Beginning

5 So the Lord dried up the Jordan River until the Israelites had crossed it. Now all the kings of the Amorites west of the Jordan heard about it. And the Canaanite kings living by the Mediterranean Sea heard about it. They were very scared. After that they were too afraid to face the Israelites.

The Israelites Are Circumcised

² At that time the Lord spoke to Joshua. He said, “Make knives from flint stones. Circumcise the Israelites again.” ³ So Joshua made knives from flint stones. Then he circumcised the Israelites at Gibeath Haaraloth.

⁴ This is why Joshua circumcised the men: After the Israelites left Egypt, all the men old enough to serve in the army died. They died in the desert on the way out of Egypt. ⁵ The men who had come out of Egypt had been circumcised. But many were born in the desert on the trip from Egypt. They had not been circumcised. ⁶ The Israelites had moved about in the desert for 40 years. During that time all the fighting men who had left Egypt had died. This was because they had not obeyed the Lord. So the Lord swore they would not see the land. This was the land he had promised their ancestors to give them. It was a land where much food grows. ⁷ So their sons took their places. But none of the sons born on the trip from Egypt had been circumcised. So Joshua circumcised them. ⁸ After all the Israelites had been circumcised, they stayed in camp until they were healed.

⁹ Then the Lord said to Joshua, “As slaves in Egypt you were ashamed. But today I have removed that shame.” So Joshua named that place Gilgal. And it is still named Gilgal today.

¹⁰ The people of Israel were still camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho. It was there, on the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, they celebrated the Passover Feast. ¹¹ The next day after the Passover, the people ate some of the food grown on that land: bread made without yeast and roasted grain. ¹² The day they ate this food, the manna stopped coming. The Israelites no longer got the manna from heaven. They ate the food grown in the land of Canaan that year.

¹³ Joshua was near Jericho. He looked up and saw a man standing in front of him. The man had a sword in his hand. Joshua went to him and asked, “Are you a friend or an enemy?”

¹⁴ The man answered, “I am neither one. I have come as the commander of the Lord’s army.”

Then Joshua bowed facedown on the ground. He asked, “Does my master have a command for me, his servant?”

¹⁵ The commander of the Lord’s army answered, “Take off your sandals. The place where you are standing is holy.” So Joshua did.

The Fall of Jericho

6 Now the people of Jericho were afraid because the Israelites were near. So they closed the city gates and guarded them. No one went into the city. And no one came out.

² Then the Lord spoke to Joshua. He said, “Look, I have given you Jericho, its king and all its fighting men. ³ March around the city with your army one time every day. Do this for six days. ⁴ Have seven priests carry trumpets made from horns of male sheep. Tell them to march in front of the Ark of the Covenant. On the seventh day march around the city seven times. On that day tell the priests to blow the trumpets as they march. ⁵ They will make one long blast on the trumpets. When you hear that sound, have all the people give a loud shout. Then the walls of the city will fall. And the people will go straight into the city.”

⁶ So Joshua son of Nun called the priests together. He said to them, “Carry the Ark of the Covenant with the Lord. Tell seven priests to carry trumpets and march in front of it.” ⁷ Then Joshua ordered the people, “Now go! March around the city. The soldiers with weapons should march in front of the Ark of the Covenant with the Lord.”

⁸ So Joshua finished speaking to the people. Then the seven priests began marching before the Lord. They carried the seven trumpets and blew them as they marched. The priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant with the Lord followed them. ⁹ The soldiers with weapons marched in front of the priests. And armed men walked behind the Ark of the Covenant. They were blowing their trumpets. ¹⁰ But Joshua had told the people not to give a war cry. He said, “Don’t shout. Don’t say a word until the day I tell you. Then shout!” ¹¹ So Joshua had the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord carried around the city one time. Then they went back to camp for the night.

