Joshua Chapter 8

Israel Destroys Ai

¹ The LORD told Joshua,

“Don’t be afraid or intimidated. Take the fighting men up to Ai. I’ll deliver the king, his people, his city, and his land to you. ² Do to Ai and its king what you did to Jericho and its king. Just take its spoil and livestock for yourselves. Ambush the city from behind.”

³ Joshua and the fighting men got up to go to Ai. Joshua chose 30,000 trained men and sent them out at night. ⁴ He told them,

“Lie in ambush behind the city. Stay fairly close to it and be ready. ⁵ The people and I will approach the city. When they come out against us, we’ll flee. ⁶ They’ll chase us till we’ve drawn them away from the city; they’ll think we’re running from them like the last time. ⁷ Then rise up from the ambush and seize the city; the LORD your God will give it to you. ⁸ When you’ve taken it, set it on fire like he said.”

⁹ Joshua sent them out to the place for the ambush between Bethel and Ai, west of Ai. He spent that night with the people.        

Josh 8:1-9

¹⁰ He got up early, mustered the people, and went up with the elders to Ai. ¹¹ The fighting men that were with him came close to the city and camped north of it with a ravine between them and Ai. ¹² He set about 5,000 men in ambush between Bethel and Ai, west of the city. ¹³ So they stationed the main camp north of the city and its rear guard west of it. Joshua spent that night in the valley. ¹⁴ When the king of Ai saw it, the men in the city hurried out early to the descent toward the Arabah to meet Israel in battle. But he didn’t know about the ambush behind the city. ¹⁵ Joshua and the Israelites pretended to be beaten and retreated toward open country. ¹⁶ The people in the city were called together to chase them and drew away from it. ¹⁷ Every man in Ai and Bethel went out after Israel and left the city wide open.

Josh 8:10-17

            ¹⁸ The LORD told Joshua, “Hold out your javelin.” He held it out toward the city, ¹⁹ and the ambush got up at once, went in, and took it. They hurried and set it on fire. ²⁰ When the men from Ai looked back, they saw the smoke going up from the city. They couldn’t escape because the ones that ran toward open country turned back on them. ²¹ When Joshua and the Israelites saw that the ambush had taken the city and its smoke was going up, they turned around and attacked. ²² The others came out of the city, and the Israelites trapped them between their two companies. They killed till no one survived or escaped. ²³ They captured the king of Ai alive and brought him to Joshua.

²⁴ When Israel had finished killing the people of Ai in the open country, they went back and struck the city with the sword. ²⁵ All its people fell that day: 12,000 men and women. ²⁶ Joshua didn’t draw back his javelin till he’d destroyed everybody. ²⁷ Israel just took the livestock and spoils—like the LORD said. ²⁸ Joshua burned the city and made it a pile of ruins till now. ²⁹ He hanged the king on a tree till sundown. Then he had them take his body down and throw it at the entrance to the city gate. They piled stones over it, which are still there.   

Josh 8:18-29

³⁰ Joshua built an altar to the LORD on Mount Ebal ³¹ the way Moses commanded in the Law—with uncut stones nobody has used an iron tool on. They offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. ³² There in the presence of the people, he wrote on the stones a copy of Moses’ Law. ³³ All Israel, foreigner and home born, elders, officers, and judges stood on opposite sides of the Ark in front of the Levitical priests who carried it. Half were in front of Mount Gerizim and half in front of Mount Ebal—like Moses had commanded them to bless Israel. ³⁴ Afterward he read the whole Law, the blessing, and the curse. ³⁵ He read it to Israel, the women, children, and foreigners among them.           

Josh 8:30-35