{"id":53034,"date":"2018-07-09T17:42:20","date_gmt":"2018-07-09T14:42:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wall\/wall-195\/"},"modified":"2022-11-03T17:14:23","modified_gmt":"2022-11-03T15:14:23","slug":"wall-195","status":"publish","type":"wall","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wall\/wall-195\/","title":{"rendered":"chapter-Prophets-Joshua-8"},"parent":0,"template":"","acf":{"type":"chapter","wall_id":"195","date":"20260528","book":"Joshua","chapter":"8","chapter_main_number":"195","books_group":"Prophets","posts":[{"order":1,"id":"53071","color":"#f8ebe3","size":"1","name":"Joshua Chapter 8 - Read by Bruce Feiler ","post_title":"Joshua Chapter 8 - Read by Bruce Feiler","slug":"joshua-chapter-8-read-by-bruce-feiler","old_id":"53071","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34686,"post_title":"Soundcloud","slug":"soundcloud","old_id":"34686","first_name":"","last_name":"","description":"","short_description":"","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34656,"alt":"","title":"491","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","width":300,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium_large-width":300,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","large-width":300,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","1536x1536-width":300,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","2048x2048-width":300,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","post_full_size-width":300,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","home_baner-width":300,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"195","type_929":"4","show_author_image":true,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"JPS Audio Bible","tile_main_caption":"Joshua 8","tile_main_caption_size":"2","tile_sub_caption":"read by Bruce Feiler","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/929-bible\/jps-audio-bible_joshua_chapter-8-read-by-bruce-feiler","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Joshua","chapter":"8","chapter_main_number":"195","date":"20260528","wall_id":"195"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":2,"id":"108969","color":"#f7e9e9","size":"1","name":"The Ai's Have It","post_title":"The Ai's Have It","slug":"the-ais-have-it","old_id":"108969","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":78133,"post_title":"Josh Blechner","slug":"josh-blechner","old_id":"78133","first_name":"Josh ","last_name":"Blechner ","description":"Josh first finished the Tanach during Yeshiva in Mevaseret Zion. He and his daughter studied the Tanach again for her bat mitzvah. Josh has taught many classes on Tanach throughout the years and currently in the New Rochelle 929 group. When not studying for 929, Josh works as an in-house lawyer in New Jersey.","short_description":"Josh has taught many classes on Tanach throughout the years and currently in the New Rochelle 929 group, and is an in-house attorney in New Jersey. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":78134,"alt":"","title":"josh blechner","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","width":276,"height":351,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner-236x300.jpg","medium-width":236,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","medium_large-width":276,"medium_large-height":351,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","large-width":276,"large-height":351,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","1536x1536-width":276,"1536x1536-height":351,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","2048x2048-width":276,"2048x2048-height":351,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","post_full_size-width":276,"post_full_size-height":351,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","home_baner-width":276,"home_baner-height":351}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"195","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Different military strategy, different outcome. Another triumph for Joshua\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

