Joshua 7:4

Joshua 7:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)So there went up thither of the people about three thousand men: and they fled before the men of Ai.
• New International Version (NIV)So about three thousand went up; but they were routed by the men of Ai,
• English Standard Version (ESV)So about three thousand men went up there from the people. And they fled before the men of Ai,
• New King James Version (NKJV)So about three thousand men went up there from the people, but they fled before the men of Ai.

Context of Joshua 7:4

2Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai. Ai is near Beth Aven, east of Bethel. He said to them, “Go, look at that country.” So the men went and looked at Ai. 3They came back to Joshua and told him, “You don’t need to send all the troops. Only about two or three thousand men are needed to destroy Ai. Don’t tire the troops out by sending all of them. There are only a few troops in Ai.” So about three thousand men were sent. However, they fled from the men of Ai. 5The men of Ai killed about thirty-six of them, chasing them from the city gate to the slope of the stone quarries. Israel’s troops lost heart and were scared stiff. 6Joshua and the leaders of Israel tore their clothes in grief. They put dust on their heads and bowed down to the ground in front of the Lord’s ark. They stayed there until evening.

Joshua 7:4 word by word

וַיַּעֲל֤וּ מִן־הָעָם֙ שָׁ֔מָּה כִּשְׁלֹ֥שֶׁת אֲלָפִ֖ים אִ֑ישׁ וַיָּנֻ֕סוּ לִפְנֵ֖י אַנְשֵׁ֥י הָעָֽי׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• So there went upעָלָה‛âlâh · to ascend: riseH5927
• thither of the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• about threeשָׁלֹשׁshâlôsh shâlôsh shelôshâh shelôshâh · threeH7969
• thousandאֶ֫לֶף'eleph · thousandH505
• menאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
• and they fledנוּסnûs · to fleeH5127
• beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
• the menאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
• of Aiעַי‛ay ‛ayâ' ‛ayâth · AiH5857

Cross-references for Joshua 7:4

• Leviticus 26:17I will condemn you so that you will go down in defeat in front of your enemies. Those who hate you will be your rulers. You will run away even when no one is chasing you.
• Deuteronomy 28:25The Lord will let your enemies defeat you. You will attack them from one direction but run away from them in seven directions. You will become a thing of horror to all the kingdoms in the world.
• Deuteronomy 32:30How could one person chase a thousand or two people make ten thousand flee? Their rock used these people to defeat them and the Lord gave them no help.
• Isaiah 30:17One thousand people will flee when one person threatens them, and you will flee when five threaten you. Then you will be left alone like a flagpole on top of a mountain, like a signpost on a hill.
• Isaiah 59:2But your wrongs have separated you from your God, and your sins have made him hide his face so that he doesn’t hear you.

Commentaries on Joshua 7:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4About three thousand men - The spies sent to reconnoitre the place ( Joshua 7:3;) reported that the town was meanly garrisoned, and that two or three thousand men would be sufficient to take it. These were accordingly sent up, and were repulsed by the Amorites.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3-4God’s gift of victory at Jericho seems to have led to complacency and overconfidence (a false sense of security). Joshua did not even ask God for guidance before he sent a small group of soldiers to Ai.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4-54-5. they fled before the men of Ai--An unexpected resistance, and the loss of thirty-six of their number diffused a panic, which ended in an ignominious rout.Read the comment

In the dictionaries

• Ai
• Folly
• Hide
• Tell
• Wedge
• Achan
• Covetousness
• Exodus, the Book of
• Guilt
• Joshua, Book of

Commentaries on Joshua 7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings