God’s Word Translation
Joshua 8:29
29Joshua hung the king of Ai’s ⌞dead body⌟ on a pole and left him there until evening. When the sun went down, Joshua gave the order to take his body down. They threw it in the entrance of the city and made a large pile of stones over it. That pile is still there today.
Joshua 8:29 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)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 carcase 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 remaineth unto this day.
- New International Version (NIV)He impaled the body of the king of Ai on a pole and left it there until evening. At sunset, Joshua ordered them to take the body from the pole and throw it down at the entrance of the city gate. And they raised a large pile of rocks over it, which remains to this day.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And he hanged the king of Ai on a tree until evening. And at sunset Joshua commanded, and they took his body down from the tree and threw it at the entrance of the gate of the city and raised over it a great heap of stones, which stands there to this day.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until evening. And as soon as the sun was down, Joshua commanded that they should take his corpse down from the tree, cast it at the entrance of the gate of the city, and raise over it a great heap of stones that remains to this day.
Context of Joshua 8:29
27Israel took the loot and the livestock of that city for themselves, as the Lord had commanded Joshua. 28So Joshua burned Ai and made it a deserted mound of ruins. It is still in ruins today. Joshua hung the king of Ai’s ⌞dead body⌟ on a pole and left him there until evening. When the sun went down, Joshua gave the order to take his body down. They threw it in the entrance of the city and made a large pile of stones over it. That pile is still there today. 30At that time Joshua built an altar on Mount Ebal to the Lord God of Israel. 31He built an altar with uncut stones on which no iron chisels had been used. This was as the Lord’s servant Moses had commanded the people of Israel in the Book of Moses’ Teachings. They made burnt offerings to the Lord and sacrificed fellowship offerings on the altar.
Read all of Joshua 8Joshua 8:29 word by word
וְאֶת־מֶ֧לֶךְ הָעַ֛י תָּלָ֥ה עַל־הָעֵ֖ץ עַד־עֵ֣ת הָעָ֑רֶב וּכְב֣וֹא הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ֩ צִוָּ֨ה יְהוֹשֻׁ֜עַ וַיֹּרִ֧ידוּ אֶת־נִבְלָת֣וֹ מִן־הָעֵ֗ץ וַיַּשְׁלִ֤יכוּ אוֹתָהּ֙ אֶל־פֶּ֙תַח֙ שַׁ֣עַר הָעִ֔יר וַיָּקִ֤ימוּ עָלָיו֙ גַּל־אֲבָנִ֣ים גָּד֔וֹל עַ֖ד הַיּ֥וֹם הַזֶּֽה׃ פRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- of Aiעַי‛ay ‛ayâ' ‛ayâth · AiH5857
- he hangedתָּלָהtâlâh · to hangH8518
- on a treeעֵץ‛êts · treeH6086
- until eventideעֶ֫רֶב‛ereb · eveningH6153
- until eventideעֵת‛êth · timeH6256
- and as soon as the sunשֶׁ֫מֶשׁshemesh · sunH8121
- was downבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): besiegeH935
- Joshuaיְהוֹשׁוּעַyehôshûa‛ yehôshûa‛ · JoshuaH3091
- commandedצָוָהtsâvâh · to commandH6680
- that they should takeיָרַדyârad · to go downH3381
- his carcaseנְבֵלָהnebêlâh · carcassH5038
- and castשָׁלַךְshâlak · to throwH7993
- it at the enteringפֶּ֫תַחpethach · entranceH6607
- of the gateשַׁ֫עַרsha‛ar · gateH8179
- of the cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
- and raiseקוּםqûm · to arise: raiseH6965
- thereon a greatגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
- heapגַּלgal · heapH1530
- of stonesאֶ֫בֶן'eben · stoneH68
- unto this dayיוֹםyôm · day: todayH3117
Cross-references for Joshua 8:29
- Joshua 10:26After this, Joshua put them to death and hung their bodies on five poles until evening.
- Deuteronomy 21:22When a convicted person is put to death,
- Esther 7:10So servants hung Haman’s ⌞dead body⌟ on the very pole he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the king got over his raging anger.
- Psalms 107:40He poured contempt on their influential people and made them stumble around in a pathless desert.
- Psalms 110:5The Lord is at your right side. He will crush kings on the day of his anger.
- Acts 12:23Immediately, an angel from the Lord killed Herod for not giving glory to God. Herod was eaten by maggots, and he died.
- Revelation 19:17I saw an angel standing in the sun. He cried out in a loud voice to all the birds flying overhead, “Come! Gather for the great banquet of God.
- Joshua 10:27When the sun went down, Joshua gave the order to take them down from the poles. Then they threw them into the cave where they had been hiding and put large stones over the mouth of the cave. These stones are still there today.
- Joshua 7:26They made such a large pile of stones over Achan that it is still there today. Then the Lord withdrew his burning anger. For this reason that place is still called the valley of Achor today.
- 2 Samuel 18:17They took Absalom, threw him into a huge pit in the forest, and piled a large heap of stones over him. Meanwhile, all Israel fled and went back to their homes.
Commentaries on Joshua 8:29
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 29The king of Ai he hanged on a tree - He had gone out at the head of his men, and had been taken prisoner, Joshua 8:23; and the battle being over, he was ordered to be hanged, probably after having been strangled, or in some way deprived of life, as in the case mentioned Joshua 10:26, for in those times it was not customary to hang people alive. As soon as the sun was down - It was not lawful to let the bodies remain all night upon the tree. See the note…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 29Compare Deuteronomy 21:22-23 notes.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 23-29Verses 23-29 God, the righteous Judge, had sentenced the Canaanites for their wickedness; the Israelites only executed his doom. None of their conduct can be drawn into an example for others. Especial reason no doubt there was for this severity to the king of Ai; it is likely he had been notoriously wicked and vile, and a blasphemer of the God of Israel.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 29The public executions of the kings showed that Israel acted as God's agent to judge the leaders and people of Canaan for their evil acts (see also 10:26; 11:10, 12). until evening: See Deuteronomy 21:22–23. which remains to this day: See Joshua Book Introduction, “Author and Date.”Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2929. The king of Ai he hanged on a tree until eventide--that is, gibbeted. In ancient, and particularly Oriental wars, the chiefs, when taken prisoners, were usually executed. The Israelites were obliged, by the divine law, to put them to death. The execution of the king of Ai would tend to facilitate the conquest of the land, by striking terror into the other chiefs, and making it appear a judicial process, in which they were inflicting the vengeance of…Read the comment
Topics related to Joshua 8:29
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Joshua 8
- 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
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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