Getting Beyond Failure (Joshua 8: 1-29)

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Title: Getting Beyond Failure (Joshua 8:1-29)

Introduction:
Welcome back to The Bible Project Daily Podcast! In our last episode, we explored the tragic consequences of Achan’s hidden sin in Joshua 7. But as we move into Joshua 8, we see a powerful truth unfold: God’s judgment is never the final word—His mercy and restoration follow true repentance.

In today’s episode, we’ll explore:

• God’s encouragement to Israel after their defeat.
• The contrast between their approach to Jericho and Ai.
• How obedience leads to victory.
• The importance of remembering God’s covenant.

Let’s dive into Joshua 8 and discover how God turns failure into fresh beginnings!

1. A New Beginning After Defeat (Joshua 8:1-2)

• After Achan’s sin was dealt with, God spoke to Joshua again: “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” (Joshua 8:1)
• Notice the contrast—after Israel’s failure, God immediately extends grace and reassures them.
• God instructs Joshua to attack Ai, but this time with His guidance and strategy.
• Key Takeaway: God’s discipline isn’t meant to destroy us but to prepare us for restoration.

2. The Difference Between Ai and Jericho (Joshua 8:3-17)

• Unlike Jericho, where God gave victory through supernatural means, Ai required strategy and engagement.
• Israel sets an ambush—this time, they listen to God’s specific instructions.
• The enemy is lured out of the city, thinking Israel is retreating.
• Lesson: God’s methods aren’t always the same. He wants us to depend on Him afresh for each battle.

3. Obedience Leads to Victory (Joshua 8:18-29)

• At God’s command, Joshua raises his javelin, signaling the ambush.
• The city is overtaken, and this time, the plunder is allowed.
• What Achan stole in secret, Israel now receives legitimately through obedience.
• Point to Consider: What we try to grasp in disobedience, God often wants to give us in His perfect timing.

4. Renewing the Covenant (Joshua 8:30-35)

• After the victory, Joshua builds an altar and reads the entire law before Israel.
• Why? Because true success isn’t just about victory—it’s about walking rightly with God.
• Israel is reminded that their strength comes from o

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Transcript

Getting Beyond Failure (Joshua 8:1-29)

Transcript:

 Have you ever spiritually failed?

Of course, we all have. Maybe it was neglecting to pray, or skipping spending time in the Word, or just failing to trust the Lord when you should have. Those failures have consequences, like a feeling of powerlessness, anxiety, or even a sense of failure, but they don’t necessarily shake us to our core.

But what about a major failure?

Not just a mine or a misstep, but a moment when you completely blow it?

Maybe you lost control in a way that cost you dearly—an outburst of anger at work, in front of a friend, or in a way that damaged a relationship.

Maybe you walked away from the Lord for an extended time or just drifted away bit by bit or fell back into a destructive pattern of sin.

What happens after something like that?

The truth is, the aftermath of failure can often be worse than the failure itself. It can cause you to wonder if you can  ever be restored? Will God forgive me, will God ever use me again? Will I ever recover from this?

If you’ve ever felt that weight, you are not alone. Many believers, including great men and women of faith, have walked that same road.

But the question remains: Is our failure ever final?

Is God ever done with you? Or is there hope beyond failure?

The Bible gives us a powerful answer into today passage which is Joshua 8….

Israel had just entered the Promised Land in miraculous fashion. God parted the Jordan River. They marched around Jericho, and without a single casualty, the walls fell, and they claimed victory.

Then came a town called Ai.

Confident from their success, they sent a small force to take the city. But instead of another victory, they were utterly defeated.

Men died and the army retreated in shame.

Joshua fell on his face before God, broken and confused.

What had happened? 

The answer was sin.

One man called Achan had disobeyed God’s command. Instead of devoting everything from Jericho to the Lord, he kept something back for himself and because of that one man’s sin, the entire nation suffered defeat.

That’s where Joshua 8 picks up the story. After failure, the big question is can they recover? Will God still be with them? Will they ever be victorious again? And for us, the question is the same: How do we move forward after failure?

Joshua 8 opens with God speaking to Joshua:

Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Take the whole army with you and go up and attack Ai. For I have delivered into your hands the king of Ai, his people, his city and his land. You shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, except that you may carry off their plunder and livestock for yourselves. Set an ambush behind the city.

(Joshua 8:1-2)

This is remarkable. Despite their failure, God still has a plan but there’s a difference this time. In their first attempt at Ai, they acted in self-confidence, without seeking God’s guidance. This time, God gives them clear instructions.

·       Verses 3-13 will describe Israel’s obedience to God’s new battle plan. They listen, they follow, and they prepare to attack Ai as God commands.

·       Then, in verses 14-29, we will see the result:

The city that once humiliated them will fall into their hands.

So, clearly failure doesn’t mean that God is finished with you

One of Satan’s greatest lies is that failure is final. That if you have messed up, God is done with you. But as we look at this chapter, we will see that after their defeat at Ai, God did not abandon them. He restored them, gave them new instructions, and led them to victory.

Failure is not the end of your story—unless you refuse to get up and move forward.

Have you failed in a someway, failed in your relationship with God or someone else for that matter? Then sought restoration.

The enemy wants to keep you stuck in shame and regret. But God says, I am not done with you. 

In Joshua 8, Israel’s victory will come through obedience. When they follow God’s plan, they will experience His power again.

If you feel distant from God.

If you’ve been struggling in defeat.

If you ever wondered if He can still use you. Then this chapter is a powerful reminder that failure does not define us—God does. Israels failure will not signify the end. God’s grace was greater. His plan was still in place. And when they returned to Him, He led them to victory.

The same is true for you. No matter how badly you have failed. No matter how deep the scars. No matter how distant you feel from God. He is not done with you. Today chapter will tell us how to get up and seek his face, follow his lead and watch as He brings you beyond failure into victory.

Joshua 8 opens with God speaking directly to Joshua after Israel’s devastating failure at Ai. 

The passage is filled with commands, each one building on the next.

1. Don’t Let Failure Define You

The first thing God tells Joshua is not to be afraid or discouraged. Joshua had heard these words before. He first heard them as one of the twelve spies sent into the Promised Land (Numbers 14:9). He heard them when Moses appointed him as leader (Deuteronomy 31:7-8). He heard them directly from God at the beginning of his mission (Joshua 1:9). And now, after Israel’s failure at Ai, God says it again.

Why?

Because Joshua needed to hear it. Failure can shake your confidence. It can make you hesitant to move forward. It can make you doubt whether you’re still useful to God. 

So, God’s first command is clear:

Don’t dwell on defeat, don’t be crippled by discouragement and get up and move forward.

This is the same principle is taught by Paul in Philippians 3:13-14:

“Forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

At some point, you must leave your failures behind. If you carry them with you, they will just weigh you down.

For many people, this isn’t just about forgetting the past—it’s about forgiving yourself. But it’s not just about forgiving ourselves, it’s more to do with accepting the full forgiveness of God. If He has forgiven you, who are you to hold onto it?

The next command is simple:

2. Obey God’s Commands—Even After Failure

“Take all the people of war with you, and arise, go up to Ai.” (Joshua 8:1) This is a direct contrast to what happened in Joshua 7. Before, the spies said, “Ai is a small city, we don’t need the whole army” (Joshua 7:3). That overconfidence led to defeat.

God tells them to take everyone. This reminds us of an important truth in that God’s commands don’t change just because we failed to keep them.

Some people think that after they fail, God must have a different plan for them—that somehow, they are now second-class Christians. But God’s standard remains the same. You may have failed, but you still have the same responsibility to obey God’s Word.

This is exactly what God tells Joshua: Deal with the failure, but then move forward and obey Me.

3. Trust That God Still Has a Plan

“See, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land.” (Joshua 8:1) Notice the past tense “I have given.” Before the battle even begins, God declares victory. Before Joshua lifts his sword, Ai is already conquered in God’s eyes. God had a plan for Joshua—and that plan didn’t change because of past failure.

The same is true for you. Your past does not cancel God’s calling and when you repent and return to Him, His purpose for you remains.

4. Learn from Past Mistakes—But Keep Moving Forward

“You shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king. Only its spoil and its cattle you shall take as booty for yourselves.” (Joshua 8:2)

In Jericho, God commanded that everything be devoted to Him (Joshua 6:17-19). Achan disobeyed that command, leading to disaster at Ai. Now, God allows Israel to take the spoils. Had Achan only waited, he could have enjoyed God’s provision instead of God’s judgment.

How many times do we rush ahead of God, thinking we need to take things into our own hands? We force relationships before God’s timing. We chase success without seeking God’s wisdom. But when we wait on the Lord, His provision is always better than anything we could take for ourselves.

So, what do we learn from these opening two verses?

1.    Failure is not final. – Don’t let fear and discouragement stop you from moving forward.

2.    Obey God, even after failure. – His commands don’t change, and you still have a responsibility to follow Him.

3.    Trust that God still has a plan. – His purposes for you remain, even after mistakes.

4.    Learn from your past—but don’t repeat its mistakes. – If Achan had waited, he would have received what he took illegally. God’s timing is always best.

Joshua and Israel had failed—but God wasn’t done with them, and He’s not done with you either. No matter what’s in your past, God still has a future for you. The question is: Will you trust Him and move forward?

