John Calvin Commentary Joshua 7:24

"And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the mantle, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them up unto the valley of Achor." — Joshua 7:24 (ASV)

And Joshua, and all Israel with him, etc. Achan is led outside the camp for two reasons: first, that it might not be tainted and polluted by the execution (as God always required that some trace of humanity should remain, even in the infliction of legitimate punishments), and secondly, that no defilement might remain among the people. It was customary to inflict punishment outside the camp, so that the people might have a greater abhorrence of the shedding of blood. But now, a rotten member is cut off from the body, and the camp is purified from pollution. We see that the example became memorable, as it gave its name to the spot.

If anyone is disturbed and offended by the severity of the punishment, he must always be brought back to this point: that though our reason dissents from the judgments of God, we must check our presumption with the curb of a pious modesty and soberness, and not disapprove of whatever does not please us.

It seems harsh, indeed, barbarous and inhuman, that young children, without fault, should be hurried off to cruel execution, to be stoned and burned. That animals should be treated in the same manner is not so strange, as they were created for the sake of humankind, and thus deservedly follow the fate of their owners.

Everything, therefore, which Achan possessed perished with him as an accessory, but still it seems a cruel vengeance to stone and burn children for the crime of their father. Here God publicly inflicts punishment on children for the sake of their parents, contrary to what He declares through Ezekiel.

I briefly explained how He destroys no one who is innocent, yet visits the sins of fathers upon children, when speaking of the common destruction of the city of Jericho and the indiscriminate slaughter of all ages. The infants and children who then perished by the sword we lament as unworthily slain, since they had no apparent fault. But if we consider how much more deeply divine knowledge penetrates than human intellect possibly can, we will rather acquiesce in His decree than rush ourselves to a precipice by giving way to presumption and extravagant pride.

It was certainly not due to reckless hatred that the sons of Achan were pitilessly slain. Not only were they the creatures of God’s hand, but circumcision, the infallible symbol of adoption, was engraved on their flesh; and yet He adjudges them to death. What, then, remains for us but to acknowledge our weakness and submit to His incomprehensible counsel? It may be that death proved a medicine to them; but if they were reprobate, then condemnation could not be premature.

It may be added that the life which God has given, He may take away as often as He pleases, not only by disease but by any other means. A wild beast seizes an infant and tears it to pieces; a serpent destroys another by its venomous bite; one falls into the water, another into the fire; a third is suffocated by a nurse; a fourth is crushed by a falling stone. Indeed, some are not even permitted to open their eyes to the light.

It is certain that none of all these deaths happens except by the will of God. But who will presume to call His procedure in this respect into question? Were anyone so insane as to do so, what would it avail? We must hold, indeed, that none perish by His command except those whom He had doomed to death.

From the enumeration of Achan’s oxen, donkeys, and sheep, we gather that he was sufficiently rich, and that therefore it was not poverty that urged him to the crime. It must therefore be regarded as a proof of his insatiable cupidity that he coveted stolen articles, not for use but for luxury.