Grasp the Gospel — Bible Comprehension Quizzes

Joshua 8 Devotional

Grace After the Valley

“Then the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid or discouraged. Take the whole army with you, and go up and attack Ai. See, I have delivered into your hand the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land.”Joshua 8:1 (BSB)

After the Valley of Achor, the LORD speaks first. He tells Joshua not to be afraid or discouraged and sends the whole army back to Ai, promising that the city is already given into his hand (8:1). With the sin dealt with, God takes up his people again. And this time he lets Israel keep the plunder and livestock (8:2, 27). Achan took in secret what God had forbidden; now God freely gives Israel the spoil of Ai.

The battle itself is not softened. An ambush takes the city, all its people fall, twelve thousand men and women, and Ai is left a heap of ruins (8:19-28). Then Joshua builds an altar on Mount Ebal, as Moses had commanded, and reads every word of the law, blessings and curses alike, before the whole assembly, women, children, and foreigners included (8:30-35). He is not grudging toward those he restores, and you do not have to grab in secret what he is glad to give.

To think about: Is there something you have been trying to grab for yourself that you could instead wait to receive from God?

About Joshua 8: Ai Captured and the Law Renewed

With the sin removed, the LORD sends Joshua against Ai again, and hidden troops seize and burn the town while the main army lures its defenders away. Joshua then builds an altar on Ebal, copies Moses' law on stones, and reads all of it, with its blessings and curses, to the entire assembly.

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