The Word for Today with Ray: 2026

Monday, May 18, 2026

Joshua Arose and the Men of War - Joshua 8:3

In the book of Joshua, we learned how “the LORD said unto Joshua, fear not, neither be you dismayed: Take all the people of war with you, and arise, go up to Ai: See I have given into your hand the king of Air, and his people, and his city, and his land. And you shall do to Ai and her king as you did unto Jericho and her king: only the spoil thereof, and the cattle thereof, shall you take a prey unto yourselves: lay you an ambush for the city behind it”, and in chapter eight and verse three of the book of Joshua, we learn how, “Joshua arose, and all the people of war, to go up against Ai” where we read,

So Joshua arose, and all the people of war, to go up against Ai:

and Joshua chose out thirty thousand mighty men of valor, and sent them away by night.

The verse reads, “So Joshua arose, and all the people of war, to go up against Ai:” Joshua or the writer began with the words, “so Joshua arose” which means “wherefore, therefore, then and on this account Joshua whose name means Jehovah is salvation got up, stood and ascended”, “and all the people of war” or “and each, every, the whole and everyone of the human beings pertaining to battle and fighting”, “to go up against Ai” which means “to proceed and ascend in opposition to Ai whose name means heap of ruins”. Joshua stood up along with everyone of the warriors of Israel to ascend in opposition to “Ai”.

The verse goes on to say, “and Joshua chose out thirty thousand mighty men of valor, and sent them away by night.” Joshua or the writer continued with the words, “and Joshua” whose name means “Jehovah is salvation” “chose out thirty thousand mighty men” or “selected and elected thirty thousand strong, powerful and valiant male human beings” “of valor” which means “with ability, efficiency, might and force”, “and sent them away” or “and dispatched and assigned them, the thirty thousand mighty men, to proceed and go forth” “by night” which means “within the protective shadow of the nighttime”. “Joshua” selected “thirty thousand” powerful and valiant warriors with great ability and dispatched them within the shadow of the nighttime.

When we meditate upon the words in this verse, we see how “Joshua” obeyed Jehovah God’s instructions as he rose up and assembled “thirty thousand” powerful warriors who had great ability to proceed forth at the shadow of nighttime to go against “Ai”. God’s will was being followed, and we shall see how the people of Israel will be victorious this time. God loves us, and He knows what is best for our lives. When He sent His Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind and raised Him from the dead after three days, He made the way through faith and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord” to be forgiven of our sins, granted everlasting life and provided with His Holy Spirit who will guide us into all truth and give us the ability to to hear and follow Him wherever He leads. (See John 16:13; Acts 1:8)

Next time we learn how Joshua says, “you shall lie in wait against the city, even behind the city”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".

Do to Ai as Done to Jericho - Joshua 8:2

In the book of Joshua, we learned how “the LORD said unto Joshua, fear not, neither be you dismayed: Take all the people of war with you, and arise, go up to Ai: See I have given into your hand the king of Ai, and his people, and his city, and his land…”, and in chapter eight and verse two of the book of Joshua, we learn how Jehovah God said, “you shall do to Ai and her king as you did unto Jericho and her king” where we read,

And you shall do to Ai and her king as you did unto Jericho and her king:

only the spoil thereof, and the cattle thereof, shall you take a prey unto yourselves:

lay you an ambush for the city behind it.

The verse reads, “And you shall do to Ai and her king as you did unto Jericho and her king:” Joshua or the writer began with the words, “and you shall do to Ai” which means “and you, Joshua and the people of Israel, will perform and produced toward Ai whose name means ‘heap of ruins’ and was a city lying east of Bethel and beside Bethaven near Jericho and the second city taken on the invasion of Canaan” “and her king” or “and her, Ai’s, royal ruler and leader” “as you did unto Jericho” which means “in similar and in like manner to the way you performed and produced toward Jericho whose name means ‘its moon’ and was a city five miles (8 km) west of the Jordan and seven miles (11.5 km) north of the Dead Sea and the first city conquered by the Israelites upon entering the promised land of Canaan” “and her king” or “and her, Jericho’s, royal ruler and leader”. Jehovah God told Joshua that he and the people of Israel would perform in the same manner toward “Ai” and it’s royal ruler as they did toward “Jericho” and its royal ruler.

