⁴ So about three thousand men went up there from the people, ^(A)but they fled before the men of Ai. ⁵ And the men of Ai struck down about thirty-six men, for they chased them from before the gate as far as Shebarim, and struck them down on the descent; therefore ^(B)the^[a] hearts of the people melted and became like water.

⁶ Then Joshua ^(C)tore his clothes, and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the Lord until evening, he and the elders of Israel; and they ^(D)put dust on their heads.

The Sin of Achan

¹⁰ So the Lord said to Joshua: “Get up! Why do you lie thus on your face? ¹¹ Israel has sinned, and they have also transgressed My covenant which I commanded them. ^(A)For they have even taken some of the ^[a]accursed things, and have both stolen and ^(B)deceived; and they have also put it among their own stuff. ^12 (C)Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because ^(D)they have become doomed to destruction. Neither will I be with you anymore, unless you destroy the accursed from among you.

²⁰ And Achan answered Joshua and said, “Indeed ^(A)I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and this is what I have done: ²¹ When I saw among the spoils a beautiful Babylonian garment, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, I ^[a]coveted them and took them. And there they are, hidden in the earth in the midst of my tent, with the silver under it.”

²² So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent; and there it was, hidden in his tent, with the silver under it. ²³ And they took them from the midst of the tent, brought them to Joshua and to all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the Lord. ²⁴ Then Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, the silver, the garment, the wedge of gold, his sons, his daughters, his oxen, his donkeys, his sheep, his tent, and ^(B)all that he had, and they brought them to ^(C)the Valley of Achor. ²⁵ And Joshua said, ^(D)“Why have you troubled us? The Lord will trouble you this day.” ^(E)So all Israel stoned him with stones; and they burned them with fire after they had stoned them with stones.