¹² Early the next morning Joshua got up. And the priests carried the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord again. ¹³ The seven priests carried the seven trumpets. They marched in front of the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord, blowing their trumpets. The soldiers with weapons marched in front of them. Other soldiers walked behind the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord. All this time the priests were blowing their trumpets. ¹⁴ So on the second day they marched around the city one time. Then they went back to camp. They did this every day for six days.

¹⁵ On the seventh day they got up at dawn. They marched around the city seven times. They marched just as they had on the days before. But on that day they marched around the city seven times. ¹⁶ The seventh time around the priests blew their trumpets. Then Joshua gave the command: “Now, shout! The Lord has given you this city! ¹⁷ The city and everything in it are to be destroyed as an offering to the Lord. Only Rahab the prostitute and everyone in her house should remain alive. They must not be killed. This is because Rahab hid the two spies we sent out. ¹⁸ Don’t take any of the things that are to be destroyed as an offering to the Lord. If you take them and bring them into our camp, then you yourselves will be destroyed. You will also bring trouble to all of Israel. ¹⁹ All the silver and gold and things made from bronze and iron belong to the Lord. They must be saved for him.”

²⁰ When the priests blew the trumpets, the people shouted. At the sound of the trumpets and the people’s shout, the walls fell. And everyone ran straight into the city. So the Israelites defeated that city. ²¹ They completely destroyed every living thing in the city. They killed men and women, young and old. They killed cattle, sheep and donkeys.

²² Joshua spoke to the two men who had spied out the land. Joshua said, “Go into the prostitute’s house. Bring her out. And bring out all the people who are with her. Do this because of the promise you made to her.” ²³ So the two men went into the house and brought out Rahab. They also brought out her father, mother, brothers and all those with her. They put all of her family in a safe place outside the camp of Israel.

²⁴ Then Israel burned the whole city and everything in it. But they did not burn the things made from silver, gold, bronze and iron. These were saved for the Lord. ²⁵ Joshua saved Rahab the prostitute, her family and all who were with her. He let them live. This was because Rahab had helped the men he had sent to spy out Jericho. Rahab still lives among the Israelites today.

²⁶ Then Joshua made this important promise. He said:

²⁷ So the Lord was with Joshua. And Joshua became famous through all the land.

The Sin of Achan

7 But the people of Israel did not obey the Lord. There was a man from the tribe of Judah named Achan. (He was the son of Carmi and grandson of Zimri. And Zimri was the son of Zerah.) Achan kept some of the things that were to be given to the Lord. So the Lord became very angry at the Israelites.

² Joshua sent some men from Jericho to Ai. (Ai was near Beth Aven, east of Bethel.) He told them, “Go to Ai and spy out the area.” So the men went to spy on Ai.

³ Later they came back to Joshua. They said, “There are only a few men in Ai to fight against us. So we will not need all our people to defeat them. Send 2,000 or 3,000 men to fight there. There is no need to send all of our people.” ⁴ So about 3,000 men went to Ai. But the people of Ai beat them badly. ⁵ The people of Ai chased the Israelites. They chased them from the city gate all the way to where stones were cut from the ground. They killed about 36 Israelites as they went down the hill. When the Israelites saw this, they became very afraid.

⁶ Then Joshua tore his clothes to show how upset he was. He bowed facedown on the ground before the Box of the Lord. And he stayed there until evening. The leaders of Israel did the same thing. They also threw dirt on their heads to show they were upset. ⁷ Then Joshua said, “Lord God, you brought our people across the Jordan River. Why did you bring us this far and then let the Amorites destroy us? We should have been happy to stay on the other side of the Jordan. ⁸ Lord, there is nothing I can say now. Israel has been beaten by the enemy. ⁹ The Canaanites and all the other people in this country will hear about this. They will surround and kill all of us! Then what will you do for your own great name?”

