Bible Strands
Joshua 8:5
Then I and all the troops with me will advance on the city. When they come out against us as they did the first time, we will flee from them.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Joshua addresses the assembled Israelite commanders and troops immediately after detailing the ambush deployment behind Ai. He outlines the initial phase of the coordinated attack to draw the enemy out.
The words — נִקְרַב (nikrav) means "we will draw near" or approach, and הָ/עִיר (ha'ir) translates to "the city." These terms establish the deliberate advance toward Ai before the feigned retreat.
The thread — The tactic of drawing an enemy out of a fortified position recurs in Judges 20:31, where the Benjamites are lured from Gibeah, and echoes the earlier rout at Ai in Joshua 7:5.
Why it lands — The text states that the Israelites will advance and then flee to trigger pursuit, requiring a reader to follow precise instructions rather than react impulsively to the enemy's movements.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And I, and all the people that are with me, will approach unto the city: and it shall come to pass, when they come out against us, as at the first, that we will flee before them,
Cross-references
- Joshua 7:5 And the men of Ai struck down about thirty-six of them, chasing them from the gate as far as the quarries and striking them down on the slopes. So the hearts of the people melted and became like water.
- Judges 20:31 The Benjamites came out against them and were drawn away from the city. They began to attack the people as before, killing about thirty men of Israel in the fields and on the roads, one of which led up to Bethel and the other to Gibeah.
- Matthew 10:16 Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.