1Otiia i taka nga tama a Iharaira ki te kino i te mea kua oti te kanga: he tangohanga na Akana tama a Karami, tama a Taperi, tama a Tera, o te iwi o Hura, i tetahi wahi o te mea kua oti te kanga; a mura iho te riri o Ihowa ki nga tama a Iharaira. 2Na ka tonoa atu e Hohua etahi tangata i Heriko ki Hai, ki te taha o Peteawene, i te taha ki te rawhiti o Peteere, ka korero hoki ki a ratou, ka mea, Haere ki runga ki te titiro i te whenua. Na ka haere aua tangata, ka titiro i Hai. 3A ka hoki mai ratou ki a Hohua, ka mea ki a ia, Kaua e haere katoa te iwi ki runga; engari kia rua, kia toru ranei mano o nga tangata e haere ki runga ki te patu i Hai; kaua hei whakangenge kau atu i te iwi ki reira; he tokoouou hoki ratou. 4Heoi haere ana ki reira etahi o te iwi, me te mea e toru mano: na rere ana ratou i te aroaro o nga tangata o Hai. 5A tukitukia iho o ratou e nga tangata o Hai me te mea e toru tekau ma ono tangata; i whaia hoki ratou i mua i te kuwaha a tae noa ki Heparimi, na patupatua ana ratou i te heketanga: a ngohe kau te ngakau o te iwi, koia ano kei te wai. 6Na ka haehae a Hohua i ona kakahu, ka tapapa ki te whenua, ki mua o te aaka a Ihowa a ahiahi noa, a ia me nga kaumatua o Iharaira; a opehia ana e ratou he puehu ki o ratou upoko. 7Na ka mea a Hohua, Aue, e te Ariki, e Ihowa, na te aha rawa ra koe i anga ai ki te whakawhiti mai i tenei iwi i Horano, i hoatu ai matou ki te ringa o nga Amori, kia huna ai matou? Aue, me i aro matou ki te noho atu i tera taha o Horano! 8E te Ariki, me pehea ra he kupu maku, kua parea atu nei e Iharaira o ratou tuara i te aroaro o o ratou hoariri? 9Na te mea ka rongo nga Kanaani me nga tangata katoa o te whenua, na ka karapotia matou, ka huna hoki o matou ingoa i te whenua: a ka pehea koe ki tou ingoa nui? 10Na ka mea a Ihowa ki a Hohua, Whakatika; he aha tau e takoto tapapa na? 11Kua hara a Iharaira; ae, kua takahi ratou i taku kawenata i whakarite ai ahau ki a ratou: ae, kua tangohia nei e ratou tetahi wahi o te mea kua oti te kanga, me te tahae, me te teka ano ratou, a whaowhina ana e ratou ki roto ki a ratou mea. 12Na reira nga tama a Iharaira te ahei ai te tu i te aroaro o o ratou hoariri, na hurihia ana o ratou tuara i te aroaro o o ratou hoariri, kua kanga hoki ratou: e kore ahau e haere i a koutou a muri atu, ki te kahore koutou e whakangaro i te mea k anga i roto i a koutou. 13Whakatika, whakatapua te iwi, mea atu, whakatapu i a koutou mo apopo: ko te kupu hoki tenei a Ihowa, a te Atua o Iharaira, Kei roto i a koe, e Iharaira, te mea kanga: e kore koe e kaha ki te tu ki te aroaro o ou hoariri, kia tangohia atu ra ano e koutou te mea kanga i roto i a koutou. 14Na i te ata me whakatata mai koutou, ara o koutou iwi; a tera ko te iwi e tango ai a Ihowa me whakatata mai a hapu; a ko te hapu e tango ai a Ihowa me whakatata a whare mai; a ko te whare e tango ai a Ihowa me whakatata mai ia tangata, ia tangat a. 15A, ko te tangata e hopukia kei a ia te mea kanga, me tahu ki te ahi, a ia me ana mea katoa: mona i takahi i te kawenata a Ihowa, i mahi poauau hoki i roto i a Iharaira. 