When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. . . “[We] know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ.” Galatians 2:11,16
Hard Conversations
The apostle Paul had to have a hard conversation with Cephas, better known as the apostle Peter. You know the kind of conversation—the one that puts your stomach in knots and that you’d really rather avoid. Paul had to call Peter out in front of the whole church because Peter’s actions were damaging the church.
As more and more Gentiles came to faith in Jesus, cultural questions naturally arose. Did these non-Jewish believers have to follow Jewish customs to belong to the Christian church? Did they have to live like Jews in order to be true Christians? The Bible’s answer is clear: of course not.
Yet Peter had stopped eating with Gentile Christians and ate only with Jewish Christians. By his actions, he was sending the message that faith in Jesus was not enough. If you wanted to be a true believer, you needed faith in Christ and obedience to the Old Testament ceremonial laws.
Paul saw what was happening and recognized the effect it was having on the other believers. Without hesitation, he confronted Peter. Paul was not concerned about fitting in, hurting feelings, or offending people. He was concerned for the spiritual welfare of the entire church. He recognized Peter’s actions for what they really were: a threat to the very message of forgiveness through faith in Jesus alone.
So, Paul reminded them that we are justified—acquitted in God’s courtroom—not by what we do, how we act, or how we live, but solely by what Jesus has done for us.
Jesus calls us to confront a brother or sister’s sin not only for that person’s sake, but also for the good of the whole church. When we refuse to have those difficult conversations, our silence can strengthen others in their sin as well.
Confronting sin is never easy. Yet God gives his people the privilege and responsibility to have these hard conversations for the greater good of his people.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, please keep me mindful of the importance of having hard conversations about sin. Amen.
“As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will you die, people of Israel?” Ezekiel 33:11
God Wants Sinners to Live
It’s the middle of the night. Loud banging pounds on your front door. The doorbell rings without stopping. Small stones tap against your bedroom window. Then your phone starts ringing and doesn’t stop. The ruckus is anything but welcome. But when you look out the window, you discover your house is on fire, and your neighbor has been desperately trying to wake you up and save your life.
Thank God he did! And wouldn’t you do the same for him? Wouldn’t you do whatever it took to rescue him from the flames?
That is what God is talking about through the prophet Ezekiel. Warning fellow believers about the danger of sin is rarely appreciated at first. But just as a neighbor makes a racket to save someone from a burning house, God sounds the alarm because he loves us.
Through Ezekiel, God made it clear that a warning about sin is not intended to be an unwanted disturbance. It’s a message of life!
God rings our doorbell, pounds on our door, and sends fellow Christians to get our attention. Maybe it is your parents. Maybe a Christian friend. Maybe your pastor. However the warning comes, it comes in love, because God wants sinners to live.
How much does he want that? He chose the death of his own Son over the death of the wicked. Jesus’ death gives you forgiven life. Jesus’ resurrection gives you eternal life. And as surely as Jesus lives, he wants nothing more than for us to be alive with him, forever, in heaven.
That is why God sounds the alarm. Not to knock sinners down, but to lift them up with the gospel. Not to condemn, but to call them to the Savior who forgives.
So, whichever end of the warning you are on, remember God’s purpose. His goal is never your death. His goal is your life!
Prayer:
Sovereign Lord, thank you for turning me from my sin and giving me life in Christ. Amen.
“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. When I say to the wicked, ‘You wicked person, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak out to dissuade them from their ways, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood. But if you do warn the wicked person to turn from their ways and they do not do so, they will die for their sin, though you yourself will be saved.” Ezekiel 33:7-9
Sound the Alarm
It was two o’clock in the morning when I was treated to one of the most unsettling sounds ever invented: a tornado alarm blaring from the cell phone on my nightstand. As unpleasant as it was, it served a good purpose. A tornado had touched down nearby, and the alarm warned me to take cover.
When God told the prophet Ezekiel that he was a watchman, he was giving him the responsibility to sound the alarm about sin so that the wicked would not die in it. If Ezekiel failed to warn them, the sinner would die for his own sin, but Ezekiel would be held accountable for failing to speak. If the warning was sounded and the sinner refused to listen, then the sinner alone would bear the guilt.
Here God lays before his people an unsettling but loving responsibility. Whether you are a pastor, a parent, a child, a brother, a sister, or a friend, God calls you to warn sinners and urge them to turn from their wicked ways.
That is not a responsibility to take lightly. To remain silent is not merely to leave someone in danger. It is neglecting the call God has given you.
But when you sound the alarm, you are speaking God’s Word, not your own. Your motivation is love. The goal is life, not condemnation. Just as no one seeks shelter from a tornado they never knew was coming, a sinner will not turn to the Savior without first seeing the danger of sin.
And what a privilege it is to say to those who turn from their wickedness: “God completely forgives your sin because of Jesus.”
Prayer:
Lord, forgive my silences and make me a vigilant watchman for your people. Amen.
