How the Biblical Story of the Canaanite City of Ai Reveals our AI Dilemma

Once again, I am amazed how the Holy Spirit speaks a spiritual truth to me, seemingly out of nowhere. If you've been a reader of my blog since 2011, then you will know that both my husband and myself are just ordinary people who have made ourselves available to be used by the Lord to advance His Kingdom here on earth. We are not exceptional; and we hold no titles, other than "obedient followers of Jesus Christ". We don't seek unmerited favor, but are willing to receive whatever Word He has for us. So, when I suddenly [and amazingly] see a Biblical connection to something I've never been aware of before, I know, without a doubt, that it is something I need to consider and pursue. I will now share what I have discovered with you, put it into context with the the peril I believe we are facing, and ask you to pray about whether your spirit is in agreement..

Central to this article is the question, Is there a connection between the Biblical account of the Canaanite city Ai and our current unease regarding the rapid advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the world? In other words, can we make a link between Ai and AI, or is it just a coincidence? 

Because I have a strong Biblical worldview, and I believe that God is intimately involved in our daily lives -- just as He was in the lives of His chosen people in the Bible -- I believe that He wants to show us things so that we can align our spirits with Him, and partner with Him for His glory. So I began with a look at the city of Ai, first mentioned in Genesis 12, as a city where Abram pitched his tent as he journeyed to the land God promised him and his offspring. There he built an altar to the Lord and "called upon the name of the Lord".

NOTE: Let me digress for a moment, because our understanding of what it means to call upon the name of the Lord is important for the sake of this connection I'm trying to make between Ai and AI. To call upon the name of the Lord means "to pray earnestly in order to know how to serve Him in obedience; to submit ourselves to His authority and will; to repent of our sins, asking for mercy, compassion, and salvation/deliverance from our circumstances".  

But what is the significance of that Canaanite city of Ai in terms of our relationship with God? Historically, it is the site of a consequential defeat of the Israelites due to the open rebellion of a single man in Joshua's army. Here's the setting: The Israelites, with Joshua as Commander of the army, is on the precipice of taking possession of the land of Canaan, just as the Lord God had promised. Joshua and the people bind themselves in covenant with God to obey all of His commands, declaring that whoever rebels against any commandment will be put to death. The test of their faithfulness came in the battle for Jericho, a heavily fortified city, and a key component for conquering all of Canaan. If defeated, Jericho would open up the interior land and cities for easy conquest. 

You will recall the history of Jericho ... the Israelites were to march around the city walls once a day for six days, accompanied by the priests and the ark of the covenant, with trumpets blaring. On the seventh day, they were to march around it seven times, seven priests blowing the trumpets, and with a great shout from the people, the walls of Jericho would fall. Result: the city of Jericho was given to the Israelites by the Lord, with the command that everyone and everything within was devoted to the Lord to be destroyed.  (except for Rahab and her family, the prostitute who helped hide the Israelite spies). There was a specific commandment that nothing was to be taken as spoil from wicked Jericho because it would make the camp of the Israelites a target for destruction and "bring trouble to it". Furthermore, "all silver and gold, and every vessel of bronze and iron, are holy to the Lord; they shall go into the treasury of the Lord". 

Unbeknownst to Joshua, there was an Israelite man, named Achan, who willfully disobeyed the command of the Lord and coveted a beautiful robe and some gold and silver, taking it from Jericho and hiding it within his tent. Because Achan disobeyed the Lord regarding His commandment, "the anger of the Lord was kindled against the children of Israel", and He orchestrated their humiliating defeat at the small city of Ai. Joshua was distraught, not understanding why they were defeated, until God revealed that someone had violated the covenant and taken things from Jericho. God instructed Joshua to give the people a night to consecrate themselves and give the guilty party time to admit their wrong-doing. Until this was done, the Lord would no longer support the Israelites in battle.

