Joshua 11-12

Lexham English Bible

Joshua’s Conquest of the North

11 And it happened, when Jabin king of Hazor heard this, he sent to Jobab king of Madon, to the king of Shimron, to the king of Acshaph, ² and to the kings who were in the north in the hill country, in the Arabah^[a] south of Kinnereth,^[b] in the Shephelah,^[c] and in Naphoth Dor^[d] in the west, ³ to the Canaanites^[e] in the east and west, the Amorites,^[f] the Hittites,^[g] the Perizzites,^[h] and the Jebusites^[i] in the hill country, and the Hivites^[j] at the foot of^[k] Hermon in the land of Mizpah. ⁴ They came out, they and all their armies with them, as a great army like the sand on the seashore, with very many horses and chariots. ⁵ And all these kings joined forces, and they came and camped together by the waters of Merom to fight with Israel.

⁶ And Yahweh said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid because of their presence, for tomorrow at this time I will hand them over slain to Israel; you will hamstring their horses and burn their chariots with fire.” ⁷ So Joshua, and all the fighting men^[l] with him, came against them suddenly at the waters of Merom, and they attacked them.^{[m] 8} And Yahweh gave them into the hand of Israel, and they struck them and pursued them up to Great Sidon and Misrephoth Maim, and eastward up to the valley of Mizpeh. And they struck them until they left behind no survivor. ⁹ And Joshua did to them as Yahweh commanded him; he hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots with fire.

¹⁰ Then Joshua turned back at that time, and he captured Hazor and struck its king with the sword, because Hazor formerly was the head of all these kingdoms. ¹¹ He struck all the people that were in it with the edge of the sword,^[n] utterly destroying them. There was no one left who breathed,^[o] and he burned Hazor with fire. ¹² And Joshua captured all the cities of these kings, and all their kings, and he utterly destroyed them with the edge of the sword,^[p] as Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded. ¹³ Israel did not burn the cities standing on their mounds,^[q] except Hazor alone, which Joshua burned. ¹⁴ And all the spoil and livestock of these cities the Israelites took as booty; they struck the people with the edge of the sword,^[r] until they had destroyed them—they left behind no one who breathed. ¹⁵ Just as Yahweh commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua, and Joshua did; he left nothing undone that Yahweh had commanded Moses.

A Review of Joshua’s Conquests

¹⁶ So Joshua took all this land: the hill country, all the Negev,^[s] all the land of Goshen,^[t] the Shephelah,^[u] the Arabah,^[v] and the hill country of Israel and its Shephelah,^{[w] 17} from Mount Halak that rises to Seir and to Baal Gad in the valley of Lebanon^[x] at the foot of^[y] Mount Hermon; he captured all their kings, struck them, and killed them. ¹⁸ For many days Joshua made war with all these kings. ¹⁹ There was not a city that made peace with the Israelites^[z] besides the Hivites^[aa] and the inhabitants of Gibeon—all were taken in battle.^{[ab] 20} For it was Yahweh that hardened their hearts,^[ac] to meet Israel in war in order to utterly destroy them without mercy, that they would destroy them just as Yahweh commanded Moses.

²¹ At that time Joshua came and exterminated the Anakites from the hill country, from Hebron, Debir, Anab, and from all the hill country of Judah, and from all the hill country of Israel; Joshua utterly destroyed them with their cities. ²² None of the Anakites were left in the land of the Israelites;^[ad] some remained only in Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod. ²³ Joshua took all the land according to all that Yahweh had spoken to Moses; and Joshua gave it as an inheritance to Israel, according to their tribal divisions, and the land rested from war.

The Kings Conquered by Joshua

12 These are the kings of the land whom the Israelites^[ae] defeated, and of whose land they took possession beyond the Jordon to the east,^[af] from the wadi^[ag] of Arnon up to Mount Hermon, and all the Arabah^[ah] to the east: ² Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and ruled from Aroer, which is on the edge of the wadi^[ai] of Arnon, from the middle of the valley and half of Gilead, up to the Jabbok River,^[aj] which marks the border of the Ammonites;^{[ak] 3} and the Arabah^[al] up to the Kinnereth Sea^[am] to the east, and as far as the sea of Arabah, the Salt Sea^[an] to the east, in the direction of^[ao] Beth Jeshimoth, and to the area southward, at the foot of^[ap] the slopes of Pisgah;^{[aq] 4} the territory of Og king of Bashan, one of the last of the Rephaites, who lived at Ashtaroth and Edrei ⁵ and ruled over Mount Hermon and Salecah and over all Bashan up to the border of the Geshurites^[ar] and the Maacathites,^[as] and half of Gilead, as far as the border of Sihon king of Heshbon. ⁶ Moses Yahweh’s servant and the Israelites^[at] defeated them; and Moses Yahweh’s servant gave it as a possession to the Reubenites,^[au] the Gadites,^[av] and the half-tribe of Manasseh.

The Kings Conquered by Moses

⁷ These are the kings of the land whom Joshua and the Israelites^[aw] defeated beyond to the Jordan to the west, from Baal Gad in the valley of Lebanon,^[ax] and up to Mount Halak, which rises to Seir. And Joshua gave it as a possession to the tribes of Israel according to their allotments, ⁸ in the hill country, the Shephelah,^[ay] the Arabah,^[az] on the slopes, in the wilderness, and in the Negev;^[ba] the Hittites,^[bb] the Amorites,^[bc] the Canaanites,^[bd] the Perizzites,^[be] the Hivites,^[bf] and the Jebusites:^[bg]

⁹ the king of Jericho, one; the king of Ai, which is beside 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 of Lasharon, one;

¹⁹ the king of Madon, one; the king of Hazor, one;

²⁰ the king of Shimron-meron, one; the king of Acshaph, one;

²¹ the king of Taanach, 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 Naphath Dor, one; the king of Goiim for Gilgal, one;

²⁴ the king of Tirzah, one; all the kings, thirty-one.