What can we learn from Achan taking the accursed things (Joshua 7:1)?

Achan had taken a ‘a beautiful mantle of Shinar’, silver and gold from Jericho — against God’s express commandment. Sadly, Achan had got himself entangled in the old and well-known mechanism: he saw, he coveted, he took (7:21; compare Gen. 3:6). None of the items he had taken were bad in themselves, yet they were fatal because they represented flagrant disobedience, the result of which was that God could not be with His people. This was the reason for Israel’s first defeat in Canaan and, unless the matter was resolved, it would only lead to further defeat: ‘the children of Israel shall not be able to stand before their enemies’ (7:12).

Why, then, had the anger of Jehovah fallen upon the nation? Where was the enormity of this sin? Achan had disobeyed God, and transgressed His express covenant. The command was that all the perishable goods in Jericho should be burned with fire, and the silver and the gold devoted to Him in His treasury, but Achan had disregarded this command. No doubt there was a vast amount of valuable treasure in Jericho, and Achan took but a small fraction of the whole. But this act of disobedience occurred at the conquest of the very first of the many cities of Canaan, and was the act of a responsible man in Israel. All must now learn the gravity of ignoring the word of Jehovah their Saviour, and that the sin of one man may leaven a community.

But there was a reason, as for most things: the cat was the great world-serpent; the old woman was time; and who can wrestle with her? The men of Ai, so disastrous to attack, were invincible in all the panoply of the Almighty so long as Achan was amongst the people of Israel. For God had given a commandment that they were not to enrich themselves with the spoils of the wicked Canaanites upon whom their swords were executing judgment; and at the very first battle Achan had wantonly disobeyed and hidden away spoil for himself. At another time this would have been simply a case of petty larceny or looting; but now it was a flat defiance of God's authority; and if allowed to go without stern punishment, the evil would no doubt develop until the conquering Israelites, instead of having the character of a solemn mission of divine judgment, would become a horde of vile marauders, and all discipline being relaxed, would certainly be finally defeated with terrible disaster.

Achan's offence then checks the triumphant march of Israel, and throws the whole nation into calamity and confusion. Of so much importance is discipline and fellowship: of such far reaching malignant influence are the consequences of one sin. Time and circumstance make in these things so much difference: when a work is being done by a great collective force, every man cannot have liberty to do what he chooses. There is a general responsibility to a certain amount of restraint; and what inconvenience is felt in the restraint is more than compensated for by gain in solidity and power. Any musician can play C for D as often as he likes on his own instrument at home; but if he do so in the midst of a great orchestra, he spoils them all, and fills a thousand breasts with rage and indignation. Thus no man lives to himself, nor even dies to himself: everything he does affects more or less remotely those that surround him, for good or evil. How cautious the consideration of that should make us as to the allowance of innocent sins and white lies in our lives.

The promise of prosperity in the wars in Canaan was contingent upon Israel's obedience. Now in Achan they had not only sinned; they had transgressed a plain command. The accursed, or devoted, thing had been taken in contravention of the command of God, laid upon Israel before the destruction of Jericho — "The city shall be accursed, even it, and all that are therein, to the Lord: … and ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are consecrated unto the Lord: they shall come into the treasury of the Lord" (Joshua 6:17-19). Not a shred nor a shekel from Jericho did God allow Israel for their personal glory or wealth. Nothing was to be appropriated by those who were called to execute the ban of God on the Canaanite. Now Achan had laid hands both upon the garment and the gold, both on that which was accursed to the fire, and that which was devoted to Jehovah's treasury. Achan was a prince in Israel, and it is often through the leaders, and not through the rank and file of God's army, that sin and sorrow are introduced. Achan coveted the garment of Shinar, the silver, and the wedge of gold, and he hid them in his tent; and thus were found in the midst of Israel the very things God commanded not to be touched.

The embroidered garment was desired for self-glorification, the silver and gold for self-advancement all were surreptitiously introduced into the camp, coveting, taking, dissembling, being mingled in the sin.

In Achan's case, what harm was there in the garment, or in the silver and gold? The harm was not in the articles, but in Achan's desire to possess what God had withholden from him. From the wrong desire the sinful act springs. The desire must be stifled and crushed. Recall the will of God, take delight in His word, turn away the eyes from beholding the attractions of the world. Paul said, "I had not known sin … except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet." Let us watch when the germ of covetousness sends up its first shoots, and judge it then and there, looking to Jesus Christ our Lord.

This man had followed his natural inclinations, he had begun where we all begin, where the first man began. "I saw." (v. 21) "When the woman saw" is said in Genesis 3:6. He had eyes which knew how to discern the goodly things amongst the spoil. His eyes were the avenue to his heart, but there was no sentinel to watch, no "qui vive" to resound in case of an attack. It is through the eyes that the accursed thing takes possession of the heart, and provokes it to lust: "I coveted them." "Then when lust has conceived, it brings forth sin": "I took them." The goodly Babylonish garment which could adorn the pride of life, the silver and gold which could satisfy every lust, became the prey of Achan; nay, rather, these things make him their prey! Fatal and Satanic chain which links the world to man's natural heart, in order to make him the sport of the prince of this world.