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1 Now Joshua had grown old and had advanced in years. So the Lord said to him, “You have grown old and advanced in years, but very much land remains to be taken as your possession.
2 “This is the land that remains:
All the districts of the Philistines and all of the Geshurites, 3 from the Shihor, which is east of Egypt, to the border of Ekron on the north. (This is reckoned as belonging to the Canaanites, but includes the five serens [1] of the Philistines, the serens of Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron, as well as the Avvites 4 on the south.)
All the land of the Canaanites, and Me’arah, [2] which belongs to the Sidonians, as far as Aphek, up to the border of the Amorites.
5 The land of the Gebalites, [3] and all of Lebanon toward the rising of the sun, from Baal Gad below Mount Hermon up to the entry to Hamath, 6 all the inhabitants of the hill country from Lebanon to Misrephoth Maim, and all the Sidonians.
“I myself will drive them out as the people of Israel advance. So assign the land to Israel as their possession by lot, just as I have commanded you. 7 Now apportion this land as an inheritance for nine of the tribes and one of the half tribes of Manasseh.”
Division of the Transjordan
8 Together with the other half tribe of Manasseh, the Reubenites and Gadites had already received their inheritance from Moses in the area east of the Jordan, just as Moses, the servant of the Lord, had assigned it to them.
9 It extended from Aroer, which is on the edge of the Arnon Canyon, and from the city that is in the middle of the canyon, and included all the tableland [4] from Medeba to Dibon.
10 It included all the cities of Sihon king of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon, up to the border of the people of Ammon;
11 also Gilead, and the territory of the Geshurites and the Ma’akathites, and all Mount Hermon and all of Bashan to Salekah;
12 also all the kingdom of Og in Bashan, who ruled in Ashtaroth and in Edrei.
(Og himself was left from the remnant of the Rephaim, [5] and Moses struck them down and drove them out.)
13 But the people of Israel did not drive out the Geshurites and the Ma’akathites. So Geshur and Ma’akath have lived within Israel to this day.
14 But to the tribe of Levi, Moses did not give an inheritance. Their inheritance is the offerings made by fire to the Lord, the God of Israel, just as he said to them.
Reuben
15 Moses gave land to the tribe of the descendants of Reuben according to their clans.
16 Their territory included Aroer, which is on the edge of the Arnon Canyon, and the city that is in the middle of the canyon, and all of the tableland by Medeba.
17 It included Heshbon and all its cities that are in the tableland, also Dibon, Bamoth Baal, and Beth Baal Meon, 18 also Jahaz, Kedemoth, and Mepha’ath;
19 also Kiriathaim, and Sibmah, and Zereth Shahar on the hill in the valley, 20 and Beth Peor, and the slopes of Pisgah, and Beth Jeshimoth, 21 all the cities of the tableland.
It included the whole kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon, whom Moses had struck down, together with the chiefs of Midian, namely, Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba, who were subject kings under Sihon and lived in his land.
22 In addition to the Midianites who were killed, the Israelites killed with the sword Balaam son of Beor, who practiced divination.
23 The border of the descendants of Reuben was the Jordan River. This was the border of the inheritance of the descendants of Reuben according to their clans—the cities and their villages.
Gad
24 Moses also gave land to the tribe of Gad, to the descendants of Gad according to their clans.
25 Their territory included Jazer, and all the cities of Gilead, and half of the land of the descendants of Ammon, as far as Aroer, which is near Rabbah.
26 Also it extended from Heshbon to Ramat Hamizpah and Betonim, and from Mahanaim to the border of Debir.
27 Also in the valley he gave them Beth Haram, Beth Nimrah, and Succoth, as well as Zaphon, and the rest of the kingdom of Sihon king of Heshbon, with the Jordan as a border, up to the end of the Sea of Galilee, [6] the region beyond the Jordan to the east.
28 This is the inheritance of the descendants of Gad according to their clans—the cities and their villages.
Half Manasseh
29 Moses also gave land to the half tribe of Manasseh. It was given to the half tribe of the descendants of Manasseh according to their clans.
30 Their territory extended from Mahanaim through all of Bashan, including all the kingdom of Og king of Bashan and all the tent villages of Jair, which are in Bashan—sixty cities in all.
31 He gave half of Gilead, also Ashtaroth and Edrei, cities belonging to the kingdom of Og in Bashan, to the descendants of Makir, the son of Manasseh, to half of the descendants of Makir according to their clans.
32 These territories are what Moses had given as an inheritance while in the Plains of Moab from the region beyond the Jordan of Jericho to the east.
33 But to the tribe of Levi, Moses had not given an inheritance. The Lord, the God of Israel—he is their inheritance, as he had said to them.
The Division of the Land of Canaan
Joshua 14
1 The following are the allotted inheritances for the descendants of Israel in the land of Canaan, which Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the leading fathers [7] of the tribes allotted as an inheritance to the people of Israel. 2 The inheritances for nine tribes and the half tribe of Manasseh were determined by lot, just as the Lord had commanded through Moses.
3 Moses had already assigned inheritances to two tribes and to one half tribe in the region east of the Jordan, but to the Levites he did not give an inheritance among the other tribes. 4 Because the sons of Joseph had been divided into two tribes, namely, Manasseh and Ephraim, the Levites did not receive a tribal territory in the land. They did, however, receive cities to live in along with the cities’ pasturelands for their cattle and property. [8]5 Just as the Lord had commanded Moses, that is what the people of Israel did when they apportioned the land.
Judah Caleb’s Request
6 When the people of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal, Caleb son of Jephunneh, the Kenizzite, said this to him:
You know what the Lord spoke to Moses, the man of God, concerning you and me in Kadesh Barnea. 7 I was forty years old when Moses, the servant of the Lord, sent me from Kadesh Barnea to scout the land, and I brought back to him my heartfelt advice. 8 When my brother Israelites who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt, I nevertheless fully followed the Lord my God. 9 So Moses swore an oath to me on that day. He said, “Most certainly the land on which your foot has walked shall be an inheritance for you and for your children forever, because you fully followed the Lord my God.”
10 So now as you see, the Lord has kept me alive, just as he said, for these forty-five years since the Lord spoke this promise to Moses when Israel was traveling in the wilderness. So now, here I am today, eighty-five years old! 11 I am still as strong today as on the day that Moses sent me out. My strength for going out and for coming back from battle is the same now as it was then.
12 So now, give me this place in the hill country that the Lord promised that day. Even though you heard on that day that the Anakites are there, as well as large fortified cities, perhaps the Lord will be with me, and I will drive them out, just as the Lord said.
13 So Joshua blessed him, and he gave Hebron to Caleb son of Jephunneh as an inheritance. 14 Therefore Hebron has belonged to Caleb son of Jephunneh, the Kenizzite, as an inheritance to this day, because he fully followed after the Lord, the God of Israel. 15 The name of Hebron formerly was Kiriath Arba. Arba was the greatest man among the Anakites.
So the land rested from war.
The Borders of Judah
Joshua 15
1 This was the allotment for the tribe of the descendants of Judah according to their clans. It extended south to the border with Edom and through the Negev to the Wilderness of Zin in the extreme south.
2 Their border on the south started from the south end of the Dead Sea, [9] from the bay [10] that faces south.
3 It goes south from the Ascent of Akrabbim and crosses over to Zin and ascends from south of Kadesh Barnea.
Then it crosses over to Hezron and ascends to Adar and curves around to Karka.
4 Then it crosses over to Azmon and goes out to the Stream of Egypt. [11]
The border ends at the Mediterranean Sea.
This is your southern border.
5 The border on the east is the Dead Sea, [12] up to the mouth of the Jordan.
The border on the north side starts from the bay of the sea at the mouth of the Jordan.
6 The border ascends to Beth Hoglah and crosses over north of Beth Arabah.
Then the border ascends to the Stone of Bohan, the son of Reuben.
7 Then the border ascends to Debir from the Valley of Achor and turns north toward Gilgal, which is opposite the Ascent of Adummim, which is south of the streambed.
Then the border crosses over to the waters of En Shemesh, ending at En Rogel.
8 Then the border ascends through the Valley of the Son of Hinnom at the slope of the Jebusites on the south side of Jerusalem.
Then the border ascends to the top of the mountain that is across the Valley of Hinnom on the west side, where Hinnom meets the north end of the Valley of Rephaim.
9 Then the border bends from the top of the mountain to the spring of the Waters of Nephtoah and goes out to the cities of Mount Ephron.
Then the border bends toward Baalah—that is, Kiriath Jearim.
10 The border curves around from Baalah westward to Mount Seir and crosses over to the slope of Mount Jearim from the north—that is, Kesalon—and descends to Beth Shemesh, then crosses over to Timnah.
11 The border goes out to the slope of Ekron, on the north.
Then the border bends to Shikkeron and crosses over Mount Baalah and goes out to Jabne’el, and the border ends at the sea.
12 The border on the west—the Mediterranean Sea [13] is the border.
This is the border on all sides for the descendants of Judah according to their clans.
Footnotes
Joshua 13:3 The word seren is a special word used only of the rulers of the five Philistine city states. It seems to be a Philistine term. It may be related to the Greek word tyrant, an autocratic ruler of a city state. Seren is apparently a title like pharaoh or czar, which is applied to one specific class of rulers. Since this is a unique title, the EHV uses the transliteration seren rather than the traditional rendering lord.
Joshua 13:4 Or perhaps from Arah. The meaning and location of this place name are uncertain.
Joshua 13:5 The city of Gebal is also called Byblos. This Greek version of the name is the more common name of the city in English.
Joshua 13:9 The Hebrew term mishor refers to a high plateau. It often refers to this specific area near Medeba, in which case it can be translated as a proper name, Mishor.
Joshua 13:12 See the note at 12:4.
Joshua 13:27 Hebrew Sea of Kinneret
Joshua 14:1 Fathers is a common title for the ruling elders among the Israelites.
Joshua 14:4 That is, there were already a total of twelve tribal allotments without granting a tribal allotment for Levi. Levi’s inheritance, therefore, was within the territory of other tribes.
Joshua 15:2 Hebrew Salt Sea
Joshua 15:2 The Hebrew word lashon, translated bay in this verse and in verse 5, means tongue. Tongue might plausibly refer to a tongue-shaped bay, but there are no noticeable bays or peninsulas on the north and south shores of the sea, so the significance of the term in these verses is uncertain. It may simply mean shore or end.
Joshua 15:4 This is not the Nile but one of the seasonal streams in the wilderness, perhaps at Arish. It is also called the Wadi of Egypt or the Brook of Egypt.
1 When Jabin king of Hazor heard what had happened, he sent word to Jobab king of Madon, to the king of Shimron, to the king of Akshaph, 2 and to the kings in the northern hill country, those in the Arabah south of Kinneret, [1] in the Shephelah, and in Naphoth Dor to the west, 3 as well as to the Canaanites in the east and the west, and to the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, and the Jebusites in the hill country, and to the Hivites below Mount Hermon in the land of Mizpah. 4 They came out—they and all their divisions with them—a people as numerous as the sand on the seashore, together with very many horses and chariots. 5 All these kings gathered together. They came and camped together at the Waters of Merom to wage war against Israel.
6 But the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, because tomorrow at this time I will give all of them to Israel as corpses. You are to hamstring their horses and burn their chariots with fire.”
7 So Joshua and all the military forces with him came upon them suddenly at the Waters of Merom and attacked them. 8 The Lord gave them into the hand of Israel, and they struck them and pursued them as far as Great Sidon, as far as Misrephoth Maim, and as far east as the Valley of Mizpah. They struck them down until they left no survivor for them. 9 Joshua did to them just as the Lord had said to him: He hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots with fire.
10 Joshua turned back at that time and captured Hazor. He struck down its king with the sword, even though Hazor had formerly been the head of all these kingdoms. 11 The Israelites struck down every living thing that was in Hazor with the edge of the sword, devoting them to destruction. He left nothing breathing, and Hazor he burned with fire.
12 Joshua captured all the cities of these kings and all their kings. He struck them with the edge of the sword. He devoted them to destruction just as Moses, the servant of the Lord, had commanded. 13 But none of the cities standing on their mounds were burned by Israel—except that Joshua did burn Hazor. 14 All of the plunder from these cities, including the cattle, was taken by the people of Israel as spoils of war for themselves, but they struck down every person with the edge of the sword until they had exterminated them all. They did not leave anything that breathed. 15 Just as the Lord had commanded his servant Moses, so Moses commanded Joshua, and so Joshua did. He did not fail to carry out a single word of everything that the Lord had commanded Moses.
16 So Joshua took all this land: the hill country, [2] all the Negev, [3] all the land of Goshen, [4] the Shephelah, [5] the Arabah, [6] the mountainous region of Israel and its foothills, 17 from Mount Halak that rises to Seir, as far as Baal Gad in the Valley of Lebanon under Mount Hermon. He captured all their kings. He struck them and put them to death. 18 For many days [7] Joshua made war with all these kings. 19 There was no city that made peace with the people of Israel except for the Hivites living in Gibeon. The Israelites took them all in battle, 20 for it was the Lord who hardened their hearts so that they would confront Israel in battle and would be devoted to destruction, and they would not receive mercy but would be destroyed, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
21 At that time Joshua went and cut off the Anakites [8] from the hill country—from Hebron, from Debir, from Anab, and from all the hill country of Judah and from all the hill country of Israel. Joshua devoted them and their cities to destruction. 22 There were no Anakites remaining in the land of the Israelites. Only in Gaza, in Gath, and in Ashdod were they left. 23 So Joshua took the whole land according to everything the Lord had spoken to Moses, and Joshua gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to their allotments for their tribes. Then the land rested from war.
The Conquered Kings East of the Jordan
Joshua 12
1 The following are the kings of the land whom the people of Israel struck down and then took possession of their land, which was east of the Jordan toward the rising of the sun, from the Arnon Canyon to Mount Hermon, including all of the Arabah east of the Jordan.
2 The first was Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon. He ruled over the territory that extends from Aroer, which is on the edge of the Arnon Canyon, and from the middle of the canyon [9] all the way north to the Jabbok Canyon, which is the border of the Ammonites. 3 This includes half of Gilead. He also ruled over the eastern part of the Arabah [10] from the Sea of Kinneret [11] south as far as the Sea of the Arabah, which is the Salt Sea, [12] and east in the direction of Beth Jeshimoth and south as far as the slopes of Pisgah.
4 The second area was the territory of Og king of Bashan, who was from a remnant of the Rephaim [13] and who lived in Ashtaroth and in Edrei. 5 He was ruler in Mount Hermon, in Salekah, and in all Bashan up to the border of the Geshurites and the Ma’akathites, [14] and in half of Gilead as far south as the border of Sihon king of Heshbon.
