35 Bible Verses about Ambush

And Jehovah saith unto Joshua, 'Fear not, nor be affrighted, take with thee all the people of war, and rise, go up to Ai; see, I have given into thy hand the king of Ai, and his people, and his city, and his land, and thou hast done to Ai and to her king as thou hast done to Jericho and to her king; only, its spoil and its cattle ye spoil for yourselves; set for thee an ambush for the city at its rear.' And Joshua riseth, and all the people of war, to go up to Ai, and Joshua chooseth thirty thousand men, mighty ones of valour, and sendeth them away by night,read more.
and commandeth them, saying, 'See, ye are liers in wait against the city, at the rear of the city, ye go not very far off from the city, and all of you have been prepared, and I and all the people who are with me draw near unto the city, and it hath come to pass when they come out to meet us as at the first, and we have fled before them, and they have come out after us till we have drawn them out of the city, for they say, They are fleeing before us as at the first, and we have fled before them, and ye rise from the ambush, and have occupied the city, and Jehovah your God hath given it into your hand; and it hath been, when ye capture the city, ye burn the city with fire, according to the word of Jehovah ye do, see, I have commanded you.' And Joshua sendeth them away, and they go unto the ambush, and abide between Bethel and Ai, on the west of Ai; and Joshua lodgeth on that night in the midst of the people. And Joshua riseth early in the morning, and inspecteth the people, and goeth up, he and the elders of Israel, before the people to Ai; and all the people of war who are with him have gone up, and draw nigh and come in over-against the city, and encamp on the north of Ai; and the valley is between him and Ai. And he taketh about five thousand men, and setteth them an ambush between Bethel and Ai, on the west of the city; and they set the people, all the camp which is on the north of the city, and its rear on the west of the city, and Joshua goeth on that night into the midst of the valley. And it cometh to pass, when the king of Ai seeth it, that hasten, and rise early, and go out do the men of the city to meet Israel for battle, he and all his people, at the appointed season, at the front of the plain, and he hath not known that an ambush is against him, on the rear of the city. And Joshua and all Israel seem stricken before them, and flee the way of the wilderness, and all the people who are in the city are called to pursue after them, and they pursue after Joshua, and are drawn away out of the city, and there hath not been left a man in Ai and Bethel who hath not gone out after Israel, and they leave the city open, and pursue after Israel. And Jehovah saith unto Joshua, 'Stretch out with the javelin which is in thy hand towards Ai, for into thy hand I give it;' and Joshua stretcheth out with the javelin which is in his hand toward the city, and the ambush hath risen with haste, out of its place, and they run at the stretching out of his hand, and go into the city, and capture it, and hasten, and burn the city with fire. And the men of Ai look behind them, and see, and lo, the smoke of the city hath gone up unto the heavens, and there hath not been in them power to flee hither and thither -- and the people who are fleeing to the wilderness have turned against the pursuer, -- and Joshua and all Israel have seen that the ambush hath captured the city, and that the smoke of the city hath gone up, and they turn back and smite the men of Ai; and these have come out from the city to meet them, and they are in the midst of Israel, some on this side, and some on that, and they smite them till he hath not left to them a remnant and escaped one; and the king of Ai they caught alive, and bring him near unto Joshua. And it cometh to pass, at Israel's finishing to slay all the inhabitants of Ai in the field, in the wilderness in which they pursued them (and they fall all of them by the mouth of the sword till their consumption), that all Israel turn back to Ai, and smite it by the mouth of the sword;

and he sendeth messengers unto Abimelech deceitfully, saying, 'Lo, Gaal son of Ebed and his brethren are coming into Shechem, and lo, they are fortifying the city against thee; and, now, rise by night, thou and the people who are with thee, and lay wait in the field, and it hath been, in the morning, about the rising of the sun, thou dost rise early, and hast pushed against the city; and lo, he and the people who are with him are going out unto thee -- and thou hast done to him as thy hand doth find.'read more.
And Abimelech riseth, and all the people who are with him, by night, and they lay wait against Shechem -- four detachments; and Gaal son of Ebed goeth out, and standeth at the opening of the gate of the city, and Abimelech riseth -- also the people who are with him -- from the ambush, and Gaal seeth the people, and saith unto Zebul, 'Lo, people are coming down from the top of the hills;' and Zebul saith unto him, 'The shadow of the hills thou art seeing like men.' And Gaal addeth yet to speak, and saith, 'Lo, people are coming down from the high part of the land, and another detachment is coming by the way of the oak of Meonenim.' And Zebul saith unto him, 'Where is now thy mouth, in that thou sayest, Who is Abimelech that we serve him? is not this the people against which thou hast kicked? go out, I pray thee now, and fight against it.' And Gaal goeth out before the masters of Shechem, and fighteth against Abimelech, and Abimelech pursueth him, and he fleeth from his presence, and many fall wounded -- unto the opening of the gate.

