Joshua 10
10
The Sun Stands Still
1At this time Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had defeated Ai and completely destroyed it, as he had also done to Jericho and its king. The king also learned that the Gibeonites had made a peace agreement with Israel and that they lived nearby. 2Adoni-Zedek and his people were very afraid because of this. Gibeon was not a little town like Ai; it was a large city, as big as a city that had a king, and all its men were good fighters. 3So Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem sent a message to Hoham king of Hebron, Piram king of Jarmuth, Japhia king of Lachish, and Debir king of Eglon. He begged them, 4“Come with me and help me attack Gibeon, which has made a peace agreement with Joshua and the Israelites.”
5Then these five Amorite kings—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon—gathered their armies, went to Gibeon, surrounded it, and attacked it.
6The Gibeonites sent this message to Joshua in his camp at Gilgal: “Don’t let us, your servants, be destroyed. Come quickly and help us! Save us! All the Amorite kings from the mountains have joined their armies and are fighting against us.”
7So Joshua marched out of Gilgal with his whole army, including his best fighting men. 8The Lord said to Joshua, “Don’t be afraid of those armies, because I will hand them over to you. None of them will be able to stand against you.”
9Joshua and his army marched all night from Gilgal for a surprise attack. 10The Lord confused those armies when Israel attacked, so Israel defeated them in a great victory at Gibeon. They chased them along the road going up to Beth Horon and killed men all the way to Azekah and Makkedah. 11As they chased the enemy down the Beth Horon Pass to Azekah, the Lord threw large hailstones on them from the sky and killed them. More people were killed by the hailstones than by the Israelites’ swords.
12On the day that the Lord gave up the Amorites to the Israelites, Joshua stood before all the people of Israel and said to the Lord:
“Sun, stand still over Gibeon.
Moon, stand still over the Valley of Aijalon.”
13So the sun stood still,
and the moon stopped
until the people defeated their enemies.
These words are written in the Book of Jashar.
The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and waited to go down for a full day. 14That has never happened at any time before that day or since. That was the day the Lord listened to a human being. Truly the Lord was fighting for Israel!
15After this, Joshua and his army went back to the camp at Gilgal.
16During the fight the five kings ran away and hid in a cave near Makkedah, 17but someone found them hiding in the cave at Makkedah and told Joshua. 18So he said, “Cover the opening of the cave with large rocks. Put some men there to guard it, 19but don’t stay there yourselves. Continue chasing the enemy and attacking them from behind. Don’t let them get to their cities, because the Lord your God will hand them over to you.”
20So Joshua and the Israelites killed the enemy, but a few were able to get back to their strong, walled cities. 21After the fighting, Joshua’s men came back safely to him at Makkedah. No one was brave enough to say a word against the Israelites.
22Joshua said, “Move the rocks that are covering the opening of the cave and bring those five kings out to me.” 23So Joshua’s men brought the five kings out of the cave—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon. 24When they brought the five kings out to Joshua, he called for all his men. He said to the commanders of his army, “Come here! Put your feet on the necks of these kings.” So they came close and put their feet on their necks.
25Joshua said to his men, “Be strong and brave! Don’t be afraid, because I will show you what the Lord will do to the enemies you will fight in the future.” 26Then Joshua killed the five kings and hung their bodies on five trees, where he left them until evening.
27At sunset Joshua told his men to take the bodies down from the trees. Then they threw them into the same cave where they had been hiding and covered the opening of the cave with large rocks, which are still there today.
28That day Joshua defeated Makkedah. He killed the king and completely destroyed all the people in that city as an offering to the Lord; no one was left alive. He did the same thing to the king of Makkedah that he had done to the king of Jericho.
Defeating Southern Cities
29Joshua and all the Israelites traveled from Makkedah to Libnah and attacked it. 30The Lord handed over the city and its king. They killed every person in the city; no one was left alive. And they did the same thing to that king that they had done to the king of Jericho.
