The Destruction of Ai

Click here to read Joshua 8.

Chapter 8 deals with the destruction of Ai. They had lost the previous battle but this time the Lord is with them and all the Amorites were put to the sword, their city burned and their king hung. This time, all the spoils were given to the soldiers.

Notice the instructions that God gave Joshua for the destruction of Ai.

  1. Do not be afraid, you shall do unto them as you did to Jericho.
  2. This time you may keep the loot and cattle for yourselves.

Now, notice the plan:

  1. Set an ambush of 30,000 men behind the city.
  2. Let the main body of the army attack the city as before. When the army of Ai comes out to fight, they are to retreat as they did before. This will draw the army of Ai away from the city allowing the troops hiding behind the city to enter and destroy it.
  3. When the army of Ai looks back and sees their city burning they will knew that they had been drawn into a trap.
  4. Then the main army of Israel that had been retreating will turn and attack.
  5. By then the 30,000 troops, which will be increased to 35,000 by Joshua, will have completed their job of destruction and will come out of the city and attack the rear of the army of Ai.

They destroyed 12,000 citizens of Ai plus their entire army. Only the king was captured and he was hanged from a tree until that evening when he was taken down and thrown in front of the city gate where a pile of stones was put upon it.

Then Joshua built an altar at Mt. Ebal. This was the mountain from which the "curses" were shouted in Deut. Chapter 28. This was done in obedience to the commandment to Moses to build an altar of stones that was neither broken nor carved. Then the Priests offered sacrifices and peace offerings to the Lord. Joshua then carved upon the stones of the altar, each of the 10 commandments. Again the people were divided into two groups as in Chapters 27 and 28 of Deuteronomy, half on Mt Ebal and half on Mt. Gerizim. Between them were the Priests with the Ark of the Covenant. Then Joshua read them all the blessings and curses that Moses had written in the Book of God's Law.


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