The text says simply that Joshua “hanged the king of Ai on a tree until evening” (Revised Standard Version). It is probable that first he was killed and then his body was impaled on a stake (see 10.26; Deut 21.22-23), and some languages will require that the translation be explicit; for example, “They killed the king of Ai and hanged his body on a tree.”

The Hebrew word translated tree means also a pole or a stake; accordingly, one may translate “They killed the king of Ai, and then they impaled his body on a pole.”

At sundown his body was removed, buried near the city gate, and stones piled over it. But this formulation may leave too many gaps. That is, it may be necessary to state explicitly that the body was removed before it was thrown down at the entrance to the city gate. For example:

• At sundown Joshua told his men to remove the body and to throw it down at the entrance to the city gate. He also told them to cover it with a huge pile of stones. They obeyed Joshua’s command, and the pile of stones is still there as I write this story.

Or the command may be given in direct discourse:

• At sundown Joshua told his men, “Take the body down from the tree and throw it down at the entrance to the city gate. Then cover it with a huge pile of stones.” Joshua’s men did what he told them, and the pile of stones is still there today.

That huge pile of stones was still there when the account was written.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Newman, Barclay M. A Handbook on Joshua. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .