1 فقال الرب ليشوع لا تخف ولا ترتعب. خذ معك جميع رجال الحرب وقم اصعد الى عاي. انظر. قد دفعت بيدك ملك عاي وشعبه ومدينته وارضه.2 فتفعل بعاي وملكها كما فعلت باريحا وملكها. غير ان غنيمتها وبهائمها تنهبونها لنفوسكم. اجعل كمينا للمدينة من ورائها.3 فقام يشوع وجميع رجال الحرب للصعود الى عاي. وانتخب يشوع ثلاثين الف رجل جبابرة البأس وارسلهم ليلا4 واوصاهم قائلا. انظروا. انتم تكمنون للمدينة من وراء المدينة. لا تبتعدوا من المدينة كثيرا وكونوا كلكم مستعدين.5 واما انا وجميع الشعب الذي معي فنقترب الى المدينة ويكون حينما يخرجون للقائنا كما في الاول اننا نهرب قدامهم6 فيخرجون وراءنا حتى نجذبهم عن المدينة. لانهم يقولون انهم هاربون امامنا كما في الاول. فنهرب قدامهم7 وانتم تقومون من المكمن وتمتلكون المدينة ويدفعها الرب الهكم بيدكم.8 ويكون عند اخذكم المدينة انكم تضرمون المدينة بالنار. كقول الرب تفعلون. انظروا. قد اوصيتكم.9 فارسلهم يشوع فساروا الى المكمن ولبثوا بين بيت ايل وعاي غربي عاي. وبات يشوع تلك الليلة في وسط الشعب10 فبكر يشوع في الغد وعدّ الشعب وصعد هو وشيوخ اسرائيل قدام الشعب الى عاي.11 وجميع رجال الحرب الذين معه صعدوا وتقدموا وأتوا الى مقابل المدينة. ونزلوا شمالي عاي والوادي بينهم وبين عاي.12 فاخذ نحو خمسة آلاف رجل وجعلهم كمينا بين بيت ايل وعاي غربي المدينة.13 واقاموا الشعب اي كل الجيش الذي شمالي المدينة وكمينه غربي المدينة وسار يشوع تلك الليلة الى وسط الوادي.14 وكان لما رأى ملك عاي ذلك انهم اسرعوا وبكروا وخرج رجال المدينة للقاء اسرائيل للحرب هو وجميع شعبه في الميعاد الى قدام السهل وهو لا يعلم ان عليه كمينا وراء المدينة.15 فاعطى يشوع وجميع اسرائيل انكسارا امامهم وهربوا في طريق البرية.16 فألقي الصوت على جميع الشعب الذين في المدينة للسعي وراءهم فسعوا وراء يشوع وانجذبوا عن المدينة.17 ولم يبق في عاي او في بيت ايل رجل لم يخرج وراء اسرائيل. فتركوا المدينة مفتوحة وسعوا وراء اسرائيل18 فقال الرب ليشوع مدّ المزراق الذي بيدك نحو عاي لاني بيدك ادفعها. فمدّ يشوع المزراق الذي بيده نحو المدينة.19 فقام الكمين بسرعة من مكانه وركضوا عندما مدّ يده ودخلوا المدينة واخذوها واسرعوا واحرقوا المدينة بالنار.20 فالتفت رجال عاي الى وراءهم ونظروا واذا دخان المدينة قد صعد الى السماء. فلم يكن لهم مكان للهرب هنا او هناك. والشعب الهارب الى البرية انقلب على الطارد.21 ولما رأى يشوع وجميع اسرائيل ان الكمين قد اخذ المدينة وان دخان المدينة قد صعد انثنوا وضربوا رجال عاي.22 وهؤلاء خرجوا من المدينة للقائهم فكانوا في وسط اسرائيل هؤلاء من هنا واولئك من هناك. وضربوهم حتى لم يبق منهم شارد ولا منفلت.23 واما ملك عاي فامسكوه حيّا وتقدموا به الى يشوع.24 وكان لما انتهى اسرائيل من قتل جميع سكان عاي في الحقل في البرية حيث لحقوهم وسقطوا جميعا بحد السيف حتى فنوا ان جميع اسرائيل رجع الى عاي وضربوها بحد السيف.25 فكان جميع الذين سقطوا في ذلك اليوم من رجال ونساء اثني عشر الفا جميع اهل عاي26 ويشوع لم يرد يده التي مدها بالمزراق حتى حرّم جميع سكان عاي.27 لكن البهائم وغنيمة تلك المدينة نهبها اسرائيل لانفسهم حسب قول الرب الذي امر به يشوع.28 واحرق يشوع عاي وجعلها تلا ابديا خرابا الى هذا اليوم.29 وملك عاي علقه على الخشبة الى وقت المساء. وعند غروب الشمس امر يشوع فانزلوا جثته عن الخشبة وطرحوها عند مدخل باب المدينة واقاموا عليها رجمة حجارة عظيمة الى هذا اليوم30 حينئذ بنى يشوع مذبحا للرب اله اسرائيل في جبل عيبال31 كما أمر موسى عبد الرب بني اسرائيل. كما هو مكتوب في سفر توراة موسى. مذبح حجارة صحيحة لم يرفع احد عليها حديدا واصعدوا عليه محرقات للرب وذبحوا ذبائح سلامة.32 وكتب هناك على الحجارة نسخة توراة موسى التي كتبها امام بني اسرائيل.33 وجميع اسرائيل وشيوخهم والعرفاء وقضاتهم وقفوا جانب التابوت من هنا ومن هناك مقابل الكهنة اللاويين حاملي تابوت عهد الرب. الغريب كما الوطني. نصفهم الى جهة جبل جرزيم ونصفهم الى جهة جبل عيبال كما أمر موسى عبد الرب اولا لبركة شعب اسرائيل.34 وبعد ذلك قرأ جميع كلام التوراة البركة واللعنة حسب كل ما كتب في سفر التوراة.35 لم تكن كلمة من كل ما امر به موسى لم يقراها يشوع قدام كل جماعة اسرائيل والنساء والاطفال والغريب السائر في وسطهم

1 And the LORD said to Joshua, Fear not, neither be you dismayed: take all the people of war with you, and arise, go up to Ai: see, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, and his people, and his city, and his land:2 And you shall do to Ai and her king as you did to Jericho and her king: only the spoil thereof, and the cattle thereof, shall you take for a prey to yourselves: lay you an ambush for the city behind it.3 So Joshua arose, and all the people of war, to go up against Ai: and Joshua chose out thirty thousand mighty men of valor, and sent them away by night.4 And he commanded them, saying, Behold, you shall lie in wait against the city, even behind the city: go not very far from the city, but be you all ready:5 And I, and all the people that are with me, will approach to the city: and it shall come to pass, when they come out against us, as at the first, that we will flee before them,6 (For they will come out after us) till we have drawn them from the city; for they will say, They flee before us, as at the first: therefore we will flee before them.7 