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Israel Defeats a Northern Coalition

11 When King Jabin of Hazor heard the news about Israel’s victories,[a] he organized a coalition, including[b] King Jobab of Madon, the king of Shimron, the king of Acshaph, and the northern kings who ruled in[c] the hill country, in the rift valley south of Kinnereth,[d] in the foothills, and on the heights of Dor to the west. Canaanites came[e] from the east and west; Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, and Jebusites from the hill country; and Hivites from below Hermon in the area[f] of Mizpah. These kings came out with their armies; they were as numerous as the sand on the seashore and had a large number of horses and chariots.[g] All these kings gathered and joined forces[h] at the Waters of Merom to fight Israel.

The Lord told Joshua, “Don’t be afraid of them, for about this time tomorrow I will cause all of them to lie dead before Israel. You must hamstring their horses and burn[i] their chariots.” Joshua and his whole army caught them by surprise at the Waters of Merom and attacked them.[j] The Lord handed them over to Israel, and they struck them down and chased them all the way to Greater Sidon, Misrephoth Maim,[k] and the Mizpah Valley to the east. They struck them down until no survivors remained. Joshua did to them as the Lord had commanded him; he hamstrung their horses and burned[l] their chariots.

10 At that time Joshua turned, captured Hazor, and struck down its king with the sword, for Hazor was at that time[m] the leader of all these kingdoms. 11 They annihilated everyone who lived there with the sword[n]—no one who breathed remained—and burned[o] Hazor.

12 Joshua captured all these royal cities and all their kings and annihilated them with the sword,[p] as Moses the Lord’s servant had commanded. 13 But Israel did not burn any of the cities located on mounds[q] except for Hazor; it was the only one Joshua burned. 14 The Israelites plundered all the goods of these cities and the cattle, but they totally destroyed all the people[r] and allowed no one who breathed to live. 15 Moses the Lord’s servant passed on the Lord’s commands to Joshua, and Joshua did as he was told. He did not ignore any of the commands the Lord had given Moses.[s]

A Summary of Israel’s Victories

16 Joshua conquered the whole land,[t] including the hill country, all the Negev,[u] all the land of Goshen, the foothills,[v] the rift valley,[w] the hill country of Israel and its foothills, 17 from Mount Halak up to Seir, as far as Baal Gad in the Lebanon Valley below Mount Hermon. He captured all their kings and executed them.[x] 18 Joshua campaigned against[y] these kings for quite some time.[z] 19 No city made peace with the Israelites (except the Hivites living in Gibeon);[aa] they had to conquer all of them,[ab] 20 for the Lord determined to make them obstinate so they would attack Israel. He wanted Israel to annihilate them without mercy, as he had instructed Moses.[ac]

21 At that time Joshua attacked and eliminated the Anakites from the hill country[ad]—from Hebron, Debir, Anab, and all the hill country of Judah and Israel.[ae] Joshua annihilated them and their cities. 22 No Anakites were left in Israelite territory, though some remained in Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod. 23 Joshua conquered[af] the whole land, just as the Lord had promised Moses,[ag] and he assigned Israel their tribal portions.[ah] Then the land was free of war.

Footnotes

  1. Joshua 11:1 tn The words “about Israel’s victories” are not in the Hebrew text but have been supplied for clarity.
  2. Joshua 11:1 tn Heb “he sent to.”
  3. Joshua 11:2 tn Heb “and to the kings who [are] from the north in.”
  4. Joshua 11:2 tn Heb “Chinneroth,” a city and plain located in the territory of Naphtali in Galilee (BDB 490 s.v. כִּנֶּרֶת, כִּנֲרוֹת).sn Kinnereth was a city in Galilee located near the Sea of Galilee (Deut 3:17). The surrounding region also became known by this name (1 Kgs 15:20; cf. Matt 14:34), and eventually even the lake itself (Josh 12:3; cf. Luke 5:1). The “rift valley south of” Galilee probably refers to the northern part of the Jordan Valley from the lake to where the Jezreel Valley joins the rift valley. Dor is nearly due west from that point.
  5. Joshua 11:3 tn The verb “came” is supplied in the translation (see v. 4).
  6. Joshua 11:3 tn Or “land.”
  7. Joshua 11:4 tn Heb “They and all their camps with them came out, a people as numerous as the sand which is on the edge of the sea in multitude, and [with] horses and chariots very numerous.”
  8. Joshua 11:5 tn Heb “and came and camped together.”
  9. Joshua 11:6 tn Heb “burn with fire”; the words “with fire” are redundant in English and have not been included in the translation.
  10. Joshua 11:7 tn Heb “Joshua and all the people of war with him came upon them at the Waters of Merom suddenly and fell upon them.”
  11. Joshua 11:8 tn The meaning of the Hebrew name “Misrephoth Maim” is perhaps “lime-kilns by the water” (see HALOT 641 s.v. מִשְׂרָפוֹת).
  12. Joshua 11:9 tn Heb “burned with fire”; the words “with fire” are redundant in English and have not been included in the translation.
  13. Joshua 11:10 tn Or “formerly.”
  14. Joshua 11:11 tn Heb “and they struck down all life which was in it with the edge of the sword, annihilating.”
  15. Joshua 11:11 tn Heb “burned with fire”; the words “with fire” are redundant in English and have not been included in the translation.
  16. Joshua 11:12 tn Heb “and he struck them down with the edge of the sword, he annihilated them.”
  17. Joshua 11:13 tn Heb “standing on their mounds.”
  18. Joshua 11:14 tn Heb “but all the people they struck down with the edge of the sword until they destroyed them.”
  19. Joshua 11:15 tn Heb “As the Lord commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua, and Joshua acted accordingly; he did not turn aside a thing from all which the Lord commanded Moses.”
  20. Joshua 11:16 tn Heb “Joshua took all this land.”
  21. Joshua 11:16 sn The Negev is an area south of the Judean hill country and west of the rift valley. As a geographic feature it is an arid depression extending south to the Gulf of Aqabah, but the biblical reference is probably to the northern part of this region.
  22. Joshua 11:16 sn The foothills (שְׁפֵלָה, “shephelah”) refer to the transition region between the Judean hill country and the Mediterranean coastal plain.
  23. Joshua 11:16 sn As a geographic feature, the rift valley (עֲרָבָה, ʿaravah) extends from Galilee to the Gulf of Aqaba. The reference here is probably to the Jordan Valley and the wider part of the rift valley below the Dead Sea.
  24. Joshua 11:17 tn Heb “and struck them down and killed them.”
  25. Joshua 11:18 tn Heb “made war with.”
  26. Joshua 11:18 tn Heb “for many days.”
  27. Joshua 11:19 tn The LXX omits this parenthetical note, which may represent a later scribal addition.
  28. Joshua 11:19 tn Heb “the whole they took in battle.”
  29. Joshua 11:20 tn Heb “for from the Lord it was to harden their heart[s] to meet for the battle with Israel, in order to annihilate them, so that they would receive no mercy, in order annihilate them, as the Lord commanded Moses.”
  30. Joshua 11:21 tn Heb “went and cut off the Anakites from the hill country.”
  31. Joshua 11:21 tn Heb “and from all the hill country of Israel.”
  32. Joshua 11:23 tn Heb “took.”
  33. Joshua 11:23 tn Heb “according to all which the Lord said to Moses.” The translation assumes this refers to the promise of the land (see 1:3). Another possibility is that it refers to the Lord’s instructions, in which case the phrase could be translated, “just as the Lord had instructed Moses” (so NLT; cf. also NIV “had directed Moses”).
  34. Joshua 11:23 tn Heb “and Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel according to their allotted portions by their tribes.”

