Passage Resources Hebrew/Greek Your Content
Previous Next
Add parallel Print Page Options
Close LSB

Joshua 10
Legacy Standard Bible

Five Kings Attack Gibeon

10 Now it happened that when Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had captured Ai and had devoted it to destruction (just (A)as he had done to Jericho and its king, so he had done to Ai and its king), and that the inhabitants of Gibeon had (B)made peace with Israel and were [a]within their land, 2 they (C)feared exceedingly because Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all its men were mighty. 3 Therefore Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem sent word (D)to Hoham king of Hebron and to Piram king of Jarmuth and to Japhia king of Lachish and to Debir king of Eglon, saying, 4 “Come up to me and help me, and let us strike Gibeon, for it has (E)made peace with Joshua and with the sons of Israel.” 5 So the five kings of (F)the Amorites, 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 with all their armies, and camped by Gibeon and fought against it.

6 Then the men of Gibeon sent word to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal, saying, “Do not [b]abandon your slaves; come up to us quickly and save us and help us, for all the kings of the Amorites that live in the hill country have assembled against us.” 7 So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he and (G)all the people of war with him and all the valiant warriors. 8 And Yahweh said to Joshua, “(H)Do not fear them, for I have given them into your hands; not [c]one of them shall stand before you.” 9 So Joshua came upon them suddenly—he had gone up, marching all night from Gilgal. 10 (I)And Yahweh threw them into confusion before Israel, and He struck them with a great slaughter at Gibeon and pursued them by the way of the ascent of Beth-horon and struck them as far as Azekah and Makkedah. 11 Now it happened as they fled from before Israel, while they were at the descent of Beth-horon, that (J)Yahweh threw down large stones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died; there were more who died [d]from the hailstones than those whom the sons of Israel killed with the sword.

12 Then Joshua spoke to Yahweh in the day when Yahweh gave over the Amorites before the sons of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel,

“O (K)sun, stand still at Gibeon,
And O moon in the valley of Aijalon.”
13 (L)So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped,
Until the nation avenged themselves of their enemies.

Is it not written in (M)the book of Jashar? And (N)the sun stood in the middle of the sky and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day. 14 And there was no day like that before it or after it, when Yahweh listened to the voice of a man; for (O)Yahweh fought for Israel.

15 Then Joshua and all Israel with him returned to the camp to Gilgal.

Joshua Captures Makkedah

16 And these (P)five kings fled and hid themselves in the cave at Makkedah. 17 Then it was told Joshua, saying, “The five kings have been found hidden in the cave at Makkedah.” 18 And Joshua said, “Roll large stones against the mouth of the cave and assign men by it to keep watch over them, 19 but as for you, do not stand there; pursue your enemies and [e]attack them in the rear. Do not allow them to enter their cities, for Yahweh your God has given them into your hand.” 20 Now it happened when Joshua and the sons of Israel had finished striking them with a very great slaughter (Q)until they were completely destroyed, and the survivors—those of them who survived—[f]had entered the fortified cities, 21 that all the people returned to the camp to Joshua at Makkedah in peace. No one so much as [g]lifted his tongue against any of the sons of Israel.

22 Then Joshua said, “Open the mouth of the cave and bring these five kings out to me from the cave.” 23 And they did so and (R)brought these 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 Now it happened that when they brought these kings out to Joshua, Joshua called for all the men of Israel and said to the chiefs of the men of war who had gone with him, “Come near, (S)put your feet on the necks of these kings.” So they came near and put their feet on their necks. 25 Joshua then said to them, “(T)Do not fear or be dismayed! Be strong and courageous, for thus Yahweh will do to all your enemies with whom you fight.” 26 So afterward Joshua struck them and put them to death, and he (U)hanged them on five trees; and they hung on the trees until evening. 27 Now it happened that at [h]sunset Joshua gave a command, and (V)they took them down from the trees and threw them down into the cave where they had hidden themselves, and they put large stones over the mouth of the cave, to this very day.

28 Now Joshua captured Makkedah on that day and struck it and its king with the edge of the sword; (W)he [i]devoted [j]it to destruction and every [k]person who was in it. He left no survivor. Thus he did to the king of Makkedah (X)just as he had done to the king of Jericho.

Israel Captures Kings by Yahweh’s Sword

29 Then Joshua and all Israel with him passed on from Makkedah to (Y)Libnah and fought against Libnah. 30 And Yahweh gave it also with its king into the hands of Israel, and he struck it and every person who was in it with the edge of the sword. He left no survivor remaining in it. Thus he did to its king just as he had done to the king of Jericho.

31 And Joshua and all Israel with him passed on from Libnah to Lachish, and they camped by it and fought against it. 32 And Yahweh gave Lachish into the hands of Israel; and he captured it on the second day and struck it and every person who was in it with the edge of the sword, according to all that he had done to Libnah.

33 Then Horam king of (Z)Gezer came up to help Lachish, and Joshua struck him and his people down until [l]there was no survivor remaining for him.

34 And Joshua and all Israel with him passed on from Lachish to Eglon, and they camped by it and fought against it. 35 And they captured it on that day and struck it with the edge of the sword; and every person who was in it, he devoted to destruction on that day according to all that he had done to Lachish.

36 Then Joshua and all Israel with him went up from Eglon to (AA)Hebron, and they fought against it. 37 And they captured it and struck it and its king and all its cities and all the persons who were in it with the edge of the sword. He left no survivor remaining, according to all that he had done to Eglon. And he devoted it and every person who was in it to destruction.

38 Then Joshua and all Israel with him returned to (AB)Debir, and they fought against it. 39 And he captured it and its king and all its cities, and they struck them with the edge of the sword and devoted every person who was in it to destruction. He left no survivor remaining. Just as he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir and its king, as he had also done to Libnah and its king.

40 Thus Joshua struck all the land—(AC)the hill country and the [m]Negev and the [n]Shephelah and the slopes—as well as (AD)all their kings. He left no survivor remaining, but (AE)he devoted to destruction all who breathed, just as Yahweh, the God of Israel, had commanded. 41 And Joshua struck them from Kadesh-barnea even as far as Gaza, and all the country of (AF)Goshen even as far as Gibeon. 42 And Joshua captured all these kings and their lands at one time because (AG)Yahweh, the God of Israel, fought for Israel. 43 So Joshua and all Israel with him returned to the camp at Gilgal.

Footnotes

  1. Joshua 10:1 Lit among them
  2. Joshua 10:6 Lit slacken your hands from
  3. Joshua 10:8 Lit a man
  4. Joshua 10:11 Lit with
  5. Joshua 10:19 Lit smite their tail
  6. Joshua 10:20 Lit and had
  7. Joshua 10:21 Lit sharpened
  8. Joshua 10:27 Lit the time of the going of the sun
  9. Joshua 10:28 Or put under the ban, so in ch
  10. Joshua 10:28 Some mss them
  11. Joshua 10:28 Lit soul, so in ch
  12. Joshua 10:33 Lit he had no survivor
  13. Joshua 10:40 South country
  14. Joshua 10:40 Or lowland
Close ISV

Joshua 10
International Standard Version

The Sun Stands Still

10 King Adoni-zedek of Jerusalem eventually heard how Joshua had conquered Ai, utterly destroying it, doing to Ai and its king the same thing that he had done to Jericho and its king, and how the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were now living among them. 2 So they[a] were terrified, since Gibeon was a large city, comparable to one of the royal cities, was larger than Ai, and all of its men had been warriors.

3 So King Adoni-zedek of Jerusalem sent word to King Hoham of Hebron, King Piram of Jarmuth, King Japhia of Lachish, and King Debir of Eglon. He told them, 4 “Come over and help me, and let’s attack Gibeon, because it made a peace treaty with Joshua and the Israelis.” 5 So the five kings of the Amorites—the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon—gathered their armies together and advanced with all of their armies toward Gideon, camped there, and laid siege to it.

6 The Gibeonites sent word to Joshua at his camp in Gilgal: “Don’t abandon your servants. Come quickly, save us, and help us, because all of the kings of the Amorites who live in the hill country have attacked us.” 7 So Joshua went up from Gilgal, along with his entire fighting force of mighty warriors with him.

8 The Lord told Joshua, “Don’t fear them, because I have handed them over to you. Not one of them will withstand you.” 9 So after an all-night march from Gilgal, Joshua attacked them by surprise. 10 The Lord threw the Amorites[b] into a panic right in front of the army[c] of Israel, which then slaughtered many of them at Gibeon. The Israeli army[d] chased them along the road that goes up to Beth-horon, striking them down as far as Azekah and Makkedah. 11 While they were fleeing in front of Israel and descending the slope of Beth-horon, the Lord rained down huge hailstones on them as far as Azekah, and they died. More died because of the hailstones than were killed by the Israelis in battle.[e] 12 Later that day, Joshua spoke to the Lord while the Lord was delivering the Amorites to the Israelis. This is what he said in the presence of Israel:

“Sun, be still over Gibeon!
    Moon, stand in place[f] in the Aijalon Valley!”

13 So the sun remained still
    and the moon stood in place
        until the nation settled their score with their enemies.

This is recorded, is it not, in the book of Jashar?[g]

The sun stood in place
    in the middle of the sky
and seemed not to be in a hurry
    to set for nearly an entire day.

14 There has never been a day like it before or since, when the Lord listened to the voice of a man, because the Lord was fighting on behalf of Israel.

15 After this, Joshua returned to the camp at Gilgal with the entire fighting force of[h] Israel.

Defeat of the Five Kings

16 Meanwhile, the five kings had fled and hidden themselves inside a cave at Makkedah. 17 Joshua was informed, “The five kings have been discovered hiding in the cave at Makkedah.”

18 So Joshua gave an order, “Roll large stones up against the mouth of the cave and assign men to stand guard there, 19 but don’t stay there yourselves. Instead, pursue your enemies and attack them from behind. Don’t allow them to enter their cities, because the Lord your God has delivered them into your control.”

