1But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the devoted things; for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things. Therefore Yahweh’s anger burned against the children of Israel. 2Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is beside Beth Aven, on the east side of Bethel, and spoke to them, saying, “Go up and spy out the land.”

The men went up and spied out Ai. 3They returned to Joshua, and said to him, “Don’t let all the people go up, but let about two or three thousand men go up and strike Ai. Don’t make all the people to toil there, for there are only a few of them.” 4So about three thousand men of the people went up there, and they fled before the men of Ai. 5The men of Ai struck about thirty-six men of them. They chased them from before the gate even to Shebarim, and struck them at the descent. The hearts of the people melted, and became like water. 6Joshua tore his clothes, and fell to the earth on his face before Yahweh’s ark until the evening, he and the elders of Israel; and they put dust on their heads. 7Joshua said, “Alas, Lord Yahweh, why have you brought this people over the Jordan at all, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to cause us to perish? I wish that we had been content and lived beyond the Jordan! 8Oh, Lord, what shall I say, after Israel has turned their backs before their enemies? 9For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear of it, and will surround us, and cut off our name from the earth. What will you do for your great name?”

10Yahweh said to Joshua, “Get up! Why have you fallen on your face like that? 11Israel has sinned. Yes, they have even transgressed my covenant which I commanded them. Yes, they have even taken some of the devoted things, and have also stolen, and also deceived. They have even put it among their own stuff. 12Therefore the children of Israel can’t stand before their enemies. They turn their backs before their enemies, because they have become devoted for destruction. I will not be with you any more, unless you destroy the devoted things from among you. 13Get up! Sanctify the people, and say, ‘Sanctify yourselves for tomorrow, for Yahweh, the God of Israel, says, “There is a devoted thing among you, Israel. You cannot stand before your enemies until you take away the devoted thing from among you.” 14In the morning therefore you shall be brought near by your tribes. It shall be that the tribe which Yahweh selects shall come near by families. The family which Yahweh selects shall come near by households. The household which Yahweh selects shall come near man by man. 15It shall be, that he who is taken with the devoted thing shall be burned with fire, he and all that he has, because he has transgressed Yahweh’s covenant, and because he has done a disgraceful thing in Israel.’”

16So Joshua rose up early in the morning and brought Israel near by their tribes. The tribe of Judah was selected. 17He brought near the family of Judah, and he selected the family of the Zerahites. He brought near the family of the Zerahites man by man, and Zabdi was selected. 18He brought near his household man by man, and Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was selected. 19Joshua said to Achan, “My son, please give glory to Yahweh, the God of Israel, and make confession to him. Tell me now what you have done! Don’t hide it from me!”

20Achan answered Joshua, and said, “I have truly sinned against Yahweh, the God of Israel, and this is what I have done. 21When I saw among the plunder a beautiful Babylonian robe, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, then I coveted them and took them. Behold, they are hidden in the ground in the middle of my tent, with the silver under it.”

22So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent. Behold, it was hidden in his tent, with the silver under it. 23They took them from the middle of the tent, and brought them to Joshua and to all the children of Israel. They laid them down before Yahweh. 24Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, the silver, the robe, the wedge of gold, his sons, his daughters, his cattle, his donkeys, his sheep, his tent, and all that he had; and they brought them up to the valley of Achor. 25Joshua said, “Why have you troubled us? Yahweh will trouble you today.” All Israel stoned him with stones, and they burned them with fire and stoned them with stones. 26They raised over him a great heap of stones that remains to this day. Yahweh turned from the fierceness of his anger. Therefore the name of that place was called “The valley of Achor” to this day.

Person

Adam

Lived: 4004 BC – 3074 BC (approximate)
Born: Eden

Father God

Spouse Eve

Children Seth Abel Cain

Biography | Hershel Wayne House

Biography of Adam (הָֽאָדָ֑ם)

The historical account of the creation in six days is concluded with the creation of Adam and Eve. The person named Adam is the first creation of God in the creation account, who bore the image of God (imago Dei). He is the spouse of the woman created, named Eve (meaning mother of living), who together as male and female is Man according to Genesis 1:27. It is characteristic in the creation account to address Adam as "the man" (Hebrew word, הָֽאָדָ֗ם hāʾāḏām), and only beginning in 3:17 does the text drop the designation "the man," and use the name Adam, as well as Eve for the woman. The Gospel author Luke traces the genealogy (Luke 3:23-38) of Jesus to the man Adam.

Biography | R. Mark Musser

The genealogies of Genesis and Luke that begin or end with Adam, whether going forward or backward, demonstrate the first man was not a mythical archetype. Adam was a real historical man. He is called the original "son of God" (Luke 3:38) in the sense of being directly created by Divine Creator. (Gen 1:26-27) Adam was physically made by God to reflect His characteristics, albeit in a finite, human form. (Gen 9:6; 1 Cor 11:7) Adam was originally fashioned from the dust of the ground, and graciously given the "breath of life" directly by God so that he "became a living being." (Gen 2:7; 1 Cor 15:45) He is not only the founding father of the human race, but also fathered many children. Adam lived 930 years. His death is the first obituary recorded in Scripture. (Gen 5:5) While many theologians and commentators have grappled to explain how his original sin was passed on down to the entire human race, the facticity of it is undeniable. Adam's historical fall led to the fall of history itself which only a second Messianic Adam, who was also a historical Man, can resolve prophetically and/or apocalyptically. (Rom 5:12-21; 1 Cor 15:20-28) Sin and death are not merely metaphysical, theological, or biblical terms, but permeate all of life from any empirical point of view this side of the grave. Adam is the only man to have historically experienced paradise lost and the sudden fall of the world dominated now by sin and death.

Person & place data: Theographic Bible Metadata by Robert Rouse (Viz.Bible), CC BY-SA 4.0.