And Israel setteth liers in wait against Gibeah, round about, and the sons of Israel go up against the sons of Benjamin, on the third day, and arrange themselves against Gibeah, as time by time. And the sons of Benjamin come out to meet the people; they have been drawn away out of the city, and begin to smite some of the people -- wounded as time by time, in the highways (of which one is going up to Beth-El, and the other to Gibeah in the field), are about thirty men of Israel.read more.
And the sons of Benjamin say, 'They are smitten before us as at the beginning;' but the sons of Israel said, 'Let us flee, and draw them away out of the city, unto the highways.' And all the men of Israel have risen from their place, and arrange themselves at Baal-Tamar, and the ambush of Israel is coming forth out of its place, out of the meadow of Gibeah. And they come in over against Gibeah -- ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel -- and the battle is grievous, and they have not known that the evil is striking against them. And Jehovah smiteth Benjamin before Israel, and the sons of Israel destroy in Benjamin, on that day, twenty and five thousand, and a hundred men; all these are drawing sword. And the sons of Benjamin see that they have been smitten -- and the men of Israel give place to Benjamin, for they have trusted unto the ambush which they had set against Gibeah, and the ambush have hasted, and push against Gibeah, and the ambush draweth itself out, and smiteth the whole of the city by the mouth of the sword. And there was the appointed sign to the men of Israel with the ambush -- their causing to go up a great volume of smoke from the city. And the men of Israel turn in battle, and Benjamin hath begun to smite the wounded among the men of Israel, about thirty men, for they said, 'Surely they are utterly smitten before us, as at the first battle; and the volume hath begun to go up from the city -- a pillar of smoke -- and Benjamin turneth behind, and lo, gone up hath the perfection of the city toward the heavens. And the men of Israel have turned, and the men of Benjamin are troubled, for they have seen that the evil hath stricken against them -- and they turn before the men of Israel unto the way of the wilderness, and the battle hath followed them; and those who are from the city are destroying them in their midst; they have compassed the Benjamites -- they have pursued them -- with ease they have trodden them down till over-against Gibeah, at the sun-rising. And there fall of Benjamin eighteen thousand men -- the whole of these are men of valour; and they turn and flee toward the wilderness, unto the rock of Rimmon; and they glean of them in the highways five thousand men, and follow after them unto Gidom, and smite of them two thousand men. And all those falling of Benjamin are twenty and five thousand men drawing sword, on that day -- the whole of these are men of valour; and there turn and flee into the wilderness, unto the rock of Rimmon six hundred men, and they dwell in the rock Rimmon four months. And the men of Israel have turned back unto the sons of Benjamin, and smite them by the mouth of the sword out of the city, -- men unto cattle, unto all that is found; also all the cities which are found they have sent into fire.

and David asketh of Jehovah, and He saith, 'Thou dost not go up, turn round unto their rear, and thou hast come to them over-against the mulberries, and it cometh to pass, in thy hearing the sound of a stepping in the tops of the mulberries, then thou dost move sharply, for then hath Jehovah gone out before thee to smite in the camp of the Philistines.' And David doth so, as Jehovah commanded him, and smiteth the Philistines from Geba unto thy coming to Gazer.

And Joshua riseth, and all the people of war, to go up to Ai, and Joshua chooseth thirty thousand men, mighty ones of valour, and sendeth them away by night, and commandeth them, saying, 'See, ye are liers in wait against the city, at the rear of the city, ye go not very far off from the city, and all of you have been prepared, and I and all the people who are with me draw near unto the city, and it hath come to pass when they come out to meet us as at the first, and we have fled before them,read more.
and they have come out after us till we have drawn them out of the city, for they say, They are fleeing before us as at the first, and we have fled before them, and ye rise from the ambush, and have occupied the city, and Jehovah your God hath given it into your hand; and it hath been, when ye capture the city, ye burn the city with fire, according to the word of Jehovah ye do, see, I have commanded you.' And Joshua sendeth them away, and they go unto the ambush, and abide between Bethel and Ai, on the west of Ai; and Joshua lodgeth on that night in the midst of the people. And Joshua riseth early in the morning, and inspecteth the people, and goeth up, he and the elders of Israel, before the people to Ai; and all the people of war who are with him have gone up, and draw nigh and come in over-against the city, and encamp on the north of Ai; and the valley is between him and Ai. And he taketh about five thousand men, and setteth them an ambush between Bethel and Ai, on the west of the city; and they set the people, all the camp which is on the north of the city, and its rear on the west of the city, and Joshua goeth on that night into the midst of the valley. And it cometh to pass, when the king of Ai seeth it, that hasten, and rise early, and go out do the men of the city to meet Israel for battle, he and all his people, at the appointed season, at the front of the plain, and he hath not known that an ambush is against him, on the rear of the city. And Joshua and all Israel seem stricken before them, and flee the way of the wilderness, and all the people who are in the city are called to pursue after them, and they pursue after Joshua, and are drawn away out of the city, and there hath not been left a man in Ai and Bethel who hath not gone out after Israel, and they leave the city open, and pursue after Israel.

