The city of Jericho was destroyed and the people were instructed to not take anything for themselves. No looting! Looting was the norm after a battle at that time. But God said “NO!” It was forbidden. Many of the soldiers didn’t like that.
Achan saw some things in one of the houses that he wanted to keep. He decided that it would not hurt and no one would know. That day Achan become the enemy of Israel and God and himself. God knew this but held off on punishment. The next city was Ai.
At Ai the army of Israel was defeated. It should have been an easy victory but God wanted to get their attention.
God wants us to move forward. But only if we are moving with Him. If we are not moving with Him, we must repent!
God told Joshua that He would be with him but only if he obeyed. God says that we must not take that which belongs to Him. Achan had disobeyed and stolen that which the Lord said was his. This is like not tithing. Don’t withhold your tithe! Tithing unleashes God’s blessing in your life.
In the case of Achan, he and his whole family had to die to pay for this sin. When you sin, you impact everyone. The answer is to turn from your sin and repent. There is hope and salvation through Jesus! Jesus will take the punishment for you if you repent and accept Him.