Good morning,
God gives Joshua detailed instructions on how to take the city of Jericho. Joshua communicates this to the Priests and the people.
Joshua gave the people a warning.
“And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it.19 But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are consecrated unto the Lord: they shall come into the treasury of the Lord.” (Joshua 6:18-19)
God gave the city of Jericho into the hands of Israel and they completely destroyed it.
“And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword.” (Joshua 6:21)
“And they burnt the city with fire, and all that was therein: only the silver, and the gold, and the vessels of brass and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord.” (Joshua 6:24)
God’s anger is kindled.
“But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing: for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed thing: and the anger of the Lord was kindled against the children of Israel.” (Joshua 7:1)
Achan’s confession.
“And Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the Lord God of Israel, and make confession unto him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me.20 And Achan answered Joshua, and said, Indeed I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done:21 When I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it.” (Joshua 7:19-21)
God takes Achan and his families, property, and the accursed things and stones them and then burns them.
“And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor.25 And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the Lord shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones.” (Joshua 7:24-25)
The lesson here is that SIN requires a sentence of death. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)
Achan saw, coveted, and took, the accursed thing.
Our we not the same way? We see something and must have it at any cost. If God says “NO”, then the answer is NO. The Bible is very clear that we are not to covet.
The wages for sin have not changed since Adam rebelled against God in the Garden of Eden. The wages are death physically and spiritually.
The “GOOD NEWS” is that Jesus paid for our sin debt on the cross. If we repent of our sin, believe on Jesus as our Savior and Lord, and follow Him, our sin debt will be paid.
Has your sin debt been paid? If not, contact me and let’s talk about it.
Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001
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