THE SIN OF ACHAN: THE ACCURSED THING
Joshua 6: 15-27 and 7:1-26
by: Sis. Marlene Barcial
Throughout the Old Testament God told His people the Israelites many times to put away the strange and accursed things and return to Him. God fought the battle for His people when they put their trust in Him and served Him only. “The sin committed by Achan” is a story full of lessons for modern day Christians and we will find out how God is seriously desires sanctification among His people throughout history.
We had read from the passage that after an incredible victory over Jericho, Achan, an Israelite soldier, secretly disobey the clear directives regarding the accursed thing and treasures taken in war. Joshua told his men that all the spoils taken from Jericho were to be considered: “devoted things” belonging in God’s treasure and warned Israel to get rid of the accursed thing belong to that city. In the story, Achan secretly challenged Joshua’s orders by taking valuables and hiding them under his family’s tent.
In Joshua 6: 15-27 and 7:1-26, we can find these words repeating themselves:
Accursed/curse
Stones
Destroy/destruction -5 times
Trouble/d
A. The Accursed thing had clearly defined or identified. - Joshua 6:17-26
Joshua 6: 17-19
Now the city shall be doomed by the Lord to destruction, it and all who are in it. Only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all who are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent.18 And you, by all means abstain from the accursed things, lest you become accursed when you take of the accursed things, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. 19 But all the silver and gold, and vessels of bronze and iron, are consecrated to the Lord; they shall come into the treasury of the Lord.”
The phrase “Accursed thing” is the Hebrew word H2764 חרם חרם chêrem (khay'-rem, kheh'-rem) that means “dedicated thing/s which should have been utterly destroyed, (appointed to) utter destruction, devoted thing.”
1. The “accursed thing” meant something “under the ban” and marked for utter destruction.
Jericho, the city had been placed under the ban by the Lord an expression which comes from the Hebrew word, herem which means “a devoted thing.” The verb form, haram, means “to ban, devote, or destroy utterly.” In this case, the accursed thing was the city of Jericho itself, with all its possessions and inhabitants, animal and humans. However, Rahab and her family were to be spared, because of her kindness to the two spies (Joshua 6:17).
It is related to an Arabic root meaning “to prohibit, especially to ordinary use.” The “harem,” (Arabic “haram” -“prohibited”) meaning the special quarters for Muslim wives, comes from this word. So, to surrender something to God meant devoting it to the service of God or putting it under a ban for total destruction.
The Dake’s Annonated Referrence Bible supports this meaning: “The accursed thing is anything that is devoted to destruction. It could be something consecrated to the sanctuary and if taken by anyone unlawfully, it would become the accursed thing to the sinner.” This was the same sin that Ananias and Saphira committed as in Acts 5:1-3. Tithes and offerings mentioned in Malachi 3: 8-12
Malachi 3:8, 9
Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.
To understand this further: Basically, for something to be under the ban meant one of two things:
a. Everything living was to be completely destroyed.
You may say, this has been called cruel and primitive—nothing less than the murder of innocent lives, but the Canaanites were by no means innocent. They were abominable people who practiced the dishonorable forms of immorality including child sacrifice (Deuteronomy 18). God had given the Canaanites over 400 years to repent, but now their iniquity had become full (see Gen. 15:16; Lev. 18:24-28). And only one family who did turn to the Lord (Rahab and her family) was spared. Note Norman Geisler’s comment: “the battle threatening Israel was not simply a religious war; it was a theocratic war.”Meaning that Israel was directly governed by God and “the extermination” was God’s direct command. Exod. 23:27-30; Deut. 7:3-6; Josh. 8:24-26). Remember that No other nation either before or after Israel has been a theocracy. Thus, those commands were unique. Israel as a theocracy was an instrument of judgment in the hands of God.
Secondly, something to be under the ban that
b. All the valuable objects like gold and silver were to be dedicated to the Lord’s treasury.
This was evidently to be done as a kind of first fruits of the land and an evidence of the people’s trust in the Lord’s supply for the future. Let us be warned!
2. The accursed thing is serious/ grievous sin that will cause trouble! Joshua 7:1-9
1 But the children of Israel committed a trespass regarding the accursed things, for Achan the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi,[a] the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed things; so the anger of the Lord burned against the children of Israel.
The word Trespass in Hebrew H4604 מעל ma‛al mah'-al means treachery, that is, sin: - falsehood, grievously, sore, or transgression.
The truths about committing accursed thing are: How serious it is even until today.
1. The Lord held the whole camp of Israel accountable for the act of one man and He withheld His blessing as long as this is practiced and until the matter was dealt with.
a. God viewed the nation as a unit.