Then you shall rise up from the ambush, and seize on the city: for the LORD your God will deliver it into your hand.8 And it shall be, when you have taken the city, that you shall set the city on fire: according to the commandment of the LORD shall you do. See, I have commanded you.9 Joshua therefore sent them forth: and they went to lie in ambush, and stayed between Bethel and Ai, on the west side of Ai: but Joshua lodged that night among the people.10 And Joshua rose up early in the morning, and numbered the people, and went up, he and the elders of Israel, before the people to Ai.11 And all the people, even the people of war that were with him, went up, and drew near, and came before the city, and pitched on the north side of Ai: now there was a valley between them and Ai.12 And he took about five thousand men, and set them to lie in ambush between Bethel and Ai, on the west side of the city.13 And when they had set the people, even all the host that was on the north of the city, and their liers in wait on the west of the city, Joshua went that night into the middle of the valley.14 And it came to pass, 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 a time appointed, before the plain; but he knew not that there were liers in ambush against him behind the city.15 And Joshua and all Israel made as if they were beaten before them, and fled by the way of the wilderness.16 And all the people that were in Ai were called together to pursue after them: and they pursued after Joshua, and were drawn away from the city.17 And there was not a man left in Ai or Bethel, that went not out after Israel: and they left the city open, and pursued after Israel.18 And the LORD said to Joshua, Stretch out the spear that is in your hand toward Ai; for I will give it into your hand. And Joshua stretched out the spear that he had in his hand toward the city.19 And the ambush arose quickly out of their place, and they ran as soon as he had stretched out his hand: and they entered into the city, and took it, and hurried and set the city on fire.20 And 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: and the people that fled to the wilderness turned back on the pursuers.21 And 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 slew the men of Ai.22 And the other issued out of the city against them; so they were in the middle of Israel, some on this side, and some on that side: and they smote them, so that they let none of them remain or escape.23 And the king of Ai they took alive, and brought him to Joshua.24 And it came to pass, when Israel had made an end of slaying all the inhabitants of Ai in the field, in the wilderness wherein they chased them, and when they were all fallen on the edge of the sword, until they were consumed, that all the Israelites returned to Ai, and smote it with the edge of the sword.25 And so it was, that all that fell that day, both of men and women, were twelve thousand, even all the men of Ai.26 For Joshua drew not his hand back, with which he stretched out the spear, until he had utterly destroyed all the inhabitants of Ai.27 Only the cattle and the spoil of that city Israel took for a prey to themselves, according to the word of the LORD which he commanded Joshua.28 And Joshua burnt Ai, and made it an heap for ever, even a desolation to this day.29 And the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until eventide: and as soon as the sun was down, Joshua commanded that they should take his carcass down from the tree, and cast it at the entering of the gate of the city, and raise thereon a great heap of stones, that remains to this day.30 Then Joshua built an altar to the LORD God of Israel in mount Ebal,31 As Moses the servant of the LORD commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of whole stones, over which no man has lift up any iron: and they offered thereon burnt offerings to the LORD, and sacrificed peace offerings.32 And 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 And all Israel, and their elders, and officers, and their judges, stood on this side the ark and on that side before the priests the Levites, which bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD, as well the stranger, as he that was born among them; half of them over against mount Gerizim, and half of them over against mount Ebal; as Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded before, that they should bless the people of Israel.34 And afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessings and cursings, 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 read not before all the congregation of Israel, with the women, and the little ones, and the strangers that were conversant among them.