God had clearly explained all His instructions about Jericho. Everything in the city was to be devoted to God. Joshua 6:18-19, 24, “‘But keep away from the devoted things, so that you will not bring about your own destruction by taking any of them. Otherwise you will make the camp of Israel liable to destruction and bring trouble on it. All the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron are sacred to the Lord and must go into his treasury’...Then they burned the whole city and everything in it, but they put the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron into the treasury of the Lord’s house.” Prior to the destruction of Jericho the Israelites were allowed to take the spoils of victory for themselves, and they were also permitted to do this after the battle at Jericho. But Jericho represented the first fruits of the land of Canaan, and the first fruits belonged to God.
The great victory at Jericho gave the confidence of Joshua and the Israelites a big boost. They were ready to invade the town of Ai next. But there was a problem of which they were unaware. There was sin in the camp. One person had disobeyed God’s instructions. His sin caused defeat at Ai and the deaths of thirty six soldiers, his family, and himself. Achan paid a very high price for things he never had the opportunity to enjoy.
Joshua sent some men to spy out Ai. They advised Joshua to send only 2,000 or 3,000 men because there weren’t many people in Ai. Three thousand men were sent, but they were defeated and thirty six were killed. Joshua took the situation to God. God told Joshua the reason for the defeat was that one of the Israelites had disobeyed God and taken some of the devoted things for himself.
God gave Joshua a plan for discovering the sinner. On the following day, the Israelites were to present themselves by tribes. The tribe the Lord selected would then come forward by clans. The selected clan would come forward by families, and then the man who had sinned would be discovered. Joshua did exactly as God instructed. Imagine how Achan must have felt as the finger of God came closer and closer to pointing him out. How foolish any of us are if we try to hide anything from an all-seeing God.
Achan, his family, and their animals were stoned to death. We cannot sin without adversely affecting other people. Wiersbe, “Never underestimate the damage one person can do outside the will of God.”
Father, may I never forget that no person sins unto himself. Help me to obey You. Amen.
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