JoshuaChapter 9

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¹All the kings west of the Jordan heard about this. There were kings in the hill country and the foothills. There were kings all along the coast of the Great Sea toward Lebanon. They were the kings of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. ²They all came together to make war against Joshua and Israel. ³But the people of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai. ⁴So they came up with a trick. They set out as messengers. They loaded their donkeys with worn-out sacks. They brought old wineskins that were cracked and patched. ⁵They wore old, patched sandals on their feet. They wore worn-out clothes. All the bread they brought was dry and moldy. ⁶They went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal. They said to him and the men of Israel, "We have come from a land far away. Please make a peace treaty with us." ⁷But the men of Israel said to these Hivites, "Maybe you live near us. How can we make a treaty with you?" ⁸"We are your servants," they said to Joshua. Then Joshua asked them, "Who are you? Where do you come from?" ⁹They answered, "We, your servants, have come from a land very far away. We came because of how famous the LORD your God is. We have heard about him. We heard all he did in Egypt. ¹⁰We heard all he did to the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan. They were Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan, who ruled in Ashtaroth. ¹¹So our elders and all the people of our land told us, 'Take food for your trip. Go and meet them. Tell them, "We are your servants. Please make a treaty with us."' ¹²Look at our bread. It was warm when we packed it at home. That was the day we left to come to you. But look, now it's dry and moldy. ¹³These wineskins were new when we filled them. But look, now they're cracked. And our clothes and sandals are worn out from our very long trip." ¹⁴The men of Israel tasted some of their food. But they did not ask the LORD what to do. ¹⁵So Joshua made a peace treaty with them. He promised to let them live. The leaders of the people made a promise with an oath to them. ¹⁶Three days after they made the treaty with the Gibeonites, the Israelites found out the truth. These people were their neighbors. They lived close by. ¹⁷So the Israelites set out. On the third day they came to their cities. The cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim. ¹⁸But the Israelites did not attack them. The leaders of the people had sworn an oath to them in the name of the LORD, the God of Israel. And all the people grumbled against the leaders. ¹⁹But all the leaders answered, "We have sworn an oath to them in the name of the LORD, the God of Israel. So now we can't touch them. ²⁰Here is what we will do. We will let them live, so that no anger will fall on us because of the oath we swore to them." ²¹They went on, "Let them live. But let them cut wood and carry water for all the people." So the leaders kept their promise. ²²Then Joshua called for the Gibeonites. He said, "Why did you trick us? You told us you live far away from us. But really you live right here among us. ²³So now you are under a curse. You will always serve as woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God." ²⁴The Gibeonites answered, "We, your servants, were told clearly what the LORD your God commanded his servant Moses. He was to give you all this land. He was to wipe out all the people living in it ahead of you. So we were very afraid for our lives because of you. That's why we did this. ²⁵Now we are in your hands. Do to us whatever you think is good and right." ²⁶So Joshua did this. He saved them from the Israelites, and they did not kill the Gibeonites. ²⁷That day he made them woodcutters and water carriers. They served the people of the LORD and the altar of the LORD. The altar would be at the place God would choose. They still do this work today.