Joshua 8 · Verse 29

Joshua 8:29

And the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until eventide: and as soon as the sun was down, Joshua commanded that they should take his carcase down from the tree, and cast it at the entering of the gate of the city, and raise thereon a great heap of stones, that remaineth unto this day.
Joshua 8:29, King James Version

Joshua 8:29 in other translations

BSBHe hung the king of Ai on a tree until evening, and at sunset Joshua commanded that they take down the body from the tree and throw it down at the entrance of the city gate. And over it they raised a large pile of rocks, which remains to this day.
WEBHe hanged the king of Ai on a tree until the evening. At sundown, Joshua commanded, and they took his body down from the tree and threw it at the entrance of the gate of the city, and raised a great heap of stones on it that remains to this day.
ASVAnd the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until the eventide: and at the going down of the sun Joshua commanded, and they took his body down from the tree, and cast it at the entrance of the gate of the city, and raised thereon a great heap of stones, unto this day.
YLTand the king of Ai he hath hanged on the tree till even-time, and at the going in of the sun hath Joshua commanded, and they take down his carcase from the tree, and cast it unto the opening of the gate of the city, and raise over it a great heap of stones till this day.
DARBYAnd the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until the evening; and at the going down of the sun Joshua commanded, and they took his carcase down from the tree, and threw it down at the entrance of the gate of the city, and raised upon it a great heap of stones, which remains to this day.
BBEAnd he put the king of Ai to death, hanging him on a tree till evening: and when the sun went down, Joshua gave them orders to take his body down from the tree, and put it in the public place of the town, covering it with a great mass of stones, which is there to this day.
WebsterAnd the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until evening: and as soon as the sun was down, Joshua commanded that they should take his carcass down from the tree, and cast it at the entering of the gate of the city, and raise upon it a great heap of stones, that remaineth to this day.

What does Joshua 8:29 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

Jos 8:29. The King Hanged.

29. The king of Ai he hanged on a tree until eventide--that is, gibbeted. In ancient, and particularly Oriental wars, the chiefs, when taken prisoners, were usually executed. The Israelites were obliged, by the divine law, to put them to death. The execution of the king of Ai would tend to facilitate the conquest of the land, by striking terror into the other chiefs, and making it appear a judicial process, in which they were inflicting the vengeance of God upon His enemies. take his carcass down ... and raise thereon a great heap of stones--It was taken down at sunset, according to the divine command (De 21:23), and cast into a pit dug "at the entering of the gate," because that was the most public place. An immense cairn was raised over his grave--an ancient usage, still existing in the East, whereby is marked the sepulchre of persons whose memory is infamous. Jos 8:30, 31. Joshua Builds an Altar.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 29 The king of Ai he hanged on a tree - He had gone out at the head of his men, and had been taken prisoner, Jos 8:23; and the battle being over, he was ordered to be hanged, probably after having been strangled, or in some way deprived of life, as in the case mentioned Jos 10:26, for in those times it was not customary to hang people alive. As soon as the sun was down - It was not lawful to let the bodies remain all night upon the tree. See the note on Deu 21:23. The Septuagint say the king of Ai was hanged επι ξυλον διδυμον, upon a double tree, which probably means a forked tree, or something in the form of a cross. The tree on which criminals were hanged among the Romans was called arbor infelix, and lignum infelix, the unfortunate, ill-fated, or accursed tree. Raise thereon a great heap of stones - This was a common custom through all antiquity in every country, as we have already seen in the case of Achan, Jos 7:20.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Joshua 8:23-29

God, the righteous Judge, had sentenced the Canaanites for their wickedness; the Israelites only executed his doom. None of their conduct can be drawn into an example for others. Especial reason no doubt there was for this severity to the king of Ai; it is likely he had been notoriously wicked and vile, and a blasphemer of the God of Israel.

