1 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid or dismayed. Take all the fighting men with you. Arise, and go up to Ai. See, I have given the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land into your hand.
2 Do to Ai and its king what you did to Jericho and its king, except you may plunder its spoils and its livestock. Now set an ambush for the city behind it.”
3 So Joshua and all the fighting men arose to go up to Ai. Joshua chose thirty thousand men, mighty men of valor, and sent them out at night.
4 He commanded them, “You shall ambush the city from behind. Do not go very far from the city. All of you be ready.
5 I and all the people who are with me will approach the city. When they come out to engage us as before, we will flee from them.