The Preacher's Bible

When all the kings who were beyond the Jordan, in the hill country, and in the lowland, and on all the shore of the great sea in front of Lebanon, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, heard of it ²they gathered themselves together to fight with Joshua and with Israel, with one accord. ³But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai, ⁴they also resorted to a ruse, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks on their donkeys, and old, torn-up and bound up wineskins, ⁵and old and patched sandals on their feet, and wore old garments. All the bread of their food supply was dry and moldy. ⁶They went to Joshua at the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and to the men of Israel, “We have come from a far country. Now therefore make a covenant with us.”

⁷The men of Israel said to the Hivites, “What if you live among us? How could we make a covenant with you?”

⁸They said to Joshua, “We are your servants.” Joshua said to them, “Who are you? Where do you come from?”

¹⁴The men sampled their provisions, and didn’t ask counsel from Jehovah’s mouth. ¹⁵Joshua made peace with them, and made a covenant with them, to let them live. The princes of the congregation swore to them. ¹⁶At the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, they heard that they were their neighbors, and that they lived among them. ¹⁷The children of Israel traveled and came to their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath Jearim. ¹⁸The children of Israel didn’t strike them, because the princes of the congregation had sworn to them by Jehovah, the God of Israel. All the congregation murmured against the princes. ¹⁹But all the princes said to all the congregation, “We have sworn to them by Jehovah, the God of Israel. Now therefore we may not touch them. ²⁰We will do this to them, and let them live; lest wrath be on us, because of the oath which we swore to them.” ²¹The princes said to them, “Let them live.” So they became wood cutters and drawers of water for all the congregation, as the princes had spoken to them.

²²Joshua called for them, and he spoke to them, saying, “Why have you deceived us, saying, ‘We are very far from you,’ when you live among us? ²³Now therefore you are cursed, and some of you will never fail to be slaves, both wood cutters and drawers of water for the house of my God.”

²⁴They answered Joshua, and said, “Because your servants were certainly told how Jehovah your God commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you. Therefore we were very afraid for our lives because of you, and have done this thing. ²⁵Now, behold, we are in your hand. Do to us as it seems good and right to you to do.”

²⁶He did so to them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, so that they didn’t kill them. ²⁷That day Joshua made them wood cutters and drawers of water for the congregation and for Jehovah’s altar to this day, in the place which he should choose.