The conquest of Jericho was almost entirely divine. God set up the miracle via the priests, the Ark, and the people. With the city\u2019s defenses in shambles, it was easy for the Israelite army to overrun it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Ai is different. After the poorly conceived attack compounded by the sin against God that led to defeat in the last chapter, Joshua gets a second chance to show his military acumen. God provides the pep talk in verses 1 and 2, and hints at the proper military strategy: set a trap. Joshua sets it all into motion.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The military strategy in this chapter is unique until this point. Abraham\u2019s war with the five and four kings in Genesis is low on detail. Levi and Simeon\u2019s massacre at Shechem did not have much strategy beyond \u201cwait until everyone was in pain from the circumcision.\u201d Joshua\u2019s first battle, with Amalek, was mostly focused on Moses\u2019 hands in the air. The Israelite conquests at the end of Deuteronomy are also devoid of strategy and detail.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Once again, the Israelites are faced with a walled city-state. Joshua positions a military unit behind the city hidden from view. The rest of the army moves with Joshua for a full-fledged attack with a quick retreat. The army from Ai pursues, and the Israelite army retreats. Once the Ai army vacates the city chasing the Israelite army, the ambush troops enter the city without any opposition. The genius of this strategy is that it plays off of the Israelite defeat in the last chapter. Joshua knows that the inhabitants of Ai would expect a much larger force to attack this time after the smaller force failed, so Joshua sends a massive 30,000-person force.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In the previous chapter, Ai only killed a handful of the Israelites. This time, faced with what looks like a similar outcome, the overconfident Ai army pursues probably hoping for a final victory. The small 5,000 ambush unit that eventually overtakes the city also parallels the small 3,000 troop unit that was defeated in the previous attack. Ai falls into the trap, and Joshua is victorious.\u00a0 As an added bonus, God has Joshua pay homage to the battle of Amalek by instructing Joshua to lift a spear into the air like Moses\u2019 arms. Joshua, though, keeps the spear in the air without any assistance while the Israelite army is victorious. In referencing Moses, God again positions Joshua as the successor to Moses in the eyes of the people.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":98452,"alt":"","title":"neh4-attack Game Plan","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/neh4-attack-Game-Plan.png","width":700,"height":611,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/neh4-attack-Game-Plan-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/neh4-attack-Game-Plan-300x262.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":262,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/neh4-attack-Game-Plan.png","medium_large-width":700,"medium_large-height":611,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/neh4-attack-Game-Plan.png","large-width":700,"large-height":611,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/neh4-attack-Game-Plan.png","1536x1536-width":700,"1536x1536-height":611,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/neh4-attack-Game-Plan.png","2048x2048-width":700,"2048x2048-height":611,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/neh4-attack-Game-Plan.png","post_full_size-width":700,"post_full_size-height":611,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/neh4-attack-Game-Plan-481x420.png","home_baner-width":481,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"The Ai's Have It","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Different military strategy, different outcome. 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During 2005, Bregman served as the Harry Starr Fellow in Judaica at Harvard University and was awarded a Teaching Fellowship at the Center for Advanced Judaic Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. He also has served as Forchheimer Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Humanities at The Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He is the author of The Tanhuma-Yelammedenu Literature: Studies in the Evolution of the Versions (Gorgias Press, 2003). In 2006, Bregman was appointed the Herman and Zelda Bernard Distinguished Professor of Jewish Studies at the University of North Carolina in Greensboro, where he also headed the program in Jewish Studies, until 2013. Bregman retired from UNCG as of July 31, 2017. He has now returned to Jerusalem where he is continuing his research and teaching activities.","credit":"","image_url":"","short_description":"Marc Bregman is the Herman and Zelda Bernard Distinguished Professor of Jewish Studies emeritus, at the University of North Carolina in Greensboro.","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":33878,"alt":"Marc Bregman","title":"Marc Bregman","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","width":361,"height":488,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman-222x300.jpg","medium-width":222,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","medium_large-width":361,"medium_large-height":488,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","large-width":361,"large-height":488,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","1536x1536-width":361,"1536x1536-height":488,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","2048x2048-width":361,"2048x2048-height":488,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","post_full_size-width":361,"post_full_size-height":488,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman-311x420.jpg","home_baner-width":311,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"195","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The difference is in ten little words\u2026.","post_main_content_content":"

The first part of our chapter deals with the second, now successful, attempt to conquer the city of Ai, by Joshua and his Israelite forces (Joshua 8:1-29). In the second part of our Chapter (verses 30-35), Joshua builds an altar on Mount Ebal, as Moses had commanded (see Deuteronomy 27:3-8).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The Midrash (Tanhuma Tetzaveh 9) views this episode as one of the comparisons between Joshua and Moses: \u201cThe wise shall obtain honor\u201d (Proverbs 3:35). This refers to Joshua, who inherited honor from Moses, our Rabbi. As the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Joshua at the beginning of his book: \u201cAs I was with Moses, so I will be with you\u201d (Joshua 1:5). The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses: \u201cRemove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you stand is holy ground\u201d (Exodus 3:5), and to Joshua He said: \u201cRemove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy\u201d (Joshua 5:15). Moses led the People of Israel out of Egypt, while Joshua led them into the Holy Land. Moses slew King Sihon and King Og (see Joshua 12:1-6), while Joshua slew thirty-one kings (Joshua 12:7-24). Moses erected an altar (see Exodus 17:15), and Joshua did likewise (Joshua 8:30). Moses wrote out the Torah (see Deuteronomy 31:9). And Joshua wrote out the same Torah, as it is said: \u201cAnd there, on the stones, he inscribed a copy of the Torah of Moses that he had written for the Israelites\u201d (Joshua 8:32, see also Joshua 24:26).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Our Midrash goes on to point to one significant difference between Moses and Joshua in respect to the length of their respective lifetimes. About Moses it is written: \u201cMoses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died\u201d (Deuteronomy 34:7), while Joshua died at the age of one hundred and ten years (Joshua 24:29). <\/span><\/p>\r\n