Notice how the Lord did not mention “Achan” but referred to the sin as being ISRAEL’S SIN. Because of the sin of ONE the whole camp suffered UNTIL the evil thing was removed from them! The Lord did not view them individually, but as a WHOLE when it came to the breaking of HIS commandment.
b. One believer’s sin impacts everyone.
Achan’s behavior also illustrates how one believer commit such sins negatively impacts and creates trouble for an entire group or nation. Achan’s name, the Hebrew, akan, is a play on the word akor, which means “trouble.” Achan in Hebrew H5912 עכן ‛âkân means “to trouble; troublesome.” So Joshua would declare that the Lord would bring trouble (akor) on Achan who had become a “troubler” to the nation because of his sin (cf. 7:24-25). Thus, the location of Achan’s death and grave was called, “the valley of Achor” (Hebrew, akor, “disturbance, trouble”).
Though the crime was committed by one person, the whole nation was considered guilty.
The Apostle Paul saw the same principle of unity at work in the church (1 Cor. 5:6-13). The Unjudged sin contaminated the whole assembly—“Don’t you know that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough?” (1 Cor. 5: 6) Warning also for us!
2. Sin never escapes God’s watchful eye
We must be reminded that nothing escapes from the eyes of omniscience God (Psa. 139:1f). We can fool ourselves and others, but never the Lord. God sees the sin in our lives and desires us to deal with it, and not to hide it. Hiding it only hinders our progress in God’s will and plan (Prov. 28:13) and creates trouble for others. In Numbers 32:23 reminds us, “be sure your sin will find you out.” This is similar to the idea of reaping what we sow because of the natural consequences of God’s spiritual and moral laws.
3. Sin is no small matter to God.
The words, “therefore the anger of the Lord burned against the sons of Israel,” intensely call our attention to the holiness of God and the fact that sin is no small matter with Him because it is rebellion and rebellion is as the sin of divination (1 Sam. 15:23). Even though the Lord died for our sins and stands at God’s right hand as our advocate and intercessor, God does not and cannot treat sin in our lives lightly. It is against His holy character (His holiness, righteousness, love, etc.) and against His holy purposes for us since it hinders His control and ability to lead us. Bottom line is: One sin has brought all the nations to defeat and caused God to stop His blessing.
4. The accursed thing brings defeat (failure) and disappointment Joshua 7:5-11
5 And the men of Ai struck down about thirty-six men, for they chased them from before the gate as far as Shebarim, and struck them down on the descent; therefore the hearts of the people melted and became like water. 6 Then Joshua tore his clothes, and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the Lord until evening, he and the elders of Israel; and they put dust on their heads.
The price they have to pay for their defeat: One man’s trespass caused this defeat and the loss of 36 mighty men of war. The defeat at Ai demoralized the people. This created misgivings (doubts) and a lack of hope or confidence in the Lord.
7 And Joshua said, “Alas, Lord God, why have You brought this people over the Jordan at all—to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? Oh, that we had been content, and dwelt on the other side of the Jordan! 8 O Lord, what shall I say when Israel turns its back before its enemies?
In our sinful human nature, we are typically just like that. We are so quick to become depressed, discouraged, and disoriented and to look in every direction for a reason for defeat, except ourselves. We blame, we make excuses, we hide and shy, but we so often fail to honestly examine our own lives. We assume that the problem could not possibly be us. Rather than examine their own lives as the source of their defeat, they began to doubt the Lord and wonder if He had changed His mind or if they had misread His directions. (https://bible.org/article/
On the other hand, in the defeat at Ai we see a real test of Joshua’s leadership. Someone remarks, “There are tests to leadership as well as tests of leadership.” One of those tests is the test of failure. Failure, like all testing’s’, is common to all men (1 Cor. 10:13) and the manner in which a leader handles his failures will have a powerful impact on his growth and future leadership. (http://bible.org/seriespage/
It was a comfort to know that despite of our own failures we realized that God can greatly use us if we will trust Him. Failure is not the end. In fact, failure can be the back door to success; it may be just the beginning depending on how we respond. Of course, it is always better to make a few new mistakes and learn from them than to repeat old ones. Or else, our defeats have no life-changing value. A leader must learn to be realistic and prepared to realize that he cannot be right all the time. There is no such a thing as a perfect or infallible leader.
4. The accursed thing brings grievous consequences to a leader/nation Joshua 7: 11-12
A. The Lord revealed the consequences of committing this grievous sin
11 Israel has sinned, and they have also transgressed My covenant which I commanded them. For they have even taken some of the accursed things, and have both stolen and deceived; and they have also put it among their own stuff. 12 Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they have become doomed to destruction. Neither will I be with you anymore, unless you destroy the accursed from among you.
