Joshua 7

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:14

Sin discovered. This leads us to remark that— I. EVERY SIN IS KNOWN TO GOD . Joshua was ignorant that Achan had secreted spoil, but the searching glances of God reached further than the most watchful oversight of the leader. As afterwards, when the disciples did not suspect the character and intents of Judas, the Lord discerned the sinister proposes of his heart. The omniscience and omnipresence of the Almighty have been strangely disregarded even by His own servants.... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:15

He that is taken with the accursed thing; or, according to Keil, "he on whom the ban falls." He and all that he hath (cf. Joshua 7:24 ). The opinion that Achan's family had in some way become participators in his sin would seem preferable to the idea that his sin had involved them in the ban. The destruction of their possessions is due to the fact that all the family had come under the ban. Folly נְבָלָה used of the heart as well as the head (cf. Genesis 34:7 : Deuteronomy 22:21... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:16

EXPOSITION THE DISCOVERY OF ACHAN 'S SIN .— The family of Judah. The expression מִשְׁפַתַת is remarkable. Many commentators would read מִשְׁפְחֹת , not without some MSS . authority. Keil objects that the Chaldee and Syriac have the singular. But the LXX . has κατὰ δήμους , and the Vulgate juxta familias. On the whole it seems more probable that as מִשְׁפַחַת occurs twice in this passage, it has been so pointed where the same letters occur for the third... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:16-26

The detection. Objections have been raised to the morality of the whole narrative. We will deal first with this subject, and then turn to the religious and moral questions involved. I. WHY DID GOD NOT REVEAL THE OFFENDER WHEN HE REVEALED THE OFFENCE ? The answer is, that He might still further display the hardness of Achan's heart. He did not at once come forward and confess his crime. He not only had offended against God's laws, but he persisted in his offence.... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:19

My son. This is no mere hypocritical affectation of tenderness. Joshua feels for the criminal, even though he is forced to put him to death. So in cur own day the spectacle is not uncommon of a judge melted to tears as he passes sentence of death on the murderer. The expression seems almost to imply a belief that, though Achan must undergo the extremest penalty of the law in this world, Joshua entertained a hope that he might be forgiven in the next. It certainly proves that, stern as the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:19

Sin confessed. A notable scene. The people of Israel assembled in solemn conclave. In silent excitement the national offender has been detected, and waits to hear his doom from the lips of the great commander. Whilst every eye is bent upon Achan, Joshua addresses him in the language of the text. Note how guilty Joshua speaks, grieving over the offence rather than severely censuring it, calling the criminal "my son," and inviting a full disclosure from his own lips. Out of his own mouth was... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:21

A goodly Babylonish garment . Literally, " a mantle of Shinar, one goodly one." Babylon was in the "land of Shinar" (see Genesis 11:2 ; Genesis 14:1 ; Isaiah 11:11 ; Zechariah 5:11 ). The אַדרֶת derived from אדר great, glorious, was an ample cloak, sometimes of hair or fur ( Genesis 25:25 ; cf. 1 Kings 19:13 , 1 Kings 19:19 ; 2 Kings 2:13 , 2 Kings 2:14 ; Jonah 3:6 , etc). The Babylonish mantle was famed for its beauty ( ποικίλη , LXX ), and was, no doubt,... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:21

A sin of greed. Here we have much profitable study. Some sins are peculiar to certain ages or countries. But greed is found in all lands and times. It specially thrives in periods of wealth and of prosperity. It creeps in where faults of uglier aspect are denied admission. It flourishes wherever the power of religion has decayed while its profession continues. Here is an instance of its action in all its meanness, disclosure, mischief, and retribution. Consider it. I. Mark ACHAN 'S ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:23

Laid them out before the Lord. This shows the directly religious nature of the proceeding. God had directed the lot, the offender was discovered, and now the devoted things are solemnly laid out one by one (for so the Hebrew seems to imply, though in 2 Samuel 15:24 it has the sense of planting firmly, as molten matter hardens and becomes fixed) before Him whose they are, as a confession of sin, and also as an act of restitution. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:24

Took Achan, the son of Zerah. Great-grandson in reality (see Joshua 7:1 ; cf. 1 Kings 15:2 , 1 Kings 15:10 ). And his sons and his daughters (see note, Joshua 7:15 ). Brought them . Hebrew, "brought them up." The valley of Achor was above Jericho, whether higher up the valley or on higher ground is not known. The valley of Achor (see Joshua 15:7 ; Isaiah 65:10 ; Hosea 2:15 ). Achor means trouble (see note on Joshua 6:18 ). read more

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:14

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:15

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:16

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:16-26

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:19

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:19

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:21

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:21

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:23

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 7:24

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