16Na ka maranga wawe a Hohua i te ata, a whakatataia mai ana e ia a Iharaira, ara ona iwi; na ka mau ko te iwi o Hura. 17Na ka arahina mai e ia te hapu o Hura: a ka mau te hapu o nga Terahi: na ka arahina mai e ia te hapu o nga Terahi, tenei tangata, tenei tangata; a ka mau ko Taperi: 18Na ka arahi ia i tona whare, i tenei tangata, i tenei tangata; a ka mau ko Akana tama a Karami, tama a Taperi, tama a Tera, no te iwi o Hura. 19Katahi a Hohua ka mea ki a Akana, E taku tama, whakakororiatia a Ihowa, te Atua o Iharaira, a whakina ki a ia, whakaaturia mai hoki ki ahau, i aha koe; kaua e huna i ahau. 20Na ka whakautua e Akana ki a Hohua, ka mea, He pono i hara ahau ki a Ihowa, ki te Atua o Iharaira, a tenei taku i mea ai: 21I taku kitenga i tetahi koroka whakapaipai no Papurona i roto i nga taonga, i nga hekere hiriwa e rua rau, i tetahi poro koura, e rima tekau hekere tona taimaha, na ka minamina ahau, ka tango; a tera kei te whenua i waenganui o toku teneti e hun a ana, me te hiriwa hoki kei raro iho. 22Na ka tonoa atu e Hohua etahi tangata, a ko to ratou rerenga atu ki te teneti; na ko taua mea e huna ana i roto i tona teneti, me te hiriwa i raro iho. 23Na tangohia ana e ratou aua mea i waenganui o te teneti, a mauria ana ki a Hohua ratou ko nga tama katoa a Iharaira, a whakatakotoria ana ki te aroaro o Ihowa. 24Na ka tango a Hohua ratou tahi ko Iharaira katoa i a Akana tama a Tera, i te hiriwa, i te koroka, i te poro koura, i ana tama, i ana tamahine, i ana kau, i ana kaihe, i ana hipi, i tona teneti, i nga mea katoa hoki i a ia, a kawea ana ratou ki t e raorao o Akoro. 25Na ka mea a Hohua, Na te aha koe i whakararu ai i a tatou? ka whakararu hoki a Ihowa i a koe i tenei ra. Na akina ana ia e Iharaira katoa ki te kamaka, a tahuna ana ki te ahi i muri iho i ta ratou akinga i a ratou ki te kamaka. 26A whakapurangatia ana e ratou etahi kohatu ki runga i a ia, he nui te ra. Katahi ka tahuri a Ihowa i te muranga o tona riri. Na reira i huaina ai te ingoa o taua wahi, Ko te raorao o Akoro a mohoa noa nei.
Jamieson Fausset Brown Bible Commentary 1 ACHAN'S TRESPASS. (
Josh 7:1)
the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing--There was one transgressor against the cherem, or ban, on Jericho, and his transgression brought the guilt and disgrace of sin upon the whole nation.
Achan--called afterwards "Achar" ("trouble") (
1Chr 2:7).
Zabdi--or Zimri (
1Chr 2:6).
Zerah--or Zarah, son of Judah and Tamar (
Gen 38:30). His genealogy is given probably to show that from a parentage so infamous the descendants would not be carefully trained in the fear of God.
2 THE ISRAELITES SMITTEN AT AI. (Jos. 7:2-26)
Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai--After the sacking of Jericho, the next step was to penetrate into the hills above. Accordingly, spies went up the mountain pass to view the country. The precise site of Ai, or Hai, is indicated with sufficient clearness (
Gen 12:8;
Gen 13:3) and has been recently discovered in an isolated tell, called by the natives Tell-el-Hajar, "the mount of stones," at two miles', or thirty-five minutes' distance, east southeast from Beth-el [VAN DE VELDE].
Beth-aven--("house of vanity")--a name afterwards given derisively (
Hos 4:15;
Hos 5:8;
Hos 10:5), on account of its idolatries, to Beth-el, "house of God," but here referred to another place, about six miles east of Beth-el and three north of Ai.
3 Let not all the people go up, . . . for they are but few--As the population of Ai amounted to twelve thousand (
Josh 8:25), it was a considerable town; though in the hasty and distant reconnoitre made by the spies, it probably appeared small in comparison to Jericho; and this may have been the reason for their proposing so small a detachment to capture it.
4 they fled before the men of Ai--An unexpected resistance, and the loss of thirty-six of their number diffused a panic, which ended in an ignominious rout.
