Joshua 7:1–5
1 But the sons of Israel acted unfaithfully regarding the things designated for destruction, for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, took some of the designated things; therefore the anger of the Lord burned against the sons of Israel.
2 Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven, east of Bethel, and said to them, “Go up and spy out the land.” So the men went up and spied out Ai.
3 Then they returned to Joshua and said to him, “Do not have all the people go up; have only about two or three thousand men go up and attack Ai; do not trouble all the people there, for they are few.”
4 So about three thousand men from the people went up there, but they fled from the men of Ai.
5 And the men of Ai struck and killed about thirty-six of their men, and pursued them from the gate as far as Shebarim and struck them on the mountainside; and the hearts of the people melted and became like water.
Defeat at Ai
Achan’s sin
The next city the Israelites fought to conquer was Ai. However, the Israelites unexpectedly tasted defeat in this battle. There were several reasons for the defeat. First was Achan’s sin. He was disobedient concerning devotion to the Lord. Specifically, he took for himself from the things devoted as offering to the Lord. The genealogy of Achan was “the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah.” Zerah was the younger of the twin sons of Judah and Tamar (ref. Gen. 38). This was an individual sin of Achan, but God considered it a sin of the entire nation.
Sin of thinking highly of oneself
Preparing for the battle at Ai, Joshua sent men to spy on Ai. When the spies returned, they proposed that sending 2,000 to 3,000 soldiers should be good enough instead of sending the entire army. This sounded like a legitimate proposal. Jericho was located 270 meters (about 886 ft.) below sea level. Ai was located 780 meters (about 2,560 ft.) above sea level. From Jericho to Ai was over a 1,000-meter (less than a mile) climb. This was in spring, so it was quite warm during the day. However, the Israelites underestimated the military force of Ai. It becomes known later that the population of Ai was 12,000. The victory in Jericho most likely made them overconfident. Ironically, 40 years ago at Kadesh-Barnea, the spies overestimated the enemies’ military force and were terrified of them. Here, they underestimated the enemy and faced defeat. Joshua sent about 3,000 armed men, but they were defeated and fled from Ai. On that day, 36 men were struck down. As a result, “the hearts of the people melted and became as water” (v. 5). Up to this point, the Canaanites’ hearts were melting in fear (ref. 5:11, 5:1), but this time it was the hearts of Israel that melted. The abovementioned tragedy was a result of God’s anger burning against Israel for Achan’s sin. Sin is the root cause of the tragedies man experiences. Jesus Christ is the only one who can resolve the problem of sin and give us eternal hope.
Today's prayer
Heavenly Father, Please continuously equip me with the discernment to understand the fundamental reasons behind arising difficulties, and the capacity to remove them. I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.