The verse continues, “only the spoil thereof, and the cattle thereof, shall you take a prey unto yourselves:” Joshua or the writer added the words, “only the spoil thereof” which means “alone, altogether and except the prey, booty and plunder within the city of Ai”, “and the cattle thereof” or “and the animals, beasts and livestock within the city of Ai”, “shall you take a prey unto yourselves” which means “will you, the people of Israel, lay hold of, seize and despoil a plunder and booty to your own selves, the people of Israel”. Jehovah God told Joshua that the plunder within the city of “Ai” as well as the animals and livestock will the people of Israel seize for their own selves.

Finally the verse says, “lay you an ambush for the city behind it.” Joshua or the writer said, “lay you an ambush” which means “set, appoint and establish you, the people of Israel, a lurking and lying in wait” “for the city behind it” or “on behalf of “Ai” after and following the location of it. Jehovah God instructed Joshua to have the people lie in wait “behind” the location of the city of “Ai”.

When we meditate upon the words in this verse, we discover how Jehovah God gave new instructions to the people of Israel to wage the battle against “Ai”. Unlike Jericho, they were to lie secretly in wait behind the city of “Ai”, and they would be allowed to plunder the “spoil” of “Ai” because they were going to destroy “Ai” even as they did “Jericho”. The difference this time is that they were following God’s directives rather than assuming that they knew best for themselves. God wants us to have this type of relationship with Him through His Son Jesus who was crucified on the cross for the sins of everyone and was raised from the dead after three days. When we put our faith and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and equip us with His Holy Spirit who will guide us into all truth and direct our path in keeping with His perfect plan and will for our lives.

Next time Jehovah God says, “so Joshua arose, and all the people of war, to go up against Ai”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

Fear Not, Neither Be Dismayed - Joshua 8:1

In the book of Joshua, we learned how “Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor. And Joshua said, Why have you troubled us? the LORD shall trouble you this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones. And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the LORD turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day”, and in chapter eight and verse one of the book of Joshua, we learn how, “the LORD said unto Joshua, Fear not, neither be you dismayed” where we read,

And the LORD said unto Joshua, fear not, neither be you dismayed:

Take all the people of war with you, and arise, go up to Ai:

See I have given into your hand the king of Ai, and his people, and his city, and his land;

The verse reads, “And the LORD said unto Joshua, fear not, neither be you dismayed:” Joshua or the writer began with the words, “and the LORD” which means “and Jehovah who is the existing One and the proper name of the One True God” “said unto Joshua” or “uttered, declared and proclaimed to Joshua whose name means Jehovah is salvation”, “fear not” which means “do not be fearful and afraid” “neither be you dismayed” or “no and not in any manner are you to exist as broken, abolished, shattered and scared”. Joshua or the writer shared how Jehovah God told “Joshua” not to be afraid or scared.

The verse continues, “Take all the people of war with you, and arise, go up to Ai:” Joshua or the writer added the words, “take all the people of war with you” which means “lay hold of, receive and acquire each, every, the whole and everyone of the human beings pertaining to fighting and battle”, “and arise” or “and stand and get up”, “go up to Ai” which means “ascend and go forth toward Ai whose name means ‘heap of ruins’ and was a city lying east of Bethel and beside Bethaven near Jericho and the second city taken on the invasion of Canaan”. Jehovah God instructed “Joshua” to lay hold of everyone of the warriors and ascend and go forth unto “Ai”.

Finally the verse says, “See I have given into your hand the king of Ai, and his people, and his city, and his land;” Joshua or the writer said, “see I have given into your hand” which means “perceive, consider and observe I, Jehovah God, have granted, bestowed and assigned to your, the people of Israel’s, power, might and authority” “the king of Ai” or “the royal ruler and leader of Ai whose name means heap of ruins”, “and his people” which means “and his, the king of Ai’s, human beings”, “and his city” or “and his, the king of Ai’s, dwelling place and town”, “and his land” which means “and his, the king of Ai’s, district, region, territory and country”. Jehovah God granted to Joshua and the people of Israel to have authority over the royal ruler of Ai, the “people” under him, the town of Ai itself and the surrounding territory.