And the masters of Shechem set for him ambushes on the top of the hills, and rob every one who passeth over by them in the way, and it is declared to Abimelech.

And Abner turneth back to Hebron, and Joab turneth him aside unto the midst of the gate to speak with him quietly, and smiteth him there in the fifth rib -- and he dieth -- for the blood of Asahel his brother.

And the Philistines add again to come up, and are spread out in the valley of Rephaim, and David asketh of Jehovah, and He saith, 'Thou dost not go up, turn round unto their rear, and thou hast come to them over-against the mulberries, and it cometh to pass, in thy hearing the sound of a stepping in the tops of the mulberries, then thou dost move sharply, for then hath Jehovah gone out before thee to smite in the camp of the Philistines.'read more.
And David doth so, as Jehovah commanded him, and smiteth the Philistines from Geba unto thy coming to Gazer.

They assemble, they hide, they watch my heels, When they have expected my soul.

For the wicked have been found among My people. It looketh about the covering of snares, They have set up a trap -- men they capture.

Go not forth to the field, And in the way walk not, For a sword hath the enemy, fear is round about.

And it cometh to pass, on the second day of the putting of Gedaliah to death, (and no one hath known,) that men come in from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria -- eighty men -- with shaven beards, and rent garments, and cutting themselves, and an offering and frankincense in their hand, to bring in to the house of Jehovah. And Ishmael son of Nethaniah goeth forth to meet them, from Mizpah, going on and weeping, and it cometh to pass, at meeting them, that he saith unto them, 'Come in unto Gedaliah son of Ahikam.'read more.
And it cometh to pass, at their coming in unto the midst of the city, that Ishmael son of Nethaniah doth slaughter them, at the midst of the pit, he and the men who are with him.

If they say, 'Come with us, we lay wait for blood, We watch secretly for the innocent without cause,

as to him who hath not laid wait, and God hath brought to his hand, I have even set for thee a place whither he doth flee.

The words of the wicked are: 'Lay wait for blood,' And the mouth of the upright delivereth them.

She also, as catching prey, lieth in wait, And the treacherous among men she increaseth.

Swifter have been our pursuers, Than the eagles of the heavens, On the mountains they have burned after us, In the wilderness they have laid wait for us.

A bear lying in wait He is to me, A lion in secret hiding-places.

Lay not wait, O wicked one, At the habitation of the righteous. Do not spoil his resting-place.

And the son of Paul's sister having heard of the lying in wait, having gone and entered into the castle, told Paul,

and thou hast done to Ai and to her king as thou hast done to Jericho and to her king; only, its spoil and its cattle ye spoil for yourselves; set for thee an ambush for the city at its rear.' And Joshua riseth, and all the people of war, to go up to Ai, and Joshua chooseth thirty thousand men, mighty ones of valour, and sendeth them away by night, and commandeth them, saying, 'See, ye are liers in wait against the city, at the rear of the city, ye go not very far off from the city, and all of you have been prepared,read more.
and I and all the people who are with me draw near unto the city, and it hath come to pass when they come out to meet us as at the first, and we have fled before them, and they have come out after us till we have drawn them out of the city, for they say, They are fleeing before us as at the first, and we have fled before them, and ye rise from the ambush, and have occupied the city, and Jehovah your God hath given it into your hand; and it hath been, when ye capture the city, ye burn the city with fire, according to the word of Jehovah ye do, see, I have commanded you.' And Joshua sendeth them away, and they go unto the ambush, and abide between Bethel and Ai, on the west of Ai; and Joshua lodgeth on that night in the midst of the people.

