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Achan Sins - The Book of Joshua · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. And Achan answered Joshua and said, Indeed,
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  Speaker 1: I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and
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  Speaker 1: thus and thus have I done. Joshua 7.20 Dear Lord,
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  Speaker 1: Meditating on Joshua 7 and 8, I will be sure
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  Speaker 1: not to take any mindsets and idols that are contrary
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  Speaker 1: to the ways of the Lord. I come against the
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  Speaker 1: mindset of Achan, that would have me take possession of
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  Speaker 1: what is not mine. I will be patient and wait
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  Speaker 1: for you to bring my perfect blessing to me. Like Joshua,
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  Speaker 1: if there is anything in my life that would stop
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  Speaker 1: me from winning the battles, I pray that you will
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  Speaker 1: help me identify them and then remove them from my life.
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  Speaker 1: When I experience moments of setbacks, I will realign myself
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  Speaker 1: and reassess my heart to make sure that I'm living
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  Speaker 1: in complete obedience to you, Lord. When my victories seem
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  Speaker 1: far in between, I will stop and go back to
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  Speaker 1: my last place of disobedience so that I can make
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  Speaker 1: it right and move forward in my promise. Through your word,
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  Speaker 1: I have all the promises and strategies needed to win
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  Speaker 1: every battle. You are with me, Lord, and for that,
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  Speaker 1: I'm forever grateful. Be strong and courageous. With you, God,
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  Speaker 1: I've got this. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for
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  Speaker 1: praying with me today. Continue listening for an incredible Bible
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  Speaker 1: story brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Achan Sins In our last story, we learned of God's
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  Speaker 2: enormous power. With the marching and shouts of Israel, the
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  Speaker 2: walls of Jericho crumbled and the Hebrew army stormed the city.
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  Speaker 2: Now we learn about Israel's self-confidence being shattered by loss
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  Speaker 2: and idolatry. Achan sins and hides it from Joshua, and
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  Speaker 2: the sins of Israel cause stumbling across the land. Inspired,
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  Speaker 2: by the book of Joshua.
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  Speaker 3: Hello, Jack Graham here with today's episode of the Bible
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  Speaker 3: in a Year. In our previous episode, we heard how
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  Speaker 3: God delivered the city of Jericho to the Israelites in
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  Speaker 3: a surprising and miraculous way. With the blowing of trumpets
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  Speaker 3: and the shouting of His people, God caused the walls
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  Speaker 3: of Jericho to collapse into rubble. The Israelites had stormed
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  Speaker 3: the exposed city with God's order to destroy everything but
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  Speaker 3: the gold, silver, bronze, and iron, which were to be
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  Speaker 3: taken for the Lord's treasury. They were warned not to
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  Speaker 3: keep plunder for themselves, lest they bring trouble on the
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  Speaker 3: whole camp. Today we learn of one man named Achan,
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  Speaker 3: whose greed got the best of him, and how his
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  Speaker 3: secret sin, an act of disobedience and deceit, brings heartache
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  Speaker 3: to all around him. Joshua and his army will be
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  Speaker 3: left perplexed as they lose in battle, but the truth
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  Speaker 3: will come out. and the people will learn that God
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  Speaker 3: is not to be defied. Let's listen now to today's reading.
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  Speaker 2: The faithful arm of God carried Israel to victory. The
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  Speaker 2: Israelite army laughed and cheered in the streets of Jericho.
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  Speaker 2: The day was drawing to a close, and the men
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  Speaker 2: were gathering the spoils of war, taking anything valuable to
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  Speaker 2: be stored for the rest of Israel. Joshua instructed specifically
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  Speaker 2: that any idols that caused their hearts to stumble should
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  Speaker 2: be ignored. For God had given them victory, and to
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  Speaker 2: take idols as spoils of war would be spitting in
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  Speaker 2: the face of the Lord. Achan from the tribe of
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  Speaker 2: Judah was rummaging around in the wreckage, searching for anything
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  Speaker 2: valuable or interesting. At the corner of his eye, he
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  Speaker 2: spotted something. An altar to some of the Jericho gods
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  Speaker 2: stood there perfectly intact. The altar was gold, and on
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  Speaker 2: it several Canaanite idols were spread across its base. They
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  Speaker 2: glimmered and reflected back in Achan's eyes. Achan smiled as
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  Speaker 2: he looked around him to see if anyone was watching.
