Knox Bible

1

The king of Jerusalem, Adonisedec, was told of what had befallen; how Josue had taken Hai and overthrown it, making an end of city and king, there as at Jericho; how the Gabaonites had gone over to Israel and become their allies.

2

And he was overcome with fear; this Gabaon was a great city, a royal capital, of more importance than Hai, and with brave warriors to defend it.

3

So, from his palace at Jerusalem, Adonisedec sent envoys to Oham king of Hebron, Pharam king of Jerimoth, Japhia king of Lachis, and Dabir king of Eglon;

4

Come and help me crush the Gabaonites, he said; they have made an alliance with Josue and the people of Israel.

5

So it was that these five Amorrhite kings, from Jerusalem, Hebron, Jerimoth, Lachis and Eglon, joined their forces and encamped before Gabaon, offering battle.

6

And a message came from the besieged city to Josue, who was still in his camp at Galgal: We are thy loyal servants, lose no time in coming to our aid. Hasten to our rescue and relief; all the Amorrhite kings of the hill country are banded together against us.

7

So Josue came up from Galgal with all his fighting men, that were tried warriors;

8

Have no fear, the Lord said to him, I am giving thee the mastery of them; none of them will have strength to withstand thy onslaught.

9

So Josue made a night march from Galgal, and fell upon the enemy unawares.

10

And the Lord threw them into confusion at the onslaught of Israel; great havoc Josue made of them there at Gabaon; then, going in pursuit along the road that leads up to Bethoron, he cut them down all the way to Azeca and Maceda.

11

As they fled in rout from the Israelites, down the slope from Bethoron, all the way to Azeca, the Lord sent great hail-stones down on them, so that more of them were killed by hail than by the weapons of Israel.

12

It was on this day, when the Lord left the Amorrhites powerless before Israel’s attack, that Josue made that prayer of his to the Lord, crying out in the hearing of the people, Sun, that art setting over Gabaon, moon, that art rising in Aialon valley, stand stricken with awe.

13

Sun and moon stood awe-struck, while the people took vengeance on its enemies. (So the words can be found written in the Book of the Upright.) The sun stood in mid-heaven, and for a whole day long did not haste to its setting.

14

Never was so long a day before or since, as that day when the Lord listened to a human prayer, and fought openly on the side of Israel.✻

15

(Then Josue and all the Israelites returned to their camp at Galgal.)✻

16

Meanwhile, the five kings had fled, and hidden in a cave by the city of Maceda.

17

And Josue, when it was reported to him that the five kings were in hiding there,

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bade his companions roll great stones up to the mouth of the cave, and set a close watch to see that the men imprisoned there did not escape.

19

For yourselves, said he, do not linger here; pursue the enemy, cutting down every straggler you meet; do not let them reach the safety of their city walls, now that the Lord God has put them in your power.

20

At last, when the enemy had suffered disastrous loss, and were all but exterminated, the survivors took refuge within their city ramparts,

21

and the whole Israelite army returned to Maceda, where Josue had encamped, all safe and sound; none dared lift a hand against them as they went.

22

And now Josue bade them clear the entrance of the cave and bring out the five kings from their hiding-place;

23

and his command was obeyed; out they must come, the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jerimoth, Lachis and Eglon,

24

and be brought into his presence. Hereupon he gathered all Israel about him, and bade all the chieftains of his army go and set foot on the necks of these kings. And when they had come forward, and trampled on the necks of the kings as they lay there,

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he said to them, Who is afraid now? Who shrinks back now? Keep your courage high and play the man; such is the fate the Lord has decreed for all the enemies you are fighting against.

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Then Josue slew them with his own hand, and set their bodies up on five gibbets, to hang there till evening.

27

At sunset he had them taken down from their gibbets and thrown into the cave which had been their hiding-place; and the great stones that were used to block the entrance may be seen there still.

28

The same day, Josue took Maceda and put its garrison to the sword; he slew its king, too, and all its citizens; not even a remnant was left alive; Maceda’s king must fare like Jericho’s.

29

From Maceda he went on with all his forces to attack Lebna;

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of this, with its king, the Lord gave Israel mastery, so they put all its inhabitants to the sword, sparing none; Lebna’s king, too, must go the way of Jericho’s.

31

From Lebna he marched in full strength to Lachis, which he invested and attacked;

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here, too, the Lord gave Israel the victory, so that they captured it next day; here, too, they put every living thing in it to the sword.

33

At the same time Josue defeated Horam, king of Gazer, who had come to the aid of Lachis, and exterminated his whole people with him.

34

From Lachis he marched to the siege of Eglon,

35

and took it in a single day; and here, as at Lachis, he destroyed every living thing.

36

Thence he led the whole of his forces on to attack Hebron;

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took it, gave it up to destruction; made an end of its king, and its subject towns, and all that dwelt there, leaving none alive; at Hebron, as at Eglon, all must be put to the sword.

38

Then he turned back to Dabir,

39

which he took and sacked; here too he made an end of its king and all its dependencies; none was spared in the general slaughter, and the king of Dabir fared no better than the kings of Hebron and Lebna.

40

So Josue conquered all the hill-country of the south, and the plains, and the foot-hills, and overthrew the kings that reigned there; with the Lord God of Israel for his warrant, he left no trace of the folk who dwelt there, but killed every living thing

41

that was to be found between Cades-Barne and Gaza. All the land of Gosen right up to Gabaon,

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the domain of so many kings, he took and laid waste with a single onslaught, so well did the Lord God of Israel fight in his cause.

43

Then Josue and all the Israelites returned to their camp at Galgal.