Uru ndi Pere Ai robe
1 OPI atate Yosua ri ekye: “Nya'do ko turiro ago nyozo vo ko nyoto kyila'bai cini mibe ago nyoyi Ai ya. Mindre mozo 'bädri'ba Ai ro, lidri ndaro ndi 'bakici ndaro te drì miro ya, wari ndaro be. 2 Ämiri Ai ndi 'bädri'ba na be oyene oso miye Yeriko ndi 'bädri'ba na be ronye, oko tu ono si ono ämiri lakazà na se otopabe ndi koronyai'ba na robe urune andivo amiro ri. Nyederu 'bakici gotane kunduundu ro.”
3 Ta'dota Yosua ederute nja kyila'bai cini ndaro be oyine Ai ya. Yosua tope kyila'bai se kadopara kai te kutu 'butenätu (30,000) ago zo ànya te mileya ŋgäkyi si. 4 Nda ta ànya te ekye: “Nyàda'doru lama telesi 'bakici roya, oko ko lozo ni lomvoigyesi; nyà'do nja 'bakici gotane. 5 Ma ndi lidri cini se mabe be mä̀shwena 'da lototi 'bakici lomvo. Ondro lidri Ai ro kefoyite tesi ämädri oso käti ronye oko, mä̀muna 'da ni ànyari. 6 Ànya ezinayi ama onja 'da madale mìywena ànya gwo lozo ni 'bakici lomvosi. Ànya usunayi ta 'da ekye mà umu ni ànyari, oso se käti ana ronye. Oko ondro màte umuni ànyari oko, 7 nyèfo ni ruda'dovo yasi ago mìru 'bakici. Tana OPI Lu amiro ozona anya ndi ämiri. 8 Ondro mìru 'bakici te oko, mìso asi driigye oso OPI kozo tana be ronye. Ono orivoya ota yi ämiri.” 9 Ta'dota Yosua zo ànya te mile ya, ago ànya oyiyite ruda'dovo ànyaro ya, ago riyite ta kotene lau, aŋgoya Ai ro yasi, lakole Ai ro Betele be ya. Ŋgäkyi ana si Yosua rite gawa ya lidri lako.
10 Yosua ŋgate ṛo kyenoŋboci ago ṛikala kyila'bai rote voaloya. 'Dooko nda ndi dri'bai Yisaraele robe 'deyite käti ànya mile ago lepeyi ànya te Ai ya. 11 Kyila'bai se cini nda be ana oyiyite ago ishweyite lototi 'bakici se ana lomvo ago otoyi gawa te ogone telesi mä'dudrisi Ai roya, ago vodelero orivoya lakole ànyaro Ai be ana ya. 12 Nda ru lidri te oso kutu nji (5,000) ronye ago 'ba ànya te ruda'done ogone aŋgoya 'bakici ro yasi, lakole Ai ro Betele be ya. 13 Ara kyila'bai se kyila oyero ana te gawa 'desi ya ogone mä'dudri 'bakici ro yasi, ago anjoko lidri ro rite ogone aŋgoyasi. Ago Yosua u'dute ŋgäkyi ana si vodelero ya. 14 Ondro 'bädri'ba Ai ro kondre lidri Yosua rote oko, nda yetate ndrindri. Nda ndi lidri cini ndaro 'bakici ro yibe oyiyite kyenoŋboci ndrindri Vodelero Yaradene ro driro kyila oyene Yisaraele'bai be vose käti ana ya oko nda ni tase abe oye nda gotane kundu yasi ana tana kote. 15 Yosua ndi lidri ndaro be yeyi miomba te umu si osoago ape ànya te ṛe ronye, ago muyite vocowa yaro. 16 Ago äzi lidri se cini 'bakici ana ya te osone Yosua yi vo ago ondro ànya koyiyite Yosua onja oko iywe ànya te lozo ni 'bakici lomvosi. 17 Mànoago cini Ai ro ndi Betele be ro soyite Yisaraele'bai vo, ago e'beyi 'bakici te awi, teinye 'diaza ako gagane.