31Then Joshua and all the Israelites left Libnah and went to Lachish, which they surrounded and attacked. 32The Lord handed over Lachish on the second day. The Israelites killed everyone in that city just as they had done to Libnah. 33During this same time Horam king of Gezer came to help Lachish, but Joshua also defeated him and his army; no one was left alive.
34Then Joshua and all the Israelites went from Lachish to Eglon. They surrounded Eglon, attacked it, and 35captured it the same day. They killed all its people and completely destroyed everything in it as an offering to the Lord, just as they had done to Lachish.
36Then Joshua and the Israelites went from Eglon to Hebron and attacked it, 37capturing it and all the little towns near it. The Israelites killed everyone in Hebron; no one was left alive there. Just as they had done to Eglon, they completely destroyed the city and all its people as an offering to the Lord.
38Then Joshua and the Israelites went back to Debir and attacked it. 39They captured that city, its king, and all the little towns near it, completely destroying everyone in Debir as an offering to the Lord; no one was left alive there. Israel did to Debir and its king just as they had done to Libnah and its king, just as they had done to Hebron.
40So Joshua defeated all the kings of the cities of these areas: the mountains, southern Canaan, the western hills, and the slopes. The Lord, the God of Israel, had told Joshua to completely destroy all the people as an offering to the Lord, so he left no one alive in those places. 41Joshua captured all the cities from Kadesh Barnea to Gaza, and from Goshen to Gibeon. 42He captured all these cities and their kings on one trip, because the Lord, the God of Israel, was fighting for Israel.
43Then Joshua and all the Israelites returned to their camp at Gilgal.
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Joshua 10: NCV
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
Joshua 10
10
Joshua Commands the Sun To Stand Still
1King Adonizedek of Jerusalem#10.1 Jerusalem: Jerusalem was not an Israelite city at this time. heard that Joshua had captured and destroyed the town of Ai, and then killed its king as he had done at Jericho. He also learned that the Gibeonites had signed a peace treaty with Israel. 2This frightened Adonizedek and his people. They knew that Gibeon was a large town, as big as the towns that had kings, and even bigger than the town of Ai had been. And all of the men of Gibeon were warriors. 3So Adonizedek sent messages to the kings of four other towns: King Hoham of Hebron, King Piram of Jarmuth, King Japhia of Lachish, and King Debir of Eglon. The messages said, 4“The Gibeonites have signed a peace treaty with Joshua and the Israelites. Come and help me attack Gibeon!”
5When these five Amorite kings called their armies together and attacked Gibeon, 6the Gibeonites sent a message to the Israelite camp at Gilgal: “Joshua, please come and rescue us! The Amorite kings from the hill country have joined together and are attacking us. We are your servants, so don't let us down. Please hurry!”
7Joshua and his army, including his best warriors, left Gilgal. 8“Joshua,” the Lord said, “don't be afraid of the Amorites. They will run away when you attack, and I will help you defeat them.”
9Joshua marched all night from Gilgal to Gibeon and made a surprise attack on the Amorite camp. 10The Lord made the enemy panic, and the Israelites started killing them right and left. They#10.10 They: Or “The Lord.” chased the Amorite troops up the road to Beth-Horon and kept on killing them, until they reached the towns of Azekah and Makkedah.#10.10 Makkedah: A total distance of about 40 kilometers. 11And while these troops were going down through Beth-Horon Pass,#10.11 Beth-Horon Pass: A three-kilometer long, steeply-sloping valley between the towns of Upper Beth-Horon and Lower Beth-Horon. the Lord made huge hailstones fall on them all the way to Azekah. More of the enemy soldiers died from the hail than from the Israelite weapons.
12-13 #
2 S 1.18; Si 46.4-6. The Lord was helping the Israelites defeat the Amorites that day. So about noon, Joshua prayed to the Lord loud enough for the Israelites to hear:
“Our Lord, make the sun stop
in the sky over Gibeon,
and the moon stand still
over Aijalon Valley.”#10.12,13 Aijalon Valley: A valley southwest of Beth-Horon Pass.
