Joshua 7:5-7

Contemporary English Version

^4-5 Joshua sent about 3,000 soldiers to attack Ai. But the men of Ai fought back and chased the Israelite soldiers away from the town gate and down the hill to the stone quarries.^[a] Thirty-six Israelite soldiers were killed, and the Israelite army felt discouraged.

⁶ Joshua and the leaders of Israel tore their clothes and put dirt on their heads to show their sorrow. They lay facedown on the ground in front of the sacred chest until sunset. ⁷ Then Joshua said:

Our Lord, did you bring us across the Jordan River just so the Amorites could destroy us? This wouldn't have happened if we had agreed to stay on the other side of the Jordan.