Israel Destroys the Town of Ai
1-2 The Lord told Joshua:
Don't be afraid, and don't be discouraged by what happened at the town of Ai. Take the army and attack again. But first, order part of the army to set up an ambush on the other side of the town. I will help you defeat the king of Ai and his army, and you will capture the town and the land around it. Destroy Ai and kill its king as you did at Jericho. But you may keep the livestock and everything else you want.
3-4 Joshua quickly got the army ready to attack Ai. He chose 30,000 of his best soldiers and gave them these orders:
Tonight, while it is dark, march to Ai and take up a position behind the town. Get as close to the town as you can without being seen, and be ready to attack.
5-6 The rest of the army will come with me and attack near the gate. When the people of Ai come out to fight, we'll run away and let them chase us. They will think we are running from them just like the first time. But when we've let them chase us far enough away, 7 you come out of hiding. The Lord our God will help you capture the town. 8 Then set it on fire, as the Lord has told us to do. Those are your orders, 9 now go!
The 30,000 soldiers went to a place on the west side of Ai, between Ai and Bethel, where they could hide and wait to attack.
That night, Joshua stayed in camp with the rest of the army. 10 Early the next morning he got his troops ready to move out, and he and the other leaders of Israel led them to Ai. 11 They set up camp in full view of the town, across the valley to the north. 12 Joshua had already sent 5,000 soldiers to the west side of the town to hide and wait to attack. 13 Now all his troops were in place. Part of the army was in the camp to the north of Ai, and the others were hiding to the west, ready to make a surprise attack. That night, Joshua went into the valley.
14-15 The king of Ai saw Joshua's army, so the king and his troops hurried out early the next morning to fight them. Joshua and his army pretended to be beaten, and they let the men of Ai chase them toward the desert. The king and his army were facing the Jordan valley as Joshua had planned.
The king did not realize that some Israelite soldiers were hiding behind the town. 16-17 So he called out every man in Ai to go after Joshua's troops. They all rushed out to chase the Israelite army, and they left the town gates wide open. Not one man was left in Ai or in Bethel.
Joshua let the men of Ai chase him and his army farther and farther away from Ai. 18 Finally, the Lord told Joshua, “Point your sword at the town of Ai, because now I am going to help you defeat it!”
As soon as Joshua pointed his sword at the town, 19 the soldiers who had been hiding jumped up and ran into the town. They captured it and set it on fire.
20-21 When Joshua and his troops saw smoke rising from the town, they knew that the other part of their army had captured it. So they turned and attacked.
The men of Ai looked back and saw smoke rising from their town. But they could not escape, because the soldiers they had been chasing had suddenly turned and started fighting. 22-24 Meanwhile, the other Israelite soldiers had come from the town and attacked the men of Ai from the rear. The Israelites captured the king of Ai and brought him to Joshua. They also chased the rest of the men of Ai into the desert and killed them.
The Israelite army went back to Ai and killed everyone there. 25-26 Joshua kept his sword pointed at the town of Ai until every last one of Ai's 12,000 people was dead. 27 But the Israelites took the animals and the other possessions of the people of Ai, because this was what the Lord had told Joshua to do.
28-29 Joshua made sure every building in Ai was burned to the ground. He told his men to kill the king of Ai and hang his body on a tree. Then at sunset he told the Israelites to take down the body, throw it in the gateway of the town, and cover it with a big pile of rocks. Those rocks are still there, and the town itself has never been rebuilt.
Joshua Reads the Blessings and Curses
(Deuteronomy 27.1-26)30-32 One day, Joshua led the people of Israel to Mount Ebal, where he told some of his men, “Build an altar for offering sacrifices to the Lord. And use stones that have never been cut with iron tools, because that is what Moses taught in The Book of the Law.”
Joshua offered sacrifices to please the Lord and to ask his blessing. Then with the Israelites still watching, he copied parts of The Book of the Law of Moses onto stones.