6 Moses, the servant of the Lord, and the people of Israel struck them down. Moses, the servant of the Lord, gave this land east of the Jordan as a possession to the tribe of Reuben, to the tribe of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh.
The Conquered Kings West of the Jordan
7 The following are the kings of the land that Joshua and the people of Israel struck down in the area west of the Jordan, from Baal Gad in the Valley of Lebanon to Mount Halak, which rises toward Seir. Joshua gave it to the tribes of Israel as a possession according to their allotments, 8 which were in the hill country, in the Shephelah, in the Arabah, on the slopes, in the wilderness, and in the Negev—land that formerly was the land of the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites:
9 the king of Jericho
one
the king of Ai, which is next to Bethel
one
10 the king of Jerusalem
one
the king of Hebron
one
11 the king of Jarmuth
one
the king of Lachish
one
12 the king of Eglon
one
the king of Gezer
one
13 the king of Debir
one
the king of Geder
one
14 the king of Hormah
one
the king of Arad
one
15 the king of Libnah
one
the king of Adullam
one
16 the king of Makkedah
one
the king of Bethel
one
17 the king of Tappuah
one
the king of Hepher
one
18 the king of Aphek
one
the king for the Sharon Plain [15]
one
19 the king of Madon
one
the king of Hazor
one
20 the king of Shimron Meron
one
the king of Akshaph
one
21 the king of Ta’anach
one
the king of Megiddo
one
22 the king of Kedesh
one
the king of Jokneam in Carmel
one
23 the king of Dor in Naphoth Dor
one
the king of Goyim in Gilgal
one
24 the king of Tirzah
one
all of the kings
thirty-one.
Footnotes
Joshua 11:2 A city near the Sea of Galilee, or the sea itself, which is also called Kinneret.
Joshua 11:16 The Hebrew is literally the mountain. The EHV retains the traditional rendering hill country for the highland regions of Israel. (This section of Joshua is the key to learning the geography of Israel.)
Joshua 11:16 The Negev is the arid region in the southern part of Judah.
Joshua 11:16 Not to be confused with the land of Goshen in Egypt, this Goshen seems to be along the western side of Judah.
Joshua 11:16 Shephelah, which means “low region,” is the name for the foothills west of the hill country.
Joshua 11:16 The Arabah is the deep valley that contains the Jordan River and continues south of the Dead Sea.
Joshua 11:18 About seven years
Joshua 11:21 The Anakites were some of the earliest inhabitants of Canaan. They were known for their giant stature.
Joshua 12:2 The parallel passage in Joshua 13:9 reads from the city that is in the middle of the canyon.
Joshua 12:3 That is, the deep valley which contains the Jordan River
Joshua 12:3 That is, the Sea of Galilee
Joshua 12:3 That is, the Dead Sea
Joshua 12:4 Rephaim is the name of a group of people known for their great height. Og, as well as the strong warriors who fought David’s elite warriors (2 Samuel 21:16-20), were Rephaim. Goliath likely was also one of them. Their name seems to have come from a forefather named Rapha (2 Samuel 21:16). They seem to have been the earliest inhabitants of the land. By the time of the judges only a remnant of them was left. They were also known as Emim and Zamzummim.
Joshua 12:5 The stop mark ′ indicates that the double a should be pronounced as two syllables, Ma-ak.
1 When Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had captured Ai and devoted it to destruction, and that Joshua had done to Ai and its king exactly what he had done to Jericho and its king, and that the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were allied with them, 2 then he and those with him were very afraid because Gibeon was a large city, like one of the royal capital cities. It was larger than Ai, and all its men were warriors. 3 So Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem sent word to Hoham king of Hebron, to Piram king of Jarmuth, to Japhia king of Lachish, and to Debir king of Eglon. He said, 4 “Come up, join me, and help me. We must attack Gibeon, because it made peace with Joshua and with the Israelites.”
5 So the five kings of the Amorites—namely, 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 with all their divisions. [1] They set up camp around Gibeon and waged war against it.
6 The men of Gibeon sent word to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal, saying, “Do not withdraw your hand from your servants. Come up to us quickly! Save us! Help us, because all the kings of the Amorites living in the hill country have united themselves against us.”
7 So Joshua went up from Gilgal—he and all the military forces with him, including all the strong warriors.
8 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, because I have given them into your hand. Not a man among them will be able to stand in your presence.”
9 So Joshua came upon them unexpectedly by marching up from Gilgal all night. 10 The Lord threw them into a panic before Israel, and he struck a powerful blow against them at Gibeon. Then he chased them on the road that goes up to Beth Horon, and he struck them as far as Azekah and Makkedah. 11 While they were fleeing from Israel on the descent from Beth Horon, the Lord hurled large stones from the heavens on them all the way to Azekah. So they died. Those who died from the hailstones were many more than those whom the Israelites killed by the sword.
