Joshua 8:1-2 (ESV)
The Fall of Ai
And the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not fear and do not be dismayed. Take all the fighting men with you, and arise, go up to Ai. See, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, and his people, his city, and his land. And you shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king. Only its spoil and its livestock you shall take as plunder for yourselves. Lay an ambush against the city, behind it.”
Joshua and Israel have just experienced a defeat against the city of Ai. They presumptuously attacked the city without faith, without consulting God and with the sin of Achan in their midst. Achan, during the battle of Jericho, took gold and sliver and hid it in his tent, disobeying Joshua’s command. They had previously committed all bounty for the taking of Jericho to the Lord. Achan took it from the Lord, not Jericho, or Joshua. He was stoned for it.
However, Joshua didn’t know all this and foolishly sent them to fight the city of Ai, with pride in his heart and foolishness for strategy. Now that the Achan issue was resolved, Joshua is prepare to go against Ai again. This time with humility, strategy and faith in the Almighty. He didn’t allow the defeat to defeat him. He used the failure the first time to create the strategy for the second time. God was with him and the nation. It was a hard lesson but one he and they had to learn. Never let a defeat beat you twice. Allow all defeats to teach more about God and about yourself and your own pride and failures. God wants to turn around any defeat into a victory for Him. If Achan would have waited, he would have reaped the bounty now promised in Ai. He didn’t wait and that caused disaster on himself and his family. God wants to bless us but in the timing He has for us. Don’t do shortcuts and suffer defeat. But if you have a defeat, learn from it and allow God to work a future miracle from it.
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