The next morning, the tribes of Israel were called before Joshua to be questioned; tribe by tribe, clan by clan, and man by man. When he stood before Joshua, Achan did not repent, even though he confessed to his disobedience. And God's justice was swift. All of Israel stoned Achan and his family and burned them with fire. Then the Lord turned from His burning anger and delivered the city of Ai and its king into the hands of the Israelites. Their destruction was complete and Joshua renewed the covenant of the people with the Lord.

It was an important lesson for Joshua, and it's one we need to understand ourselves ... the nation of Israel had entered into covenant with God, and when one man transgressed, the relationship of the entire nation was at risk. In this ancient story we can clearly see God's Nature and how important His principles of obedience and repentance are to Him. We see His holiness and the consequences upon nations whose citizens are disobedient.

Can you see the connection between the Canaanite city of Ai and the danger of today's AI? The field of Artificial Intelligence research was founded at a workshop at Dartmouth College in 1956, and the US is a world leader in the high-performance infrastructure of AI research and has developed the world's most advanced AI systems [think GPT-3, for instance]. Increasingly, we are being warned of the dangers of AI, and the inherent destruction of our nation, all humanity, and the world. AI is a creation of man, and there is no identification with the spirit of God.

The ancient city of Ai points to the humiliating defeat of God's chosen people due to the consequences of breaking covenant with Him. It also is evidence that what God designated as holy was stolen from Him. Add to the list of sins the disobedience to His commandments and the refusal to repent. So, could the defilement of our covenants as a Christian nation, and our agreement with the modern-day AI lead to our own destruction? Remember, a whole nation is held liable for the ungodly actions of one man, or a few. Matthew 25 tells us that Jesus will judge between the sheep and goat nations [not just individual people]. Sadly, our leaders refuse to repent for the unholy laws we have instituted; have violated the sanctity of life; have stolen and lied to God, keeping His bountifulness for themselves; and opened us up to invasion and ruination. What can we do about it?

I think we must continue to do as 2 Chronicles 7:14 instructs us ... Call on the name of the Lord as a people -- praying earnestly to know how to serve Him in obedience; to submit ourselves to His authority and will; to repent of our sins, asking for mercy, compassion, and salvation/deliverance from our circumstances. As Scripture says, we must humble ourselves and pray, seek His face, and turn from our wicked ways, praying that He will hear and act on our behalf. But as the tale of the Israelites and their battles with the city of Ai show us, we, as a nation, may still be held liable for the sins of the unrepentant. Will the modern-day AI be the tool of our final destruction? If Chaos-GPT (an autonomous implementation of Chat-GPT) has its way, it will achieve its goals to destroy humanity, establish global dominance, cause chaos and destruction, control humanity through manipulation, and attain immortality.  Sounds like it is in league with the devil, doesn't it?

But never forget or lose hope! Our God is still greater than anything man and Satan can collaborate on! Jesus, our Savior, will forever be with us and is our Stronghold, Deliverer, and Protector. He will be going before us in battle and leading us to victory. Praise Him! Confess and Repent! And trust that we will be saved from our enemies. He is Jehovah-Chereb, The Glorious Sword! 

Let us consider [for ourselves] if what the Lord taught Joshua through an ancient city called Ai, could be relevant to us. Could our version of AI be the means of our destruction? Listen to what the Lord said to the Israelites:

Joshua 7:12    That is why the Israelites are running from their enemies in defeat. For now Israel itself has been set apart for destruction. I will not remain with you any longer unless you destroy the things among you that were set apart for destruction.  

The Psalms: Knowing The Fullness of God's Character

 

I have found myself spending a lot of time reading the Psalms lately. I don't know, maybe it's the wide range of personal experiences that are shared, where I know I will find something that will minister to my spirit. It doesn't matter what is on my heart, there is a Psalm that will speak to me and oftentimes open up a conversation between me and Jesus... jubilation, praise, sorrow, war, peace, worship, judgment, messianic prophecy, tribulation, God's love, God's wrath, deliverance, salvation, healing, discipline, and damnation -- there is not a topic that Jesus and I have discussed that it is not present in the Psalms. 

