At that time the Lord told Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise the Israelites once again.” ¹ 

The men of Israel said to the Hivites, “Perhaps you live near us. ¹  So how can we make a treaty with you?”

But if you ever turn away and make alliances with ¹  these nations that remain near you, ²  and intermarry with them and establish friendly relations with them, ³ 

Pick three men from each tribe. I will send them out to walk through the land and make a map of it for me. ¹ 

They came to Joshua at the camp in Gilgal and said to him and the men of Israel, “We have come from a distant land. Make a treaty with us.”

But be careful when you are setting apart the riches for the Lord. If you take any of it, you will make the Israelite camp subject to annihilation and cause a disaster. ¹ 

Our leaders and all who live in our land told us, ‘Take provisions for your journey and go meet them. Tell them, “We are willing to be your subjects. ¹  Make a treaty with us.”’

or associate with these nations that remain near ¹  you. You must not invoke or make solemn declarations by the names of their gods! ²  You must not worship ³  or bow down to them!

One of you makes a thousand run away, ¹  for the Lord your God fights for you ²  as he promised you he would. ³ 

for the Lord determined to make them obstinate so they would attack Israel. He wanted Israel to annihilate them without mercy, as he had instructed Moses. ¹ 

If we have built ¹  an altar for ourselves to turn back from following the Lord by making ²  burnt sacrifices and grain offerings on it, or by offering ³  tokens of peace ⁴  on it, the Lord himself will punish us. ⁵ 

Make sure you are ¹  very strong and brave! Carefully obey ²  all the law my servant Moses charged you to keep! ³  Do not swerve from it to the right or to the left, so that you may be successful ⁴  in all you do. ⁵ 

The Lord made the Jordan a boundary between us and you Reubenites and Gadites. You have no right to worship the Lord.’ ¹  In this way your descendants might cause our descendants to stop obeying ²  the Lord.

they formed an alliance to fight against Joshua and Israel. ¹ 

When the Israelites heard this, the entire Israelite community assembled at Shiloh to launch an attack against them. ¹ 

So Joshua said to Achan, “My son, honor ¹  the Lord God of Israel and give him praise! Tell me what you did; don’t hide anything from me!”

When you hear the signal from the ram’s horn, ¹  have the whole army give a loud battle cry. ²  Then the city wall will collapse ³  and the warriors should charge straight ahead.” ⁴ 

This law scroll must not leave your lips! ¹  You must memorize it ²  day and night so you can carefully obey ³  all that is written in it. Then you will prosper ⁴  and be successful. ⁵ 

They returned and reported to Joshua, ¹  “Don’t send the whole army. ²  About two or three thousand men are adequate to defeat Ai. ³  Don’t tire out the whole army, for Ai is small.” ⁴ 

Now Joshua had instructed the army, ¹  “Do not give a battle cry ²  or raise your voices; say nothing ³  until the day I tell you, ‘Give the battle cry.’ ⁴  Then give the battle cry!” ⁵