Read the full comment on Joshua 8:23-29 →

Joshua 8:29 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וְאֶת\־ve.'Etand <obj.>H853
מֶ֧לֶךְMe.lekh[the] king ofH4428
הָעַ֛יha.'Ai<the> AiH5857
תָּלָ֥הta.Lahhe hangedH8518
עַל\־'al-onH5921
הָעֵ֖ץha.'Etzthe treeH6086
עַד\־'ad-untilH5704
עֵ֣ת'et[the] time ofH6256
הָעָ֑רֶבha.'A.revthe eveningH6153
וּכְב֣וֹאu.khe.Vo'and just as wentH935
הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ֩ha.she.Meshthe sunH8121
צִוָּ֨הtzi.Vahhe commandedH6680
יְהוֹשֻׁ֜עַye.ho.Shu.a'JoshuaH3091
וַיֹּרִ֧ידוּvai.yo.Ri.duand they took downH3381
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
נִבְלָת֣וֹniv.la.Tocorpse hisH5038
מִן\־min-fromH4480
הָעֵ֗ץha.'Etzthe treeH6086
וַיַּשְׁלִ֤יכוּvai.yash.Li.khuand they threwH7993
אוֹתָהּ֙'o.Tah<obj.> itH853
אֶל\־'el-toH413
פֶּ֙תַח֙pe.tach[the] entrance ofH6607
שַׁ֣עַרSha.'ar[the] gate ofH8179
הָעִ֔ירha.'Irthe cityH5892
וַיָּקִ֤ימוּvai.ya.Ki.muand they set upH6965
עָלָיו֙'a.Lavover himH5921
גַּל\־gal-a heap ofH1530
אֲבָנִ֣ים'a.va.NimstonesH68
גָּד֔וֹלga.DolgreatH1419
עַ֖ד'aduntilH5704
הַיּ֥וֹםhai.Yomthe dayH3117
הַזֶּֽה\׃\ \פha.Zeh<the> thisH2088

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Joshua 8:29

  • Deuteronomy 21:22-23

    And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree: His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day; (for he that is hanged is accursed of God;) that thy land be not defiled, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.

  • 2 Samuel 18:17

    And they took Absalom, and cast him into a great pit in the wood, and laid a very great heap of stones upon him: and all Israel fled every one to his tent.

  • Joshua 7:26

    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.

  • Psalms 110:5

    The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath.

  • Acts 12:23

    And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.

  • Joshua 10:33

    Then Horam king of Gezer came up to help Lachish; and Joshua smote him and his people, until he had left him none remaining.

  • Joshua 10:26-28

    And afterward Joshua smote them, and slew them, and hanged them on five trees: and they were hanging upon the trees until the evening. And it came to pass at the time of the going down of the sun, that Joshua commanded, and they took them down off the trees, and cast them into the cave wherein they had been hid, and laid great stones in the cave’s mouth, which remain until this very day. And that day Joshua took Makkedah, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and the king thereof he utterly destroyed, them, and all the souls that were therein; he let none remain: and he did to the king of Makkedah as he did unto the king of Jericho.

  • Revelation 19:17-18

    And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.

  • Esther 7:10

    So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then was the king’s wrath pacified.

  • Psalms 107:40

    He poureth contempt upon princes, and causeth them to wander in the wilderness, where there is no way.

  • Joshua 10:30

    And the Lord delivered it also, and the king thereof, into the hand of Israel; and he smote it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were therein; he let none remain in it; but did unto the king thereof as he did unto the king of Jericho.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
the king.The kings of Canaan lay under the same curse as their subjects and probably were more deeply criminal. The reserving of the king of Ai for a solemn execution, would tend to strike terror into the other kings, contribute to the success of Israel, and give their proceedings the stamp of a judicial process, and of executing the vengeance of God upon his enemies.
10:26-28,30,33; De 21:22,23; Es 7:10; Ps 107:40; 110:5; Ac 12:23
Re 19:17,18
as soon.
10:27
a great heap.
7:26; 2Sa 18:17

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Joshua 8:28

    And Joshua burnt Ai, and made it an heap for ever, even a desolation unto this day.

  • Joshua 8:29

    And the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until eventide: and as soon as the sun was down, Joshua commanded that they should take his carcase down from the tree, and cast it at the entering of the gate of the city, and raise thereon a great heap of stones, that remaineth unto this day.

  • Joshua 8:30

    Then Joshua built an altar unto the Lord God of Israel in mount Ebal,

Read all of Joshua 8

Joshua 8:29 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Mas al rey de Hai colgó de un madero hasta la tarde: y como el sol se puso, mandó Josué que quitasen del madero su cuerpo, y lo echasen á la puerta de la ciudad: y levantaron sobre él un gran montón de piedras, hasta hoy.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Et il pendit le roi d’Aï à un arbre, jusqu’au temps du soir; et, comme le soleil se couchait, Josué commanda, et on descendit de l’arbre son cadavre, et on le jeta à l’entrée de la porte de la ville, et on éleva sur lui un grand monceau de pierres, qui est demeuré jusqu’à ce jour.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Und den König von Ai ließ er an einen Baum hängen bis zur Abendzeit; und beim Untergang der Sonne gebot Josua, und sie nahmen seinen Leichnam von dem Baume herab und warfen ihn an den Eingang des Stadttores und errichteten einen großen Steinhaufen über ihm, der bis auf diesen Tag da ist.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
regem quoque ejus suspendit in patibulo usque ad vesperam et solis occasum. Præcepitque Josue, et deposuerunt cadaver ejus de cruce: projeceruntque in ipso introitu civitatis, congesto super eum magno acervo lapidum, qui permanet usque in præsentem diem.