Joshua 8:4

4 And he commanded them, "Behold, you shall lie in ambush against the city, behind it; do not go very far from the city, but hold yourselves all in readiness;

Joshua 8:4 Meaning and Commentary

Joshua 8:4

And he commanded them, saying
At the time he sent them away;

behold, ye shall lie in wait against the city, [even] behind the city;
that is, on the west side of it, ( Joshua 8:9 ) ;

go not very far from the city, but be ye all ready;
to enter into it, as soon as the forces are drawn out eastward to meet the army of Israel.

Joshua 8:4 In-Context

2 and you shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king; only its spoil and its cattle you shall take as booty for yourselves; lay an ambush against the city, behind it."

3 So Joshua arose, and all the fighting men, to go up to Ai; and Joshua chose thirty thousand mighty men of valor, and sent them forth by night.

4 And he commanded them, "Behold, you shall lie in ambush against the city, behind it; do not go very far from the city, but hold yourselves all in readiness;

5 and I, and all the people who are with me, will approach the city. And when they come out against us, as before, we shall flee before them;

6 and they will come out after us, till we have drawn them away from the city; for they will say, 'They are fleeing from us, as before.' So we will flee from them;