Conquest of Northern Cities

11 When King Jabin of Hazor heard this news, he sent a message to: King Jobab of Madon, the kings of Shimron and Achshaph, and the kings of the north in the hill country, the Arabah south of Chinnereth,(A) the Judean foothills,[a] and the Slopes of Dor[b] to the west, the Canaanites in the east and west, the Amorites, Hethites, Perizzites, and Jebusites in the hill country, and the Hivites at the foot of Hermon in the land of Mizpah.(B) They went out with all their armies—a multitude as numerous as the sand on the seashore(C)—along with a vast number of horses and chariots. All these kings joined forces; they came and camped together at the Waters of Merom to attack Israel.(D)

The Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, for at this time tomorrow I will cause all of them to be killed before Israel.(E) You are to hamstring their horses and burn their chariots.”(F) So Joshua and all his troops surprised them at the Waters of Merom and attacked them. The Lord handed them over to Israel, and they struck them down, pursuing them as far as greater Sidon and Misrephoth-maim, and to the east as far as the Valley of Mizpeh.(G) They struck them down, leaving no survivors.(H) Joshua treated them as the Lord had told him; he hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots.

10 At that time Joshua turned back, captured Hazor, and struck down its king with the sword, because Hazor had formerly been the leader of all these kingdoms. 11 They struck down everyone in it with the sword, completely destroying(I) them; he left no one alive. Then he burned Hazor.

12 Joshua captured all these kings and their cities and struck them down with the sword. He completely destroyed them, as Moses the Lord’s servant(J) had commanded. 13 However, Israel did not burn any of the cities that stood on their mounds except Hazor, which Joshua burned. 14 The Israelites plundered all the spoils and cattle of these cities for themselves. But they struck down every person with the sword until they had annihilated them, leaving no one alive. 15 Just as the Lord had commanded his servant Moses, Moses commanded Joshua. That is what Joshua did, leaving nothing undone of all that the Lord had commanded Moses.

Summary of Conquests

16 So Joshua took all this land—the hill country, all the Negev, all the land of Goshen,(K) the foothills, the Arabah, and the hill country of Israel with its foothills— 17 from Mount Halak,(L) which ascends to Seir, as far as Baal-gad in the Valley of Lebanon at the foot of Mount Hermon. He captured all their kings and struck them down, putting them to death.(M) 18 Joshua waged war with all these kings for a long time. 19 No city made peace with the Israelites except the Hivites who inhabited Gibeon;(N) all of them were taken in battle. 20 For it was the Lord’s intention to harden their hearts,(O) so that they would engage Israel in battle, be completely destroyed without mercy, and be annihilated, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

21 At that time Joshua proceeded to exterminate the Anakim(P) from the hill country—Hebron, Debir, Anab—all the hill country of Judah and of Israel. Joshua completely destroyed them with their cities. 22 No Anakim were left in the land of the Israelites, except for some remaining in Gaza, Gath,(Q) and Ashdod.

23 So Joshua took the entire land, in keeping with all that the Lord had told Moses. Joshua then gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal allotments. After this, the land had rest from war.(R)

Footnotes

  1. 11:2 Or Shephelah, also in v. 16
  2. 11:2 Or and in Naphoth-dor

11 And when Jabin, king of Hazor, had heard these things, he sent to Jobab, king of Madon, and to the king of Shimron, and to the king of Achshaph;

forsooth to the kings of the north, that dwelled in the hilly places, and in the plain against the south of Chinneroth, and in the field places, and (in the) countries of Dor, beside the sea, (and to the kings of the north, who lived in the hill country, and those on the plain to the south of the Sea of Galilee, or Lake Galilee, and in the valley, and in the countryside of Dor, on the west,)

and to (the) Canaanite from the east and (the) west, and to (the) Amorite, and Hittite, and Perizzite, and (the) Jebusite in the mountains, and to (the) Hivite, that dwelled at the roots of the hill of Hermon (who lived at the foot of Mount Hermon), in the land of Mizpeh.

And (they) all went out with their companies, a full much people, as the gravel which is in the brink of the sea (like the gravel, or the sand, which is at the seashore), and horses, and chariots, of great multitude.

