King James Version, with Nii Okai's journal notes · 6 notes
1But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing: for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed thing: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against the children of Israel.
2And Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is beside Beth-aven, on the east side of Beth-el, and spake unto them, saying, Go up and view the country. And the men went up and viewed Ai.
3And they returned to Joshua, and said unto him, Let not all the people go up; but let about two or three thousand men go up and smite Ai; and make not all the people to labour thither; for they are but few.
4So there went up thither of the people about three thousand men: and they fled before the men of Ai.
5And the men of Ai smote of them about thirty and six men: for they chased them from before the gate even unto Shebarim, and smote them in the going down: wherefore the hearts of the people melted, and became as water.
6And Joshua rent his clothes, and fell to the earth upon his face before the ark of the LORD until the eventide, he and the elders of Israel, and put dust upon their heads.
He lay down all day till evening 🌃, and at evening was when God spoke to him to get up.
God came in to him at his own time. I guess he would have laid there for two days if need be, so he could hear the Lord.
As believers we often think the folks of the Old Testament had God at their beck and call 🤙.
We don't read in between the lines to see that they really had to wait on the Lord before he spoke.
They just did not noise the process of waiting that much, but rather just mentioned it simply and moved to give us the details of the results, as we see in this case with Joshua.
7And Joshua said, Alas, O Lord GOD, wherefore hast thou at all brought this people over Jordan, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? would to God we had been content, and dwelt on the other side Jordan!
8O Lord, what shall I say, when Israel turneth their backs before their enemies!
9For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land shall hear of it, and shall environ us round, and cut off our name from the earth: and what wilt thou do unto thy great name?
This invasion was a life and death issue. No wonder they lay before the ark all day. If they joked, they would be dead in no time.
God was turned to be their enemy in the matter of Achan, not that Ai had special gods who empowered them.
I wonder, the thirty or so men killed, had they committed some sin per chance themselves, causing them to be selected for death? We are not told.
If I am to assume they were deserving of death because of some secret sin, then that shows men ought to exercise caution and repent.
When all went well under the protection of God, all were protected, but the moment God was turned to be their enemies, the laws of justice select the most guilty and deserving of death. Not all men are the same.
10And the LORD said unto Joshua, Get thee up; wherefore liest thou thus upon thy face?
11Israel hath sinned, and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them: for they have even taken of the accursed thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and they have put it even among their own stuff.
12Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they were accursed: neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you.
13Up, sanctify the people, and say, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow: for thus saith the LORD God of Israel, There is an accursed thing in the midst of thee, O Israel: thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you.
Many things to say here.
Where do I start now.
Firstly, Joshua was reprimanded for lying 🤥 down thus... Akin to Moses when he came crying 😢 to God and God told him to just go divide the Red Sea and stop the crying.
Here it sounds like God was saying, 'No need to lie down thus and overreact.'
Your people have committed a trespass. You should know this, why else would I. It be among you.
VS 12 lets us know God had set a kind of law in motion, i.e.
You stay in covenant, you are impregnable and invincible. You transgress, you lose out, because I will not be with you.
The reason laws of nature and spirit exist and work almost automatically and inanimately is because there is a living, animate being behind it ensuring it works.
It's not all just erratic; there is intelligent 🧠 design ensuring the laws continue to function.
Interestingly, God watched as Joshua strategized etc., showing there is the human aspect of the divine 🔮 will.
They train and do all they must and leave the giving of the victory ✌️ to God.
14In the morning therefore ye shall be brought according to your tribes: and it shall be, that the tribe which the LORD taketh shall come according to the families thereof; and the family which the LORD shall take shall come by households; and the household which the LORD shall take shall come man by man.
15And it shall be, that he that is taken with the accursed thing shall be burnt with fire, he and all that he hath: because he hath transgressed the covenant of the LORD, and because he hath wrought folly in Israel.
Wow, burnt alive 🔥, a human burnt offering.
Sounds cruel until you realize that 32 families had lost their fathers.
The perpetrator definitely cannot live.
It's strange and makes you ponder the things God allows to happen.
The pain of such loss. God could not interfere or forewarn Joshua that this is what Achan had done and thus this war they undertake will result in needless deaths.
Same with Adam. Whom he had told the consequences and left man to decide.
And man 👨 chose to dare break the law and let the chips fall where they may.
He had told Israel 🇮🇱 what the consequences of idolatry were and left them to choose.
I SEE THAT WHEN GOD SPEAKS HE LEAVES MAN TO CHOOSE AND WOULD DO NOTHING TO STOP MAN.
Is that how powerful we are, to determine our own life's course 🏇? Free will is a very dangerous power ☣.
God only comes in after we have made the choice.
IT'S A LAW OF FREE WILL I SEE. God forewarns. Then steps back and man 👨 steps forward to CHOOSE.
After man's choice, God steps forward to help restore or promote and complement man, depending on his choice.
But the consequences must be faced.
I believe if Joshua had consulted with God rather than assume Ai was a small country, he would have gotten help 😣. He would have been forewarned.
Thus we ought to pray always.
16So Joshua rose up early in the morning, and brought Israel by their tribes; and the tribe of Judah was taken:
17And he brought the family of Judah; and he took the family of the Zarhites: and he brought the family of the Zarhites man by man; and Zabdi was taken:
18And he brought his household man by man; and Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken.
19And Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the LORD God of Israel, and make confession unto him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me.
20And Achan answered Joshua, and said, Indeed I have sinned against the LORD God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done:
21When I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it.
22So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran unto the tent; and, behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it.
23And they took them out of the midst of the tent, and brought them unto Joshua, and unto all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the LORD.
24And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor.
Why involve his children 🧒?
25And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the LORD shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones.
26And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the LORD turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day.
God was appeased. Thirty-six men had died; their families had lost breadwinners because of this.
And now he was to appease not just God but the families of the lost soldiers, and the blood of the soldiers with that of his own and his family 👪.
Now God was appeased and turned his hot anger away.