12 Then Joshua spoke to the Lord on the day that the Lord gave the Amorites into the power of Israel ⎣when he struck them down at Gibeon, and they were struck down before the people of Israel⎦. [2] He said in the sight of Israel:
Sun, rest at Gibeon. Moon, rest at the Valley of Aijalon. 13 The sun rested, and the moon stood still until a nation could avenge itself on its enemies.
Is this not written in the Book of Jashar? [3] The sun stood still in the middle of the sky and did not hurry to set for about a whole day. 14 There has never been a day like that day either before it or after it, a day when the Lord listened to the voice of a man, for the Lord was fighting for Israel.
15 Then Joshua and all Israel with him returned to the camp at Gilgal.
16 Those five kings fled and hid in the cave at Makkedah. 17 It was reported to Joshua: “The five kings have been found hiding in the cave at Makkedah.”
18 So Joshua said, “Roll large stones against the mouth of the cave, and station men over it to guard them. 19 But you—do not stand still. Chase your enemies and attack them from the rear. [4] Do not give them a chance to get to their cities, because the Lord your God has given them into your hand.”
20 When Joshua and the people of Israel had inflicted a devastating blow upon them, to the point that they were almost wiped out (though a small group of survivors escaped into the fortified cities), 21 then all the people returned safely to the camp of Joshua at Makkedah. No one dared to speak a word against [5] the people of Israel—against any one of them!
22 Then Joshua said, “Open the mouth of the cave, and bring those five kings out to me from the cave.” 23 They did so and brought those five kings out to him 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 When they had brought those kings out to Joshua, he summoned every man of Israel and said to the commanders of the fighting men who had gone with him, “Come, put your feet on the necks of these kings.” So they came and put their feet on their necks.
25 Then Joshua said to them, “Do not be afraid. Do not be overwhelmed. Be strong and courageous because the Lord will do these same things to all your enemies against whom you are waging war.” 26 Joshua struck them down after that, and after he had killed them, he hung them on five trees. They were hung on the trees until evening.
27 At sunset Joshua gave the command, and they took them down from the trees and threw them into the cave where they had hidden themselves. They placed large stones over the mouth of the cave, which remain there to this very day.
28 Joshua captured Makkedah on that day and struck it and its king with the edge of the sword. He devoted it to destruction, together with every living thing that was in it. He did not leave a survivor. So he did to the king of Makkedah just as he had done to the king of Jericho.
29 Then Joshua and all Israel with him moved on from Makkedah to Libnah and waged war against Libnah. 30 The Lord gave it into the hand of Israel, together with its king. He struck Libnah with the edge of the sword, together with every living thing that was in it. He did not leave a survivor in it. So he did to its king just as he had done to the king of Jericho.
31 Next Joshua and all Israel with him moved on from Libnah to Lachish. He set up camp against it and waged war against it. 32 The Lord gave Lachish into the hand of Israel. He captured it on the second day, and he struck it with the edge of the sword, together with every living thing that was in it, exactly as he had done to Libnah.
33 Then Horam king of Gezer came up to help Lachish, but Joshua struck him and his people until he did not leave one survivor for him.
34 Then Joshua and all Israel with him moved from Lachish to Eglon. They set up camp against it and waged war against it. 35 They captured it on that day and struck it with the edge of the sword, together with every living thing that was in it. On that day he devoted it to destruction, exactly as he had done to Lachish.
36 Then Joshua and all Israel with him went up from Eglon to Hebron, and they waged war against it. 37 They captured it and struck it with the edge of the sword together with its king and all its settlements and every living thing that was in it. He did not leave a survivor, exactly as he had done to Eglon. He devoted it to destruction, along with every living thing in it.
38 Next Joshua and all Israel with him turned back to Debir and waged war against it. 39 He captured it, together with its king and all its settlements. They struck them with the edge of the sword and devoted to destruction every living thing that was in it. He did not leave a survivor. Just as he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir and its king, just as he had done to Libnah and its king.
40 In this way Joshua struck the whole land: the hill country, [6] the Negev, [7] the Shephelah, [8] and the slopes, [9] together with all their kings. He did not leave a survivor. Every breathing thing he devoted to destruction, just as the Lord, the God of Israel, had commanded him. 41 Joshua struck them from Kadesh Barnea all the way to Gaza and from the whole land of Goshen [10] all the way to Gibeon. 42 All of these kings and their land Joshua captured at one time because the Lord, the God of Israel, was fighting for Israel. 43 Then Joshua and all Israel with him returned to the camp at Gilgal.
Footnotes
Joshua 10:5 Literally all their camps
Joshua 10:12 The words in half-brackets are not in the Hebrew text but appear in the Greek Old Testament. The words that are not present in the Hebrew text lie between two occurrences of the word Israel, so the copyist’s eye may have skipped from one occurrence to another.