¹⁰ The Lord said to Joshua, “Stand up! Why are you down on your face? ¹¹ The Israelites have sinned. They have broken the agreement I commanded them to obey. They took some of the things I commanded them to destroy. They have stolen from me. They have lied. They have taken those things for themselves. ¹² That is why the Israelites cannot face their enemies. They turn away from the fight and run. I have commanded that they be destroyed. You must destroy everything I commanded you to destroy. I will not help you anymore unless you do this.

¹³ “Now go! Have the people make themselves holy for me. Tell them, ‘Set yourselves apart to the Lord for tomorrow. The Lord, the God of Israel, says some of you are keeping things he commanded you to destroy. You will never defeat your enemies until you throw away those things.

¹⁴ “‘Tomorrow morning you must all stand before the Lord. All the tribes will stand before him. The Lord will choose one tribe. And that tribe must stand alone before him. Then the Lord will choose one family group from that tribe. And that family group must stand alone before him. Then the Lord will choose one family from that family group. And it must stand alone before him. Then the Lord will look at that family man by man. ¹⁵ The man who is keeping what should have been destroyed will himself be destroyed by fire. And everything he owns will be destroyed with him. He has broken the agreement with the Lord. He has done a disgraceful thing among the people of Israel!’”

¹⁶ Early the next morning Joshua led all of Israel before the Lord. All of the tribes stood before him. And the Lord chose the tribe of Judah. ¹⁷ So all the family groups of Judah stood before the Lord. The Lord then chose the family group of Zerah. And all the families of Zerah stood before the Lord. Then the family of Zimri was chosen. ¹⁸ And Joshua told all the men in that family to come before the Lord. The Lord chose Achan son of Carmi. (Carmi was the son of Zimri. And Zimri was the son of Zerah.)

¹⁹ Then Joshua said to Achan, “My son, you should tell the truth. Confess to the Lord, the God of Israel. Tell me what you did. Don’t try to hide anything from me.”

²⁰ Achan answered, “It is true! I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel. This is what I did: ²¹ Among the things I saw was a beautiful coat from Babylonia. And I saw about five pounds of silver and more than one and one-quarter pounds of gold. I wanted these things very much for myself. So I took them. You will find them buried in the ground under my tent. The silver is under the coat.”

²² 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. ²³ The men brought them out of the tent. Then they took them to Joshua and all the Israelites. They spread them out on the ground before the Lord. ²⁴ Then Joshua and all the people led Achan son of Zerah to the Valley of Trouble. They also took the silver, the coat and the gold. They took Achan’s sons, daughters, cattle, donkeys, sheep, tent and everything he owned. ²⁵ Joshua said, “I don’t know why you caused so much trouble for us. But now the Lord will bring trouble to you.” Then all the people threw stones at Achan until he died. They also killed his family with stones. Then the people burned them. ²⁶ They piled rocks over Achan’s body. And those rocks are still there today. That is why it is called the Valley of Trouble. After this the Lord was no longer angry.

Ai Is Destroyed

8 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Don’t be afraid. Don’t give up. Lead all your fighting men to Ai. I will help you defeat the king of Ai. I am giving you his people, his city and his land. ² You will do to Ai and its king what you did to Jericho and its king. Only this time you may take all the wealth. You may keep it for yourselves. Now tell some of your soldiers to set up an ambush behind the city.”

³ So Joshua led his whole army toward Ai. Then he chose 30,000 of his best fighting men. He sent these men out at night. ⁴ Joshua gave them these orders: “Listen carefully. You must set up an ambush behind the city. Don’t go far from it. Continue to watch and be ready. ⁵ I and the men who are with me will march toward the city. The men in the city will come out to fight us. Then we will turn and run away from them as we did before. ⁶ They will chase us away from the city. They will think we are running away from them as we did before. When we run away, ⁷ come out from your ambush and take the city. The Lord your God will give you the power to win. ⁸ After you take the city, burn it. See to it! You have your orders.”

⁹ Then Joshua sent them to their place of ambush to wait. They went to a place between Bethel and Ai, to the west of Ai. But Joshua stayed the night with his people.

