8:1 The Lord told Joshua, “Don’t be afraid and don’t panic! 1 Take the whole army with you and march against Ai! 2 See, I am handing over to you 3 the king of Ai, along with his people, city, and land. 8:2 Do to Ai and its king what you did to Jericho 4 and its king, except you may plunder its goods and cattle. Set an ambush behind the city!”
8:3 Joshua and the whole army marched against Ai. 5 Joshua selected thirty thousand brave warriors and sent them out at night. 8:4 He told 6 them, “Look, set an ambush behind the city. Don’t go very far from the city; all of you be ready! 8:5 I and all the troops 7 who are with me will approach the city. When they come out to fight us like before, we will retreat from them. 8:6 They will attack 8 us until we have lured them from the city, for they will say, ‘They are retreating from us like before.’ We will retreat from them. 8:7 Then you rise up from your hiding place 9 and seize 10 the city. The Lord your God will hand it over to you. 8:8 When you capture the city, set it 11 on fire. Do as the Lord says! See, I have given you orders.” 12 8:9 Joshua sent them away and they went to their hiding place 13 west of Ai, between Bethel 14 and Ai. 15 Joshua spent that night with the army. 16
8:10 Bright and early the next morning Joshua gathered 17 the army, 18 and he and the leaders 19 of Israel marched 20 at the head of it 21 to Ai. 8:11 All the troops that were with him marched up and drew near the city. 22 They camped north of Ai on the other side of the valley. 23