Why did he live ten years less? Because of ten words in a verse that tells of how Joshua, the disciple of Moses, spoke before his master, Moses, telling him what to do to Eldad and Medad: \u201cVa-yan Yehoshua bin-Nun, mesharet Moshe mi-behurav va-yomer: \u2018adoni Moshe \u2013 kela\u2019em<\/em> -- And Joshua son of Nun, Moses\u2019 attendant from his youth, spoke up and said: My lord Moses, restrain them!\u201d (Num. 11:28). Because of these ten Hebrew words that tell how Joshua, the disciple of Moses, spoke up before his master, Moses, telling him what to do, Joshua\u2019s life was shortened by ten years. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

From this episode you learn that a disciple is not permitted to give a halakhic ruling in the presence of his master. And any disciple who presumes to do so will find his life\u2019s span shortened (see Talmud Bavli \u2018Eruvin 63a). So, though Joshua did many of the same things that Moses did, he lived for ten years less because he presumed to tell Moses, his master, what to do.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image by: <\/span>\u00a0J.G. Schreiner, c. 1840.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":53500,"alt":"","title":"jo8-Joshua-as-Moses","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses.jpg","width":700,"height":477,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses-300x204.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":204,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses.jpg","medium_large-width":700,"medium_large-height":477,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses.jpg","large-width":700,"large-height":477,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses.jpg","1536x1536-width":700,"1536x1536-height":477,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses.jpg","2048x2048-width":700,"2048x2048-height":477,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses.jpg","post_full_size-width":700,"post_full_size-height":477,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses-616x420.jpg","home_baner-width":616,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Joshua v. Moses: A Comparison Of Two Leaders","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"The difference is in ten little words\u2026.","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":53500,"alt":"","title":"jo8-Joshua-as-Moses","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses.jpg","width":700,"height":477,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses-300x204.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":204,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses.jpg","medium_large-width":700,"medium_large-height":477,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses.jpg","large-width":700,"large-height":477,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses.jpg","1536x1536-width":700,"1536x1536-height":477,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses.jpg","2048x2048-width":700,"2048x2048-height":477,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses.jpg","post_full_size-width":700,"post_full_size-height":477,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-Joshua-as-Moses-616x420.jpg","home_baner-width":616,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Joshua","chapter":"8","chapter_main_number":"195","date":"20260528","wall_id":"195"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"397","name":"Moses","old_id":"797"},{"term_id":"402","name":"Leadership","old_id":"802"},{"term_id":"662","name":"Halacha","old_id":"1062"},{"term_id":"806","name":"Joshua","old_id":"1206"}]},{"order":4,"id":"53506","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Joshua Pulls a \u201cMoses\u201d ","post_title":"Joshua Pulls A \u201cMoses\u201d","slug":"joshua-pulls-a-moses","old_id":"53506","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34243,"post_title":"Moshe Sokolow","slug":"moshe-sokolow","old_id":"34243","first_name":"Moshe","last_name":"Sokolow","description":"Dr. Moshe Sokolow is Associate Dean of the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration, Yeshiva University, and teaches a weekly class in parashat hashavu`a at Lincoln Square Synagogue. He is the author of TANAKH: An Owner\u2019s Manual (Jerusalem: Urim\/Ktav, 2015).\r\n\r\n","short_description":"Dr. Moshe Sokolow is Associate Dean of the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration, Yeshiva University","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34244,"alt":"","title":"sokolow","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","width":302,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow-300x298.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":298,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","medium_large-width":302,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","large-width":302,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","1536x1536-width":302,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","2048x2048-width":302,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","post_full_size-width":302,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","home_baner-width":302,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"195","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"He too staves off death and defeat, and fulfills the Mosaic legacy","post_main_content_content":"

