And thou shalt do to Ai and her king as thou didst unto Jericho and her king: only the spoil thereof, and the cattle thereof, shall ye take for a prey unto yourselves: lay thee an ambush for the city behind it.

JOSHUA 8:2KJV
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Joshua 8:2 (KJV)

What does Joshua 8:2 mean?

Joshua 8:2 records God telling Joshua to treat the city of Ai and its king as he did Jericho, but this time the Israelites are allowed to keep the livestock and goods from Ai for themselves. God also instructs Joshua to set up an ambush behind the city as part of the attack plan.

In this verse, God is speaking directly to Joshua, the leader of Israel, after their earlier defeat at Ai. The instruction marks a change from the battle of Jericho, where everything was to be destroyed or devoted to God. Here, the people are permitted to take spoils, and God gives a specific military strategy—an ambush—to ensure victory.

The Hebrew behind Joshua 8:2

  • "Spoil" (שָׁלָל, shalal, H7998) refers to goods or valuables taken in war. Unlike Jericho, where the spoil was forbidden, here God allows the Israelites to keep it, showing a shift in what is permitted.
  • "Ambush" (אֹרֵב, orev, H693) means a hidden group waiting to attack. The use of this word highlights that God is giving Joshua a tactical plan, not just a command to attack directly.
  • "Prey" (בַּז, baz, H962) is another word for plunder or loot, reinforcing that the Israelites can take possessions from Ai for themselves.

Why Joshua 8:2 matters

  • Joshua 8:2 clarifies that God’s instructions can change depending on the situation; what was forbidden at Jericho is now allowed at Ai.
  • The verse emphasizes God’s direct involvement in Israel’s battles, including giving specific military tactics rather than leaving strategy to human leaders alone.
  • This instruction sets up the events of the chapter, where obedience to God’s new command leads to victory, contrasting with the earlier defeat caused by disobedience.

Where else these words appear

“Ai” Hebrew H5857 · used in 34 verses

  • Genesis 12:8 And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD.
  • Joshua 8:12 And he took about five thousand men, and set them to lie in ambush between Bethel and Ai, on the west side of the city.
  • Joshua 8:28 And Joshua burnt Ai, and made it an heap for ever, even a desolation unto this day.

“prey” Hebrew H962 · used in 39 verses

  • Genesis 34:27 The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and spoiled the city, because they had defiled their sister.
  • 2 Chronicles 14:14 And they smote all the cities round about Gerar; for the fear of the LORD came upon them: and they spoiled all the cities; for there was exceeding much spoil in them.
  • Isaiah 42:22 But this is a people robbed and spoiled; they are all of them snared in holes, and they are hid in prison houses: they are for a prey, and none delivereth; for a spoil, and none saith, Restore.

“ambush” Hebrew H693 · used in 40 verses

  • Deuteronomy 19:11 But if any man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally that he die, and fleeth into one of these cities:
  • Judges 16:12 Delilah therefore took new ropes, and bound him therewith, and said unto him, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And there were liers in wait abiding in the chamber. And he brake them from off his arms like a thread.
  • Psalms 10:9 He lieth in wait secretly as a lion in his den: he lieth in wait to catch the poor: he doth catch the poor, when he draweth him into his net.

“Jericho” Hebrew H3405 · used in 53 verses

  • Numbers 22:1 And the children of Israel set forward, and pitched in the plains of Moab on this side Jordan by Jericho.
  • Joshua 4:19 And the people came up out of Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, in the east border of Jericho.
  • Joshua 18:21 Now the cities of the tribe of the children of Benjamin according to their families were Jericho, and Bethhoglah, and the valley of Keziz,