¹ And Jericho was closed·​·up and had closed· itself ·up from before the sons of Israel; none went·​·out and none came·​·in.

² And Jehovah said to^▵ Joshua, See, I have given into thy hand Jericho and her king and^* the mighty·​·men of valor.

³ And you shall go·​·around the city, all the men^◦ of war, circle the city one time^◦. Thus shalt thou do six days.

⁴ And seven priests shall bear seven shophars^* of the jubilee before the ark; and on^◦ the seventh day you shall go·​·around the city seven times^◦, and the priests shall sound with the shophars,

⁵ and it shall be when they shall draw·​·out a blast with the horn of the jubilee, when you hear the voice of the shophar, all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city shall fall under itself and the people shall go·​·up, each man^◦ to the front·​·of him.

⁶ And Joshua the son of Nun called to^▵ the priests, and said to^▵ them, Bear the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests Bear seven shophars of jubilee before the ark of Jehovah.

⁷ And they said to^▵ the people, cross·​·over and go·​·around the city, and let him who is armed^◦ cross·​·over before the ark of Jehovah.

⁸ And it was, as Joshua spoke^◦ to^▵ the people, the seven priests bearing the seven shophars of jubilee before Jehovah crossed·​·over, and sounded with the shophars, and the ark of the covenant of Jehovah going^◦ after them.

⁹ And he who was armed^◦ walked before the priests who sounded the shophars, and they who gathered·​·in the column^* walked after the ark, walking and the priests sounding with the shophars.

¹⁰ And Joshua commanded the people, saying, You shall not shout nor let your voice be heard, neither shall a word go·​·out of your mouth, until the day of my saying to^▵ you, shout; then shall you shout.

¹¹ And he caused the ark of Jehovah to go·​·around the city, circling it one time^◦; and they came to^▫ the camp and passed·​·the·​·night in the camp.

¹² And Joshua got·​·up·​·early in the morning, and the priests lifted·​·up the ark of Jehovah.

¹³ And seven of the priests bearing the seven shophars of the jubilee walked before the ark of Jehovah, walking and sounding with the shophars, and he who was armed^◦ walking before them, and they who gathered·​·in the column walked behind the ark of Jehovah, the priests walking and sounding with the shophars.

¹⁴ And they went·​·around the city the second day one time^◦ and returned to^▫ the camp; thus they did six days.

¹⁵ And it was, on^◦ the seventh day, that they got·​·up·​·early as the dawn came·​·up, and went·​·around the city according·​·to this manner^◦ seven times^◦; only on^◦ that^◦ day they went·​·around the city seven times^◦.

¹⁶ And it was, at the seventh time^◦, the priests sounded with the shophars, and Joshua said to^▵ the people, Shout, for Jehovah has given to you the city.

¹⁷ And the city shall be devoted,^* she and all that is in her, to Jehovah; only Raḥab the harlot shall live, she^◦ and all who are with her in the house, for she hid·​·away the messengers whom we sent.

¹⁸ And you^◦, only keep yourselves from the devoted·​·thing; lest when you have devoted it, you take of the devoted·​·thing and you make^▫ the camp of Israel a doomed·​·thing, and trouble it.

¹⁹ And all the silver and gold and vessels of bronze and iron, it^◦ is holiness to Jehovah; it shall come·​·into the treasury of Jehovah.

²⁰ And the people shouted, and they sounded with the shophars; and it was, as the people heard the voice of the shophar, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell under itself, and the people went·​·up into the city, each·​·man^◦ to the front·​·of him, and they captured the city.

²¹ And they devoted all that was in the city, from a man^◦ even·​·to a woman, from a lad even·​·to an elder, and even·​·to an ox, and a sheep^◦, and a donkey, to the mouth of the sword.

²² And Joshua said unto the two men^◦ that had spied·​·out the land, Go·​·into the house of the woman, the harlot, and bring·​·out thence the woman, and all that she has, as^◦ you promised to her.

²³ And the lads, the spies, came and brought·​·out Raḥab and her father, and her mother, and her brothers, and all that she had^◦; and all her families they brought·​·out, and placed them outside the camp of Israel.

²⁴ And the city they burnt·​·up with fire, and all that was in her; only the silver and the gold, and the vessels of bronze and of iron, they gave into the treasure of the house of Jehovah.

²⁵ But Raḥab the harlot and the house of her father and all that she had^◦, Joshua caused to live, and she dwells among Israel to^◦ this day; for she hid·​·away the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy·​·out Jericho.

²⁶ And Joshua promised at that^◦ time, saying, Cursed be the man^◦ before Jehovah, who rises·​·up and builds this city Jericho; with his firstborn shall he lay· her ·foundation, and with the youngest^▵ he shall set·​·up her doors.

²⁷ And Jehovah was with Joshua; and his fame was in all the land.

