Sin Happens Joshua 7/8

“But Israel violated the instructions about the things set apart for the Lord. A man named Achan had stolen some of these dedicated things, so the Lord was very angry with the Israelites. Achan was the son of Carmi, a descendant of Zimri son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah.” Joshua‬ ‭7‬:‭1‬ ‭

As the Israelites were celebrating their first victory upset over Jericho, little did they know that one of their own people was committing treason against the Lord. 

During the battle a man named Achan stole some cash and a nice outfit though God has given explicit instructions not to. While nobody was looking he stashed the stolen loot in his tent and casually joined in the victory celebration. 

“No harm no foul” he thought. “These people aren’t even going to need this stuff because they’re all dying anyway. It’s not that much after all.” Or so he thought. 

A few days later as the Israelites go out to fight the people of Ai the next town over they get their butts kicked by a handful of rednecks with pitchforks who caused the entire battalion 3000 solider to retreat and 36 of Achan’s neighbors were killed in battle. 

You’d think after watching those 36 families bury their fathers that Achan would have felt so guilty that he would have broken down in tears to confess his sin. He didn’t. 

This doesn’t sit too well with God who quickly helps Joshua sniff out the perp by going house to house. Family by family He inches closer and closer until he eventually confronts Achan directly and begs him to fess up. 

Achan finally comes clean and admits he stole the goods and hid it in his tent. But the legend of Achan doesn’t stop there. Sin always has a bigger price tag attached and in this case the consequence was public execution by stoning. Yikes. 

They take him to the valley outside the camp, he and his entire family, their belongings, possessions, and the few stolen goods, and stone them all to death, then light them all on fire until them become a giant pile of charred ash.

This was not Achan’s first sin but it would be his very last. A few days earlier as he was coveting other people’s stuff I guarantee he never envisioned things would end this way or that he, his family, and his neighbors would pay such a price for this lapse in judgment. 

If anything Achan’s life teaches us a few important things about the nature of sin and the holiness of God:

1. God means what He says. 

God’s Word is not to be taken lightly. His commands are not suggestions to consider. We always ignore Scripture at our own peril.

2. We sin because we assume the reward is greater than the total cost. 

Had Achan fully grasped the cost he probably wouldn’t have been tempted more than a moment before he told himself the truth- “this stuff isn’t worth us all dying over.” 

3. Sin is never hidden from God. 

The fact that Achan thought he could get away with his sin is evident in the fact that he hid the goods in his tent, buried it, watched others get killed as a result yet didn’t confess, and never admitted his guilt until he got caught. The fact that God hasn’t punished sin immediately does not mean He doesn’t know about it. Gods patience with sin only means He’s given us time to repent before He has to bring punishment (2 Peter 3:10). 

4. The consequences of our disobedience always infect others. 

Achan never considered that his theft was going to cost the lives of dozens of people or even his own. Personal sin always affects others like a virus spreading from one host to another. Just as Adam’s one sin infected the human race, we each perpetuate the spread of sin and multiply it’s deadly affects to those around us. 

5. God’s plan is provably better than yours. 

The irony of this story is that Achan was just a day late and a dollar short. His greed during the battle of Jericho cost him everything but had he patiently waited on the Lord a little longer God would have given him the very thing he desired.

The very next chapter Joshua 8:1–2 God said “arise, go up to Ai. See, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, and his people, his city, and his land. 2 And you shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king. Only its spoil and its livestock you shall take as plunder for yourselves…”

Had Achan waited just a few more days he could have taken all of the plunder he wanted from the city of Ai and it would have been considered an act of obedience! God’s plan and His timing are always better than ours. His ways are higher than our ways He desires to give good gifts to his children if only we would trust Him and obey His commands.