18 'Dooko OPI atate Yosua ri ekye: “Nyeŋga äzu drì miro ya 'do Ai driro; tana mate oye ozone ämiri.” Ago Yosua eŋga äzu se drì ndaro ya ana te 'bakici driro. 19 Dori ondro nda keŋga drì ndaro te oko, lidri se kada'dorube ana ŋgate ndrindri ni vo ànyaro yasi, ago muyite 'bakici driro. Ànya ciyite 'bakici ya ago ruyite, ago dori ànya soyi asi te 'bakici dri. 20 Ondro lidri Ai ro kondrevote kovole oko, ànya ndreyi kätu 'bakici ro ŋgate kuru gomaa. Liti aza te i'do ànyari voopaza, tana Yisaraele'bai se kumuyibe vocowa yaro ana go ezayimite ànya gotane. 21 Ondro Yosua ndi lidri se nda be ana be kondreyite kyila'bai ànyaro ruyi 'bakici te ago aso asi te driigye oko, ànya ezayimite ago etoyi lidri Ai ro tufute. 22 Yisaraele'bai se kociyibe 'bakici ya iyi efoyite kyila oyene. Ta'dota lidri Ai ro kavousu oko anjioko Yisaraele'bai muyidri ànyaro te ŋgulu. Ago Yisaraele'bai tufuyi ànya cini te, ago 'diaza alo pavo kote, ago e'be 'diaza alo kote lidriidriro. 23 Oko toto 'bädri'ba Ai ro ayani äru nda te lidriidriro ago ezi nda te Yosua re.
24 Ondro Yisaraele'bai kutufuyi kyila'baazii se konja ànya be vocowa ya ana te kpeye oko, ànya goyite Ai ya ago go tufuyi 'dise cini lau kai te. 25 Oti lidri se utufube tu ana si mànoago ndi 'ditoko be, lidri cini Ai ro orivoya kutu 'butealo foritu (12,000). 26 Yosua eŋga äzu ndaro te 'du Ai driro ago logo drì ndaro kote alona vuru madale utufu 'dise cini Ai ya lau kai lutu kpeye. 27 Koronyai 'ba ro ndi lakazà se cini otopabe ni 'bakici yasi ana Yisaraele'bai ruyite andivo ànyaro ri, oso se OPI katabe Yosua ri ronye. 28 Ndi Yosua za Ai te, ago e'bete tandro ro, iro dri gi 'du inye ca le tu ono si ono. 29 Nda yi 'bädri'ba Ai rote ce dri ago e'be avona rite lau madale tandrolero; ago ondro kitu kate oci oko, Yosua ozotate avona anane ni nasi, ago avote ocivo dereŋwa 'bakici ro kala. Ànya droyi kuniŋwà 'desiro te driigye, se dri gi 'du orivoya lau madale tu ono si ono.
Äzi Ota te 'Bereŋwa Ebala pa
30 'Dooko Yosua be vo tori oloro te 'Bereŋwa Ebala dri OPI Lu Yisaraele ro ri. 31 Nda bete oso se Musa, ruindu'ba OPI ro kota lidri Yisaraele robe ronye, ago oso egyibe Buku Ota Musa roya ronye se ekye: “Vo tori oloro se abete kuniŋwà se apa kote logo si ana si.” Ago ànya zayi ŋgapäṛi ozaro te driigye OPI ri, ago ànya ozo ŋgapäṛi rumora ro kpate. 32 Ago lau mile lidri Yisaraele ro ro yasi, Yosua egyi gyeree ota se Musa kegyibe ana ro te kuniŋwà dri. 33 'Dooko Yisaraele'bai, dri'bai ànyaro, ndi otaozo'bai be, ndi vureope'bai, ndi atrai se cini ànya lako kai be, edreyite lamadri ritu Sänduku Tao'baro OPI ro ro yasi, zayimite Lewe'bai se kohanii ro kuŋgyiyi Sänduku Tao'ba ro Opi ro be ana driro. Telesi lidri ro edre zayimite 'Bereŋwa Gerizima driro ago telesina aza edre zayimite 'Bereŋwa Ebala driro. Musa ruindu'ba OPI ro ta ànya ni oyene inye ondro tu kesate lidri Yisaraele ro äṛu za owo. 34 'Dooko Yosua zi Ota se ana te kpeye ro ṛeṛe, tro äṛu ndi latri na be oso egyibe Buku Ota roya ronye. 35 Yosua e'be ota aza Musa ro kote uziako lidri se cini kotokalabe ana ri 'ditoko ndi ŋgàga be, ndi atrai se kayibe ori ànya lako kai be ri.
