1 Mas os filhos de Israel cometeram uma transgressão no tocante ao anátema; pois Acã, filho de Carmi, filho de Zabdi, filho de Zera, da tribo de Judá, tomou do anátema. A ira de Jeová acendeu-se contra os filhos de Israel.

2 De Jericó enviou Josué homens a Ai, que está junto a Bete-Áven, ao oriente de Betel, e disse-lhes: Subi e espiai a terra. Subiram e espiaram a Ai.

3 Tendo voltado a Josué, disseram-lhe: Não suba todo o povo, mas subam uns dois ou três mil homens e destruam a Ai. Não faças a todo o povo ir para lá, fatigando-o, pois são poucos.

4 Assim subiram lá do povo uns três mil homens, que fugiram diante dos de Ai.

5 Os homens de Ai feriram deles a uns trinta e seis e, tendo-o perseguido desde a porta até Sebarim, feriram-nos na descida. O coração do povo derreteu-se e tornou-se como água.

6 Josué, pois, rasgou os seus vestidos, e com os anciãos de Israel prostrou-se com o rosto em terra diante da arca de Jeová até a tarde; e puseram pó sobre as suas cabeças.

7 Josué disse: Ah, Senhor Deus, por que fizeste a todo este povo passar o Jordão, para nos entregar nas mãos dos amorreus, a fim de nos perderes? Oxalá que tivéssemos ficado contentes, e tivéssemos permanecido além do Jordão!

8 Ah, Senhor, que direi, depois que Israel voltou as costas diante dos seus inimigos?

9 Pois os cananeus e todos os habitantes da terra o ouvirão e, cercando-nos, exterminarão da terra o nosso nome. Que farás por teu grande nome?

10 Respondeu Jeová a Josué: Levanta-te, porque estás assim prostrado com o rosto em terra?

11 Israel pecou, e transgrediu a minha aliança que lhe ordenei: tomaram do anátema, furtaram, dissimularam, e o esconderam na sua bagagem.

12 Por isso os filhos de Israel não podem resistir aos seus inimigos; voltam as costas diante deles, porque se fizeram anátema. Não serei mais convosco, se não tirardes dentre vós o anátema, destruindo-o.

13 Levanta-te, santifica ao povo, e dize: Santificai-vos para amanhã; pois assim diz Jeová Deus de Israel: Há um anátema no meio de ti, ó Israel; não poderás resistir aos teus inimigos, enquanto não tirares do meio de ti o anátema.

14 Pela manhã vos chegareis pelas vossas tribos; a tribo que Jeová tomar, se chegará pelas famílias; a família que Jeová tomar, se chegará pelas casas; e a casa que Jeová tomar, se chegará homem por homem.

15 Aquele que for achado com o anátema, será queimado, e com ele tudo o que lhe pertence, porque transgrediu a aliança de Jeová, e porque cometeu uma loucura em Israel.

16 Levantando-se Josué de madrugada, fez chegar a Israel pelas suas tribos; e caiu a sorte sobre a tribo de Judá.

17 Fazendo chegar a família de Judá, caiu sobre a família dos zeraítas; fazendo chegar a família dos zeraítas homem por homem, caiu sobre Zabdi;

18 e, fazendo chegar a casa deste, homem por homem, caiu sobre Acã, filho de Carmi, filho de Zabdi, filho de Zera, da tribo de Judá.

19 Então disse Josué a Acã: Filho meu, dá glória a Jeová, Deus de Israel, e confessa-lhe. Declara-me agora o que fizeste; não mo ocultes.

20 Respondeu Acã a Josué: Na verdade eu pequei contra Jeová, Deus de Israel, e fiz assim e assim:

21 quando vi entre os despojos uma boa capa babilônica, e duzentos siclos de prata, e uma cunha de ouro do peso de cinqüenta siclos, movido de cobiça, os tomei. Eis que estão escondidos na terra, no meio da minha tenda, e a prata por baixo.

22 Enviou Josué mensageiros que foram correndo à tenda. Eis que a capa estava escondida ali, e a prata por baixo.

23 Tirando estas coisas do meio da tenda, trouxeram-nas a Josué e a todos os filhos de Israel; e puseram-nas diante de Jeová.