When we consider the words in this verse, we learn how Jehovah God continued to instruct “Joshua” concerning the re-attack of the “city of Ai”. The people of Israel were not to be afraid or scared because God would be with them, and all the warriors of Israel were to be gathered together to go to war. They were to ascend to “Ai” where they would be given authority over the royal ruler, his people, his town and his territory. Though they suffered a great loss to “Ai” previously, they were being prepared for battle according to Jehovah God’s way. Because God loves us, He will give us other opportunities to win “battles” we have encountered and lost in the past. He won the ultimate battle for our salvation by sending His Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind and raising from the dead after three days. When we put our faith and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and put His Holy Spirit within us to guide us into all truth and to empower us to live victoriously in that truth as we live within His presence and before His eyes.

Next time Jehovah God says, “you shall do to Ai and her king as you did unto Jericho and your king”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

A Great Heap of Stones Over Achan - Joshua 7:26

In the book of Joshua, we learned how “Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor. And Joshua said, Why have you troubled us? the LORD shall trouble you this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones”, and in chapter seven and verse twenty-six of the book of Joshua, we learn how, “they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day” where we read,

And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the LORD turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day.

The verse reads, “And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the LORD turned from the fierceness of his anger.” Joshua or the writer began with the words, “and they raised over him” which means “and they, the people of Israel, fixed, set and established above him, Achan” “a great heap of stones” or “a massive and large billow, wave or pile of rocks” “unto this day” which means “to that particular sunrise to sunset” . “So the LORD” or “wherefore, therefore, then and on this account Jehovah who is the existing One and the proper name for the One True God” “turned from the fierceness of his anger” which means “revolved, rotated and drew back separate and apart from his, Jehovah God’s, heated, burning and furious wrath that wrinkles the nostrils and nose”. Joshua or the writer shared how the people of Israel established a pile of rocks over “Achan and his family” which remained in place to that very “day”, and that act caused Jehovah God to draw back from is furious wrath.

The verse goes on to say, “Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day.” Joshua or the writer continued with the words, “wherefore the name” which means “therefore, then and on this account the reputation, fame, glory and title” “of that place was called” or “belonging to that location was proclaimed, commissioned and appointed as”, “the valley of Achor” which means “the lowland or open country belonging to Achor whose name means trouble or disturbance”, “unto this day” or “to that particular sunrise to sunset”. Joshua or the writer shared how the location was designated as the lowland pertaining to disturbance and trouble to that very “day”.

When we think through the words in this verse, we learn through Joshua or the writer how a massive amount of rocks were established above the place where “Achan and his family” were “stoned to death” and burned with fire. The people of Israel named that location as the lowland of disturbance and trouble. “Achan’s” sin caused all of “Israel” to be affected, and as with sin, it leaves it’s mark on the perpetrator and others. God knows this, and because He loves us, He sent His Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind and raised Him from the grave after three days. When we surrender our lives to Him as our personal “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and equip us with His Holy Spirit who will guide us into all truth and give us the power to resist temptation and to confess all our sins to God who will cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (See John 16:13; Acts 1:8; 1 John 1:9)

Next time we begin a new chapter and learn how, “the LORD said unto Joshua, Fear not, neither be you dismayed”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

Why Have You Troubled Us? - Joshua 7:25

In the book of Joshua, we learned how, “Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor”, and in chapter seven and verse twenty-five of the book of Joshua, we learn how, “Joshua said, Why have you troubled us?” where we read,

And Joshua said, Why have you troubled us? the LORD shall trouble you this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones.

The verse reads, “And Joshua said, Why have you troubled us? the LORD shall trouble you this day.” Joshua or the writer began with the words, “and Joshua said” which means “and Joshua whose name means Jehovah is salvation uttered, declared, proclaimed and asked”, “why have you troubled us” or “for what reason and cause have you, Achan, disturbed, stirred up and caused calamity among us, Joshua and the people of Israel”? “the LORD” which means “Jehovah who is the existing One and the proper name for the One True God” “shall trouble you this day” or “will disturb, stir up and cause calamity toward you, Achan, this particular sunrise to sunset”. Joshua asked “Achan” for the reason that he stirred up calamity against him and the people of Israel, and Joshua told him that calamity by Jehovah God would be stirred up against him that very “day”.

