Joshua 8:3-23
8:3 a set out to attack Ai: This first sentence provides a summary; details are filled in over the next several paragraphs.• The Hebrew words translated 30,000 might mean 30 units (see study note on Exod 12:37) or 30 chieftains. As the battle developed, this group would wait in ambush until Joshua called them out (Josh 8:18-19 b).
Summary for Josh 8:4-9: 8:4-9 c Joshua told the select squad what to expect from Israel’s main army. Because this special unit would be separated from Joshua’s command for nearly forty-eight hours, they needed to understand exactly what to do. Israel’s success in this second attempt on Ai depended on the precise timing of their rush into the town.
Summary for Josh 8:11-13: 8:11-13 d That the main army marched in front of the town indicates that Joshua did not try to hide them from the defenders of Ai. The main army came from the east and ended the day camped on the north side of Ai. The men in ambush were west of Ai, between Ai and Bethel.
8:14 e The king of Ai ... and all his army were recklessly eager to repeat their heroics of the previous battle. As Joshua and Israel had learned, such overconfidence is dangerous.
8:15 f Joshua and the Israelite army fled as in the first attack (7:4-5 g).
8:17 h not a man left in Ai or Bethel: Much of an individual soldier’s gain from warfare was his share of the spoils taken from the defeated enemy or a reward given by his king for each enemy he killed.
• The warriors of Bethel likely joined those of Ai because they also feared Israel’s advance.
Summary for Josh 8:18-19: 8:18-19 i Israel succeeded in this second attack on Ai because this time God directed the battle.
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