Joshua, and unto all the sons of Israel, and pour them out before Jehovah. 24 And Joshua taketh Achan son of Zerah, and the silver, and the robe, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his ox, and his ass, and his flock, and his tent, and all that he hath, and all Israel with him, and they cause them to go up the valley of Achor. 25 And Joshua saith, 'What! thou hast troubled us!—Jehovah doth trouble thee this day;' and all Israel cast stones at him, and they burn them with fire, and they stone them with stones, 26 and they raise up over him a great heap of stones unto this day, and Jehovah turneth back from the heat of His anger, therefore hath 'one' called the name of that place 'Valley of Achor' till this day.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Joshua 7:2-26
Commentary on Joshua 7:1-5
(Read Joshua 7:1-5)
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, Hebrews 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.
Commentary on Joshua 7:6-9
(Read Joshua 7:6-9)
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.
Commentary on Joshua 7:10-15
(Read Joshua 7:10-15)
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.
Commentary on Joshua 7:16-26
(Read Joshua 7:16-26)
See the folly of those that promise themselves secrecy in sin. The righteous God has many ways of bringing to light the hidden works of darkness. See also, how much it is our concern, when God is contending with us, to find out the cause that troubles us. We must pray with holy Job, Lord, show me wherefore thou contendest with me. Achan's sin began in the eye. He saw these fine things, as Eve saw the forbidden fruit. See what comes of suffering the heart to walk after the eyes, and what need we have to make this covenant with our eyes, that if they wander they shall be sure to weep for it. It proceeded out of the heart. They that would be kept from sinful actions, must mortify and check in themselves sinful desires, particularly the desire of worldly wealth. Had Achan looked upon these things with an eye of faith, he would have seen they were accursed things, and would have dreaded them; but looking on them with an eye of sense only, he saw them as goodly things, and coveted them. When he had committed the sin, he tried to hide it. As soon as he had got this plunder, it became his burden, and he dared not to use his ill-gotten treasure. So differently do objects of temptation appear at a distance, to what they do when they have been gotten. See the deceitfulness of sin; that which is pleasing in the commission, is bitter in the reflection. See how they will be deceived that rob God. Sin is a very troublesome thing, not only to a sinner himself, but to all about him. The righteous God will certainly recompense tribulation to them that trouble his people. Achan perished not alone in his sin. They lose their own, who grasp at more than their own. His sons and daughters were put to death with him. It is probable that they helped to hide the things; they must have known of them. What fatal consequences follow, even in this world, to the sinner himself, and to all belonging him! One sinner destroys much good. What, then, will be the wrath to come? Let us flee from it to Christ Jesus as the sinner's Friend. There are circumstances in the confession of Achan, marking the progress of sin, from its first entrance into the heart to its being done, which may serve as the history of almost every offence against the law of God, and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.