Joshua 8:1–2 (ESV) — 1 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. 2 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.”
NOTE: Achan's
problem (he is the one who took the devoted things from Jericho and perished)
is that he could not wait. The first city was a warning to the land and a test
for Israel. Everything in Jericho was destroyed. Now, in the attack on the
second city, the people are allowed to take spoil and livestock as plunder. If
Achan has only waited, he could have participated in the spoil. The problem was
two-fold. First, he didn't know what God would do next, that is, would God
order all the cities burned. Actually, God had already told them that he would
give them cities to live in and fields already planted. What God didn't say is
that some cities would not be a part of his promise, and Jericho was not one of
those cities. So since he did not think through God's promise or know God's
specific plan, he acted too early. Secondly, he saw items that he wanted (gold
and silver to get rich, and a fancy coat), and so he succumbed to temptation
and disobeyed. He could not wait upon God for God's blessing, he acted to
obtain his own blessings. Many people quote a verse that does not exist in the
bible, "God helps those who help themselves." But the bible really
says,
Psalm 37:9 (ESV) — 9 For
the evildoers shall be cut off,
but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the
land.
Lord, help us to
wait upon you. Certainly we need to be obedient and prudence where required.
But let us not confused lack of patience with prudence.
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