So the sun and the moon
stopped and stood still
until Israel defeated its enemies.
This poem can be found in The Book of Jashar.#10.12,13 Book of Jashar: This book may have been a collection of ancient war songs. The sun stood still and didn't go down for about a whole day. 14Never before and never since has the Lord done anything like that for someone who prayed. The Lord was really fighting for Israel.
15After the battle, Joshua and the Israelites went back to their camp at Gilgal.
Joshua Kills the Five Enemy Kings
16While the enemy soldiers were running from the Israelites, the five enemy kings ran away and hid in a cave near Makkedah. 17Joshua's soldiers told him, “The five kings have been found in a cave near Makkedah.”
18Joshua answered, “Roll some big stones over the mouth of the cave and leave a few soldiers to guard it. 19But you and everyone else must keep going after the enemy troops, because they will be safe if they reach their walled towns. Don't let them get away! The Lord our God is helping us get rid of them.” 20So Joshua and the Israelites almost wiped out the enemy soldiers. Only a few safely reached their walled towns.
21The Israelite army returned to their camp at Makkedah, where Joshua was waiting for them. No one around there dared say anything bad about the Israelites. 22Joshua told his soldiers, “Now, move the rocks from the entrance to the cave and bring those five kings to me.”
23The soldiers opened the entrance to the cave and brought out the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon. 24After Joshua had called the army together, he forced the five kings to lie down on the ground. Then he called his officers forward and told them, “You fought these kings along with me, so put your feet on their necks.” The officers did this, 25and Joshua continued, “Don't ever be afraid or discouraged. Be brave and strong. This is what the Lord will do to all your enemies.”
26Joshua killed the five kings and told his men to hang each body on a tree. Then at sunset 27he told some of his troops, “Take the bodies down and throw them into the cave where the kings were found. Cover the entrance to the cave with big rocks.”
Joshua's troops obeyed his orders, and those rocks are still there.
Joshua Continues the Fighting
28Later that day, Joshua captured Makkedah and killed its king and everyone else in the town, just as he had done at Jericho.
29Joshua and his army left Makkedah and attacked the town of Libnah. 30The Lord let them capture the town and its king, and they killed the king and everyone else, just as they had done at Jericho.
31Joshua then led his army to Lachish, and they set up camp around the town. They attacked, 32and the next day the Lord let them capture the town. They killed everyone, as they had done at Libnah. 33King Horam of Gezer arrived to help Lachish, but Joshua and his troops attacked and destroyed him and his army.
34From Lachish, Joshua took his troops to Eglon, where they set up camp surrounding the town. They attacked, 35captured it that same day, then killed everyone, as they had done at Lachish.
36Joshua and his army left Eglon and attacked Hebron. 37They captured the town and the nearby villages, then killed everyone, including the king. They destroyed Hebron in the same way they had destroyed Eglon.
38Joshua and the Israelite army turned and attacked Debir. 39They captured the town, and its nearby villages. Then they destroyed Debir and killed its king, together with everyone else, just as they had done with Hebron and Libnah.
40Joshua captured towns everywhere in the land: In the central hill country and the foothills to the west, in the Southern Desert and the region that slopes down toward the Dead Sea. Whenever he captured a town, he would kill the king and everyone else, as the Lord God of Israel had commanded. 41Joshua wiped out towns from Kadesh-Barnea to Gaza, everywhere in the region of Goshen,#10.41 Goshen: A region between the hill country of Judah and the desert further south. Not the same Goshen as in Genesis 47.4-6. and as far north as Gibeon. 42-43The Lord fought on Israel's side, so Joshua and the Israelite army were able to capture these kings and take their land. They fought one battle after another, then they went back to their camp at Gilgal after capturing all that land.
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.