How often do we get ahead of God? We rush into decisions—relationships, careers, financial choices—without waiting for His timing. We grab what we think we need instead of trusting Him to provide in His way and in His time. The result? We lose far more than we gain. Like Achan, we now know will not only miss out on God’s best, but we also suffer the consequences of disobedience.

In contrast to Jericho, where Israel won by marching and waiting for the walls to fall, God gives a different strategy for Ai. He commands Joshua to lay an ambush at the rear of the city.

Jericho fell through divine intervention alone; Ai would fall through a combination of divine strategy and human effort. This reminds us that God does not work the same way every time. We cannot rely on yesterday’s methods for today’s battles. God calls us to listen, obey, and trust Him anew in each situation.

Joshua 8:3-13 details the battle strategy, which unfolds in three distinct phases.

Phase 1: The Ambush Team (Verses 3-9)

So Joshua and his best fighting men and sent them out at night 4 with these orders: “Listen carefully. You are to set an ambush behind the city. Don’t go very far from it. All of you be on the alert. 5 I and all those with me will advance on the city, and when the men come out against us, as they did before, we will flee from them. 6 They will pursue us until we have lured them away from the city, for they will say, ‘They are running away from us as they did before.’ So, when we flee from them, 7 you are to rise up from ambush and take the city. The Lord your God will give it into your hand. 8 When you have taken the city, set it on fire. Do what the Lord has commanded. See to it; you have my orders.”9 Then Joshua sent them off, and they went to the place of ambush and lay in wait between Bethel and Ai, to the west of Ai—but Joshua spent that night with the people.

Joshua selects a group to lie in wait behind Ai. There is some debate over whether this number refers to 1,000;s of soldiers or a smaller elite group of officers (like modern special forces). Either way, the principle is clear, God’s strategy included preparation and patience.

Phase 2: The Diversionary Force (Verses 10-11)

10 Early the next morning Joshua mustered his army, and he and the leaders of Israel marched before them to Ai. 11 The entire force that was with him marched up and approached the city and arrived in front of it. They set up camp north of Ai, with the valley between them and the city.

Joshua leads the main army to position themselves in front of Ai, drawing the enemy’s attention. I have read that this is what military tacticians call a strategic feint—they would make Ai’s army believe they were repeating their earlier failed attack.

Phase 3: The Rear Guard and Final Positioning (Verses 12-13)

12 Joshua had taken about five thousand men and set them in ambush between Bethel and Ai, to the west of the city. 13 So the soldiers took up their positions—with the main camp to the north of the city and the ambush to the west of it. That night Joshua went into the valley.

A secondary ambush unit is placed to block reinforcements from Bethel. This additional group ensured that Ai would be completely exposed when the Israelites pretended to retreat.

This battle plan reveals several key spiritual principles for overcoming failure and advancing in faith: 

·       God’s ways are not always predictable. What worked in Jericho would not work in Ai. We must listen for fresh direction in every situation. Obedience involves both faith and action. At Jericho, they marched and waited. At Ai, they fought strategically. Spiritual victory requires listening, trusting, and acting. 

·       Past failure does not define future success. Israel’s previous defeat at Ai did not mean they were doomed. God had a new plan—and they had another chance. As we continue in Joshua 8, we will see how Israel’s obedience led to total victory. But the lesson is already clear: When we deal with sin, trust God’s timing, and follow His plan, He leads us forward.

God’s strategy for Israel’s victory over Ai is vastly different from how they conquered Jericho. This contrast highlights a crucial principle: God rarely works the same way twice.

At Jericho, the Israelites simply marched, shouted, and watched the walls fall. But at Ai, they had to engage in tactical warfare. God commanded them to lay an ambush, use deception, and attack strategically…. Why the difference?

God does not want us to rely on methods—He wants us to rely on Him. If Israel had assumed every battle would be like Jericho, they would have failed again. If we assume God will work in our lives the same way He did before, we risk missing His direction. This is why we must seek fresh guidance from God rather than leaning on past experiences alone. What worked yesterday may not be His plan for today.

Joshua’s forces were divided into three groups:

1.    The Ambush Team – Hidden behind Ai, waiting for the right moment.

2.    The Diversionary Force – Positioned in front of Ai to lure the enemy out.

3.    The Rear Guard – Likely stationed to prevent reinforcements from Bethel.

The trap was set. Early in the morning, the army of Ai saw the Israelites positioned on a nearby ridge. Confident from their previous victory, they rushed out of the city to attack.

“Joshua and all Israel made as if they were beaten before them and fled by the way of the wilderness.”

(Joshua 8:15)

The entire army of Ai was drawn out, leaving the city completely undefended. This was the critical mistake. Then came the turning point.

