InterlinearVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEUT JOB YEHO (JOS) HERO (JDG) RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG YOEL (JOEL) MIC ISA ZEP HAB YIR (JER) LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBAD DAN EZEK EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL 2 PS WIS TOB MAN BAR G DAN G ESD L ESD ESG JDT 3 MAC SIR 1 MAC 2 MAC 4 MAC YHN (JHN) MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC (JAM) GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL LAOD PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
InterlinearVerse Jos C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21 C22 C23 C24
Jos 8 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14 V15 V16 V17 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23 V24 V25 V26 V27 V28 V29 V30 V31 V32 V33 V34 V35
◄ ← YEHO (JOS) 8:18 ↓ → ► ║ ≡ ©
People tagged in the matching LV passage: God · Joshua (EXO 17:9)
Places tagged in the matching LV passage: Ai (GEN 12:8)
OET-LV And_ YHWH _he/it_said to Yəhōshūˊa stretch_out with_javelin which is_in_hand_of_your to (the)_ˊAy if/because in_hand_of_your I_will_give_it and_ Yəhōshūˊa _he_stretched_out with_javelin which in_his/its_hand to the_city.
OET (OET-RV) Then Yahweh told Yehoshua, “Hold your spear out pointing towards Ay, because I will allow you to defeat it.” So Yehoshua held the spear that was in his hand out toward the city.
In chapter 7, Israel attacked Ai and the soldiers of Ai defeated them. They were discouraged but they repented of their sin. In chapter 8, God told Joshua to attack Ai again. This time, the Israelites were victorious and defeated Ai.
Verses 8:1–9 describe Joshua’s preparations to attack Ai, with details about the ambush. The soldiers in the ambush left by night ahead of the other soldiers. Verses 8:10–27 describe the movement of the soldiers, and the defeat of Ai. Verses 8:28–29 is a summary of the story.
Here are some other possible section headings:
The fall and destruction of Ai
Israel conquered Ai
Then the LORD said to Joshua,
¶ Then Yahweh told Joshua:
¶ Then Yahweh commanded Joshua:
Then: The Hebrew word that the BSB translates as Then introduces a new event in the storyline.
the LORD said to Joshua: The words that Yahweh told Joshua are a command.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
Yahweh told Joshua
Yahweh commanded Joshua
“Hold out your battle lance toward Ai,
“Point your(sing) sword toward Ai,
“Stretch out your arm and point the spear that you are holding towards Ai.
Hold out your battle lance toward Ai: The clause Hold out your battle lance toward Ai indicates that Joshua must extend his arm to its full length with the javelin pointing towards Ai.
battle lance: The Hebrew word that the BSB translates as battle lance refers to either a short sword used for thrusting and hunting, or a curved, crescent-shaped sword.8:18 Holladay, p. 156. These are some other ways that English versions have translated it:
sword (NRSV)
curved sword (NET)
spear (GNT)
You should choose a word that is similar in meaning to one of these terms and will be understood by your readers.
for into your hand I will deliver the city.”
because I am going to help you(sing) defeat it.”
I will give you power to conquer it.”
for into your hand I will deliver the city: The Hebrew phrase that the BSB translates as into your hand I will deliver is an idiom. It indicates that Yahweh will enable Joshua and his army to defeat the town of Ai.
So Joshua held out his battle lance toward Ai,
So Joshua pointed his sword toward Ai.
Joshua did what Yahweh commanded him to do.
So: The Hebrew word that the BSB translates as So introduces a new event in the storyline.
Joshua held out his battle lance toward Ai: Joshua obeyed the command that Yahweh gave him. If this repetition is not natural in your language, you can translate the meaning in another way. For example:
Joshua did as he was told (GNT)
So Joshua held out his spear (GW)
So Joshua did what Yahweh commanded him
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom
בְיָדְךָ֖ אֶתְּנֶ֑נָּה
in,hand_of,your (Some words not found in UHB: and=he/it_said YHWH to/towards Yəhōshūˊa/(Joshua) stretch_out with,javelin which/who [is]_in,hand_of,your to/towards (the),Ai that/for/because/then/when in,hand_of,your I,will_give_it and,he_stretched_out Yəhōshūˊa/(Joshua) with,javelin which/who in=his/its=hand to/towards the=city )
See how you translated the similar expression in Joshua 8:1. Alternate translation: [I will enable you to conquer it]
Note 2 topic: translate-symaction
נְ֠טֵה בַּכִּיד֤וֹן אֲשֶׁר־בְּיָֽדְךָ֙ אֶל־הָעַ֔י כִּ֥י בְיָדְךָ֖ אֶתְּנֶ֑נָּה וַיֵּ֧ט יְהוֹשֻׁ֛עַ בַּכִּיד֥וֹן אֲשֶׁר־בְּיָד֖וֹ אֶל־הָעִֽיר
stretch_out (Some words not found in UHB: and=he/it_said YHWH to/towards Yəhōshūˊa/(Joshua) stretch_out with,javelin which/who [is]_in,hand_of,your to/towards (the),Ai that/for/because/then/when in,hand_of,your I,will_give_it and,he_stretched_out Yəhōshūˊa/(Joshua) with,javelin which/who in=his/its=hand to/towards the=city )
This action was a literal sign to Joshua’s soldiers to attack Ai, as the next verse indicates, but it was probably also a symbolic indication that Ai was to be destroyed. You should retain this action in your translation. If it would be helpful to your readers, you could indicate its meaning in footnote.
OET-LV And_ YHWH _he/it_said to Yəhōshūˊa stretch_out with_javelin which is_in_hand_of_your to (the)_ˊAy if/because in_hand_of_your I_will_give_it and_ Yəhōshūˊa _he_stretched_out with_javelin which in_his/its_hand to the_city.
OET (OET-RV) Then Yahweh told Yehoshua, “Hold your spear out pointing towards Ay, because I will allow you to defeat it.” So Yehoshua held the spear that was in his hand out toward the city.
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The Hebrew text, lemmas, and morphology are all thanks to the OSHB and some of the glosses are from Macula Hebrew.
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