11 夏琐耶宾听见这事,就打发人去见玛顿约巴伸仑王、押煞王, 与北方山地、基尼烈南边的亚拉巴高原并西边多珥山冈的诸王。 又去见东方和西方的迦南人,与山地的亚摩利人、人、比利洗人、耶布斯人,并黑门山根米斯巴地的希未人。 这些王和他们的众军都出来,人数多如海边的沙,并有许多马匹车辆。 这诸王会合,来到米伦水边,一同安营,要与以色列人争战。

耶和华对约书亚说:“你不要因他们惧怕,明日这时,我必将他们交付以色列人全然杀了。你要砍断他们马的蹄筋,用火焚烧他们的车辆。” 于是约书亚率领一切兵丁,在米伦水边突然向前攻打他们。 耶和华将他们交在以色列人手里,以色列人就击杀他们,追赶他们到西顿大城,到米斯利弗玛音,直到东边米斯巴的平原,将他们击杀,没有留下一个。 约书亚就照耶和华所吩咐他的去行,砍断他们马的蹄筋,用火焚烧他们的车辆。

焚夏琐

10 当时,约书亚转回夺了夏琐,用刀击杀夏琐王,素来夏琐在这诸国中是为首的。 11 以色列人用刀击杀城中的人口,将他们尽行杀灭,凡有气息的没有留下一个。约书亚又用火焚烧夏琐 12 约书亚夺了这些王的一切城邑,擒获其中的诸王,用刀击杀他们,将他们尽行杀灭,正如耶和华仆人摩西所吩咐的。 13 至于造在山冈上的城,除了夏琐以外,以色列人都没有焚烧。约书亚只将夏琐焚烧了。 14 那些城邑所有的财物和牲畜,以色列人都取为自己的掠物。唯有一切人口都用刀击杀,直到杀尽,凡有气息的没有留下一个。 15 耶和华怎样吩咐他仆人摩西摩西就照样吩咐约书亚约书亚也照样行。凡耶和华所吩咐摩西的,约书亚没有一件懈怠不行的。

约书亚攻取之地

16 约书亚夺了那全地,就是山地、一带南地、歌珊全地、高原、亚拉巴以色列的山地和山下的高原, 17 从上西珥哈拉山,直到黑门山下黎巴嫩平原的巴力迦得,并且擒获那些地的诸王,将他们杀死。 18 约书亚和这诸王争战了许多年日。 19 除了基遍希未人之外,没有一城与以色列人讲和的,都是以色列人争战夺来的。 20 因为耶和华的意思是要使他们心里刚硬,来与以色列人争战,好叫他们尽被杀灭,不蒙怜悯,正如耶和华所吩咐摩西的。

21 当时约书亚来到,将住山地、希伯仑底璧亚拿伯犹大山地、以色列山地所有的亚衲族人剪除了。约书亚将他们和他们的城邑尽都毁灭。 22 以色列人的地没有留下一个亚衲族人,只在加沙迦特亚实突有留下的。 23 这样,约书亚照着耶和华所吩咐摩西的一切话夺了那全地,就按着以色列支派的宗族将地分给他们为业。于是国中太平,没有争战了。