Defeated by enemies - The children of Israel could not stand before their enemies
Destroyed by sin -The children of Israel have become doomed to destruction
Deserted by God -God will not be with the children of Israel anymore
The solution to the problem: Destroy the accursed thing from among them.
B. The Lord revealed the manner of destroying the accursed thing:
Joshua 7: 13-26
13 Get up, sanctify the people, and say, ‘sanctify yourselves for tomorrow, because thus says the Lord God of Israel: “There is an accursed thing in your midst, O Israel; you cannot stand before your enemies until you take away the accursed thing from among you.”
The commands that dealt with sin: Get up, sanctify the people, and say, ‘sanctify yourselves 13-15. Assemble the people according to their tribes- these specific instructions were given for purging out this sin from their midst. First, there is to be examination of the people tribe by tribe, family by family, and finally man by man. Note also how the men (the fathers) are the ones held responsible for their families. The examination would reveal the guilty party. God gave divine direction and Achan was discovered by supernatural means. Amazingly, He did not come forth voluntarily to confess or repent and throw himself on the mercy of God. His failure to do so stands in contrast with the attitude of the prodigal and the publican of the New Testament. (http://bible.org/article/
C. The verdict of the Lord
This describes the punishment that was to be carried out on the guilty party with the reason given for the severity of the punishment. The person who took the accursed thing should be burned with fire and all that he has because he transgressed the covenant of the Lord and has done a disgraceful thing in Israel. the beautiful Babylonian Garment, 200 shekels of sliver, the wedge of gold weighing 50 shekels (stolen things) his sons and daughters (family) his oxen, donkeys and sheep (Profession or Job; Livelihood) his tents and all that he had (all his possessions) Savings, House and Lot, furniture. His life. The terrible penalty of committing disobedience in regards to accursed things. The heaviest penalty was death, burning and destruction of all he owned by fire, as a shadow of the eternal death penalty in eternal fire. To burn refers to burning after being stoned to death, not burning alive.
Conclusion: The Lesson From Achan’s Sin Joshua 7: 20-24
1. The process (pattern) to Achan’s sin was a familiar one.
20 And Achan answered Joshua and said, “Indeed I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and this is what I have done: 21 When I saw among the spoils a beautiful Babylonian garment, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. And there they are, hidden in the earth in the midst of my tent, with the silver under it.”
The process (pattern) to Achan’s sin was a familiar one. He saw, he coveted, and he took and hide. It was the same with Eve (Gen. 3:6) and with David (2 Sam. 11:2-4) and it is the same with us.
2. The Death of Achan Settled (7:22-26) SOLID or never change…verdict has been done.
25 And Joshua said, “Why have you troubled us? The Lord will trouble you this day.” So all Israel stoned him with stones; and they burned them with fire after they had stoned them with stones.26 Then they raised over him a great heap of stones, still there to this day. So the Lord turned from the fierceness of His anger. Therefore the name of that place has been called the Valley of Achor to this day.
Pastor Clay Ritter commented on this incidence:
Joshua’s approach was tender, yet firm. He hated the sin, but loved the sinner. Achan’s confession while honest, was too late and the product of discovery. He only did so when forced to by the circumstances. It was not an act of repentance. (Godly sorrow that leads to repentance) (2 Cor. 7:8-11). If he had voluntarily cast himself on the mercy of God, his life might have been spared, as in the case of David and his sin.
The story of Achan illustrates the principle that leaders may become vulnerable following major success. Although it can be very difficult, leaders must take the appropriate step, to remove those who block God’s blessing and work. When a team member compromises a core value, the ripple effect of his or her action can hurt many others. Godly leaders must stop the trickle (drip) before it becomes a flood.
I want to emphasize that nothing is ever accomplished with our eyes when we always focus on our failures and problems. First, we must confess our failures and the things that caused them once determined. Then we must seek to learn from them. Finally, we need to know that God’s will is immediate recovery and faith in the grace of God. God’s will for us is to get up and move on.
We are also right to forget or minimize the holiness of God. God is described as holy more than by any of His other attributes—more than even His love, mercy, and grace. As a holy God, God is perfect righteousness and justice, and, because of His justice, He must deal with sin (cf. Psa. 50:21; Eccl. 8:11-12). http://bible.org/article/
Deu 7:25, 26 "You shall burn the carved images of their gods with fire; you shall not covet the silver or gold [that is] on them, nor take [it] for yourselves, lest you be snared by it; for it [is] an abomination to the LORD your God. 26 "Nor shall you bring an abomination into your house, lest you be doomed to destruction like it. You shall utterly detest it and utterly abhor it, for it [is] an accursed thing.
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