33-35 Moses had said that everyone in Israel was to go to the valley between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, where they were to be blessed. So everyone went there, including the foreigners, the leaders, officials, and judges. Half of the people stood on one side of the valley, and half on the other side, with the priests from the Levi tribe standing in the middle with the sacred chest. Then in a loud voice, Joshua read the blessings and curses from The Book of the Law of Moses.
Omahuuriro nomanyoneno wotjihuro Ai
1 Tjazumba Muhona wa tja nai ku Josua: “O tira, nu o mumapara! Toora ovarwe voye wovita avehe, nu u yende kOai. Ami me ku pe outoṋi kombanda yombara ya Ai; notjiwaṋa notjihuro tje nehi re mavi rire ovyoye. 2 Tjita kOai na kombara yatjo otja tji wa tjita kOjeriko na kombara yatjo. Nungwari otjikando hi ovipundwa novinamuinyo vyatjo ngavi rire ovyoye. Rirongera okurwisa otjihuro amo tji tjendjerekere kongotwe.”
3 Josua otje rirongera na i kOai puna ovarwe ve wovita avehe. Eye wa toorora ovarumendu omapenda omayovi omirongo vitatu ne ve hindi ouṱuku. 4 Neye wa rakiza a tja: “Kaṱareye munda mbwina wotjihuro kongurova, nungwari amu i kokure tjinene na tjo, nu mu rirongere okurwa. 5 Ami novarumendu vandje wovita matu hungama otjihuro. Owo tji mave piti okuturwisa otja tji va tjita yaruka ovihahambunda. 6 Owo mave tu kongorere, ngandu indu tji twe ve pitisa ohumburuko notjihuro. Nu mave tjangovasi matu tupuka tjimuna tji twa tjita rutenga. 7 Eṋe piteye motutatwa tweṋu mu kambura otjihuro. Muhona, Ndjambi weṋu, me tji yandja mouvara weṋu, 8 Tji mwa zu nokukambura otjihuro, tji hwikeye otja Muhona pe mu raera. Inga owo omarakiza wandje ku eṋe.” 9 Josua otje ve hinda, nowo va ya kotutatwa twawo komunda wokongurova kwa Ai pokati ka Ai na Betel. Nu Josua wa kara mozondanda ouṱuku mbo.
10 Josua wa penduka omuhuka omunene na woronganisa ovarwe ve wovita. Eye novanane vOvaisrael otji ve ve hongorere kOai. 11 Novarwe wovita, mba ri puna ye va hungama otjihuro nave katona ozondanda komukuma wokeyuva kokunene kwa Ai; nu pokati kawo na Ai pa ri otjana. 12 Eye wa toora ovarumendu mangara omayovi yetano, ne ve ṱarisa motutatwa komukuma wokongurova kwa Ai pokati ka Ai na Betel. 13 Imbwi owo omuano ovarwe wovita mbu va ṱuninwa okunuwa: Otjimbumba otjinanḓengu tjovita tja tona ozondanda komukuma wokeyuva kokunene kwotjihuro, imba ovandu mba ri motutatwa ngunda ava ri kuṱa kongurova. Ouṱuku mbo Josua wa rara momukutu. 14 Ombara ya Ai tji ya muna otjimbumba tja Josua ya kumuka tjimanga okukarwa. Oyo novarwe vayo avehe va hungama omukutu wa Jordan ve karwisire Ovaisrael poṋa tjingepo mba pu va rwira rutenga. Oyo kai tjivirwe kutja mai rwisirwa okuza kongotwe. 15 Josua nOvaisrael avehe va tjita aayo mave yaruka ovihahambunda nave tupuka mokuti onguza. 16 Nu imba ovarumendu avehe mba ri motjihuro va woronganisiwa kutja ve ve tezere, nowo ngunda amave tezere Josua otjaave yende amave humburuka kokure notjihuro. 17 Omurumendu auhe mOai wa tezera Ovaisrael. Otjihuro tja isiwa tjo nokuhinaumwe ngu me tji yeura.