¹⁰ Early the next morning Joshua gathered his men together. He and the older leaders of Israel led them to Ai. ¹¹ All of the soldiers who were with Joshua marched to Ai. They stopped in front of the city and made camp north of Ai. There was a valley between them and the city. ¹² Then Joshua chose about 5,000 men. He set them in ambush in the area west of the city between Bethel and Ai. ¹³ So the people took their positions. The main camp was north of the city. The other men were hiding to the west. That night Joshua went down into the valley.

¹⁴ Now the king of Ai saw the army of Israel. So he and his people got up early the next morning and hurried out to fight them. They went out to a place east of the city. The king did not know soldiers were waiting in ambush behind the city. ¹⁵ Joshua and all the men of Israel let the army of Ai push them back. Then they ran east toward the desert. ¹⁶ The men in Ai were called to chase Joshua and his men. So they left the city and went after them. ¹⁷ All the men of Ai and Bethel chased the army of Israel. The city was left open. Not a man stayed to protect it.

¹⁸ Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Hold your spear toward Ai. I will give you that city.” So Joshua held his spear toward the city of Ai. ¹⁹ The men of Israel who were in ambush saw this. They quickly came out of their hiding place and hurried toward the city. They entered the city and took control of it. Then they quickly set it on fire.

²⁰ When the men of Ai looked back, they saw smoke rising from their city. At the same time the men of Israel stopped running. They turned against the men of Ai. The men of Ai could not escape in any direction. ²¹ Joshua and all his men saw that the army had taken control of the city. They saw the smoke rising from it. So they stopped running and turned to fight the men of Ai. ²² The men who were in ambush also came out of the city to help with the fight. The men of Ai were caught between the armies of Israel. The Israelites fought until not one of the men of Ai was left alive. None of the enemy escaped. ²³ But the king of Ai was left alive. And Joshua’s men brought him to Joshua.

A Review of the Fighting

²⁴ During the fighting the army of Israel chased the men of Ai into the fields and desert. So the Israelites killed all of them in the fields and desert. Then they went back to Ai and killed everyone there. ²⁵ All the people of Ai died that day, 12,000 men and women. ²⁶ Joshua had held his spear toward Ai. It was a sign to his people to destroy the city. And Joshua held out his spear until all the people of Ai were destroyed. ²⁷ The people of Israel kept the animals for themselves. They also kept the other things the people of Ai had owned. This is what the Lord told them to do when he gave Joshua the commands.

²⁸ Then Joshua burned the city of Ai. It became an empty pile of ruins. And it is still like that today. ²⁹ Joshua hung the king of Ai on a tree. He left him hanging there until evening. At sunset Joshua told his men to take the king’s body down from the tree. He told them to throw it down at the city gate. Then they covered it with rocks. That pile of rocks is still there today.

³⁰ Then Joshua built an altar for the Lord, the God of Israel. He built it on Mount Ebal, as ³¹ Moses, the Lord’s servant, had commanded. Joshua built the altar as it was explained in the Book of the Teachings of Moses. The altar was made from stones that were not cut. No tool was ever used on them. The Israelites offered burnt offerings to the Lord on that altar. They also offered fellowship offerings. ³² There Joshua wrote the teachings of Moses on stones. He did this for all the people of Israel to see. ³³ The elders, officers, judges and all the Israelites were there. They were standing around the Ark of the Covenant with the Lord. They stood before the priests, the Levites who had carried the Ark of the Covenant. Israelites and non-Israelites were all standing there. Half of the people stood in front of Mount Ebal. The other half stood in front of Mount Gerizim. This was the way the Lord’s servant Moses had earlier commanded the people to be blessed.

³⁴ Then Joshua read all the words of the teachings. He read the blessings and the curses. He read it exactly as they were written in the Book of the Teachings. ³⁵ All the Israelites were gathered together. All the women and children were there. All the non-Israelites living with the Israelites were there. Joshua read every command that Moses had given.