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Joshua 8:31

Old Testament Historical ASV (1901)

What does Joshua 8:31 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “as Moses the servant of Jehovah commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of unhewn stones, upon which no man had lifted up any iron: and they offered thereon burnt-offerings unto Jehovah, and sacrificed peace-offerings.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

as Moses the servant of Jehovah commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of unhewn stones, upon which no man had lifted up any iron: and they offered thereon burnt-offerings unto Jehovah, and sacrificed peace-offerings.
Joshua 8:31 — American Standard Version

Context — Joshua 8

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
28So Joshua burnt Ai, and made it a heap for ever, even a desolation, unto this day.
29And the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until the eventide: and at the going down of the sun Joshua commanded, and they took his body down from the tree, and cast it at the entrance of the gate of the city, and raised thereon a great heap of stones, unto this day.
30Then Joshua built an altar unto Jehovah, the God of Israel, in mount Ebal,
31as Moses the servant of Jehovah commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of unhewn stones, upon which no man had lifted up any iron: and they offered thereon burnt-offerings unto Jehovah, and sacrificed peace-offerings.
32And he wrote there upon the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he wrote, in the presence of the children of Israel.
33And all Israel, and their elders and officers, and their judges, stood on this side of the ark and on that side before the priests the Levites, that bare the ark of the covenant of Jehovah, as well the sojourner as the homeborn; half of them in front of mount Gerizim, and half of them in front of mount Ebal; as Moses the servant of Jehovah had commanded at the first, that they should bless the people of Israel.
34And afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessing and the curse, according to all that is written in the book of the law.
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“As Moses the servant of the Lord commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, etc.] (<052705>Deuteronomy 27:5); an altar of whole stones, on which no man hath lift up [any] iron; (see Gill on “<022025>Exodus 20:25”), (see Gill on “<052705>Deuteronomy 27:5-6”): and they offered thereon burnt offerings unto the Lord, and sacrificed peace offerings; by way of thanksgiving for the good land they were introduced into, and this was what they were ordered to do by Moses, (<052706>Deuteronomy 27:6,7).”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“an altar of whole stones--according to the instructions given to Moses (Exo 20:25; Deu 27:5). over which no man hath lifted up any iron--that is, iron tool. The reason for this was that every altar of the true God ought properly to have been built of earth (Exo 20:24); and if it was constructed of stone, rough, unhewn stones were to be employed that it might retain both the appearance and nature of earth, since every bloody sacrifice was connected with sin and death, by which man, the creature of earth, is brought to earth again [KEIL]. they offered thereon burnt offerings unto the Lord, and sacrificed peace offerings--This had been done when the covenant was established (Exo 24:5); and by…”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“The account of this solemnity is very brief. An acquaintance with Deuteronomy 27:0 is evidently presupposed; and the three several acts of which the solemnity consisted are only so far distinctly named as is necessary to show that the commands of Moses there given were fully carried out by Joshua. It is difficult to escape the conviction that these verses are here out of their proper and original place. The connection between Joshua 8:29, and Joshua 9:1, is natural and obvious; and in Joshua 9:3, the fraud of the Gibeonites is represented as growing out of the alarm caused by the fall of Jericho and Ai. It is, moreover, extremely unlikely that a solemnity of this nature in the very center of…”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“as it is: Jos 8:34, Jos 8:35, Jos 1:8; Kg2 14:6, Kg2 22:8; Ch2 25:4, Ch2 35:12; Ezr 6:18; Neh 13:1; Mat 12:26 altar: Exo 20:24, Exo 20:25; Deu 27:5, Deu 27:6; Kg1 18:31, Kg1 18:32 and they offered: Exo 18:12, Exo 24:5; Deu 27:6, Deu 27:7 Joshua 8:32”
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Sources and verification