¹ Yahweh said to Joshua, "Don't be afraid, neither be dismayed. Take all the people of war with you, and arise, go up to Ai. Behold, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, with his people, his city, and his land.

² You shall do to Ai and her king as you did to Jericho and her king, except its spoil and its livestock, you shall take for a plunder for yourselves. Set an ambush for the city behind it."

³ So Joshua arose, and all the people of war, to go up to Ai. Joshua chose thirty thousand men, the mighty men of valor, and sent them out by night.

⁴ He commanded them, saying, "Behold, you shall lie in ambush against the city, behind the city. Don't go very far from the city, but all of you be ready.

⁵ I, and all the people who are with me, will approach to the city. It shall happen, when they come out against us, as at the first, that we will flee before them.

⁶ They will come out after us, until we have drawn them away from the city; for they will say, 'They flee before us, like the first time.' So we will flee before them,

⁷ and you shall rise up from the ambush, and take possession of the city; for Yahweh your God will deliver it into your hand.

⁸ It shall be, when you have seized on the city, that you shall set the city on fire. You shall do this according to the word of Yahweh. Behold, I have commanded you."

⁹ Joshua sent them out; and they went to set up the ambush, and stayed between Bethel and Ai, on the west side of Ai; but Joshua stayed among the people that night.

¹⁰ Joshua rose up early in the morning, mustered the people, and went up, he and the elders of Israel, before the people to Ai.

¹¹ All the people, even the men of war who were with him, went up, and drew near, and came before the city, and encamped on the north side of Ai. Now there was a valley between him and Ai.

¹² He took about five thousand men, and set them in ambush between Bethel and Ai, on the west side of the city.

¹³ So they set the people, even all the army who was on the north of the city, and their ambush on the west of the city; and Joshua went that night into the midst of the valley.

¹⁴ It happened, when the king of Ai saw it, that they hurried and rose up early, and the men of the city went out against Israel to battle, he and all his people, at the time appointed, before the Arabah; but he didn't know that there was an ambush against him behind the city.

¹⁵ Joshua and all Israel made as if they were beaten before them, and fled by the way of the wilderness.

¹⁶ All the people who were in the city were called together to pursue after them. They pursued Joshua, and were drawn away from the city.

¹⁷ There was not a man left in Ai or Beth El who didn't go out after Israel. They left the city open, and pursued Israel.

¹⁸ Yahweh said to Joshua, "Stretch out the javelin that is in your hand toward Ai, for I will give it into your hand." Joshua stretched out the javelin that was in his hand toward the city.

¹⁹ The ambush arose quickly out of their place, and they ran as soon as he had stretched out his hand, and entered into the city, and took it. They hurried and set the city on fire.

²⁰ When the men of Ai looked behind them, they saw, and behold, the smoke of the city ascended up to heaven, and they had no power to flee this way or that way. The people who fled to the wilderness turned back on the pursuers.

²¹ When Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had taken the city, and that the smoke of the city ascended, then they turned again, and killed the men of Ai.

²² The others came out of the city against them, so they were in the midst of Israel, some on this side, and some on that side. They struck them, so that they let none of them remain or escape.

²³ They captured the king of Ai alive, and brought him to Joshua.

²⁴ It happened, when Israel had made an end of killing all the inhabitants of Ai in the field, in the wilderness in which they pursued them, and they had all fallen by the edge of the sword, until they were consumed, that all Israel returned to Ai, and struck it with the edge of the sword.

²⁵ All that fell that day, both of men and women, were twelve thousand, even all the men of Ai.

²⁶ For Joshua didn't draw back his hand, with which he stretched out the javelin, until he had utterly destroyed all the inhabitants of Ai.

²⁷ Only the livestock and the spoil of that city Israel took for prey to themselves, according to the word of Yahweh which he commanded Joshua.

²⁸ So Joshua burnt Ai, and made it a heap forever, even a desolation, to this day.

²⁹ He hanged the king of Ai on a tree until the evening, and at the sundown Joshua commanded, and they took his body down from the tree, and threw it at the entrance of the gate of the city, and raised a great heap of stones on it that remains to this day.

³⁰ Then Joshua built an altar to Yahweh, the God of Israel, in Mount Ebal,

³¹ as Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of uncut stones, on which no man had lifted up any iron. They offered burnt offerings on it to Yahweh, and sacrificed peace offerings.

³² He wrote there on the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he wrote in the presence of the children of Israel.

³³ All Israel, and their elders and officers, and their judges, stood on this side of the ark and on that side before the priests the Levites, who carried the ark of Yahweh's covenant, the foreigner as well as the native; half of them in front of Mount Gerizim, and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the servant of Yahweh had commanded at the first, that they should bless the people of Israel.

³⁴ Afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessing and the curse, according to all that is written in the book of the law.

³⁵ There was not a word of all that Moses commanded, which Joshua didn't read before all the assembly of Israel, with the women, the little ones, and the foreigners who were among them.