Joshua 7:1-26
Achan's Sin
1 But 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.
2 Now 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.
3 When 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.” 4 So about three thousand went up; but they were routed by the men of Ai, 5 who 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.
6 Then 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. 7 And 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! 8 Pardon your servant, Lord. What can I say, now that Israel has been routed by its enemies? 9 The 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?”
10 The Lord said to Joshua, “Stand up! What are you doing down on your face? 11 Israel 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. 12 That 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. 15 Whoever 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!’”
16 Early the next morning Joshua had Israel come forward by tribes, and Judah was chosen. 17 The 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. 18 Joshua 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.
19 Then 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.”
20 Achan replied, “It is true! I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel. This is what I have done: 21 When 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.”
22 So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent, and there it was, hidden in his tent, with the silver underneath. 23 They took the things from the tent, brought them to Joshua and all the Israelites and spread them out before the Lord.
24 Then 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. 25 Joshua 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. 26 Over 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.
But the Israelites did not obey God...There was a man from the tribe of Judah named Achan son of Carmi, grandson of Zimri, great-grandson of Zerah...Achan kept some of the things that should have been destroyed...So the LORD became very angry with the Israelites...After they defeated Jericho, Joshua sent some men to Ai...Ai was near Beth Aven, east of Bethel...He told them, “Go to Ai and look for weaknesses in that area.”...So the men went to spy on that land...Later, the men came back to Joshua...They said, “Ai is a weak area...We will not need all of our people to defeat them...Send 2,000 or 3,000 men to fight there...There is no need to use the whole army...There are only a few men there to fight against us.”...So about 3,000 men went to Ai, but the people of Ai killed about 36 men of Israel...And the Israelites ran away...The people of Ai chased them from the city gates all the way to the quarries...The people of Ai beat them badly...When the people from Israel saw this, they became very frightened and lost their courage...When Joshua heard about this, he tore his clothes to show his sadness...He bowed down to the ground before the Holy Ark and stayed there until evening...The leaders of Israel did the same thing...They also threw dirt on their heads to show their sadness...
Joshua said, “LORD God, you brought our people across the Jordan River...Why did you bring us this far and then allow the Amorites to destroy us?...We should have been satisfied and stayed on the other side of the Jordan River...I promise by my life, LORD!...There is nothing I can say now...Israel has surrendered to the enemy...The Canaanites and all the other people in this country will hear about what happened...Then they will attack us and kill all of us!...Then what will you do to protect your great name?”...The LORD said to Joshua, “Why are you down there with your face on the ground? ...Stand up!...The Israelites sinned against Me...They have broken the agreement that I commanded them to obey...They took some of the things that I commanded them to destroy...They have stolen from Me...They have lied...They have taken those things for themselves...That is why the army of Israel turned and ran away from the fight...They did that because they have done wrong...They should be destroyed...I will not continue to help you or be with you unless you destroy everything I commanded you to destroy...“Now go and make the people pure...Tell them, ‘Make yourselves pure...Prepare for tomorrow...The LORD, the God of Israel, says that some people are keeping things that he commanded to be destroyed...You will never be able to defeat your enemies until you throw away those things...“Tomorrow morning you must all stand before the LORD...All the tribes will stand before the LORD, and He will choose one tribe...Only that tribe will stand before Him...Then the LORD will choose one family group from that tribe...Only that family group must stand before Him...Then he will look at each family in that family group, and the LORD will choose one family...Then he will look at each man in that family...The man who is keeping those things that we should have destroyed will be caught...Then he will be destroyed by fire, and everything that he owns will be destroyed with him...He broke the agreement with the LORD...He has done a very bad thing to the Israelites!”...
Early the next morning, Joshua led out all the Israelites...Each tribe came forward to stand before the LORD, and he chose the tribe of Judah...So then all the family groups of Judah stood before the LORD, and he chose the Zerah family group...Then all the families of the Zerah group stood before the LORD, and he chose the family of Zimri...Then Joshua told all the men in that family to come before the LORD...He chose Achan the son of Carmi...(Carmi was the son of Zimri...And Zimri was the son of Zerah.)...Then Joshua said to Achan, “Son, you must honor the LORD, the God of Israel...Praise Him and confess your sins to Him...Tell me what you did, and don’t try to hide anything from me.”...Achan answered, “It is true!...I sinned against the LORD, the God of Israel...This is what I did: In Jericho, I saw a beautiful coat from Babylonia, about 5 pounds of silver, and about a pound of gold...I wanted these things for myself, so I took them...You will find them buried in the ground under my tent...The silver is under the coat.”...So Joshua sent some men to the tent...They ran to the tent and found the things hidden there...The silver was under the coat...The men brought the things out of the tent and took them to Joshua and all the Israelites...They threw them on the ground before the LORD...Then Joshua and all the people led Achan son of Zerah to the Valley of Achor...They also took the silver, the coat, the gold, Achan’s sons and daughters, his cattle, his donkeys, his sheep, his tent, and everything he owned...They took all these things to the Valley of Achor with Achan...Then Joshua said, “You caused much trouble for us, but now the LORD will bring trouble to you.”...Then all the people threw stones at Achan and his family until they died...Then the people burned them and everything he owned...After they burned Achan, they put many rocks over his body...The rocks are still there today...That is why it is called the Valley of Achor...After this the LORD was not angry with the people...