18 Muhona wa tja nai ku Josua: “Urika nengaruvyo roye kOai, orondu ami me tji yandja kove.” Nu Josua wa tjita otja punga a raerwa. 19 Neye tja yera eke re, ovarumendu, mba ṱarere motutatwa, va hakahana okusekama nave hiti motjihuro nave tji kambura. Tjimanga va hwika otjihuro. 20 Ovarumendu va Ai tji va taviza kombunda arire tji va munu omuise amau sekama meyuru. Nu kapa ri oruveze ku wo okutaura, orondu Ovaisrael, mba tupuka mokuti onguza, va tanauka nave ve rwisa. 21 Josua nOvaisrael avehe tji va muna kutja imba mba ri motutatwa va kambura otjihuro, nokutja otjo matji pi otji va tanauka nave utu okuzepa ovarumendu va Ai. 22 Ovaisrael, mba ri motjihuro, va utukira ovarumendu va Ai nave ve rwisa wina. Novandu va Ai va koverwa oparukaze nave ṱu i Ovaisrael. Kape na umwe wawo ngwa tupuka poo ngwa hupa, 23 posi yombara ya Ai ondja kamburwa nai twarewa ku Josua.
24 Ovaisrael va zepa ovanavita avehe mbe ve tezera nga mokuti onguza. Tjazumba va yaruka kOai nave kazepa avehe mba ri ngo. 25 Ovature avehe va Ai mba ṱa meyuva ndo, ovarumendu novakazendu, va ri omayovi omurongo na yevari. 26 Nu Josua wa ṱiza enga re ama urike na ro kotjihuro Ai, ne he ri twa pehi nga ovandu avehe mu tjo tji va ṱu. 27 Ovaisrael ve rikamburira ovinamuinyo novihuurwa avihe motjihuro otja Muhona punga a raerere ku Josua. 28 Josua wa hwika Ai ne tji esa etundu nga ku ndinondi. 29 Neye wa turika ombara ya Ai komuti ne mu esa mbo nga kongurova. Nu komahitiro weyuva Josua wa raera kutja ve turure orurova nu ve ru yumbe pehi pomuvero wotjihuro. Nowo va rongera ko omawe nge ri ko nga ku ndinondi.
Omatwako maye reserwa kondundu Ebal
30 Josua wa tungira Muhona, Ndjambi wa Israel, otjipunguhiro kondundu Ebal.Otjipunguhiro 31 Eye we tji ungura otja komarakiza wa Moses, omukarere wa Muhona, nga raerere kOvaisrael otja tji pa tjangwa mEmbo rOmatwako ra Moses: “Otjipunguhiro tjomawe nge ha kerwe noviungurise vyovitenda.” Owo va punguhira Muhona ozombunguhiro ozoningiririsiwa ku tjo, nozombunguhiro zohange wina. 32 Ovaisrael ngunda amave tarere, Josua wa tjanga rukwao komawe wotjipunguhiro hi inga omatwako Moses nga tjangererere Ovaisrael. 33 Ovaisrael avehe novanane, novatjange novapangure vawo, na wina ovozonganda mba ri mokati kawo, va kurama komikuma aviyevari vyOtjipwikiro tjOmerikutiropamwe wa Muhona, amave tara kovapristeri Ovalevi mbaa ve tji tjindi. Orumbembera rumwe rwovandu rwa kuramene meṋe yondundu Garisim, nu indwi orukwao rwa kuramene meṋe yondundu Ebal. Moses, omukarere wa Muhona, we ve rakizire rukuru kutja ve tjite nai, oruveze Ovaisrael ndu mave serwa ondaya tji maru ya. 34 Josua we ve resera omatwako aehe neraka enene, na wina ondaya nosengiro otja tji vya tjangwa mEmbo rOmatwako. 35 Josua wa resera ombongarero aihe, ovakazendu novanatje novozonganda mba ri mokati kawo wina inga omatwako aehe wa Moses.