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  Speaker 2: Then he took the idols and stuffed them in his bag.
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  Speaker 2: Unbeknownst to Achan, the anger of God was awakened against
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  Speaker 2: him that moment. Achan did not know that his idolatry
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  Speaker 2: would send Israel into heartache. Joshua sent spies to the
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  Speaker 2: neighboring land of Ai. The spies came back with a
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  Speaker 2: good report, saying that they only needed two to three
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  Speaker 2: thousand men in order to take the land, for the
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  Speaker 2: army was small there and the city was vulnerable. So
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  Speaker 2: Joshua and his men marched forward towards Ai. Achan was
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  Speaker 2: among them, still hiding his idols. Joshua and the army
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  Speaker 2: of Israel drew their swords. Their marching turned into running,
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  Speaker 2: and they shouted as they stormed the city of Ai.
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  Speaker 2: Ai met them with great strength. The battle raged, and
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  Speaker 2: the people of Israel began to fall one by one.
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  Speaker 2: Swords tore apart the flesh of 36 Israelite men, and
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  Speaker 2: it became apparent to Joshua that they would not win
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  Speaker 2: this battle. Retreat! Joshua yelled, and the army of Israel
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  Speaker 2: fled to the mountains. Dirty, bloodied, and bruised, the men
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  Speaker 2: sat there, astonished. After such a glorious victory in Jericho,
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  Speaker 2: how could they have lost? Their hearts melted, and their
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  Speaker 2: optimism disappeared like vapor. Joshua fell before God at the ark.
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  Speaker 2: He lay there until evening. Joshua tightened his jaw. His
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  Speaker 2: face was on the ground and dust was on his head.
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  Speaker 2: His eyes were sealed shut and he was holding back tears.'
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  Speaker 2: Why did you bring us over the Jordan at all?'
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  Speaker 2: Joshua asked.' Would you bring us out here just to
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  Speaker 2: have us slaughtered? We have fled from our enemies. Word
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  Speaker 2: will spread of our cowardice and they will be emboldened
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  Speaker 2: to come out and slaughter us.' Joshua finally began to cry.
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  Speaker 2: His heart was broken over such a tragic loss.' Although
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  Speaker 2: 36 men was not a large military blow, it meant
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  Speaker 2: everything to Israel. The Lord had no patience or compassion
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  Speaker 2: listening to Joshua's words.
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  Speaker 3: Get up, he yelled.
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  Speaker 2: Why do you fall on your face? The people have
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  Speaker 2: broken their promise to me. They have stolen idols. If
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  Speaker 2: I am not their God, then why would I grant
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  Speaker 2: them victory? God spoke with firmness. And Joshua listened with anger.
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  Speaker 2: Joshua rose early and brought every tribe of Israel before him.
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  Speaker 2: He paced in front of them, staring. He pointed to
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  Speaker 2: the tribe of Judah and brought them forward. Then all
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  Speaker 2: those in the tribe of Judah were brought before Joshua.
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  Speaker 2: One by one, they brought their case before Joshua and left.
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  Speaker 2: Then Achan came forward. What have you done? Joshua asked. Immediately,
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  Speaker 2: Achan crumbled. He confessed to taking idols from Jericho and
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  Speaker 2: storing them underneath his tent. So Joshua sent his men
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  Speaker 2: to ransack the tent. They brought all the gold and
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  Speaker 2: silver Achan had taken and showcased it in front of
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  Speaker 2: all the people. They grabbed Achan, his family, and all
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  Speaker 2: the idols he had taken and dragged them to the
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  Speaker 2: Valley of Achor. Why have you done this? Joshua asked. Afterwards,
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  Speaker 2: he said nothing. They bound Achan in the middle of
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  Speaker 2: the valley. Each member of the tribe picked up stones.
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  Speaker 2: One by one, they hurled stones at Achan. Blood and
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  Speaker 2: screams scattered across the field. Achan writhed before them, bound
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  Speaker 2: and unable to free himself. Stone after stone struck Achan
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  Speaker 2: until he breathed his last. Joshua then took Achan along
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  Speaker 2: with his idols and burned them. Everyone looked as Achan
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  Speaker 2: melted with his idols. He shared their fate, destined to
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  Speaker 2: become nothing. The anger of God disappeared with the ashes
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  Speaker 2: of Achan and his idols. God turned to Joshua and said,
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  Speaker 2: Do not be afraid to go against I once again.
