Valley of Achor

Biblical Text

The Valley of Achor first appears in Joshua 7:24–26. After the fall of Jericho, Achan secretly hid some of the devoted things, that is, spoils that had been set apart to God for destruction. When this came to light, Joshua and the people of Israel brought Achan, his family, and his possessions to this valley, where they stoned them and burned them with fire. They raised a heap of stones over the spot, and the text explains that because of this event "the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day" (Joshua 7:26).

The name appears again in Joshua 15:7 as a landmark on the northern boundary of the territory of the tribe of Judah.

Background and Meaning of the Name

"Achor" transliterates the Hebrew ʿAkor, meaning "trouble" or "troubling." Joshua says to Achan, "Why hast thou troubled us? the LORD shall trouble thee this day" (Joshua 7:25); the verb "to trouble" and the place name derive from the same root. First Chronicles 2:7 calls Achan "Achar" and describes him as "the troubler of Israel," which is likewise understood as a play on the same word.

There is broad agreement that the valley lay near Jericho, in the border region between Judah and Benjamin. Scholars differ, however, on exactly which valley it was; proposed sites include the Buqeia plain in the Judean Wilderness.

Significance in Scripture as a Whole

The prophets take up this valley, once a place of judgment, in their promises of restoration. Hosea 2:15 says that God will lead His unfaithful people back and give them "the valley of Achor for a door of hope," promising that the people will once again respond to God as they did in the days of the Exodus. Isaiah 65:10 likewise says that the Valley of Achor will become "a place for the herds to lie down in" and will belong to the people who seek God. Both passages depict a reversal in which a place of trouble becomes a place of peace and hope.

The New Testament does not mention the Valley of Achor directly. However, the promise in the same chapter of Hosea, "I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people" (Hosea 2:23), is quoted in Romans 9:25 and 1 Peter 2:10 to describe the grace by which God calls even the Gentiles to be His people.

Interpretation and Points of Discussion

• Punishment of the family: Interpreters differ over the punishment of Achan's children in this place. Some hold that the children took part in the sin, while others explain it in light of ancient Israel's understanding, which emphasized the responsibility of the community as a whole. The question is often discussed alongside Deuteronomy 24:16, which forbids putting children to death for the sins of their fathers.
• Spiritual application: On the basis of Hosea 2:15, many preachers draw a lesson about repentance: the place where sin is exposed and dealt with becomes, paradoxically, a door of hope. Some also read this in connection with the cross. Such readings are matters of interpretation and application rather than direct statements of the text.

In the Korean Church

In the Korean church, the phrase "Valley of Achor" is widely known from the hymn "Bureum Bada Naseon I Mom" (roughly, "Called, I Go Forth"), whose lyrics include the line "Even to the Valley of Achor and the barren fields I will go, bearing the gospel." In this hymn the phrase denotes "a remote and harsh place where no one wants to go," and the hymn is often sung at services of dedication and commissioning for missions. This idiomatic usage differs somewhat from the meanings the place name carries in the biblical text, namely "trouble and judgment" and "a door of hope."