Joshua 7 · WEB
The Sin of Achan
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But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the devoted things; for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things. Therefore Yahweh's anger burned against the children of Israel.
2Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is beside Beth Aven, on the east side of Bethel, and spoke to them, saying, "Go up and spy out the land." The men went up and spied out Ai.
3They returned to Joshua, and said to him, "Don't let all the people go up, but let about two or three thousand men go up and strike Ai. Don't make all the people toil there, for there are only a few of them."
4So about three thousand men of the people went up there, and they fled before the men of Ai.
5The men of Ai struck about thirty-six men of them, and they chased them from before the gate even to Shebarim, and struck them at the descent. The hearts of the people melted and became like water.
6Joshua tore his clothes, and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of Yahweh until the evening, he and the elders of Israel; and they put dust on their heads.
7Joshua said, "Alas, Lord Yahweh, why have you brought this people over the Jordan at all, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to cause us to perish? I wish that we had been content and lived beyond the Jordan!
8Oh, Lord, what shall I say, after that Israel has turned their backs before their enemies?
9For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear of it, and will surround us and cut off our name from the earth. What will you do for your great name?"
10Yahweh said to Joshua, "Get up! Why have you fallen on your face?
11Israel has sinned. Yes, they have even transgressed my covenant which I commanded them. Yes, they have even taken of the devoted things, and have also stolen, and also deceived. They have even put it among their own stuff.
12Therefore the children of Israel can't stand before their enemies. They turn their backs before their enemies, because they have become devoted. I will not be with you any more, unless you destroy the devoted things from among you.
13Get up! Sanctify the people, and say, 'Sanctify yourselves for tomorrow, for Yahweh, the God of Israel, says, "There are devoted things in the middle of you, Israel. You cannot stand before your enemies until you take away the devoted things from among you."
14In the morning therefore you shall be brought near by your tribes. It shall be that the tribe which Yahweh selects shall come near by families. The family which Yahweh selects shall come near by households. The household which Yahweh selects shall come near man by man.
15It shall be that he who is taken with the devoted thing shall be burned with fire, he and all that he has, because he has transgressed the covenant of Yahweh, and because he has done a disgraceful thing in Israel.' "
16So Joshua rose early in the morning and brought Israel near by their tribes. The tribe of Judah was selected.
17He brought near the family of Judah; and he selected the family of the Zerahites. He brought near the family of the Zerahites man by man, and Zabdi was selected.
18He brought near 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 selected.
19Joshua said to Achan, "My son, please give glory to Yahweh, the God of Israel, and make confession to him. Tell me now what you have done. Don't hide it from me."
20Achan answered Joshua and said, "I have truly sinned against Yahweh, the God of Israel, and this is what I did:
21when I saw among the plunder a beautiful Babylonian robe, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, then I coveted them and took them. Behold, they are hidden in the ground in the middle of my tent, with the silver under it."
22So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent. Behold, it was hidden in his tent, with the silver under it.
23They took them from the middle of the tent, and brought them to Joshua and to all the children of Israel. They laid them out before Yahweh.
24Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, the silver, the robe, the wedge of gold, his sons, his daughters, his oxen, his donkeys, his sheep, his tent, and all that he had; and they brought them up to the valley of Achor.
25Joshua said, "Why have you troubled us? Yahweh will trouble you this day." All Israel stoned him with stones, and they burned them with fire and stoned them with stones.
26They raised over him a great heap of stones that remains to this day. Yahweh turned from the fierceness of his anger. Therefore the name of that place was called "The Valley of Achor" to this day.
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Summary
After the triumph at Jericho, Israel suffers a shocking defeat at the small city of Ai, losing thirty-six men and fleeing in panic. God reveals to a devastated Joshua that one man, Achan of the tribe of Judah, secretly kept forbidden plunder from Jericho — a robe, silver, and gold — violating the herem command. Through a process of elimination by lot, Achan is identified, confesses, and is stoned along with his family and possessions in the Valley of Achor. The lesson is stark: one person's hidden sin can break the whole community's relationship with God and bring collective defeat.
Themes
- Corporate solidarity — one person's sin affects the whole community
- The progression of sin: seeing, coveting, taking, hiding (echoes Genesis 3)
- God's holiness cannot coexist with unaddressed sin
- Confession as giving glory to God — acknowledging truth before Him
Key verses
- Josh 7:11 — “Israel has sinned. Yes, they have even transgressed my covenant which I commanded them. Yes, they have even taken of the devoted things, and have also stolen, and also deceived.”
- Josh 7:19 — “Joshua said to Achan, 'My son, please give glory to Yahweh, the God of Israel, and make confession to him.' ”
- Josh 7:21 — “When I saw...then I coveted them and took them.”
Context & background
Ai (meaning "the ruin") is believed to be located near modern Bethel/Beitin in the West Bank highlands, roughly 10 miles northwest of Jericho. The city was small — the spies suggested only 2,000-3,000 men were needed — making the defeat even more humiliating. The Valley of Achor (meaning "trouble" or "disturbance") is located in the Jordan Valley near modern Jericho; Hosea 2:15 later promises it will become "a door of hope," reversing the curse. The Babylonian robe (or "mantle of Shinar") being from Babylon highlights that even distant luxury items found their way into Canaan's trade networks. Achan's full genealogy — four generations listed — underscores that his lineage bore the consequences.
Cross-references
- 1 Corinthians 5:6 — "A little leaven leavens the whole lump" — Paul's principle of corporate infection by sin
- Acts 5:1-11 — Ananias and Sapphira's hidden sin echoes Achan's, with similar swift judgment
- Genesis 3:6 — Eve "saw...took...ate" parallels Achan's "saw...coveted...took"
- Hosea 2:15 — The Valley of Achor (trouble) will become a door of hope in the new covenant
- Numbers 15:30-31 — Deliberate, high-handed sin against God deserves cutting off from the community