Notice now how the sin of one man has to do with all Israel. (v. 1) "But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing … and the anger of the Lord was kindled against the children of Israel." The people might have said: Does that concern us? How could we have known about a hidden thing, and not having known it, how are we responsible? To all that we reply, that God always has the unity of His people before His eyes. He considers individuals as members of one whole, and responsible the one for the other. The suffering and sin of one is the suffering and sin of all, and if it is thus with Israel, how much more so with us, the church of God, one body united by the Holy Spirit to the Head which is in heaven.

If, however, their souls had been in a good state, God would have manifested the hidden evil in their midst. The power of an ungrieved Spirit in the assembly brings to light all that dishonours Christ amongst His own. The reason it was not so with Israel, was that there was something unjudged in the people and their leader. The hidden evil of Achan is the means of bringing out the hidden evil in the heart of the people. When the assembly is in a good state, although always answerable for the sin of one of its members, it is made aware of it by the Holy Spirit, and finds itself in a position to put away the evil from its midst, and, as the case may be, to put out the wicked person. It was thus in the early days of the church, in the case of the cutting off of Ananias and Sapphira; the power of the Spirit of God discovered and judged the evil immediately. But here in Israel, hearts had to be brought by self-judgment to bear the sin of one as the sin of all before God.

Immediately after Israel had seen God’s power manifested on their behalf in the overthrow of Jericho, there was the defeat at the hands of the men of Ai, a very small city. God had not been consulted about the assault on Ai, and, in addition, there had been a very grave act of disobedience in regard to the spoils of Jericho which, if the Lord had been enquired of, Joshua would have learned of sooner, and Israel would have been spared the humiliation of the defeat by the men of Ai. Israel had sinned, for one of their number had disobeyed the command of the Lord, and taken of the accursed thing. Achan had coveted the gold, silver and Babylonish garment that he had seen among the spoils, and had taken it for himself. It may have seemed a very little thing to Achan, but it was very serious in the eyes of the Lord.

Though Joshua and Israel as such were unaware of it, there was sin in the camp that affected all of Israel, for we are told that "the children of Israel committed a trespass regarding the accursed things" (v.1). Only one man had done this, but God held the nation responsible because the man, Achan, was part of Israel. He had taken some things that were under the curse and God was therefore angry with Israel (v.1).

In the matter of the sin of Achan at Jericho, we see God acting in discipline with Israel on the ground of their national unity. When Achan of the tribe of Judah trespassed and took of the accursed things of Jericho, the Lord was angry against Israel and caused them to meet defeat in battle at Ai. When Joshua inquired of the Lord about it, He said, "Israel hath sinned, and they have also trespassed... they have taken of the accursed thing" (Joshua 7:11).

The evil was not just a matter that affected Achan or his family or his tribe, but it affected all Israel. God held all Israel responsible for it because all the tribes were one nation. In His sight the whole nation was identified with the sin of Achan and defiled by it. It was not Achan's family or the tribe of Judah that was defiled and held responsible, but all Israel. So "all Israel stoned him with stones" (Joshua 7:25), and put the evil away. Then the Lord's anger turned and He was with Israel again.

But mark, it is not Achan, it is not the ill-doer only but Israel. There was no such identification before the crossing of the Jordan. There was the principle, no doubt, of an evil thing affecting the camp. This was always true; but now it is made far more precise and definite. The greater the blessing of God to His people, so much the more their responsibility. So now, they being all identified with God, there was done in their midst a daring sin against God, who will make them feel it for the express purpose of their purging themselves from it. "Israel has sinned, and they have also transgressed." "Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they were accursed." (13) Whatever may be the rich grace of God in dealing with all our evil and putting it away, that which dishonours Him when God has so blessed us makes us nothing before the enemy. The worst evil disappears before the power of redemption; but what man would count a very little evil, if cherished or overlooked, becomes afterwards a source of incalculable weakness in the presence of Satan. Is this a reason for distrust? Not the least. It is the greatest possible reason for watchfulness and care. And more than that, beloved brethren — for who are we, and what are our eyes worth, and where has been our watchfulness? — our strength lies in this, that we have God to watch over us and for us. Here was precisely that in which Joshua had been lacking. He had not sought the Lord about it; he had not enquired. God accordingly makes the shame of it to appear, and Joshua now painfully learns it, and the people.

"Up," says Jehovah to His servant, "sanctify the people, and say, Sanctify yourselves against tomorrow: for thus says Jehovah God of Israel, There is an accursed thing in the midst of thee, O Israel: thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you. In the morning therefore ye shall be brought according to your tribes: and it shall be, that the tribe which Jehovah takes shall come according to the families thereof; and the family which Jehovah shall take shall come by households; and the household which Jehovah shall take shall come man by man. And it shall be, that he that is taken with the accursed thing shall be burnt with fire." Thus, although God would make them all feel that they were involved, there is careful provision in His own goodness that the particular offender shall be brought out, now that they are really waiting upon God, and humbling themselves because of it. Thus, when unwatchful and unprayerful, all are involved in the sorrow; but when His people draw near to God the sorrow is traced home to the one who is guilty. There is a clearing of themselves by the fact that they all humbled themselves before God. This very act shows that they have no wilful connivance at evil; and, God therefore taking the matter into His own hands, the offender is soon brought out.