Joshua 7:22-26

The Sin Purged from Israel Joshua 7:22-26

22 So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran unto the tent; and, behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it.
23 And they took them out of the midst of the tent, and brought them unto Joshua, and unto all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the Lord.
24 And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor.
25 And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the Lord shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones.
26 And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the Lord turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day.

16.

In what way were the spoils laid out before the Lord? Joshua 7:23

The messengers which were sent by Joshua ran to Achan's tent and found the items in the place where he had buried them. They brought these out and put them on public display. In this way they were said to be laid out before the Lord. They were in plain sight of all. Since these items were to have been dedicated to God and put in the treasury of the Lord, this open displaying of the items would indicate they were now to be directed towards their proper use. Since God was directing the purging of the sin from Israel, it was indeed before the Lord that this was done.

17.

Where was the valley of Achor? Joshua 7:24 b

The valley of Achor is located southwest of Jericho and identified with Wady Deber and Wady Mukelik. The name was given to the area on account of the sin and subsequent punishment of Achan. The word means trouble, and the term valley of Achor has become proverbial for describing a situation of distress. This expression is used by Hosea (Joshua 2:15) and in this setting describes the good results which comes from discipline,

18.

Was only Acban stoned? Joshua 7:25

The singular pronoun is used to designate Achan alone as being the principal person concerned. It is obvious enough, however, that his children and cattle were stoned from what follows in the very same verse. It is true that in Deuteronomy 24:16 the Mosaic law expressly forbids the putting to death of children for their fathers-' sins; and many have imagined, therefore, that Achan's sons and daughters were simply taken into the valley to be spectators of the punishment inflicted upon the father so that it might be a warning to them. But for what reason then, were Achan's cattle (oxen, sheep, and asses) taken out along with him? Certainly for no other purpose than to be stoned at the same time as he. The law in question only referred to the punishment of ordinary criminals and therefore was not applicable at all to the present special case in which the punishment was commanded by the Lord himself.

19.

Could Achan's family have participated in the crime? Joshua 7:24-26

Achan had fallen under the ban by laying hands upon what had been banned and consequently was exposed to the same punishment as a town which had fallen away to idolatry (Deuteronomy 13:16-17). The law of the ban was founded upon the assumption that the conduct for which a man was to be punished was not a crime of which the individual alone was guilty, but one in which the whole family of the leading sinner and everything connected with him participated. Thus, in the case before us, the things themselves had been stolen from the booty by Achan alone; but he had hidden them in his tent, buried them in the earth, which could hardly have been done so secretly that his sons and daughters knew nothing of it. By doing this he had made his family participators in his theft. They, therefore, fell under the ban along with him, together with his tent, his cattle, and the rest of his property, which were all involved in the consequences of his crime.