In fact, my husband and I [who often examine separate portions of the Bible during our study time in the mornings] both found ourselves reading Psalms this morning. On the days when I can't stand to hear another news cast, it somehow comforts me to read the same descriptions of human flaws, folly, and failings that I see in the world today. If God could rescue them from themselves, then surely there's hope for us! And the Psalms share the whole spectrum of this volatile and glorious relationship with our Father in Heaven!   

And it is exactly that hope amidst the accounts of man's rebellion and God's discipline and love that I am grateful for and celebrate in the Bible! I can hear God speaking to me [and all of us] in both Psalm 118 ("His Steadfast Love Endures Forever") and Psalm 78 ("Tell the Coming Generation"). So, why do I often find myself at odds with other Christians who question why I contemplate the less than cheerful and joyous verses in this confirming Book of man's experiences with God? Why do they misunderstand my ability to look at the "Big Picture" and full counsel of God's witness -- both the destruction of man and the redeeming love God displays?

For instance, in Psalm 78, there are some pretty scary verses that tell us what God is capable of doing ... In spite of all this, they still sinned; despite His wonders, they did not believe. So He made their days vanish like a breath, and their years in terror. That should be enough to make anyone stop and assess where we stand today. After all, He is still the same God and the Bible makes it clear that His attributes and character never change... I, the Lord, do not change (Malachi 3:6). Yet, within that same Psalm, we read this: Yet He, being compassionate, atoned for their iniquity and did not destroy them; He restrained His anger often and did not stir up all His wrath. And so, I recognize the immutability of God -- that He is unchanging in His character, will and covenant promises. But that immutability defines ALL of God's attributes ... among them, His wisdom, His goodness, His mercy, His grace ... and His righteous wrath and anger.

Have you ever found yourself in discussions with a fellow Christian where they only want to consider the "feel good" verses about God's love and mercy and our ultimate victory in Christ? And do you ever sense that they think all you ever do is look for the bad in the Bible? I have yet to find a way to make myself adequately understood that it is exactly because I am grounded and anchored in His goodness and love that I am able to look upon His wrath and anger with no fear; understand what led up to His reaction; and then caution the Body of Christ to guard against the same sins. For me, it is understood -- it is a given -- that if I call myself a Believer, I know the Lord's love endures forever. If it didn't, He would have every reason to destroy us and start over. And if I didn't believe in His love and our victory, I wouldn't be able to encourage others to battle in their power and authority in Christ.

But being the same God as He was throughout Psalm 78, I must also caution us not take Him for granted! If we are reading the Bible in Truth and Spirit, then we must not fool ourselves into thinking we will be exempt from "vanishing like a breath", should we continue to test and rebel against the Most High God and do not keep His testimonies; if we turn away and act treacherously and deceitfully; if we anger Him with our "high places" and our idols. We must not think He will no longer consider delivering "His power to captivity, His glory to the hand of our foe."

For He is a jealous God and a righteous one! But He will uphold those who walk humbly in His ways; He will uphold us with His mighty right hand! The Bible represents a composite picture of our Most High God and it is important we behold Him in His fullness. If we only look at the verses that make us feel comfortable, we will miss out on the "tough love" that assures us He loves us enough to train us up in ways that secure our eternity with Him. So, if you think I only depict the "doom and gloom" of the Bible, I promise you that my faith is solidly rooted in the goodness, love, mercy, kindness, and grace of God. And it is from that position that I am not afraid to share His attribute of righteous judgment against those who rebel against Him. Make no mistake, I know what it is to fear the Lord [in all that means] and I praise Him for all that He is! 

Psalm 118: 15-16    Songs of joy and victory are sung in the camp of the godly. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things! The strong right arm of the Lord is raised in triumph.