John Gill's Bible Commentary Ver. 2. And thou shalt do to Ai and her king as thou didst to Jericho and her king , etc.] Burn the one and slay the other: only the spoil thereof, and the cattle thereof, shall ye take for a prey unto yourselves ; which they were not allowed to do at Jericho: lay thee an ambush for the city behind it ; at the west side of it: some have called in question the lawfulness of the ambush, but, as this was appointed by the Lord, there is no room for it.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 1, 2 - When we have faithfully put away sin, that accursed thing whic separates between us and God, then, and not till then, we may look to hear from God to our comfort; and God's directing us how to go on in our Christian work and warfare, is a good evidence of his being reconciled to us. God encouraged Joshua to proceed. At Ai the spoil wa not to be destroyed as at Jericho, therefore there was no danger of the people's committing such a trespass. Achan, who caught at forbidde spoil, lost that, and life, and all; but the rest of the people, wh kept themselves from the accursed thing, were quickly rewarded for their obedience. The way to have the comfort of what God allows us, is to keep from what he forbids us. No man shall lose by self-denial.
Original Hebrew ועשׂית6213 לעי5857 ולמלכה4428 כאשׁר834 עשׂית6213 ליריחו3405 ולמלכה4428 רק7535 שׁללה7998 ובהמתה929 תבזו962 לכם שׂים7760 לך ארב693 לעיר5892 מאחריה׃310