And he taketh about five thousand men, and setteth them an ambush between Bethel and Ai, on the west of the city; and they set the people, all the camp which is on the north of the city, and its rear on the west of the city, and Joshua goeth on that night into the midst of the valley. And it cometh to pass, when the king of Ai seeth it, that hasten, and rise early, and go out do the men of the city to meet Israel for battle, he and all his people, at the appointed season, at the front of the plain, and he hath not known that an ambush is against him, on the rear of the city.read more.
And Joshua and all Israel seem stricken before them, and flee the way of the wilderness, and all the people who are in the city are called to pursue after them, and they pursue after Joshua, and are drawn away out of the city, and there hath not been left a man in Ai and Bethel who hath not gone out after Israel, and they leave the city open, and pursue after Israel. And Jehovah saith unto Joshua, 'Stretch out with the javelin which is in thy hand towards Ai, for into thy hand I give it;' and Joshua stretcheth out with the javelin which is in his hand toward the city, and the ambush hath risen with haste, out of its place, and they run at the stretching out of his hand, and go into the city, and capture it, and hasten, and burn the city with fire. And the men of Ai look behind them, and see, and lo, the smoke of the city hath gone up unto the heavens, and there hath not been in them power to flee hither and thither -- and the people who are fleeing to the wilderness have turned against the pursuer, -- and Joshua and all Israel have seen that the ambush hath captured the city, and that the smoke of the city hath gone up, and they turn back and smite the men of Ai;

and he taketh the people, and divideth them into three detachments, and layeth wait in a field, and looketh, and lo, the people are coming out from the city, and he riseth against them, and smiteth them.

And Israel setteth liers in wait against Gibeah, round about, and the sons of Israel go up against the sons of Benjamin, on the third day, and arrange themselves against Gibeah, as time by time. And the sons of Benjamin come out to meet the people; they have been drawn away out of the city, and begin to smite some of the people -- wounded as time by time, in the highways (of which one is going up to Beth-El, and the other to Gibeah in the field), are about thirty men of Israel.read more.
And the sons of Benjamin say, 'They are smitten before us as at the beginning;' but the sons of Israel said, 'Let us flee, and draw them away out of the city, unto the highways.' And all the men of Israel have risen from their place, and arrange themselves at Baal-Tamar, and the ambush of Israel is coming forth out of its place, out of the meadow of Gibeah. And they come in over against Gibeah -- ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel -- and the battle is grievous, and they have not known that the evil is striking against them. And Jehovah smiteth Benjamin before Israel, and the sons of Israel destroy in Benjamin, on that day, twenty and five thousand, and a hundred men; all these are drawing sword. And the sons of Benjamin see that they have been smitten -- and the men of Israel give place to Benjamin, for they have trusted unto the ambush which they had set against Gibeah, and the ambush have hasted, and push against Gibeah, and the ambush draweth itself out, and smiteth the whole of the city by the mouth of the sword. And there was the appointed sign to the men of Israel with the ambush -- their causing to go up a great volume of smoke from the city.

And Saul cometh in unto a city of Amalek, and layeth wait in a valley;

For, lo, they laid wait for my soul, Assembled against me are strong ones, Not my transgression nor my sin, O Jehovah.

Unto the walls of Babylon lift up an ensign, Strengthen the watch, Establish the watchers, prepare the ambush, For Jehovah hath both devised and done that which He spake, Concerning the inhabitants of Babylon.

it is told to the Gazathites, saying, 'Samson hath come in hither;' and they go round and lay wait for him all the night at the gate of the city, and keep themselves silent all the night, saying, 'Till the light of the morning -- then we have slain him.'

And the ambush is abiding with her in an inner chamber, and she saith unto him, 'Philistines are upon thee, Samson;' and he breaketh the withs as a thread of tow is broken in its smelling fire, and his power hath not been known.

And Delilah taketh thick bands, new ones, and bindeth him with them, and saith unto him, 'Philistines are upon thee, Samson;' and the ambush is abiding in an inner chamber, and he breaketh them from off his arms as a thread.

for ye have conspired all of you against me, and there is none uncovering mine ear about my son's covenanting with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you grieving for me, and uncovering mine ear, that my son hath raised up my servant against me, to lie in wait as at this day.'

And Saul saith unto him, 'Why have ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, by thy giving to him bread and a sword, and to ask for him at God, to rise against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?'

thou, therefore, mayest thou not yield to them, for there lie in wait for him of them more than forty men, who did anathematize themselves -- not to eat nor to drink till they kill him, and now they are ready, waiting for the promise from thee.'

asking favour against him, that he may send for him to Jerusalem, making an ambush to put him to death in the way.

And they for their own blood lay wait, They watch secretly for their own lives.