1 GLT And Yahweh said to Joshua,“Do not fear and do not be dismayed. Take with you all the people of war and rise, go up to the Ai. See, I have given into your hand the king of the Ai and his people and his city and his land. BSB BSB: 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.
2 GLT And you shall do to the Ai and its king just as you have done to Jericho and its king, except you will plunder its spoil and its livestock for yourselves. Set for yourselves an ambush against the city from behind it.” BSB BSB: And you shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, except that you may carry off their plunder and livestock for yourselves. Set up an ambush behind the city.”
3 GLT And Joshua and all the people of war rose to go up to the Ai. And Joshua chose 30, 000 men, mighty ones of the army, and sent them at night. BSB BSB: So Joshua and the whole army set out to attack Ai. Joshua chose 30,000 mighty men of valor and sent them out at night
4 GLT And he commanded them, saying,“See, you lie in ambush against the city from behind the city. You shall not be very far from the city. And all of you shall be ready. BSB BSB: with these orders: “Pay attention. You are to lie in ambush behind the city, not too far from it. All of you must be ready.
5 GLT As for me and all the people who are with me, we will come near to the city. And it will happen when they come out to meet us just as at the first, that we will flee before their face. BSB BSB: Then I and all the troops with me will advance on the city. When they come out against us as they did the first time, we will flee from them.
6 GLT And they will come out after us until we have drawn them from the city. For they will say,‘They are fleeing before our face just as at the first.’ And we will flee before their face. BSB BSB: They will pursue us until we have drawn them away from the city, for they will say, ‘The Israelites are running away from us as they did before.’ So as we flee from them,
7 GLT And you will rise from ambush and take possession of the city. And Yahweh your God will give it into your hand. BSB BSB: you are to rise from the ambush and seize the city, for the LORD your God will deliver it into your hand.
8 GLT And it will happen that when you capture the city, you will kindle the city with fire. You will do according to the word of Yahweh. See, I have commanded you.” BSB BSB: And when you have taken the city, set it on fire. Do as the LORD has commanded! See, I have given you orders.”
9 GLT And Joshua sent them and they went to the ambush place and they stayed between Bethel and the Ai from west of the Ai. And Joshua stayed overnight that night in the midst of the people. BSB BSB: So Joshua sent them out, and they went to the place of ambush and lay in wait between Bethel and Ai, to the west of Ai. But Joshua spent that night among the people.
10 GLT And Joshua got up early in the morning and mustered the people. And he and the elders of Israel went up before the face of the people to the Ai. BSB BSB: Joshua got up early the next morning and mobilized his men, and he and the elders of Israel marched before them up to Ai.
11 GLT And all the people of war who were with him went up and approached and came before the city. And they camped from north of the Ai and the valley was between them and the Ai. BSB BSB: Then all the troops who were with him marched up and approached the city. They arrived in front of Ai and camped to the north of it, with the valley between them and the city.
12 GLT And he took about 5, 000 men. And he set them in ambush between Bethel and the Ai, from west of the city. BSB BSB: Now Joshua had taken about five thousand men and set up an ambush between Bethel and Ai, to the west of the city.
13 GLT And the people set all the camp that was from north of the city and its rear guard from west of the city. And Joshua went in that night into the midst of the valley. BSB BSB: So the forces were stationed with the main camp to the north of the city and the rear guard to the west of the city. And that night Joshua went into the valley.
14 GLT And it happened that as soon as the king of the Ai saw, then the men of the city hurried and got up early and went out to meet Israel for the battle, he and all his people, at an appointed place before the face of the Arabah. Now he did not know that an ambush was against him from behind the city. BSB BSB: When the king of Ai saw the Israelites, he hurried out early in the morning with the men of the city to engage them in battle at an appointed place overlooking the Arabah. But he did not know that an ambush had been set up against him behind the city.
15 GLT And Joshua and all Israel let themselves be struck before the face of them. And they fled the way of the wilderness. BSB BSB: Joshua and all Israel let themselves be beaten back before them, and they fled toward the wilderness.
16 GLT And all the people who were in the city were summoned to pursue after them. And they pursued after Joshua and were drawn away from the city. BSB BSB: Then all the men of Ai were summoned to pursue them, and they followed Joshua and were drawn away from the city.
17 GLT And there was not a man left in the Ai or Bethel who had not pursued after Israel. And they left the city open and they pursued after Israel. BSB BSB: Not a man was left in Ai or Bethel who did not go out after Israel, leaving the city wide open while they pursued Israel.
18 GLT And Yahweh said to Joshua,“Stretch out with the javelin that is in your hand toward the Ai, because I will give it into your hand.” And Joshua stretched out with the javelin that was in his hand toward the city. BSB BSB: Then the LORD said to Joshua, “Hold out your battle lance toward Ai, for into your hand I will deliver the city.” So Joshua held out his battle lance toward Ai,
19 GLT And the ambush rose quickly from its place and they ran when he stretched out his hand. And they entered the city and captured it and hurried and kindled the city with fire. BSB BSB: and as soon as he did so, the men in ambush rose quickly from their position. They rushed forward, entered the city, captured it, and immediately set it on fire.
20 GLT And the men of the Ai turned behind them and looked, and behold, the smoke of the city went up to the heavens! And it was not in their hands to flee here or there. And the people who had fled to the wilderness turned around toward the pursuers. BSB BSB: When the men of Ai turned and looked back, the smoke of the city was rising into the sky. They could not escape in any direction, and the troops who had fled to the wilderness now turned against their pursuers.
21 GLT And Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had captured the city, and that the smoke of the city went up. And they turned back and struck down the men of the Ai. BSB BSB: When Joshua and all Israel saw that the men in ambush had captured the city and that smoke was rising from it, they turned around and struck down the men of Ai.
22 GLT And these came out from the city to meet them and they were in the midst of Israel, these from here and these from there. And they struck them down until he left no survivor or refugee of them. BSB BSB: Meanwhile, those in the ambush came out of the city against them, and the men of Ai were trapped between the Israelite forces on both sides. So Israel struck them down until no survivor or fugitive remained.
23 GLT And they seized the king of the Ai alive. And they brought him near to Joshua. BSB BSB: But they took the king of Ai alive and brought him to Joshua.
24 GLT And it happened when Israel had finished slaying all those who dwelled in the Ai in the field in the wilderness in which they pursued them, and all of them had fallen by the mouth of the sword until they were finished, that all Israel returned to the Ai and struck it with the mouth of the sword. BSB BSB: When Israel had finished killing all the men of Ai who had pursued them into the field and wilderness, and when every last one of them had fallen by the sword, all the Israelites returned to Ai and put it to the sword as well.
25 GLT And it happened that all the ones who fell on that day, from man and as far as woman, were 12, 000, all the men of the Ai. BSB BSB: A total of twelve thousand men and women fell that day—all the people of Ai.
26 GLT And Joshua did not turn back his hand which he had stretched out with the javelin, until when he had completely destroyed all those who dwelled in the Ai. BSB BSB: Joshua did not draw back the hand that held his battle lance until he had devoted to destruction all who lived in Ai.
27 GLT Israel plundered for themselves only the livestock and the spoil of that city, according to the word of Yahweh which he had commanded Joshua. BSB BSB: Israel took for themselves only the cattle and plunder of that city, as the LORD had commanded Joshua.
28 GLT And Joshua burned the Ai. And he made it a mound of eternity, a desolation until this day. BSB BSB: So Joshua burned Ai and made it a permanent heap of ruins, a desolation to this day.
29 GLT And he hanged the king of the Ai on a tree until the time of the evening. And when the sun was going, Joshua commanded and they brought down his corpse from the tree and threw it at the opening of the gate of the city and raised over it a great pile of stones until this day. BSB BSB: He hung the king of Ai on a tree until evening, and at sunset Joshua commanded that they take down the body from the tree and throw it down at the entrance of the city gate. And over it they raised a large pile of rocks, which remains to this day.
32 GLT And there on the stones he wrote a copy of the law of Moses, which he wrote before the face of the sons of Israel. BSB BSB: And there in the presence of the Israelites, Joshua inscribed on the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he had written.
33 GLT And all Israel and its elders and officers and its judges were standing from here and from there at the Box in front of the priests and the Levites who carried the Box of the Covenant of Yahweh, like the foreigner so the native, half of them toward the front of Mount Gerizim and half of them toward the front of Mount Ebal. It was just as Moses the servant of Yahweh had commanded to bless the people of Israel at the first. BSB BSB: All Israel, foreigners and citizens alike, with their elders, officers, and judges, stood on both sides of the ark of the covenant of the LORD facing the Levitical priests who carried it. Half of the people stood in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded earlier, to bless the people of Israel.
34 GLT And afterward, he read all the words of the law, the blessings and the curses, according to all that is written in the book of the law. BSB BSB: Afterward, Joshua read aloud all the words of the law—the blessings and the curses—according to all that is written in the Book of the Law.
35 GLT There was not a word from all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read in front of all the assembly of Israel and the women and the children and the sojourners who are going in the midst of them. BSB BSB: There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua failed to read before the whole assembly of Israel, including the women, the little ones, and the foreigners who lived among them.
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