MPV Commentary

The Israelites Smitten at Ai.

After the sacking of Jericho, Joshua sent men to spy out the country above, specifically the town of Ai (Joshua 7:2). The site of Ai has been identified as Tell-el-Hajar, a small hill about two miles east-southeast from Bethel. Another nearby location is Beth-aven, which would later be given a derogatory name due to its idolatries.

The spies proposed sending only a small detachment to capture Ai, likely because it appeared smaller than Jericho in their initial reconnaissance (Joshua 7:3). However, the men of Ai unexpectedly resisted, and thirty-six Israelites were killed. This unexpected resistance led to a panic among the Israelite troops, who fled from before the gate of Ai all the way to Shebarim, where they were chased down and defeated (Joshua 7:4-5).

The defeat was not just due to the men of Ai's bravery but also because God withheld His aid, which the Israelites had confidently expected. As a result, the hearts of the people melted like water, indicating their lack of discipline and military skill (Joshua 7:5).

In response to this defeat, Joshua tore his clothes, fell to the ground, and prayed before the ark of the covenant with the elders (Joshua 7:6-9). His prayer expressed his deep humility and conviction that God could not intend to destroy His people after miraculously bringing them into the promised land. However, Joshua was unable to understand the cause of their calamity.

The Lord responded to Joshua's prayer by revealing that the crisis was due to sin in the people, specifically the reservation of spoil from the doomed city of Ai (Joshua 7:10-15). The Lord instructed Joshua to take action to discover and punish the perpetrator of this trespass so that Israel could be released from the ban and restore their prosperity.

To investigate the matter, Joshua brought the tribes before the tabernacle and used the lot to identify the guilty party. Through a process of elimination, they discovered that Achan had secretly taken spoil for himself, including a Babylonish garment, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold (Joshua 7:16-21).

Achan was confronted by Joshua, who asked him to confess and give glory to God. Achan confessed his crime, and the stolen items were laid out before the Lord as a token of their belonging to Him due to the ban (Joshua 7:19-22). As punishment for his sin, Achan, along with his children and all his property, was stoned to death in one of the ravines that open into the Ghor. His corpse was then burned to ashes by fire, and a great heap of stones was raised over him (Joshua 7:24-26). The place where this event occurred became known as the Valley of Achor ("trouble"), which would be remembered for generations to come (Isaiah 65:10; Hosea 2:15).