Joshua
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15 16 17
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20 21 22
23 24
1 And it came to pass,
when all the kings which were on this side Jordan, in the hills,
and in the valleys, and in all the coasts of the great sea over against
Lebanon, the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the
Hivite, and the Jebusite, heard thereof;
2 That they gathered themselves
together, to fight with Joshua and with Israel, with one accord.
3 And when the
inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done unto Jericho and to Ai,
4 They did work wilily, and went and
made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses,
and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up;
5 And old shoes and clouted upon
their feet, and old garments upon them; and all the bread of their
provision was dry and mouldy.
6 And they went to Joshua unto the
camp at Gilgal, and said unto him, and to the men of Israel, We be come
from a far country: now therefore make ye a league with us.
7 And the men of Israel said unto
the Hivites, Peradventure ye dwell among us; and how shall we make a
league with you?
8 And they said unto Joshua, We are
thy servants. And Joshua said unto them, Who are ye? and from
whence come ye?
9 And they said unto him, From a
very far country thy servants are come because of the name of the LORD thy
God: for we have heard the fame of him, and all that he did in Egypt,
10 And all that he did to the two
kings of the Amorites, that were beyond Jordan, to Sihon king of
Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, which was at Ashtaroth.
11 Wherefore our elders and all the
inhabitants of our country spake to us, saying, Take victuals with you for
the journey, and go to meet them, and say unto them, We are your
servants: therefore now make ye a league with us.
12 This our bread we took hot for
our provision out of our houses on the day we came forth to go unto you;
but now, behold, it is dry, and it is mouldy:
13 And these bottles of wine, which
we filled, were new; and, behold, they be rent: and these our
garments and our shoes are become old by reason of the very long journey.
14 And the men took of their
victuals, and asked not counsel at the mouth of the LORD.
15 And Joshua made
peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live: and the
princes of the congregation sware unto them.
16 And it came to pass at the end of
three days after they had made a league with them, that they heard that
they were their neighbours, and that they dwelt among them.
17 And the children of Israel
journeyed, and came unto their cities on the third day. Now their cities were
Gibeon, and Chephirah, and Beeroth, and Kirjathjearim.
18 And the children of Israel smote
them not, because the princes of the congregation had sworn unto them by
the LORD God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured against the
princes.
19 But all the princes said unto all
the congregation, We have sworn unto them by the LORD God of Israel: now
therefore we may not touch them.
20 This we will do to them; we will
even let them live, lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath which we
sware unto them.
21 And the princes said unto them,
Let them live; but let them be hewers of wood and drawers of water unto
all the congregation; as the princes had promised them.
22 And Joshua called for them, and
he spake unto them, saying, Wherefore have ye beguiled us, saying, We are
very far from you; when ye dwell among us?
23 Now therefore ye are
cursed, and there shall none of you be freed from being bondmen, and
hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.
24 And they answered Joshua, and
said, Because it was certainly told thy servants, how that the LORD thy
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 sore
afraid of our lives because of you, and have done this thing.
25 And now, behold, we are in
thine hand: as it seemeth good and right unto thee to do unto us, do.
26 And so did he unto them, and
delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, that they slew
them not.
27 And Joshua made them that day
hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the
altar of the LORD, even unto this day, in the place which he should
choose.
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