Given that Ai had been reported by military intelligence to have a total population of 2,000 and to present no great threat (7:3-4), our chapter seemingly gives excessive coverage (29 verses!) to its eventual conquest. Did the lingering effects of the spoils scandal magnify its importance?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

One detail of this conquest, however, summons up the recollection of a striking earlier victory. God instructed Joshua to reach out (<\/span>neteh<\/span><\/em>) with his spear towards Ai (8:19), which he kept extended until the victory was complete (26).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This effectively combines two poses of Moses into one: God\u2019s instruction him to reach out (<\/span>neteh<\/span><\/em>) with his staff in order to split the Red Sea, and his assumed stance during the battle against Amalek at Refidim, wherein he kept his arms extended all day until the battle was over (Exodus 17:11-12).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Two other subtler instances in our chapter link Joshua to Moses. In building an altar atop Mt. Ebal and conducting a public Torah reading, Joshua was clearly following the instructions of Deuteronomy (11:29 ff.). And by removing the body of the King of Ai from the gallows at nightfall (29), he was honoring the Torah\u2019s prohibition against postmortem desecration (Dt. 21:23).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In delineating these similarities, the Book of Joshua is giving tangible evidence of God\u2019s earlier promise to Joshua that as long as he kept the Torah, \u201cAs I was with Moses, so shall I be with you\u201d (Joshua 1:5, and 3:7).
\r\n
\r\n<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image: John Trumbull, <\/span>Joshua at the Battle of Ai - Attended by Death<\/span><\/i>, 1840, Yale University Art Gallery \/ wikimedia<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":53507,"alt":"","title":"jo8-joshua at ai","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai.jpg","width":750,"height":600,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai-300x240.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":240,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai.jpg","medium_large-width":750,"medium_large-height":600,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai.jpg","large-width":750,"large-height":600,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai.jpg","1536x1536-width":750,"1536x1536-height":600,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai.jpg","2048x2048-width":750,"2048x2048-height":600,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai.jpg","post_full_size-width":750,"post_full_size-height":600,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai-525x420.jpg","home_baner-width":525,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Joshua Pulls A \u201cMoses\u201d","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"He too staves off death and defeat, and fulfills the Mosaic legacy","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":53507,"alt":"","title":"jo8-joshua at ai","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai.jpg","width":750,"height":600,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai-300x240.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":240,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai.jpg","medium_large-width":750,"medium_large-height":600,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai.jpg","large-width":750,"large-height":600,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai.jpg","1536x1536-width":750,"1536x1536-height":600,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai.jpg","2048x2048-width":750,"2048x2048-height":600,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai.jpg","post_full_size-width":750,"post_full_size-height":600,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-joshua-at-ai-525x420.jpg","home_baner-width":525,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Joshua","chapter":"8","chapter_main_number":"195","date":"20260528","wall_id":"195"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"383","name":"Death","old_id":"783"},{"term_id":"397","name":"Moses","old_id":"797"},{"term_id":"806","name":"Joshua","old_id":"1206"}]},{"order":5,"id":"53503","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"A User\u2019s Guide To The Book of Joshua ","post_title":"A User\u2019s Guide To The Book of Joshua","slug":"a-users-guide-to-the-book-of-joshua","old_id":"53503","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":33992,"post_title":"Bradley Shavit Artson","slug":"rabbi-dr-bradley-shavit-artson","old_id":"33992","first_name":"Bradley Shavit ","last_name":"Artson","description":"Rabbi Dr Bradley Shavit Artson holds the Abner and Roslyn Goldstine Dean's Chair of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies and is Vice President of American Jewish University in Los Angeles, and is professor of philosophy there. Artson is married to Elana Shavit Artson, and they are the parents of twins, Shira and Jacob.\r\n","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"short_description":"Rabbi Dr Bradley Shavit Artson is the Dean of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies and is Vice President of American Jewish University in Los Angeles.","link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":33993,"alt":"","title":"Rabbi Dr Bradley Shavit Artson","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Rabbi-Dr-Bradley-Shavit-Artson-e1532029361140.png","width":204,"height":199,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Rabbi-Dr-Bradley-Shavit-Artson-e1532029361140-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Rabbi-Dr-Bradley-Shavit-Artson-256x300.png","medium-width":256,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Rabbi-Dr-Bradley-Shavit-Artson-e1532029361140.png","medium_large-width":204,"medium_large-height":199,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Rabbi-Dr-Bradley-Shavit-Artson-e1532029361140.png","large-width":204,"large-height":199,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Rabbi-Dr-Bradley-Shavit-Artson-e1532029361140.png","1536x1536-width":204,"1536x1536-height":199,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Rabbi-Dr-Bradley-Shavit-Artson-e1532029361140.png","2048x2048-width":204,"2048x2048-height":199,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Rabbi-Dr-Bradley-Shavit-Artson-e1532029361140.png","post_full_size-width":204,"post_full_size-height":199,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Rabbi-Dr-Bradley-Shavit-Artson-e1532029361140.png","home_baner-width":204,"home_baner-height":199}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"195","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Joshua\u2019s covenant of inclusion reveals an anti-despotic subtext","post_main_content_content":"