20 Now it came about that after Joshua and the Israelis had finished the battle,[i] destroying and scattering their survivors, who retreated into their fortified cities, 21 the entire army returned safely to Joshua’s encampment at Makkedah. No one could speak so much as a single word against any of the Israelis.

22 Then Joshua gave this order: “Unseal the mouth of the cave and bring out these five kings to me from the cave.”

23 So they did. They brought out these five kings to him from within 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 these kings out to Joshua, Joshua called for all the men of Israel and spoke to the leaders of the men who had gone out to war along with him, “Come close and put your feet on the necks of these kings.” So they came near and put their feet on their necks.

25 Joshua told the army,[j] “Don’t fear or be dismayed! Be strong and courageous, because this is how the Lord will treat all of your enemies whom you fight.”

26 After this, Joshua struck those kings[k] down, executing them, and hanged them on five gallows[l] until sunset. 27 When evening had come, Joshua gave a command to remove the bodies[m] from the gallows[n] and bury them in the cave where they had hidden. The army[o] sealed the mouth of the cave with large stones that remain there to this very day.

The Southern Campaign

28 Joshua captured Makkedah that very day, and attacked both it and its king with swords, utterly destroying it along with every person in it, leaving no survivors. He dealt with the king of Makkedah the same way he had dealt with the king of Jericho.

29 Afterward, Joshua and all of Israel passed on from Makkedah to Libnah, where they fought against Libnah. 30 The Lord gave both it and its king into the control of Israel, and Joshua[p] executed both its king[q] and every person in it with swords, leaving no survivors. He dealt with the king the same way he had dealt with the king of Jericho.

31 Then Joshua and all of Israel passed from Libnah to Lachish, camped near it, and attacked it. 32 The Lord gave Lachish into the control of Israel, and Joshua captured it the next day. He declared war on the city and executed[r] everyone in it, the same way he had treated Libnah.

33 Then Horam king of Gezer appeared to help Lachish. So Joshua attacked him and his army, until he left no one remaining. 34 After this, Joshua, accompanied by all of Israel, proceeded from Lachish to Eglon, laid siege to it, and attacked it. 35 They captured it on that day, attacking it in battle. Then Joshua completely destroyed it that day, the same way he had dealt with Lachish.

36 Then Joshua, accompanied by all of Israel, left Eglon for Hebron, where they attacked it, 37 captured it, and executed its inhabitants—its king, all of its cities, and every person in it, leaving no one remaining, the same way he had dealt with Eglon. He completely destroyed it, along with everyone in it.

38 Then Joshua returned, accompanied by the entire fighting force of[s] Israel, to Debir, where they attacked it, 39 captured it, its king, and all of its villages. They executed them, totally destroying it and everyone in it, leaving no one remaining. He dealt with Debir and its king just as he had dealt with Hebron, treating them the same way he had dealt with Libnah and its king.

40 So Joshua conquered the entire land, the hill country, the Negev,[t] the Shephelah,[u] and the wilderness highlands, along with all of their kings. He left none of them remaining, but completely destroyed every living person, just as the Lord God of Israel had commanded. 41 Joshua conquered them from Kadesh-barnea to Gaza, including the entire territory of Goshen as far as Gibeon. 42 Joshua conquered all of these kings and their territories in one campaign, because the Lord God of Israel fought for Israel. 43 Then Joshua returned to the camp at Gilgal, along with the entire fighting force of[v] Israel.

Footnotes

  1. Joshua 10:2 I.e. the inhabitants of Jerusalem
  2. Joshua 10:10 Lit. threw them
  3. Joshua 10:10 The Heb. lacks the army
  4. Joshua 10:10 Lit. They
  5. Joshua 10:11 Lit. Israelis by the sword
  6. Joshua 10:12 The Heb. lacks stand in place
  7. Joshua 10:13 Lit. the Book of the Upright; i.e. an ancient chronicle of Israel, apparently now lost. The first half of v. 13 rather than the quatrain following may be the citation.
  8. Joshua 10:15 The Heb. lacks fighting force of
  9. Joshua 10:20 Lit. slaughter
  10. Joshua 10:25 Lit. to them
  11. Joshua 10:26 Lit. struck them
  12. Joshua 10:26 Or trees
  13. Joshua 10:27 ;27 Lit. remove them
  14. Joshua 10:27 Or trees
  15. Joshua 10:27 Lit. They
  16. Joshua 10:30 Lit. he
  17. Joshua 10:30 Lit. both him
  18. Joshua 10:32 Lit. He struck it with the edge of the sword and
  19. Joshua 10:38 The Heb. lacks fighting force of
  20. Joshua 10:40 I.e. the southern region of Israel
  21. Joshua 10:40 I.e. the verdant central lowlands of Israel; and so throughout the book
  22. Joshua 10:43 The Heb. lacks fighting force of
Next
Joshua 9
Joshua 11
Next
dropdown
Legacy Standard Bible (LSB)

Legacy Standard Bible Copyright ©2021 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org For Permission to Quote Information visit https://www.LSBible.org.

International Standard Version (ISV)

Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.

ISV Bible