Joshua 10:13 Or the Book of the Upright
Joshua 10:19 Or cut off their rear guard
Joshua 10:21 Literally sharpen his tongue at
Joshua 10:40 Or highlands. The Hebrew is literally the mountain. The translation retains the traditional rendering hill country for the highland regions of Israel. Here it refers to the central mountain ridge of Israel.
Joshua 10:40 The Negev is the arid region in the southern part of Judah. EHV uses the book of Joshua to teach the Hebrew geographic terms which occur frequently as English transliterations.
Joshua 10:40 Shephelah, which means “low region,” is the name for the foothills west of the hill country.
Joshua 10:40 The slopes seem to be the descents on the eastern and western sides of the hill country.
Joshua 10:41 This Goshen seems to be along the western side of Judah and is not to be confused with the Goshen in Egypt.
1 When all the kings who were west of the Jordan in the hill country, [1] in the Shephelah, [2] and along the entire coast of the Mediterranean Sea [3] as far as Lebanon (the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites) heard what had happened, 2 they gathered together with one purpose: to wage war against Joshua and Israel.
3 However, when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai, 4 they responded by coming up with a clever scheme: They gathered their provisions as if they were going on a trip. [4] They loaded worn-out sacks on their donkeys and wineskins that were worn-out, split, and mended. 5 They put worn-out, patched sandals on their feet, and they put on worn-out clothing. All the bread in their provisions was dried out. It had begun to crumble. 6 Then they came to Joshua at the camp at Gilgal and told him and the men of Israel, “We have come from a land far away. So now, make a treaty with us.”
7 The men of Israel said to the Hivites, “Perhaps you live among us. How can we make a treaty with you?”
8 They said to Joshua, “We are your servants.”
So Joshua said to them, “Who are you, and where do you come from?”
9 They said to him, “Because of the Name of the Lord your God, your servants have come from a land very far away. For we heard the report about him and all that he did in Egypt 10 and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were in the area east of the Jordan—to Sihon king of Heshbon and to Og king of Bashan, who was in Ashtaroth. 11 Our elders and all the inhabitants of our land said to us, ‘Take in your hand provisions for the journey and go to meet them. You should say to them, “We are your servants, so now make a treaty with us.”’ 12 This bread of ours was hot when we packed for the trip at our houses on the day we set out to come to you. Now, look, it is dried out and has become crumbs! 13 The wineskins were new when we filled them. Look, they have burst! Look at our clothing and our sandals. They wore out because of the great length of the journey.”
14 Then the men of Israel took some of their provisions, but they did not seek the word of the Lord. 15 So Joshua made peace with them. He made a treaty with them to let them live, and the leaders of the community swore an oath to them.
16 But three days after they had made the treaty with them, the Israelites heard that they were their neighbors, that is, that they were living among them. 17 So the people of Israel set out and came to the Gibeonites’ cities on the third day. Their cities were Gibeon, Kephirah, Be’eroth, [5] and Kiriath Jearim. 18 But the people of Israel did not attack them because the leaders of the congregation had sworn an oath to them by the Lord, the God of Israel. So the whole community grumbled against the leaders.
19 All the leaders said to the community, “We swore an oath to them by the Lord, the God of Israel, so now we are not able to touch them. 20 This is what we should do with them: We will keep them alive so that there will not be anger against us because of the oath that we swore to them.” 21 Then the leaders said to the community, “They shall live!” So they became wood cutters and water carriers for the whole community, just as the leaders had advised concerning them.
22 Then Joshua summoned them and said to them, “Why did you deceive us by saying, ‘We live very far away from you,’ when in fact you live right among us? 23 So now you are cursed! The name ‘slave’ will never be removed from you. You will always be wood cutters and water carriers for the house of my God.”
24 They answered Joshua, “Your servants were told very clearly that the Lord your God commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land and to exterminate all the inhabitants of the land from your presence. We feared greatly for our lives because of you. That is why we did this. 25 So here we are, in your hand. Whatever seems good and right in your eyes to do to us, do it.”
26 So that is what he did to them. He saved them from the hand of the people of Israel so that they did not kill them. 27 On that day Joshua designated them as wood cutters and water carriers for the community and for the altar of the Lord, for the place the Lord would choose, until this very day.
Footnotes
Joshua 9:1 Or highlands. The word traditionally translated hill country is the same Hebrew word that means mountain. But in many cases, as it does here, it refers to highland regions, not to a mountain peak. This translation retains the traditional rendering hill country for the highland regions of Israel.
Joshua 9:1 The Shephelah is the region of foothills west of the central mountain range of Israel.
Joshua 9:1 Hebrew Great Sea
Joshua 9:4 The meaning of this sentence is uncertain.
Joshua 9:17 The stop mark ′ is inserted into some names as a pronunciation guide. The double vowel in Beer should not be read as one syllable, Beer, but as two syllables, Be-er.
1 The Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid. Do not be overwhelmed. Take with you the whole military force [1] and get ready to go up to Ai. You see, I have given the king of Ai into your hand with his people, his city, and his land. 2 You shall do to Ai and its king just as you did to Jericho and its king, but its plunder and its livestock you may take as spoils of war for yourselves. Set an ambush for the city on the west side of it.”