5 chased them from before the gate even unto Shebarim--that is, unto the "breakings" or "fissures" at the opening of the passes.
and smote them in the going down--that is, the declivity or slope of the deep, rugged, adjoining wady.
wherefore the hearts of the people melted, and became as water--It is evident that the troops engaged were a tumultuary, undisciplined band, no better skilled in military affairs than the Bedouin Arabs, who become disheartened and flee on the loss of ten or fifteen men. But the consternation of the Israelites arose from another cause--the evident displeasure of God, who withheld that aid on which they had confidently reckoned.
6 Joshua rent his clothes, and fell to the earth . . . before the ark . . . he and the elders--It is evident, from those tokens of humiliation and sorrow, that a solemn fast was observed on this occasion. The language of Joshua's prayer is thought by many to savor of human infirmity and to be wanting in that reverence and submission he owed to God. But, although apparently breathing a spirit of bold remonstrance and complaint, it was in reality the effusion of a deeply humbled and afflicted mind, expressing his belief that God could not, after having so miraculously brought His people over Jordan into the promised land, intend to destroy them, to expose them to the insults of their triumphant enemies, and bring reproach upon His own name for inconstancy or unkindness to His people, or inability to resist their enemies. Unable to understand the cause of the present calamity, he owned the hand of God.
10 the Lord said unto Joshua, Get thee up--The answer of the divine oracle was to this effect: the crisis is owing not to unfaithfulness in Me, but sin in the people. The conditions of the covenant have been violated by the reservation of spoil from the doomed city; wickedness, emphatically called folly, has been committed in Israel (
Ps 14:1), and dissimulation, with other aggravations of the crime, continues to be practised. The people are liable to destruction equally with the accursed nations of Canaan (
Deut 7:26). Means must, without delay, be taken to discover and punish the perpetrator of this trespass that Israel may be released from the ban, and things be restored to their former state of prosperity.
16 So Joshua rose up early, and brought Israel by their tribes--that is, before the tabernacle. The lot being appealed to (
Pro 16:33), he proceeded in the inquiry from heads of tribes to heads of families, and from heads of households in succession to one family, and to particular persons in that family, until the criminal was found to be Achan, who, on Joshua's admonition, confessed the fact of having secreted for his own use, in the floor of his tent, spoil both in garments and money [
Josh 7:19-
Josh 7:21]. How dreadful must have been his feelings when he saw the slow but certain process of discovery! (
Num 32:23).
19 Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give . . . glory to God--a form of adjuration to tell the truth.
21 a goodly Babylonish garment--literally, "a mantle of Shinar." The plain of Shinar was in early times celebrated for its gorgeous robes, which were of brilliant and various colors, generally arranged in figured patterns, probably resembling those of modern Turkish carpets, and the colors were either interwoven in the loom or embroidered with the needle.
two hundred shekels of silver--equivalent to Ł22 10s. sterling, according to the old Mosaic shekel, or the half of that sum, reckoning by the common shekel.
a wedge of gold--literally, an ingot or bar in the shape of a tongue.
22 Joshua sent messengers, and they ran unto the tent--from impatient eagerness not only to test the truth of the story, but to clear Israel from the imputation of guilt. Having discovered the stolen articles, they laid them out before the Lord, "as a token of their belonging to Him" on account of the ban.
24 Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan--He with his children and all his property, cattle as well as movables, were brought into one of the long broad ravines that open into the Ghor, and after being stoned to death (
Num 15:30-
Num 15:35), his corpse, with all belonging to him, was consumed to ashes by fire. "All Israel" was present, not only as spectators, but active agents, as many as possible, in inflicting the punishment--thus testifying their abhorrence of the sacrilege, and their intense solicitude to regain the divine favor. As the divine law expressly forbade the children to be put to death for their father's sins (
Deut 24:16), the conveyance of Achan's "sons and daughters" to the place of execution might be only as spectators, that they might take warning by the parental fate; or, if they shared his punishment (
Josh 22:20), they had probably been accomplices in his crime, and, indeed, he could scarcely have dug a hole within his tent without his family being aware of it.
26 they raised over him a great heap of stones--It is customary to raise cairns over the graves of criminals or infamous persons in the East still.
the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor--("trouble"),
unto this day--So painful an episode would give notoriety to the spot, and it is more than once noted by the sacred writers of a later age (
Isa 65:10;
Hos 2:15).