There are two broad ways to read the Book of Joshua. One is to treat it as a primarily historical text, assuming that events occurred pretty much as they are reported here. The challenge to the first approach is that big archaeological and historical evidence don\u2019t mesh with the assertions of the book (the fall of Jericho, the capture of the entire land, the elimination of the Canaanites \u2013 all of which are contradicted by the evidence and by other biblical books). But there is an even larger challenge to this mode of reading: the widespread slaughter of innocents evokes moral repugnance among readers who take seriously the biblical demand for one law, for justice, for compassion.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

A better mode of reading is to assume that the Book of Joshua is intended to be a didactic text, intended to teach truths using stories that read like history but are aiming at something bigger. To read the Book of Joshua in this mode is to look for wisdom, insights, and lessons, understanding that the stories that carry the book are not literal descriptions but provide the canvas on which wisdom can present itself.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

I can only make it through the Book of Joshua using this second, more inclusive approach (one that accords with ancient and medieval commentaries, as well as more recent archaeological findings). Read through that lens, the Book offers us guidance and wisdom we can use to this day.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Chapter 8 ends with a Covenant Ceremony at Shechem. Joshua builds an altar on Mount Ebal, and on that site, facing Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, are gathered \u201cAll Israel \u2013 stranger and citizen alike (Joshua 8:33).\u201d Notice the clear insistence that \u201call Israel\u201d includes not only the citizens, but also the stranger. Ancient Israel is meant, even at this foundational moment, to be maximally inclusive.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

That same point is repeated and expanded: The entire Book of the Teaching (the whole Chumash according to Ramban, only the 613 Commandments according to Rav Saadia Gaon) were recited aloud in the \u201cpresence of the entire assembly of Israel, including the women and children and the strangers who accompanied them (Joshua 8:35).\u201d Note again: the assembly of Israel isn\u2019t complete if it doesn\u2019t include men, women, children, and strangers. More maximal inclusion.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

