Joshua 8:29

he hanged on a tree "He hongid in a gybet," Wyclif. Hanging is mentioned as a distinct punishment, Numbers 25:4. In Deuteronomy 21:22 we read that in certain cases the criminal was put to death, and after that, his dead body was hung on a tree till eventide; the king of Ai was probably slain and then hanged on a cross or gallows.

as soon as the sun was down This was in accordance with the Mosaic Law, which directed, Deuteronomy 21:23, that a man's body should "not remain all night upon the tree." Comp. also Joshua 10:27.

and raise thereon a great heap of stones Comp. Joshua 7:26. Two words are used for "heap" in Joshua 8:28-29. The first (Tel) indicates the ruins of the city itself, the second (Gal) the cairn over the king's grave.