"The Stoning of Achan", unknown illustrator, Henry Davenport Northrup's "Treasures of the Bible", 1894.
ESV Study Bible Devotions
Joshua 7:25-26 - And Joshua said, “Why did you bring trouble on us? The Lord brings trouble on you today.” And all Israel stoned him with stones. They burned them with fire and stoned them with stones. 26 And they raised over him a great heap of stones that remains to this day. Then the Lord turned from his burning anger. Therefore, to this day the name of that place is called the Valley of Achor.
I was shocked this morning, as I returned to the account of Joshua. Yesterday, albeit a difficult scene to behold, was one of Joshua's most famous victories.
Then, as I began to read chapter 7, the very first word started with "but", and I thought, oh no.
One of the important things to remember, as we read the Old Testament, is that God dealt with the whole nation of Israel as his chosen, no different then He now deals with us, individually, as his chosen.
So here we have this guy Achan, and he decided to steal a lifetimes worth of plunder, even though God had given very specific instructions against it.
So now the Israelites go out to fight the people of Ai, and they are defeated. Joshua is beside himself, and God reveals that Israel is being punished because of Achan's sin. Achan is revealed as the plunderer, and his whole family, and all of his possessions are stoned, and then burned.
Wow! Once again, God displays severe judgment towards sin. What are we to learn from this, with our 21st century view?
- God will judge sin.
- Our view of sin, and God's view of sin, are not in agreement.
- The post-modern mind will cry foul. "Not fair", they say.
- Some, to their own peril, will look at this and turn against God as a big bully.
I am reminded of three things from this reading:
- I need to be reminded that my sin, although now eternally forgiven, through my regeneration, is still a horrific affront to God. God will not look upon sin. He will judge it. In the Christian's case, this judgment is not eternal damnation, but certainly can involve discipline. It is clear that God disciplines his children. It is foolish for us, even as Christians to defy God. We must diligently work to make sin less a part of our lives.
- God has revealed himself in 66 inspired books. For any of us to make judgments of his character, without reading his whole treatise is "not fair". Before any of us has any right, whatsoever, we must read, and seek to understand the whole of his word.
- We need a Savior. Like it or not, God will judge sin. Through Jesus Christ, however, and his death on the cross, he bore the brunt of God's holy, and righteous judgment, so that we, those who are truly Christian, might be saved from this judgment, and live eternally with God as his sons. This is the gospel message. I am absolutely certain that these early Israelites would have loved to have Christ available to atone for their sins.
Although this account is very difficult to view, I have learned from it, and I will remember it.
