Inspire: Joshua, Judges & Ruth 978-1-4964-7519-0 - Flipbook - Page 21
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Joshua 8:3
5
E ve r y w o r d
of every
command
that Moses
34 Joshua then read to them all the blessings and curses Moses had written in the Book
of Instruction. 35 Every word of every command that Moses had ever given was read to
the entire assembly of Israel, including the women and children and the foreigners
who lived among them.
The Gibeonites Deceive Israel
Now all the kings west of the Jordan River heard about what had happened. These
were the kings of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, who lived in the hill country, in the western foothills, and along the coast of the
Mediterranean Sea as far north as the Lebanon mountains. 2 These kings combined their
armies to fight as one against Joshua and the Israelites.
3 But when the people of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, 4 they
resorted to deception to save themselves. They sent ambassadors to Joshua, loading
their donkeys with weathered saddlebags and old, patched wineskins. 5 They put on
worn-out, patched sandals and ragged clothes. And the bread they took with them was
dry and moldy. 6 When they arrived at the camp of Israel at Gilgal, they told Joshua and
the men of Israel,
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“We have come from a distant land
to ask you to make
a peace treaty with us.”
had ever
given
was read to
the entire
assembly of
Israel .
The Israelites replied to these Hivites, “How do we know you don’t live nearby? For
if you do, we cannot make a treaty with you.”
8 They replied, “We are your servants.”
“But who are you?” Joshua demanded. “Where do you come from?”
9 They answered, “Your servants have come from a very distant country.
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We have heard of the might
of the LORD your God and of all he did in Egypt.
We have also heard what he did to the two Amorite kings east of the Jordan River—
King Sihon of Heshbon and King Og of Bashan (who lived in Ashtaroth). 11 So our
elders and all our people instructed us, ‘Take supplies for a long journey. Go meet
with the people of Israel and tell them, “We are your servants; please make a treaty
with us.” ’
12 “This bread was hot from the ovens when we left our homes. But now, as you can
see, it is dry and moldy. 13 These wineskins were new when we filled them, but now they
are old and split open. And our clothing and sandals are worn out from our very long
journey.”
14 So the Israelites examined their food, but they did not consult the Lord. 15 Then
Joshua made a peace treaty with them and guaranteed their safety, and the leaders of
the community ratified their agreement with a binding oath.
16 Three days after making the treaty, they learned that these people actually lived
nearby! 17 The Israelites set out at once to investigate and reached their towns in three
days. The names of these towns were Gibeon, Kephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim.
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