Joshua 7:1-26
7 * But the sons of Israel were guilty of unfaithfulness in the deodand, and ʽAcan the son of Carmi the son of Zabdi the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the deodand, and Jehovah was angry with the sons of Israel.
2 And Joshuaʽ sent men from Jericho to the Ghai near Beth-Aven east of Bethel, and said to them “Go up and reconnoiter the country.” And the men went up and reconnoitered the Ghai,
3 * and came back to Joshuaʽ and said to him “Do not have all the people go up; have about two or three thousand men go up and conquer the Ghai; do not get all the people tired out going there, because there are not many of the townsmen.”
4 And about three thousand men of the people went up there, and were put to flight before the men of the Ghai,
5 * and the men of the Ghai killed about thirty-six men at that time, and chased them before the gate to the Breaks and cut them down on the downward road. And the people’s hearts melted down to water,
6 and Joshuaʽ tore his garments and threw himself down on his face on the ground before Jehovah till evening, he and the elders of Israel, and put earth over their heads;
7 and Joshuaʽ said “O, O, Lord Jehovah, why have you brought this people across the Jordan to give us into the hands of the Amorites to be destroyed? if only we had been willing to stay on the other side of the Jordan!
8 O, what shall I say, Lord, after Israel has turned his back before his enemy,
9 and the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the country will hear of it and surround us and sweep away our name from the earth, and what will you do for your great name?”
10 And Jehovah said to Joshuaʽ “Stand up; what are you down on your face for?
11 Israel has sinned, they have overstepped my covenant that I enjoined on them, they have taken some of the deodand, they have stolen, they have lied, they have pocketed it,
12 * and the sons of Israel cannot stand up before their enemies, they turn their backs before their enemies, because they have become deodand; I will not be with you anymore unless you root out the deodand from among you.
13 Stand up, hallow the people and say ‘Hallow yourselves for tomorrow, because Israel’s God Jehovah says “There is deodand among you, Israel; you cannot stand up before your enemies till you remove the deodand from among you.”
14 And present yourselves in the morning by tribes, and the tribe Jehovah fixes upon shall come forward by clans, and the clan Jehovah fixes upon shall come forward family by family, and the family Jehovah fixes upon shall come forward man by man,
15 and the one who is detected with the deodand shall be burned up, he and all that belong to him, because he has overstepped Jehovah’s covenant and has committed a scandal in Israel.’”
16 And the first thing in the morning Joshuaʽ brought Israel forward by tribes, and the tribe of Judah was fixed upon.
17 ** And he brought forward the clans of Judah, and he fixed on the clan of the Zerahites. And he brought forward the clan of the Zerahites by families, and Zabdi was fixed upon.
18 ** And he brought forward his family man by man, and ʽAcan the son of Carmi the son of Zabdi the son of Zerah was fixed upon.
19 And Joshuaʽ said to ʽAcan “My son, accord glory to Israel’s God Jehovah and give him praise, and tell me what you have done; do not refuse to answer.”
20 * And ʽAcan answered Joshuaʽ “I have indeed sinned against Israel’s God Jehovah, and done like this:
21 * I saw among the booty one fine Shinear mantle and a hundred ounces of silver and one ingot of gold that weighed twenty-five ounces, and I wanted them and took them; you will find them buried in the ground inside my tent, and the silver under it.”
22 And Joshuaʽ sent messengers who ran to the tent and found it buried in his tent and the silver under it;
23 * and they took them from inside the tent and brought them to Joshuaʽ and all the sons of Israel, and set them down before Jehovah.
24 And Joshuaʽ, and all Israel with him, took ʽAcan the son of Zerah and his children and his cow and donkey and sheep and goats and his tent and everything he had, and they brought them up to Trouble Vale,
25 and Joshuaʽ said “How you have troubled us! Jehovah will trouble you today,” and all Israel stoned him, and burned them up and threw stones all over them,
26 and raised over him a great cairn of stones which is there to this day. And Jehovah came back from his anger. That is why the place is named Trouble Vale to this day.
Footnotes
^ 7:1 (Zabdi) Var. Zimri
^ 7:3 Lit. do not tire out all the people to there, because those are few
^ 7:5 Conj. them from before
^ 7:12 Or will turn
^ 7:17 Var. Zerahites man by man, and
^ 7:17 Var. and Zimri
^ 7:18 Var. Zimri
^ 7:18 Var. Zerah of the tribe of Judah
^ 7:20 Or done such and such things; and
^ 7:21 Lit. tongue of gold
^ 7:23 Var. and poured them out before Jehovah