24 Josué e todo o Israel tomaram a Acã, filho de Zera, e a prata, e a capa, e a cunha de ouro, e seus filhos, e suas filhas, e os seus bois, e os seus jumentos, e as suas ovelhas, e a sua tenda e tudo o que tinha; e trouxeram-nos ao vale de Acor.

25 Disse Josué: Por que nos perturbaste? Jeová te perturbará neste dia. Todo o Israel o apedrejou; queimaram-nos, e os apedrejaram.

26 Levantaram sobre ele um grande montão de pedras que permanece até o dia de hoje; e Jeová apagou o ardor da sua ira. Pelo que se ficou chamando aquele lugar até hoje o vale de Acor.

1 But the children of Israel did wrong about the cursed thing: for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the family of Judah, took of the cursed thing, moving the Lord to wrath against the children of Israel.

2 Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is by the side of Beth-aven, on the east side of Beth-el, and said to them, Go up and make a search through the land. And the men went up and saw how Ai was placed.

3 Then they came back to Joshua and said to him, Do not send all the people up, but let about two or three thousand men go up and make an attack on Ai; there is no need for all the people to be tired with the journey there, for it is only a small town.

4 So about three thousand of the people went up, and were sent in flight by the men of Ai.

5 The men of Ai put to death about thirty-six of them, driving them from before the town as far as the stoneworks, and overcoming them on the way down: and the hearts of the people became like water.

6 Then Joshua, in great grief, went down on the earth before the ark of the Lord till the evening, and all the chiefs of Israel with him, and they put dust on their heads.

7 And Joshua said, O Lord God, why have you taken us over Jordan only to give us up into the hands of the Amorites for our destruction? If only it had been enough for us to keep on the other side of Jordan!

8 O Lord, what am I to say now that Israel have given way before their attackers?

9 For when the news comes to the Canaanites and all the people of the land, they will come up, shutting us in and cutting off our name from the earth: and what will you do for the honour of your great name?

10 Then the Lord said to Joshua, Get up; what are you doing with your face to the earth?

11 Israel has done wrong, sinning against the agreement which I made with them: they have even taken of the cursed thing; acting falsely like thieves they have put it among their goods.

12 For this reason the children of Israel have given way, turning their backs in flight before their attackers, because they are cursed: I will no longer be with you, if you do not put the cursed thing away from among you.

13 Up! make the people holy; say to them, Make yourselves holy before tomorrow, for the Lord, the God of Israel, has said, There is a cursed thing among you, O Israel, and you will give way before your attackers in the fight till the cursed thing has been taken away from among you.

14 So in the morning you are to come near, tribe by tribe; and the tribe marked out by the Lord is to come near, family by family; and the family marked out by the Lord is to come near, house by house; and the house marked out by the Lord is to come near, man by man.

15 Then the man who is taken with the cursed thing is to be burned, with everything which is his; because he has gone against the agreement of the Lord and has done an act of shame in Israel.

16 So Joshua got up early in the morning, and made Israel come before him by their tribes; and the tribe of Judah was taken;

17 Then he made Judah come forward, and the family of the Zerahites was taken; and he made the family of the Zerahites come forward man by man; and Zabdi was taken;

18 Then the house of Zabdi came forward man by man, and Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken.

19 And Joshua said to Achan, My son, give glory and praise to the Lord, the God of Israel; give me word now of what you have done, and keep nothing back from me.

20 And Achan, answering, said to Joshua, Truly I have done wrong against the Lord, the God of Israel, and this is what I have done:

21 When I saw among their goods a fair robe of Babylon and two hundred shekels of silver, and a mass of gold, fifty shekels in weight, I was overcome by desire and took them; and they are put away in the earth in my tent, and the silver is under it.

22 So Joshua sent men quickly, and looking in his tent, they saw where the robe had been put away secretly with the silver under it.

23 And they took them from the tent and came back with them to Joshua and the children of Israel, and put them before the Lord.

24 Then Joshua and all Israel took Achan, the son of Zerah, and the silver and the robe and the mass of gold, and his sons and his daughters and his oxen and his asses and his sheep and his tent and everything he had; and they took them up into the valley of Achor.

25 And Joshua said, Why have you been a cause of trouble to us? Today the Lord will send trouble on you. And all Israel took part in stoning him; they had him stoned to death and then burned with fire.

26 And over him they put a great mass of stones, which is there to this day; then the heat of the Lord's wrath was turned away. So that place was named, The Valley of Achor, to this day.