themselves into a suitable frame to appear before God, and submit to the divine scrutiny; must examine themselves, now that God was coming to examine them; must prepare to meet their God. They were called to sanctify themselves, when they were to receive the divine law, Exod. 19. and now also when they were to come under the divine judgment; for in both God is to be attended with the utmost reverence. There is an accursed thing in the midst of thee, and therefore sanctify yourselves, that is, "Let all that are innocent, be able to clear themselves, and be the more careful to cleanse themselves: the sins of others may be improved by us, as furtherances of our sanctification, as the scandal of the incestuous Corinthian occasioned a blessed reformation in that church, 2 Cor. 7. 11. 2. He must bring them all under the scrutiny of the lot, v. 14. the tribe which the guilty person was of, should first be discovered by lot, then the family, then the household, and last of all the person. The conviction came upon him thus gradually, that he might have some space given him to come in and surrender himself; for God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Observe, The Lord is said to take the tribe, and family, and household, on which the lot fell; because the disposal of the lot is of the Lord, and however casual it seems, is under the direction of infinite wisdom and justice; and to show, that when the sin of sinners finds them out, God is to be acknowledged in it; it is he that seizes them, and the arrests are in his name. God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants, Gen. 44. 16. It is also intimated with what a certain and unerring judgment the righteous God does and will distinguish between the innocent and the guilty, so that though for a time they seem involved in the same condemnation, as the whole tribe did, when it was first taken by the lot, yet he who has his fan in his hand, will effectually provide for the taking out of the precious from the vile; so that though the righteous be of the same tribe, and family, and household, with the wicked, yet they shall never be treated as the wicked, Gen. 18. 25. 3. When the criminal was found out, he must be put to death without mercy, (Heb. 10. 28.) and with all the expressions of a holy detestation, v. 15. He and all that he has, must be burnt with fire, that there might be no remainders of the accursed thing among them; and the reason given for this severe sentence, is, because the criminal has, (1.) Given a great affront to God, he has transgressed the covenant of the Lord, who is jealous particularly for the honour of the holy covenant. (2.) He has done a great injury to the church of God, he has wrought folly in Israel, has shamed that nation which is looked upon by all its neighbours to be a wise and an understanding people; has infected that nation which is sanctified to God, and troubled that nation of which He is the Protector. These, being crimes so heinous in their nature, and of such pernicious consequence and example, the execution, which otherwise would have come under the imputation of cruelty, is to be applauded as a piece of necessary justice. It was Sacrilege, it was invading God's rights, alienating his property, and converting to a private use that which was devoted to his glory, and appropriated to the service of his sanctuary—this was the crime to be thus severely punished, for warning to all people in all ages to take heed how they rob God.
16. So Joshua rose up early in the morning, and brought Israel by their tribes; and the tribe of Judah was taken: 17. And he brought the family of Judah; and he took the family of the Zarhites: and he brought the family of the Zarhites man by man; and Zabdi was taken: 18. And he brought his household man by man; and Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken. 19. And Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the Lord God of Israel, and make confession unto him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me. 20. And Achan answered Joshua and said, Indeed I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done: 21. When I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it. 22. So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran unto the tent; and, behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it. 23. And they took them out of the midst of the tent, and brought them unto Joshua, and unto all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the Lord. 24. And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan, the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor. 25. And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the Lord shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire after they had stoned them with stones. 26. And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the Lord turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day.
We have in these verses,
I. The discovery of Achan by the lot, which proved a perfect lot, though it proceeded gradually. Though we may suppose that Joshua slept the better, and with more ease and satisfaction, when he knew the worst of the disease of that body, which, under God, he was the head of, and which was put into a certain method of cure, yet he rose up early in the morning, v. 16. so much was his heart upon it, to put away the accursed thing. We have found Joshua upon other occasions an early riser, here, it shows his zeal and vehement desire to see Israel restored to the divine favour. In the scrutiny observe, 1. That the guilty tribe was that of Judah, which was, and was to be, of all the tribes the most honourable and illustrious; this was an allay to their dignity, and might serve as a check to their pride: many there were, who were its glories, but here was one that was its reproach. Let not the best families think it strange, if there be those found in them, and descending from them, that prove their grief and shame. Judah was to have
