Joshua 8:20

¹⁸ And the LORD said unto Joshua, Stretch out the spear that is in thy hand toward Ai; for I will give it into thine hand. And Joshua stretched out the spear that he had in his hand toward the city.

¹⁹ And the ambush arose quickly out of their place, and they ran as soon as he had stretched out his hand: and they entered into the city, and took it, and hasted and set the city on fire.

And when the men of Ai looked behind them, they saw, and, behold, the smoke of the city ascended up to heaven, and they had no power to flee this way or that way: and the people that fled to the wilderness turned back upon the pursuers.

²¹ And when Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had taken the city, and that the smoke of the city ascended, then they turned again, and slew the men of Ai.

²² And the other issued out of the city against them; so they were in the midst of Israel, some on this side, and some on that side: and they smote them, so that they let none of them remain or escape.

Here the Bible tells a story about someone else. Ask yourself what it can say to us today. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: When the men of Ai turned and looked back, the smoke of the city was rising into the sky. They could not escape in any direction, and the troops who had fled to the wilderness now became the pursuers.
KJV: And when the men of Ai looked behind them, they saw, and, behold, the smoke of the city ascended up to heaven, and they had no power to flee this way or that way: and the people that fled to the wilderness turned back upon the pursuers.
WEB: When the men of Ai looked behind them, they saw, and behold, the smoke of the city ascended up to heaven, and they had no power to flee this way or that way. The people who fled to the wilderness turned back on the pursuers.
ASV: And when the men of Ai looked behind them, they saw, and, behold, the smoke of the city ascended up to heaven, and they had no power to flee this way or that way: and the people that fled to the wilderness turned back upon the pursuers.
DARBY: And the men of Ai turned and saw, and behold, the smoke of the city went up to heaven, and they had no power to flee this way or that way; and the people that fled to the wilderness turned upon the pursuers.
BLB: And the men of Ai looked behind them, and they saw, and behold, the smoke of the city ascended to the heavens. And there was not power in them to flee here or there, and the people who had fled to the wilderness turned back on the pursuers.

ÅB: Da nå Ai-mennene vendte seg om, ble de var røyken fra byen, som steg opp imot himmelen, og de var ikke i stand til å flykte hverken hit eller dit, fordi de krigsfolk som var flyktet til ørkenen, nå vendte seg mot forfølgerne.
OTB: Mennene i Ai snudde seg og så røyken fra byen stige opp til himmelen, og de hadde ingen mulighet til å flykte i noen retning; israelittene som hadde flyktet til ødemarken snudde seg mot sine forfølgere.
B1930: Da nu Ai-mennene vendte sig om, blev de var røken fra byen, som steg op imot himmelen, og de var ikke i stand til å flykte hverken hit eller dit, fordi de krigsfolk som var flyktet til ørkenen, nu vendte sig mot forfølgerne.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

Job 11:20
But the eyes of the wicked shall fail, and they shall not escape, and their hope shall be as the giving up of the ghost.
Read in context
Genesis 19:28
And he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace.
Read in context
Psalms 76:5
The stouthearted are spoiled, they have slept their sleep: and none of the men of might have found their hands.
Read in context
Revelation 6:15–17
And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
Read in context
Revelation 19:3
And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever.
Read in context
Psalms 48:5–6
They saw it, and so they marvelled; they were troubled, and hasted away.
Read in context
Isaiah 34:10
It shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever: from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever.
Read in context
Revelation 18:9
And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,
Read in context