3 So Joshua and the whole military force got ready to go up to Ai. Joshua chose thirty thousand men, strong warriors, and sent them out during the night. 4 He commanded them, “See to it that you set up an ambush against the city on its west side, not very far from the city. All of you are to be on alert. 5 Then I and all the people who are with me will approach the city. When the men of Ai come out to face us just as they did the first time, we will flee from them. 6 They will come out after us until we lure them away from the city, because they will say, ‘They are fleeing from us just as they did the first time!’ and we will flee from them. 7 Then you are to spring up from the ambush and seize the city, and the Lord your God will give it into your hand. 8 When you have taken the city, you are to set the city on fire. According to the word of the Lord you are to act in this way. Look, I have commanded you.”
9 So Joshua sent them out, and they went to the place for the ambush. They lay hidden on the west side of Ai, between Bethel and Ai. But Joshua spent that night among the people of the main force.
10 Joshua got up early in the morning, and he mustered the people. Then he went up—he and the elders of Israel—leading the main force of the people to Ai. 11 The whole military force that was with him went up and advanced. They arrived opposite the city, and they camped north of Ai. The valley was between Joshua and Ai. 12 He had taken about five thousand men and set them as an ambush between Bethel and Ai, on the west side of the city.
13 This is how they positioned the people: The whole army that had come from the camp was north of the city, but the detachment in the ambush was west of the city. That night Joshua went out into the middle of the valley.
14 When the king of Ai saw this, the men of the city got up quickly and went out to face Israel in battle—the king and all his people—at the chosen place [2] facing the Arabah. But he did not know that there was an ambush for him west of the city. 15 Then Joshua and all Israel pretended to be beaten before them and fled toward the wilderness. 16 All the people that were in the city were marshaled to pursue them. As they pursued Joshua, they were lured away from the city. 17 So not a man was left in Ai or Bethel who did not go out after Israel. They left the city open and pursued Israel.
18 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Point toward Ai with the javelin that is in your hand, because I will give Ai into your hand.” So Joshua reached out toward the city with the javelin that was in his hand. 19 The ambush force quickly sprang up from its place and came running as soon as he reached out his hand. Then they went into the city, took it, and quickly set it on fire.
20 The men of Ai turned to look behind them, and, to their surprise, the smoke of the city was rising to the sky! They were not strong enough to escape this way or that, because the people of Israel who had been fleeing toward the wilderness turned back against the pursuers. 21 When Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush force had taken the city and that smoke was rising from the city, they turned back and struck the men of Ai. 22 Then the other Israelites came out of the city against the men of Ai so that they were trapped in the middle of Israel, with some Israelites on this side of them and some on that. So Israel struck them down until there was no one left, no survivor, no escapee. 23 But they took the king of Ai alive and brought him to Joshua.
24 When Israel had finished killing all the inhabitants of Ai who were in the open country of the wilderness, into which the men of Ai had pursued them, and when all of the men of Ai had fallen by the edge [3] of the sword so that they were finished off, then all Israel turned back to Ai and struck it with the edge of the sword. 25 All those who fell that day, both men and women, were twelve thousand—all the people of Ai. 26 Joshua did not lower his hand that held the javelin until he had completely destroyed all the inhabitants of Ai. 27 But the livestock and the plunder from that city the Israelites took as spoils of war for themselves, according to the word of the Lord that he had commanded Joshua.
28 Then Joshua burned Ai and reduced it to a mound of rubble, which lies in ruins to this day. 29 He hanged the king of Ai on a tree [4] until evening. When the sun was setting, Joshua gave the command, and they took down his corpse from the tree and threw it at the entrance to the gatehouse of the city. Then they erected a large heap of stones over him, which remains to this day.
The Altar at Mount Ebal
30 Then Joshua built an altar to the Lord, the God of Israel, on Mount Ebal, 31 just as Moses, the servant of the Lord, had commanded the people of Israel. According to the directions written in the Book of the Law of Moses, it was an altar of uncut stones, upon which no one had used an iron tool. They offered up burnt offerings to the Lord on it, and they also sacrificed fellowship offerings.
32 There on the stones Joshua wrote a copy of the Law of Moses, which he wrote in the presence of the people of Israel.
33 All Israel with its elders and officers and its judges were standing on both sides of the ark facing the priests from the tribe of Levi who held the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord. Both the resident aliens and the native-born stood there, half in front of Mount Gerizim and half in front of Mount Ebal, just as Moses, the servant of the Lord, had commanded previously, so that the people of Israel could be blessed.
34 After that, Joshua read aloud all the words of the law, the blessing and the curse, exactly as all of it is written in the Book of the Law.
35 There was not one word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read aloud before the whole assembly of Israel, including the women, the children, and the aliens living among them.
Footnotes
Joshua 8:1 Literally the people of war
Joshua 8:14 The battle site may have been chosen by either army or dictated by the terrain.
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