Israel Destroys the Town of Ai
1-2 The Lord told Joshua:
Don't be afraid, and don't be discouraged by what happened at the town of Ai. Take the army and attack again. But first, order part of the army to set up an ambush on the other side of the town. I will help you defeat the king of Ai and his army, and you will capture the town and the land around it. Destroy Ai and kill its king as you did at Jericho. But you may keep the livestock and everything else you want.
3-4 Joshua quickly got the army ready to attack Ai. He chose 30,000 of his best soldiers and gave them these orders:
Tonight, while it is dark, march to Ai and take up a position behind the town. Get as close to the town as you can without being seen, and be ready to attack.
5-6 The rest of the army will come with me and attack near the gate. When the people of Ai come out to fight, we'll run away and let them chase us. They will think we are running from them just like the first time. But when we've let them chase us far enough away, 7 you come out of hiding. The Lord our God will help you capture the town. 8 Then set it on fire, as the Lord has told us to do. Those are your orders, 9 now go!
The 30,000 soldiers went to a place on the west side of Ai, between Ai and Bethel, where they could hide and wait to attack.
That night, Joshua stayed in camp with the rest of the army. 10 Early the next morning he got his troops ready to move out, and he and the other leaders of Israel led them to Ai. 11 They set up camp in full view of the town, across the valley to the north. 12 Joshua had already sent 5,000 soldiers to the west side of the town to hide and wait to attack. 13 Now all his troops were in place. Part of the army was in the camp to the north of Ai, and the others were hiding to the west, ready to make a surprise attack. That night, Joshua went into the valley.
14-15 The king of Ai saw Joshua's army, so the king and his troops hurried out early the next morning to fight them. Joshua and his army pretended to be beaten, and they let the men of Ai chase them toward the desert. The king and his army were facing the Jordan valley as Joshua had planned.
The king did not realize that some Israelite soldiers were hiding behind the town. 16-17 So he called out every man in Ai to go after Joshua's troops. They all rushed out to chase the Israelite army, and they left the town gates wide open. Not one man was left in Ai or in Bethel.
Joshua let the men of Ai chase him and his army farther and farther away from Ai. 18 Finally, the Lord told Joshua, “Point your sword at the town of Ai, because now I am going to help you defeat it!”
As soon as Joshua pointed his sword at the town, 19 the soldiers who had been hiding jumped up and ran into the town. They captured it and set it on fire.
20-21 When Joshua and his troops saw smoke rising from the town, they knew that the other part of their army had captured it. So they turned and attacked.
The men of Ai looked back and saw smoke rising from their town. But they could not escape, because the soldiers they had been chasing had suddenly turned and started fighting. 22-24 Meanwhile, the other Israelite soldiers had come from the town and attacked the men of Ai from the rear. The Israelites captured the king of Ai and brought him to Joshua. They also chased the rest of the men of Ai into the desert and killed them.
The Israelite army went back to Ai and killed everyone there. 25-26 Joshua kept his sword pointed at the town of Ai until every last one of Ai's 12,000 people was dead. 27 But the Israelites took the animals and the other possessions of the people of Ai, because this was what the Lord had told Joshua to do.
28-29 Joshua made sure every building in Ai was burned to the ground. He told his men to kill the king of Ai and hang his body on a tree. Then at sunset he told the Israelites to take down the body, throw it in the gateway of the town, and cover it with a big pile of rocks. Those rocks are still there, and the town itself has never been rebuilt.
Joshua Reads the Blessings and Curses
(Deuteronomy 27.1-26)30-32 One day, Joshua led the people of Israel to Mount Ebal, where he told some of his men, “Build an altar for offering sacrifices to the Lord. And use stones that have never been cut with iron tools, because that is what Moses taught in The Book of the Law.”
Joshua offered sacrifices to please the Lord and to ask his blessing. Then with the Israelites still watching, he copied parts of The Book of the Law of Moses onto stones.
33-35 Moses had said that everyone in Israel was to go to the valley between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, where they were to be blessed. So everyone went there, including the foreigners, the leaders, officials, and judges. Half of the people stood on one side of the valley, and half on the other side, with the priests from the Levi tribe standing in the middle with the sacred chest. Then in a loud voice, Joshua read the blessings and curses from The Book of the Law of Moses.