A stretch of the Bible that fascinates me is Joshua chapters six, seven and eight. In these passages, we are shown a picture of Israel completing a triumphant victory before being
In Joshua chapter six, Israel is preparing to face a foe that was sitting in its way — Jericho. Jericho was a heavily fortified and walled city, seemingly impregnable. But the Lord had told Joshua, the leader of Israel at the time, that he had given Jericho into his hand (6:2).
He gave Joshua instructions as to how to go about defeating and destroying the city. The Israelites were to march around the city carrying seven trumpets of rams horns for six days, and then on the seventh day they would march around the city, blow the trumpets and shout. At that point, the Lord told Joshua, the city of Jericho would be given into Israel’s hands.
So Israel did as instructed and no one uttered a word until the seventh day, when they blew the trumpets and shouted. As they did, the city was completely destroyed.
“They utterly destroyed everything in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword.” (Joshua 6:21 – NASB)
At the conclusion of chapter six, Israel is at a moment of extreme triumph and Joshua’s fame was in all the land because the Lord was with him.
Then comes chapter seven.
“But the sons of Israel acted unfaithfully in regard to the things under the ban, for Achan…took some of the things under the ban, therefore the anger of the Lord burned against the sons of Israel.” (Joshua 7:1 – NASB)
The Lord God had banned the Israelites from taking certain things from the city of Jericho when they conquered and plundered it. Achan did not abide by the ban, and as a result, Israel paid a steep price.
When Israel tried to make its next conquest, a place called Ai, they were beaten back. The men of Ai struck down 36 Israelites and pursued them.
Joshua tore his clothes and fell on his face before the Lord, and the Lord told him why defeat had befallen his people and of the sin of Achan. He told him that Israel would not stand before its enemies until the things under the ban were removed from the camp.
The next morning, Joshua searched among the people and found Achan, commanding him to tell the truth about what he had done. Achan complied.
“So Achan answered Joshua and said, “Truly, I have sinned against the LORD, the God of Israel, and this is what I did: When I saw among the spoil a beautiful mantle from Shinar and two hundred shekels of silver and a bar of gold fifty shekels in weight, then I coveted them and took them; and behold, they are concealed in the earth inside my tent with the silver underneath it.” (Joshua 7:21 – NASB)
As a result of his sin, Achan was stoned to death.
After the removal of the banned items and stoning of Achan, the Lord told Joshua and the people of Israel to arise and attack the people of Ai once again. And this time, his hand would be with them.
So, Joshua led the Israelites in a masterful ambush attack on the city of Ai. Some of the men demonstrated in front of the city and fled, as if they had been beaten. When the men of Ai pursued them, they left their city unmanned. As a result, Israel destroyed their city and ambushed the army of Ai. It was a defeat every bit as complete as the conquest of Jericho.
The lessons to be learned from this stretch of scripture are numerous, but here are a few that ring true with me and my life.
1. The top of the mountain can be the most dangerous point
The most triumphant points in our lives can be times when we are most vulnerable to Satan’s attacks. Whether it is a spiritual mountain that has been conquered or a personal achievement, the high from it can sometimes lull us into a false sense of security and invincibility.
Even as Israel was experiencing a major victory, Achan was sinning.
2. The temptation to sin is never worth the results
What can seem like no big deal in the moment can end up being a life-altering (or Achan’s case, life ending) decision. God has not allowed us to be tempted beyond what we can bear (I Corinthians 10:13), so we must flee it as fast as we can, lest we give in to it.
Achan was part of Israel’s incredible defeat of Jericho, yet he yielded to temptation and ended up being stoned to death.
3. The consequences of sin are usually far worse than we can imagine
While we may think our sin does not have a far-reaching impact, it goes well beyond our ability to know and affects a lot of people.
Achan merely took a few of the banned things from the plunder. But because he did, Israel was defeated in the next battle, men were killed and he was stoned to death.
Israel had followed the Lord’s instructions perfectly by marching around the city and refraining from uttering a sound until the last day, but Achan’s selfish act caused heartache for everyone.
4. We serve a God willing to redeem and restore
Though we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23), God is always ready and willing to forgive our sin and cleanse us from all of our unrighteousness (I John 1:9).
He also wants to restore us. Sometimes, we may not particularly like the way he chooses to refine and renew us, but he knows what is best for us at all times.
Even though Achan had sinned and the Lord was very displeased with Israel, he told Joshua what to do and allowed him to remove the banned things and kill Achan.
As a result, Israel once again had God’s favor and was able to exact an even more impressive victory against Ai than the Jericho conquest.
