The Gibeonites Act with Cunning

9 Nowa when all the kings who were beyond the Jordan in the hill country and in the Shephelah,b and on all the coast of the great sea toward Lebanonc—the Hittites,d the Amorites,e the Canaanites,f the Perizzites,g the Hivites,h and the Jebusitesi—heard of this, 2 they gathered themselves together to fight with one accord againstj Joshua and Israel.

3 But the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua did to Jericho and Ai, 4 and they acted on their part with cunning: they went and prepared provisions,k and took worn-out sacksl for their donkeys and old wineskins that were torn and mended. 5 The sandals on their feet were patched and old, their clothes were old, and their food was dry and crumbled. 6 And they went to Joshua at the camp at Gilgal and said to him and to the men of Israel, “We have come from a far land; so then ⌊make a covenant with us⌋.”m 7 And the men of Israel said to the Hivites,n “Perhaps you are living among us; how can we ⌊make a covenant⌋o with you?” 8 They said to Joshua, “We are your servants.” And Joshua said to them, “Who are you, and from where do you come?” 9 And they said to him, “Your servants have come from a very far land because of the name of Yahweh your God; we have heard of his reputation, of all that he did in Egypt, 10 and of all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan—to Sihon king of Heshbon and to Og king of Bashan, who was in Ashtaroth. 11 So our elders said to us and all the inhabitants of our land, ‘Take in your hand provisions for the journey, and go to meet them, and say to them, “We are your servants; so then ⌊make a covenant with us⌋.” ’p 12 This is our bread; it was hot when we took it from our houses as provisions on the day we set out to come to you. But now, look, it is dry and crumbled. 13 These are the wineskins that we filled new, but look, they have burst; and these are our clothes and sandals that have worn out from the very long journey.” 14 So the leadersq took from their provisions, but ⌊they did not ask direction from Yahweh⌋.r 15 And Joshua made peace with them, and ⌊he made a covenant with them⌋s to allow them to live happily, and the leaders of the congregation swore an oath to them.

16 And it happened that at the end of three days, after they made a covenant with them, they heard that ⌊they were their neighbors⌋t and living among them. 17 And the ⌊Israelites⌋u set out and went to their cities on the third day (their cities were Gibeon, Kephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath Jearim). 18 But the ⌊Israelites⌋v did not attack them, because the leaders of the congregation had sworn to them by Yahweh the God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured ⌊against their leaders⌋.w 19 But all the leaders of the congregation said, “We have sworn to them by Yahweh the God of Israel, and so we cannot touch them. 20 This we will do to them: we will let them live so that wrath will not be on us because of the oath we swore to them.” 21 And the leadersx said to them, “Let them live.” So they became woodcutters and water carriers for all the congregation, just as the leaders had said to them.

22 And Joshua summoned them and said, “Why have you deceived us saying, ‘We are very far from you’ when you are living among us? 23 Therefore you are cursed; some of you will always be slaves as woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God.” 24 And they answered Joshua and said, “Because it was told with certainty to your servants that Yahweh your God commanded Moses his servant to give to you all the land and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land before you, so we were very afraid for our lives because of you, and so we did this thing. 25 So then, look, we are in your hand; do with us whatever seems good and right in your eyes.” 26 So he did this to them: he saved them from the hand of the ⌊Israelites⌋,y and they did not kill them. 27 And that day Joshua made them woodcutters and water carriers for the congregation and for the altar of Yahweh, to this day, in the place that he should choose.

The Sun Stands Still at Gibeon

10 And it happened that when Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua captured Ai and had utterly destroyed it (just as he had done to Jericho and its king, so he did to Ai and its king) and that the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were among them, 2 hea became very afraid because Gibeon was a very large city, ⌊like one of the royal cities⌋,b and because it was larger than Ai, and all its men were mighty warriors. 3 So Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem sent word to Hohman king of Hebron, to Piram king of Jarmuth, to Japhia king of Lachish, and to Debir king of Eglon, saying, 4 “Come up and help me, and let us attack Gibeon, because it has made peace with Joshua and the ⌊Israelites⌋.”c 5 And the five kings of the Amorites,d the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon, gathered together and went up, they and all their forces, and ⌊they laid siege to Gibeon⌋e and made war against it.

6 And the men of Gibeon sent word to Joshua at the camp at Gilgal, saying, “⌊Do not abandon⌋f your servant. Come up to us quickly and save us! Help us, for all the kings of the Amoritesg who dwell in the hill country have gathered against us.” 7 So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he and ⌊all the fighting men⌋h with him, ⌊all the best warriors⌋.i 8 And Yahweh said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, for I have given them into your hand; ⌊no one will withstand you⌋.j 9 Joshua came upon them suddenly ⌊by marching up⌋k all night from Gilgal. 10 And Yahweh threw them into panic before Israel, whol struck them with a great blow at Gibeon and pursued them by the way of the ascent of Beth-horon and struck them as far as Azekah and Makkedah. 11 And as they were fleeing from Israel, they were on the slope of Beth-horon, and Yahweh threw huge stones from the heavens on them as far as Azekah; and more died by the hail stones than those whom the ⌊Israelites⌋m killed by the sword.

12 Then Joshua spoke to Yahweh, on the day Yahweh gave the Amoritesn over to the ⌊Israelites⌋,o and he said in the sight of Israel,

“Sun in Gibeon, stand still,

and moon, in the valley of Aijalon.”

13 And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped,

until the nation took vengeance on its enemies.

Is it not written in the scroll of Jashar? The sun stood still in the middle of the heaven and was not in haste to set for about a full day. 14 There has not been a day like this before it or after, that Yahweh listened to the voice of a man; for Yahweh fought for Israel. 15 And Joshua returned and all Israel with him to the camp at Gilgal.

The Kings of the Amorites Are Killed

16 But these five kings fled and hid themselves in the cave at Makkedah. 17 And it was told to Joshua, saying, “The five kings were found hidden in the cave at Makkedah.” 18 And Joshua said, “Roll large stones against the mouth of the cave, and set men in front of it to guard them. 19 But do not stay there; pursue after your enemies and attack them from the rear. Do not allow them to go into their cities, for Yahweh your God has given them into your hand.” 20 When Joshua and the ⌊Israelites⌋p had finished striking them with a very great blow, until they perished, ⌊those of them who survived⌋q went into the fortified cities, 21 and all the people returned to the camp safelyr to Joshua at Makkedah. ⌊No one spoke⌋s against the ⌊Israelites⌋.t

22 And Joshua said, “Open the mouth of the cave, and bring to me those five kings from the cave.” 23 And they did so, and brought him these five kings from the cave, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon. 24 And when they brought these kings to Joshua, Joshua called all the men of Israel and said to the commanders of ⌊the fighting men⌋u who had gone with him, “Come near, put your feet on the necks of these kings.” So they came near and put their feet on their necks. 25 And Joshua said to them, “Do not be afraid or dismayed! Be strong and bold, for thus Yahweh will do to all your enemies whom you are about to fight. 26 And after this Joshua struck them down and killed them, and he hanged them on five trees. And they were hanging on the trees until the evening. 27 And it happened ⌊at the time of sunset⌋,v Joshua commanded, and they took them down from the trees and threw them into the cave where they had hidden themselves, and they put large stones against the mouth of the cave, which are there to this very day.