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  Speaker 2: I have given them into your hand. Joshua felt the
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  Speaker 2: confidence of the Lord return to him, This time Joshua
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  Speaker 2: gathered thirty thousand of his finest men to take Ai
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  Speaker 2: with force. The battle would not be easy, and it
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  Speaker 2: would require tact and patience. So Joshua and all the
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  Speaker 2: fighting men rose up to go towards Ai. Joshua laid
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  Speaker 2: out his plan before them and said,' Twenty- five thousand of
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  Speaker 2: you shall lie in waiting on the outskirts of the city.'
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  Speaker 2: I and five thousand of my men will storm the
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  Speaker 2: city and clash with I. When they come out to battle,
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  Speaker 2: we will flee as we did before. When they come
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  Speaker 2: after us, you will ambush the city and set it ablaze.
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  Speaker 2: They schemed all night, strategizing and bickering. The next morning,
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  Speaker 2: they were ready. Joshua and five thousand of his men
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  Speaker 2: met I and his army for battle. The two forces clashed.
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  Speaker 2: The Israelite army feigned weakness and tucked tail and ran
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  Speaker 2: from Ai. Filled with confidence, Ai pursued Israel to finish
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  Speaker 2: them once and for all. The 5,000 men fled to
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  Speaker 2: the hills, luring Ai further and further from their city. Then,
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  Speaker 2: like mighty waves crashing upon the rocks, 25,000 of Israel's
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  Speaker 2: warriors clashed against the city of Ai. The land stood
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  Speaker 2: no chance, and they set it ablaze for all the
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  Speaker 2: world to see. The men of Ai looked back to
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  Speaker 2: see their city rising up in smoke and flames. As
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  Speaker 2: they looked back, the 5,000 men of Israel leapt like
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  Speaker 2: a lion against its prey. The jaws of Israel's army
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  Speaker 2: locked on to the neck of Ai. They tore them
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  Speaker 2: apart limb from limb, sparing no soldier. None were able
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  Speaker 2: to escape, and the king of Ai was taken captive
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  Speaker 2: and brought to Joshua. Miles away in Ai, more men
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  Speaker 2: arose from the city to come against the army of Israel.
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  Speaker 2: Israel was surrounded by soldiers from the right and from
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  Speaker 2: the left. Swords flew and shields burst. The flames in
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  Speaker 2: the city grew larger and larger and ash filled the air.
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  Speaker 2: Israel fought among the flames, dousing the fire with the
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  Speaker 2: blood of their enemies. All fell at the edge of
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  Speaker 2: their sword. A total of 12,000 bodies burned with the
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  Speaker 2: city of Ai. Only the livestock was spared as plunder.
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  Speaker 2: The rest was left as a heap of ruins and
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  Speaker 2: a monument to God's greatness. Joshua hung the king of Ai,
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  Speaker 2: and he remained there for the rest of the day.
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  Speaker 2: As the sun was setting across the land, Joshua threw
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  Speaker 2: the king's body among the ashes of his city. The
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  Speaker 2: air smelled of blood, metal, and ash. Joshua raised his
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  Speaker 2: javelin and screamed a war cry of victory. All 30,000
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  Speaker 2: men joined in their shouts. The roaring of Israel shook
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  Speaker 2: the ground. Another victory. The promised land was closer. They
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  Speaker 2: built an altar to God and renewed their covenant with Him.
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  Speaker 2: With God as their mighty warrior king, no nation would
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  Speaker 2: ever stand against them and prevail. Standing among the ash,
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  Speaker 2: a shout of victory bellowed across the land for all
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  Speaker 2: to hear.
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  Speaker 3: Today's reading opens in the aftermath of the Battle of Jericho.
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  Speaker 3: The people were rejoicing over the victory that God had
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  Speaker 3: given them in their first challenge in the Promised Land.
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  Speaker 3: God knew they would be quick to turn away as
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  Speaker 3: they had done many times before, so he had commanded
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  Speaker 3: them to keep no spoils for themselves. It was a test.