18“The Lord said to Joshua, ‘Stretch out the spear that is in your hand toward Ai, for I will give it into your hand.’” 19 As soon as he did this, the men in the ambush rose quickly from their position and rushed forward. They entered the city and captured it and quickly set it on fire.20 The men of Ai looked back and saw the smoke of the city rising up into the sky, but they had no chance to escape in any direction; the Israelites who had been fleeing toward the wilderness had turned back against their pursuers. 21 For when Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had taken the city and that smoke was going up from it, they turned around and attacked the men of Ai. 22 Those in the ambush also came out of the city against them, so that they were caught in the middle, with Israelites on both sides. Israel cut them down, leaving them neither survivors nor fugitives. 23 But they took the king of Ai alive and brought him to Joshua. 24 When Israel had finished killing all the men of Ai in the fields and in the wilderness where they had chased them, and when every one of them had been put to the sword, all the Israelites returned to Ai and killed those who were in it. 25 Twelve thousand men and women fell that day—all the people of Ai. 26 For Joshua did not draw back the hand that held out his javelin until he had destroyed all who lived in Ai. 27 But Israel did carry off for themselves the livestock and plunder of this city, as the Lord had instructed Joshua.28 So Joshua burned Ai and made it a permanent heap of ruins, a desolate place to this day. 29 He impaled the body of the king of Ai on a pole and left it there until evening. At sunset, Joshua ordered them to take the body from the pole and throw it down at the entrance of the city gate. And they raised a large pile of rocks over it, which remains to this day.

(Joshua 8:18-29)

So at the signal. The hidden forces rushed in, captured the city, and set it on fire. When the army of Ai looked back and saw the smoke rising, they realized they had been trapped. Their confidence turned into panic. The Israelites stopped retreating, turned around, and struck them down. The ambush worked perfectly. Ai was destroyed, and Israel had their victory.

Lessons from the Battle of Ai

1. Failure is not final if we return to obedience: Israel had suffered a humiliating defeat, but after dealing with their sin, God restored them to victory. Your past failures do not disqualify you from being used by God.

2. God’s methods are not predictable: Jericho fell through faith and waiting. Ai fell through strategy and engagement. We must seek God for fresh direction rather than assuming He will always work the same way.

3. Delayed obedience costs blessings: Achan took the spoils of Jericho prematurely and lost everything. If he had waited, he would have received God’s provision at Ai without sinning. God’s timing is always right. Rushing ahead of Him leads to unnecessary loss.

4. God fights for those who obey Him: The Israelites had to take action, but God ensured their success. Victory comes when we align ourselves with God’s will, not when we try to force our own way. 

This teaches us that God is not done with us when we fail. When we repent, He restores, leads, and equips us for victory.

Q. Are you still living in the shadow of past failure?

God is calling you forward. His commands have not changed. It’s time to trust Him and take the next step. Like Israel, we must stop looking back and start moving forward in obedience. When we do, we will see God’s power at work in our lives once again.

As difficult as it may be for some to accept, God commanded the complete destruction of Ai—just as He did in Jericho. This was not senseless violence; it was divine judgment.

The people of Canaan were steeped in idolatry, immorality, and child sacrifice. Remember God gave them 400 years to repent (Genesis 15:16), but they refused and when their sin reached its full measure, judgment came.

We must remember: God is both just and merciful. Judgment fell on Ai, but grace was extended to Rahab in Jericho—just as it is extended to all who repent and turn to Him.

The principle is always the potential for restoration

Joshua 8 shows us a pattern of redemption.

Israel failed at Ai because of sin (Joshua 7). They repented, removed the sin, and obeyed God (Joshua 8). God gave them victory and restored them to their calling. This is how God still deals with us today.

Failure is never the final word for those who seek restoration when we repent and obey, God redeems and uses us again.

The Bible is filled with stories of people who failed—but were restored.

·       Jonah ran from God, yet "the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time." (Jonah 3:1)

·       John Mark abandoned Paul and Barnabas, but later Paul said, “Send John Mark to me, for he is useful to me in ministry.” (2 Timothy 4:11)

·       Peter denied Jesus three times, but Jesus restored him: “Peter, do you love me? Feed my sheep.” (John 21:15-17)

·       David committed adultery and murder, yet God forgave him, and David wrote scripture.

Each of these men failed, but God was not finished with them.

Have you failed? Have you made mistakes that haunt you?

God’s message to you is the same as it was to Joshua: “Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed.” (Joshua 8:1) Your failure does not define you. God’s commands have not changed. He still calls you to serve Him. It is time to rise up, obey, and move forward.

Forget what is behind. Press forward to what lies ahead. Because beyond failure, there is a second chance with God.