There, I would propose, is the divine aspect of this biblical book. Even in the midst of conquest, Israel is meant to include us all: Jews, non-Jews, all genders, all ages. Everyone participates because the entire point of this conquest is to set up a people unlike the surrounding despotisms: a place where everyone counts, where everyone participates, where all are welcome. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image: <\/span>Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":53504,"alt":"","title":"jo8-manual","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual.jpg","width":960,"height":1280,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual-225x300.jpg","medium-width":225,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual-768x1024.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual-768x1024.jpg","large-width":768,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual.jpg","1536x1536-width":960,"1536x1536-height":1280,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual.jpg","2048x2048-width":960,"2048x2048-height":1280,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual-900x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":900,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual-315x420.jpg","home_baner-width":315,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"A User\u2019s Guide To The Book of Joshua","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Joshua\u2019s covenant of inclusion reveals an anti-despotic subtext","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":53504,"alt":"","title":"jo8-manual","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual.jpg","width":960,"height":1280,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual-225x300.jpg","medium-width":225,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual-768x1024.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual-768x1024.jpg","large-width":768,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual.jpg","1536x1536-width":960,"1536x1536-height":1280,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual.jpg","2048x2048-width":960,"2048x2048-height":1280,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual-900x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":900,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-manual-315x420.jpg","home_baner-width":315,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Joshua","chapter":"8","chapter_main_number":"195","date":"20260528","wall_id":"195"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"372","name":"Wisdom","old_id":"772"},{"term_id":"395","name":"Covenant","old_id":"795"},{"term_id":"444","name":"History","old_id":"844"},{"term_id":"712","name":"Inclusion","old_id":"1112"}]},{"order":6,"id":"53509","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"All Human Life is Infused with Divinity ","post_title":"All Human Life Is Infused With Divinity","slug":"all-human-life-is-infused-with-divinity","old_id":"53509","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":41792,"post_title":"Misha Clebaner","slug":"misha-clebaner","old_id":"41792","first_name":"Misha ","last_name":"Clebaner","description":"Misha Clebaner, is in his final year of rabbinical school at Hebrew College in Boston. He is currently serving as the rabbinic figure of Temple B\u2019nai Israel in Revere, MA.","short_description":"Misha Clebaner, is in his final year of rabbinical school at Hebrew College in Boston. He is currently serving as the rabbinic figure of Temple B\u2019nai Israel in Revere, MA.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":41794,"alt":"","title":"misha clebaner","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/misha-clebaner.png","width":230,"height":251,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/misha-clebaner-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/misha-clebaner.png","medium-width":230,"medium-height":251,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/misha-clebaner.png","medium_large-width":230,"medium_large-height":251,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/misha-clebaner.png","large-width":230,"large-height":251,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/misha-clebaner.png","1536x1536-width":230,"1536x1536-height":251,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/misha-clebaner.png","2048x2048-width":230,"2048x2048-height":251,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/misha-clebaner.png","post_full_size-width":230,"post_full_size-height":251,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/misha-clebaner.png","home_baner-width":230,"home_baner-height":251}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"195","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"And so, a respectful burial even for the enemy king ","post_main_content_content":"

Joshua 8:29
\r\n<\/span>\"And the king of Ai was impaled on a stake until the evening. At sunset, Joshua had the corpse taken down from the stake and it was left lying at the entrance to the city gate. They raised a great heap of stones over it, which is there to this day.\"<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Deut 21:22-23
\r\n<\/span>\"If a man is guilty of a capital offense and is put to death, and you impale him on a stake, \u00a0you must not let his corpse remain on the stake overnight, but must bury him the same day. For an impaled body is an affront to God: you shall not defile the land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess.\"<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The \"fog of war\" is a common expression to denote the sheer chaos of military conflict. Chaos is peppered all throughout chapter 8 in the book of Joshua. The Israelite soldiers that approached the city of Ai and then retreated into the desert with the hopes of luring the troops away from the city create a scene of panic and confusion in one direction. The other Israelites that sneak their way into Ai to set fire to the city create another scene of chaos in the other direction. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

It says in Joshua 8:20 \"The men of Ai looked back and saw the smoke of the city rising to the sky; they had no room for flight in any direction. The [Israelites] who had been fleeing to the wilderness now became the pursuers.\" The king is captured during the frenzy, and he is hung.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

When the dust settles, nothing is left intact. There is only ruin and destruction. The Israelites were able to conquer Ai successfully after a failed attempt one chapter earlier.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Such pandemonium recalls the scenes of war in stories of conquest by infamous armies such as the Mongolians or the Romans. In those scenes, heads are placed on stakes or bodies hung up on crosses to scare away any would-be fighters. The Israelite army also has the desire to put forth a show of force as they hang up the King of Ai. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

But the Torah says \"enough!\" <\/span><\/p>\r\n

As completely absent of goodness and holiness as war is, afterward, we must remember that all humans are infused with holiness. All sides are the children of God. As Deuteronomy teaches, the bodies of the deceased must be taken down and buried - in this case, an upright burial with stones. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

