Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Joshua 8:5
And I, and all the people that [are] with me, will approach unto the city: and it shall come to pass, when they come out against us, as at the first, that we will flee before them,
5. will approach unto the city ] Joshua himself took up his position on the north side of “the ravine,” apparently the deep chasm through which the Wdy Harith descends to the Wdy Kelt. Stanley’s Sinai and Palestine, pp. 202, 203.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
That are, or, that shall be; for at present he sent them away, Jos 8:9, but he next morning followed them, and joined himself with the prover. Jos 8:10,11.
We will flee; I and the twenty-five thousand with me.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
And I and all the people that [are] with me will approach unto the city,…. That is, Joshua with the main body of the army would march up to the city the next morning, in order to draw out the inhabitants of it to fight them:
and it shall come to pass, when they come out against us, as at the first; as they had done before, when the three thousand were sent against them, Jos 7:4;
that we will flee before them; as the three thousand did, which would animate them to pursue them with the greater eagerness, and to a distance from their city.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
5. All the people The soldiers are often spoken of by Homer as “the people.”
We will flee This was no uncommon stratagem for decoying the garrison of a walled town into the open fields. See Livy’s description of the capture of Fidenae by the Romans, book i, chap. 14. There is always danger of military disorganization on the part of the soldiers making this movement, unless they are let into the secret of the commander, as they were in the present instance.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
“ And I, and all the people who are with me, will approach the city, and it shall be that when they come out against us, as they did the first time, we will flee before them, and they will come out after us, until we have drawn them away from the city, for they will say, ‘They flee before us, as they did the first time.’ So will we flee before them.’
Joshua and the forces of Israel would then attack from the front, and when themselves attacked, pretend to flee. Again the repetition of ‘we will flee’ is distinctive of ancient literature. There is, however, the subtle point that the first fleeing is to draw them on, the second to draw them further on once they have begun the chase. The aim was to get them a good way from Ai.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Jos 8:5 And I, and all the people that [are] with me, will approach unto the city: and it shall come to pass, when they come out against us, as at the first, that we will flee before them,
Ver. 5. We will flee before them. ] God also hath his stratagems; he seemeth sometimes to retire, that he may come upon his enemies with the greater advantage. The end of all the present troubles will be the ruin of the Antichristian faction, and we shall see the Church in her more perfect beauty, when the enemies shall be in that place that is fittest for them, the lowest, that is the footstool of Christ.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
as at: Jos 7:5
that we will: Jdg 20:31-33, Mat 10:16
Reciprocal: Jos 8:14 – Ai saw it Jos 8:16 – drawn away