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  Speaker 3: The shrines and the idols in Jericho would be a
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  Speaker 3: stumbling block, so they must be completely destroyed. But one
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  Speaker 3: man named Achan, was captivated by the spoils and took
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  Speaker 3: some for himself. He knew it was wrong because he
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  Speaker 3: carefully hid what he had taken in his tent. Nobody knew.
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  Speaker 3: At least he thought. God, of course, knew. And this
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  Speaker 3: act of disrespect and defiance of God, his disobedience, angered
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  Speaker 3: the Lord greatly. This was secret sin, sin in the camp,
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  Speaker 3: and it had to be dealt with. So when Joshua
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  Speaker 3: and his army went into battle against the neighboring city
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  Speaker 3: of Ai, his men met a formidable foe and an
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  Speaker 3: ignominious defeat as 36 Israelite men were cut down and
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  Speaker 3: this forced Joshua to call a retreat. They returned to
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  Speaker 3: camp defeated, not knowing what had happened. What was God doing,
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  Speaker 3: Joshua wondered. Downcast and dispirited, Joshua fell before the ark
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  Speaker 3: and cried out to God, asking him, Why has this happened?
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  Speaker 3: Won't this make you and us look bad before the nations?
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  Speaker 3: But God was having none of this. He called for
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  Speaker 3: Joshua to get up, and then he laid out the
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  Speaker 3: accusation that no doubt stunned Joshua, and we read about
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  Speaker 3: it here in Joshua 7, verses 11 through 12. Israel
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  Speaker 3: has sinned. They have transgressed my covenant that I commanded them.
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  Speaker 3: They've taken some of the devoted things they have stolen
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  Speaker 3: and lied and put them among their own belongings. Therefore,
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  Speaker 3: the people of Israel cannot stand before their enemies. They
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  Speaker 3: turn their backs before their enemies because they have become
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  Speaker 3: devoted for destruction. I will be with you no more
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  Speaker 3: unless you destroy the devoted things that are among you.
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  Speaker 3: This secret sin, this single act of disobedience would not stand.
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  Speaker 3: God is teaching every one of us a lesson. that
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  Speaker 3: we must confess our sins and not hide them away,
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  Speaker 3: that a divided heart cannot walk with God, and God
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  Speaker 3: cannot use us with sin in our lives. God instructed
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  Speaker 3: Joshua as to how they would find the culprit. And
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  Speaker 3: just as he said the guilty party was discovered, Achan
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  Speaker 3: came forward and confessed his sin, surely to the anger
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  Speaker 3: and shock of everyone around them. Achan and the things
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  Speaker 3: that he had taken were quickly destroyed, and judgment came
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  Speaker 3: upon Achan and his family. He sent Joshua once more
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  Speaker 3: to battle at Ai, and this time the victory was commanding.
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  Speaker 3: Not a soul was left standing, only the livestock. God's
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  Speaker 3: blessing and protection was once again upon his people, just
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  Speaker 3: as he had promised. Hope is restored, and the neighboring
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  Speaker 3: cities feared the God of Israel and his army. The
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  Speaker 3: next time, we're going to learn about a new approach
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  Speaker 3: to war that one of those neighbors employs. Dear God,
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  Speaker 3: we pray. that you would search our hearts. And if
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  Speaker 3: there is any sin, if there is a secret sin,
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  Speaker 3: if there is a buried sin in our lives, that
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  Speaker 3: we would confess it and find forgiveness, that we would
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  Speaker 3: learn to obey you always and never try to cover
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  Speaker 3: up our disobedience to you. Thank you for always showing
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  Speaker 3: us mercy when we come to you. We pray this
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  Speaker 3: in the name of your son, Jesus, who made it possible.
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  Speaker 3: for us to confess our sins and to be forgiven.
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  Speaker 3: In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Thank you for listening
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  Speaker 3: to today's Bible in a Year podcast. I'm Jack Graham
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  Speaker 3: from Dallas, Texas. Download the Pray.com app and make Bible
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  Speaker 3: big difference, an eternal difference in someone else's life. And
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  Speaker 3: God's power for your life, be sure to visit JackGraham.org.
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  Speaker 3: God bless you.