After the chaos, the time for being human begins once again.<\/span>
\r\n
\r\n<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image: Part of the wall of supposed city of Ai, photo from 1982 \/ wikia<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":53510,"alt":"","title":"jo8-ai","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai.jpg","width":563,"height":449,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai-300x239.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":239,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai.jpg","medium_large-width":563,"medium_large-height":449,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai.jpg","large-width":563,"large-height":449,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai.jpg","1536x1536-width":563,"1536x1536-height":449,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai.jpg","2048x2048-width":563,"2048x2048-height":449,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai.jpg","post_full_size-width":563,"post_full_size-height":449,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai-527x420.jpg","home_baner-width":527,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"All Human Life Is Infused With Divinity","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"And so, a respectful burial even for the enemy king ","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":53510,"alt":"","title":"jo8-ai","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai.jpg","width":563,"height":449,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai-300x239.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":239,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai.jpg","medium_large-width":563,"medium_large-height":449,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai.jpg","large-width":563,"large-height":449,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai.jpg","1536x1536-width":563,"1536x1536-height":449,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai.jpg","2048x2048-width":563,"2048x2048-height":449,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai.jpg","post_full_size-width":563,"post_full_size-height":449,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-ai-527x420.jpg","home_baner-width":527,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Joshua","chapter":"8","chapter_main_number":"195","date":"20260528","wall_id":"195"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"374","name":"Humanity","old_id":"774"},{"term_id":"401","name":"Life","old_id":"801"},{"term_id":"434","name":"War","old_id":"834"},{"term_id":"573","name":"Righteousness","old_id":"973"}]},{"order":7,"id":"53512","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"A Triumph Of The People ","post_title":"A Triumph Of The People","slug":"a-triumph-of-the-people","old_id":"53512","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":53309,"post_title":"Michael Hattin","slug":"michael-hattin","old_id":"53309","first_name":"Michael ","last_name":"Hattin ","description":"Rabbi Michael Hattin teaches Tanakh at Pardes in Jerusalem and serves as the Director of the Beit Midrash for the Pardes Center for Jewish Educators. He studied for rabbinic ordination at Yeshivat Har Etzion and holds a professional degree in architecture from the University of Toronto. Michael is the author of Passages: Text and Transformation in the Parasha (2012), and Joshua: The Challenge of the Promised Land (Koren, 2015). He lives in Alon Shevut with his wife Rivka and their five children.","short_description":"Rabbi Michael Hattin teaches Tanakh at Pardes in Jerusalem and serves as the Director of the Beit Midrash for the Pardes Center for Jewish Educators.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":53310,"alt":"","title":"Michael Hattin","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Michael-Hattin.jpg","width":2237,"height":3362,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Michael-Hattin-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Michael-Hattin-200x300.jpg","medium-width":200,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Michael-Hattin-681x1024.jpg","medium_large-width":681,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Michael-Hattin-681x1024.jpg","large-width":681,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Michael-Hattin.jpg","1536x1536-width":1022,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Michael-Hattin.jpg","2048x2048-width":1363,"2048x2048-height":2048,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Michael-Hattin-798x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":798,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Michael-Hattin-279x420.jpg","home_baner-width":279,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"195","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"A turning point in the shifting balance of divine intervention and human initiative","post_main_content_content":"

Like Moses before him, who raised his hands aloft at the battle against Amalek and kept them held high to inspire his people to victory (Ex. 17:11-12), \u201cJoshua did not let down his hand that grasped the spear until all of the people of the Ai had been subdued\u201d (Josh. 8:26). <\/span><\/p>\r\n

In the aftermath of the victory, the people of Israel are permitted to take from the spoils of the town, thus providing another important contrast to the battle of Jericho. While some commentaries see in this license a prudent concession by Joshua in light of Achan\u2019s earlier failure, others detect another sign of the subtle shift towards more hidden divine involvement. At Jericho, the victory was God\u2019s alone. Here at Ai, the groundwork for the success was laid by Joshua\u2019s meticulous planning and the people\u2019s spirited fight. While God in the end provided the critical catalyst for the victory, it was a triumph that belonged to all of Israel. Therefore, the spoils are also given to them (as indeed they are in every other battle that is henceforth described in the book), to stress the significance of their initiative and to highlight their involvement.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The victory over Ai thus provides us with an important lesson into the trajectory of the Book of Joshua, as it traces the anxious arc of decreased supernatural involvement and increased human initiative. This dynamic tension, in marked contrast to the miraculous tone of the vast majority of the wilderness narratives of the Humash, defines the rest of the Book of Joshua, the remainder of the biblical books, and the post-biblical history of the people of Israel until this very day. Like Israel of old, we must not lose sight of the fact that God is always aware, always involved, and always able to intervene at the decisive moment, albeit in a concealed manner. God\u2019s involvement is shielded from dim minds that equate trust with phony catechisms and predicate faith upon the supernatural house of cards known as miracles.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The message of the battle of the Ai is in fundamental opposition to that of the shallow practitioners who would magically fashion belief by applying the quick fix of divine wonders. Only the patient nurture of our trust that God is present in our lives can help us appreciate that God not only cares about us but that He guides us towards recognition of His concern.
\r\n
\r\n<\/span><\/p>\r\n