And all these kings came together at the waters of Merom, to fight against Israel.

And the Lord said to Joshua, Dread thou not them, for tomorrow, in this same hour, I shall betake all these men to be wounded in the sight of Israel; thou shalt hock the horses of them, and thou shalt burn the chariots by fire. (And the Lord said to Joshua, Do not thou fear them, for tomorrow, at this same hour, I shall make all these men to be killed before the army of Israel; and thou shalt hock their horses, and thou shalt burn up their chariots with fire.)

And Joshua came, and all his host with him, against them suddenly, at the waters of Merom, and felled on them. (And so Joshua, and all his army, suddenly came against them, at the waters of Merom, and fell upon them.)

And the Lord betook them into the hands of (the host of) Israel; which smited them, and pursued (them) till to Great(er) Sidon, and the waters of Misrephothmaim (and Misrephothmaim on the west), and to the field of Mizpeh, which is at the east part thereof.

And Joshua smote so all them, that he left no things of them (And Joshua so struck down all of them, that he left nothing of them); and he did as the Lord commanded to him; he hocked their horses, and burnt their chariots.

10 And he turned again anon, and took Hazor, and smote by sword the king thereof (And at once he turned his army, and then took Hazor, and struck down its king with his sword); for Hazor held by eld time the princehood among all these realms.

11 And he smote all persons that dwelled there, he left not any relics, (or anything of value,) therein, but he wasted all things till to (the) death; also he destroyed that city by burning. (And he struck down all he people who lived there, he left nothing of value, or any remnant, there, but he destroyed everything unto the death; and he burned down that city to the ground.)

12 And he took all (the) cities by compass, and the kings of them, and smote (them), and did (them) away, as Moses, the servant of the Lord, commanded to him,

13 without [the] cities that were set in the great hills, and in [the] little hills; and Israel burnt (not) the other cities; flame wasted only one city, Hazor, the strongest. (but the men of Israel did not burn down the cities that were set in the great hills, or in the little hills; their fire burned down only one city, Hazor, the strongest.)

14 And (then) the sons of Israel parted to themselves all the prey, and the work beasts of these cities, when all the men of them were slain.

15 As the Lord commanded to his servant Moses, so Moses commanded to Joshua, and Joshua fulfilled all things; neither soothly he passed (over) one word of all the behests, that the Lord commanded to Moses (he did not pass over one word of all the commands, that the Lord had commanded to Moses).

16 And so Joshua took all the land of the hills, and of the south (And so Joshua took all the hill country, and the land of the south), [and] the land of Goshen, and the plain(s), and the west coast, and the hill of Israel, and the field places thereof;

17 and the part of the hill that ascendeth to Seir till to Baalgad, by the plain of Lebanon under the hill of Hermon (and from Mount Halak that goeth up to Seir unto Baalgad, by the plain of Lebanon under Mount Hermon); Joshua took, and smote, and killed all the kings of those places.

18 Joshua fought much time against these kings;

19 there was no city, which betook not itself to the sons of Israel, except (the) Hivites that dwelled in Gibeon; he took all (the other) men by battle. (there was no city which made peace with the Israelites, except the Hivites who lived in Gibeon; the Israelites took all the other cities in battle.)

20 For it was the sentence of the Lord, that the hearts of them should be made hard, and that they should fight against Israel, and should fall, and [they] should not deserve any mercy, and should perish (but should perish), as the Lord commanded, to Moses.

21 Joshua came in that time, and killed (the) Anakim, that is, (the) giants, from the hilly places of Hebron, and of Debir, and of Anab (from the hill country of Hebron, and Debir, and Anab), and from all the hill (country) of Judah, and of Israel, and did away their cities.

22 He left not any man of the generation of Anakim in the land of the sons of Israel, without the cities of Gaza, and Gath, and Ashdod (except in the cities of Gaza, and Gath, and Ashdod), in which alone they were left.

23 Then Joshua took all the land, as the Lord spake to Moses, and he gave it into (a) possession to the sons of Israel, by their parts and lineages (and he gave it to the Israelites for a possession, a portion to each tribe); and (so) the land rested from battles.