Articles
Why Did Achan’s Pet Goldfish Have to Die?
The story of Achan in Joshua 7 might come across as brutal. God commanded Israel not to take any of the plunder of Jericho for themselves, but rather to devote the things in that city to the Lord (Josh 6:18-21). Achan however takes a wedge of gold, some silver, and a garment of Babylon for himself (Josh 7:1). He thought he was doing these things secretly. However, after Israel is defeated in a skirmish at Ai (Josh 7:2-5), God reveals to Joshua that there is “sin in the camp” (Josh 7:6-15). After a bout of divinely directed lot casting, Achan is revealed to be the culprit who was hiding stuff in his tent (Josh 7:16-18). Achan confesses immediately (Josh 7:19-21), but he is still executed along with his family.
Then Joshua and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, the silver, the mantle, the bar of gold, his sons, his daughters, his oxen, his donkeys, his sheep, his tent and all that belonged to him; and they brought them up to the valley of Achor. Joshua said, “Why have you troubled us? The LORD will trouble you this day.” And all Israel stoned them with stones; and they burned them with fire after they had stoned them with stones. They raised over him a great heap of stones that stands to this day, and the LORD turned from the fierceness of His anger. Therefore the name of that place has been called the valley of Achor to this day. (Josh 7:24-26)
The ending of this story has troubled people. Didn’t Achan confess to sin? Didn’t he give back what he stole? And even if Achan is to be executed, why is his family also destroyed? The title of this article snarkily asks why Achan’s “pet goldfish” had to die (although he likely had no such thing!) However, many a reader of this story has invoked the sentiment of this question. What’s the problem here? Several points are worth noting.
First, the destruction of Achan is about more than just his personal sin. His sin affected the community and the camp in which he lived. Achan’s violation of the ban is summarized in Josh 7:1 by the statement that the “sons of Israel” acted unfaithfully in regard to the Lord’s instruction. Furthermore, the skirmish at Ai resulted in the death of 36 people who were not directly involved in Achan’s sin (Josh 7:2-5). While this is not a large number to lose in an ancient battle, it stands in stark contrast to Israel’s previous wars where not a man was missing after the battle (Num 31:49). It is not just Achan’s family, but in fact the whole nation that is punished and held accountable for the sin of this one man. Sin cannot dwell in the camp of Israel. It inherently contaminates its surrounding environment. Phinehas later remarks about Achan, “that man did not perish alone in his iniquity” (Josh 22:20).
Second, the destruction of Achan stands in stark literary contrast to the behavior of Rahab the Gentile harlot from Joshua 2. Rahab was depicted as a faithful Canaanite, while Achan is seen as a faithless Israelite. Rahab “concealed” Israel’s spies in her house (Josh 2:6), while Achan “concealed” the stolen goods in his tent (Josh 7:21-22). Rahab informed the spies about the hearts of the Canaanite “melting” at the news of their invasion (Josh 2:9, 11), while Achan’s actions caused the hearts of his own kinsmen in Israel to “melt” (Josh 7:5). But most important for our purposes is how their families are treated. Rahab’s whole family is spared as a consequence of her faithfulness, while Achan’s whole family is punished for his sin. Some have protested the fact that Achan’s family is executed despite no explicit statement of their involvement in his sin (although it is highly unlikely that a tent-dwelling family would not have at least noticed the stuff its patriarch was hiding in his tent!) However, such protesters are strangely silent at the fact that Rahab’s family is rewarded, despite no explicit of their involvement in Rahab’s good-deed doing! If families are to benefit from the faithfulness of one under their roof, why is it an upset of justice for them to suffer from the wrongdoing of their father figure?
Finally, the real point of the Achan story is to remind us about the holiness of God. Achan is not the norm for how wrongdoers in Israel are treated, but rather an example and an object lesson for all of us. He was enslaved to his greed and the desire of his eyes. Those things were more important to him than holiness and obedience to the Lord’s instruction. And in the end, his disregard for the Lord’s will brought trouble on him. In the same way, we bring trouble on ourselves if we pursue the lusts of our eyes at the expense of the holiness of God. God wants our complete devotion in every aspect of our lives. If we take from God what is his, do not be surprised when God takes back the life he gave us. Let us live with reverence and respect for the holiness of God!