from: <\/span>Joshua: The Challenge of the Promised Land <\/span><\/i>(Jerusalem: Koren, 2015); chapter: Victory over the Ai <\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":53516,"alt":"","title":"jo8-pendulum","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","width":718,"height":549,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum-300x229.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":229,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","medium_large-width":718,"medium_large-height":549,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","large-width":718,"large-height":549,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","1536x1536-width":718,"1536x1536-height":549,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","2048x2048-width":718,"2048x2048-height":549,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","post_full_size-width":718,"post_full_size-height":549,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum-549x420.jpg","home_baner-width":549,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"A Triumph Of The People","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"A turning point in the shifting balance of divine intervention and human initiative","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":53516,"alt":"","title":"jo8-pendulum","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","width":718,"height":549,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum-300x229.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":229,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","medium_large-width":718,"medium_large-height":549,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","large-width":718,"large-height":549,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","1536x1536-width":718,"1536x1536-height":549,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","2048x2048-width":718,"2048x2048-height":549,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","post_full_size-width":718,"post_full_size-height":549,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum-549x420.jpg","home_baner-width":549,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Joshua","chapter":"8","chapter_main_number":"195","date":"20260528","wall_id":"195"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"384","name":"God","old_id":"784"},{"term_id":"434","name":"War","old_id":"834"},{"term_id":"806","name":"Joshua","old_id":"1206"}]},{"order":8,"id":"108999","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"The Tanakh Podcast-8 ","post_title":"The Tanakh Podcast-8","slug":"the-tanakh-podcast-8","old_id":"108999","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":33692,"post_title":"Alex Israel","slug":"33692-2","old_id":"33692","first_name":"Alex","last_name":"Israel","description":"Alex Israel teaches Tanakh at the Pardes Institute, Yeshivat Eretz Hatzvi and Matan, Jerusalem. 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    \r\n\t
  1. Follow me!<\/em> Joshua\u2019s model of leadership, as revealed in the chapter, is well defined in verse 9: \u201cthey took up a position between Ai and Bethel\u2014west of Ai\u2014while Joshua spent the night with the rest of the troops.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  2. The javelin.<\/em> Joshua stretches out his hand which is holding the javelin in verse 18 as a signal for the ambushing force to come out of hiding and attack. In verse 26, the gesture of the javelin acquires an additional meaning: \u201cJoshua did not draw back the hand with which he held out his javelin until all the inhabitants of Ai had been exterminated.\u201d Joshua\u2019s holding his arms aloft is reminiscent of Moses\u2019 gesture, 128 chapters ago (Ex. 17), where he raised his arms in the war against Amalek.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  3. Proscription (ban<\/em>). Though not like in Jericho - can you spot the difference?<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  4. Moses.<\/em> In the six verses that tell of the ceremony on Mnts. Ebal and Gerizim (30-35), Moses is mentioned five times. 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    \u201cThe Jewish Response to Refugees\u201d<\/span><\/a> by Noah Farkas: What does the Bible tell us about what we owe to refugees?<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Go deeper into the chapter....","tile_main_caption":"Sefaria Source Sheets - Joshua 8","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Click to get links to learning resources","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":42232,"alt":"","title":"sefaria-words-sunburst","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","width":608,"height":395,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst-300x195.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":195,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","medium_large-width":608,"medium_large-height":395,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","large-width":608,"large-height":395,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","1536x1536-width":608,"1536x1536-height":395,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","2048x2048-width":608,"2048x2048-height":395,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","post_full_size-width":608,"post_full_size-height":395,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","home_baner-width":608,"home_baner-height":395}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"Sefaria word sunburst visualization","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Joshua","chapter":"8","chapter_main_number":"195","date":"20260528","wall_id":"195"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false}],"hide_acf":true,"home_image":false,"home_posts":false,"home_posts_title":"","posts_home":[],"static_cube_title":"","static_cube_brief":"","static_cube_color":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wall\/53034"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wall"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/wall"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=53034"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}