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I. THE SUCCESSIVE STAGES OF SIN. "When Achan longed, he ought to have resisted; when he planned, he ought to have stopped before taking; when he had taken, he should have cast it away instead of stealing; when he had stolen, he should have freely confessed it; and when it was buried he ought to have dug it up again."

II. THE AGGRAVATED GUILT OF SIN.

1. It was a transgression of righteousness: "Israel hath sinned."

2. It was a transgression of the law of gratitude. Achan ignored the covenant altogether.

3. It was a transgression of God's word: "Which I commanded them."

4. It was the transgression of good faith. Under the specific condition of not touching the spoil, the victory had been granted, and Achan had "even taken of the cherem."

5. It was a transgression of honesty and truth: "They have stolen and dissembled also."

6. It was a transgression of Achan's own conscience. Had he not felt it wrong to put the devoted things "among his own stuff," he would not have hidden them.

III. THE WIDE-REACHING EVIL OF SIN.

IV. THE CONNECTION BETWEEN SIN AND UNBELIEF. Achan had no real faith —

1. In Divine omniscience. Had he really believed that God saw him, he could not have taken of the spoil.

2. In Divine punishment. Had he been convinced that he would have been "devoted," he would have resisted the temptation.

3. In the Divine Word. To disbelieve in the punishment was to disbelieve Him who had threatened to destroy.

(F. G. Marchant.)

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KJV: And the LORD said unto Joshua, Get thee up; wherefore liest thou thus upon thy face?

WEB: Yahweh said to Joshua, "Get up! Why are you fallen on your face like that?