The verse continues, “And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones.” Joshua or the writer added the words, “and all Israel” which means “and each, every, the whole and everyone within Israel whose name means God prevails and is the name of the descendants and the nation of the descendants of Jacob” “stoned him with stones” or “slayed or killed him, Achan, by the use of throwing rocks and stones at Achan and his family”, “and burned them with fire” which means “and kindled them, Achan and his family, by the use of fiery fire”, “after they had stoned them with stones” or “following the time they, the people of Israel, slayed or killed them, Achan and his family, by the use of throwing rocks or stones at them”. Joshua or the writer shared how everyone within “Israel” threw rocks at “Achan” and his family until they were dead, and they used fiery fire to “burn” them following their death.

When we meditate upon words in this verse, we discover such a horrible consequence for “Achan and his family” because he took the “accursed thing”. Everyone within “Israel” was involved, and they threw rocks at “Achan and his family” until they were dead. Afterward they burned “Achan and his family” with fire. Sin had left it’s mark, and “Achan and his family” paid the penalty of death for his violation to God’s command. God knows we all have sinned and come short of his glory, and the consequences of those sins is death. (See Romans 3:23; 6:23) Ezekiel the prophet said, “Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sins, it shall die”, and “the soul that sins, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.” (See Ezekiel 18:4, 20) God sent His Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for our sins and in our place, and He raised Him from the dead after three days so when we put our faith and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and put His Holy Spirit within us to guide us into all truth and give us the power to resist temptation and sin that have consequences that are far beyond what we can imagine or think.

Next time we learn how “they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

Sunday, May 17, 2026

Achan Carried to the Valley of Achor - Joshua 7:24

In the book of Joshua, we learned how Achan began to confess his sin of taking the accursed thing by saying, “Then I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it. So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran unto the tent; and, behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it. And they took them out of the midst of the tent, and brought them unto Joshua, and unto all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the LORD”, and in chapter seven and verse twenty-four of the book of Joshua, we learn how, “Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan … to the valley of Achor” where we read,

And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor.

The verse reads, “And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had:” Joshua or the writer began with the words, “and Joshua” whose name means “Jehovah is salvation”, “and all Israel with him” or “and each, every, the whole and everyone of the people of Israel whose name means God prevails and is the name of the descendants and the nation of the descendants of Jacob”, “took Achan the son of Zerah” which means “seized and lay hold of Achan whose name means troubler the male offspring and progeny belonging to Zerah whose name means rising”, “and the silver” or “and the silver metal”, “and the garment” which means “and the article of clothing”, “and the wedge of gold” or “and the tongue-shaped gold metal”, “and his sons” which means “and his, Achan’s, male offspring and progeny”, “and his daughters” or “and his, Achan’s, female offspring and progeny”, “and his oxen” which means “and his, Achan’s, oxen, bulls or cattle”, “and his asses” or “and his, Achan’s, donkeys”, “and his sheep” which means “and his, Achan's small cattle such as sheep”, “and his tent” or “and his, Achan’s, temporary dwelling place”, “and all that he had” which means “and each, every, the whole and everything that he, Achan, held, owned and possessed”. Joshua or the writer shared how “Achan, the silver, the garment, the gold, his sons, daughters, oxen, donkeys, sheep, temporary dwelling place and everything Achan possessed” were seized by “Joshua”.

The verse goes on to say, “and they brought them unto the valley of Achor.” Joshua or the writer continued with the words, “and they brought them” which means “and they, the people who gathered and carried everything Achan possessed” “unto the valley of Achor” or “to the lowland and open country belonging to Achor whose name means trouble or disturbance”. Joshua or the writer shared how everything “Achan” possessed was gathered together and carried to the lowland of “Achor” for the reason we shall discover in our next verse.

When we consider the words in this verse, we discover the next step taken by Joshua to eradicate the sin from the people of Israel. Everything “Achan” owned and possessed including his family were taken to the lowland of “Achor” which means “trouble or disturbance”. When we use our imaginations we can almost see this process and the difficulty it caused for everyone involved. Sin has consequences, and “Achan’s” sin not only affected him, but also his family and the people of Israel. This is not the way God wanted it to be, and He doesn’t want this for our lives either. God loves us so much that He has given us commands that keep us from these horrible consequences, and He sent His Son Jesus into the world to be crucified on the cross for the sins of all mankind and raised Him from the dead after three days so when we yield our lives to Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and put His Holy Spirit within us to guide us into all truth and keep us following His ways so we need not suffer for our wrongdoing.

Next time we learn how “Joshua said, Why have you troubled us?”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…