Jos 6, Jos 9, Jos 11 | ESV | STEP | Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel . None went out , and none came in .

Joshua 6

The Fall of Jericho

1 Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel. None went out, and none came in. 2 And the Lord said to Joshua, “See, ^aI have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and mighty men of valor. 3 You shall march around the city, all the men of war going around the city once. Thus shall you do for six days. 4 Seven priests shall bear seven ^btrumpets of ^crams’ horns before the ark. On the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and ^dthe priests shall blow the trumpets. 5 And when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat, ^{▼▼Hebrew under itself; also verse 20} and the people shall go up, everyone straight before him.” 6 So Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the Lord.” 7 And he said to the people, “Go forward. March around the city and let ^fthe armed men pass on before the ark of the Lord.”

8 And just as Joshua had commanded the people, the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the Lord went forward, blowing the trumpets, with the ark of the covenant of the Lord following them. 9 The armed men were walking before the priests who were blowing the trumpets, and the ^grear guard was walking after the ark, while the trumpets blew continually. 10 But Joshua commanded the people, “You shall not shout or make your voice heard, neither shall any word go out of your mouth, until the day I tell you to shout. Then you shall shout.” 11 So he caused the ark of the Lord to circle the city, going about it once. And they came into the camp and spent the night in the camp.

12 Then Joshua rose early in the morning, and ^hthe priests took up the ark of the Lord. 13 And the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the Lord walked on, and they blew the trumpets continually. And the armed men were walking before them, and the rear guard was walking after the ark of the Lord, while the trumpets blew continually. 14 And the second day they marched around the city once, and returned into the camp. So they did for six days.

15 On the seventh day they rose early, at the dawn of day, and marched around the city in the same manner seven times. It was only on that day that they marched around the city seven times. 16 And at the seventh time, when the priests had blown the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city. 17 And the city and all that is within it shall be ⁱdevoted to the Lord for destruction. ^{▼▼That is, set apart ( devoted) as an offering to the Lord (for destruction); also verses 18, 21} Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall live, because she ^khid the messengers whom we sent. 18 But you, keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, lest when you have devoted them you take any of the devoted things and make the camp of Israel ^la thing for destruction and ^mbring trouble upon it. 19 But all silver and gold, and every vessel of bronze and iron, are holy to the Lord; they shall go into the treasury of the Lord.” 20 So the people shouted, and the trumpets were blown. As soon as the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted a great shout, and ⁿthe wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they captured the city. 21 Then they ^odevoted all in the city to destruction, both men and women, young and old, oxen, sheep, and donkeys, with the edge of the sword.

22 But to the two men who had spied out the land, Joshua said, “Go into the prostitute’s house and bring out from there the woman and all who belong to her, ^pas you swore to her.” 23 So the young men who had been spies went in and brought out Rahab and ^qher father and mother and brothers and all who belonged to her. And they brought all her relatives and put them outside the camp of Israel. 24 And they burned the city with fire, and everything in it. ^rOnly the silver and gold, and the vessels of bronze and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord. 25 But Rahab the prostitute and her father’s household and all who belonged to her, Joshua saved alive. And ^sshe has lived in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.

26 Joshua laid an oath on them at that time, saying, ^t“Cursed before the Lord be the man who rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho.

“At the cost of his firstborn shall he
lay its foundation,
and at the cost of his youngest son
shall he set up its gates.”
27 ^uSo the Lord was with Joshua, and ^vhis fame was in all the land.

Joshua 9

The Gibeonite Deception

1 As soon as all the kings who were beyond the Jordan ^win the hill country and in the lowland all along the coast ^xof the Great Sea toward Lebanon, ^ythe Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, heard of this, 2 they gathered together as one to fight against Joshua and Israel.

3 But when the inhabitants of ^zGibeon heard what Joshua had done ^aato Jericho and ^abto Ai, 4 they on their part acted with cunning and went and made ready provisions and took worn-out sacks for their donkeys, and wineskins, worn-out and torn and mended, 5 with worn-out, patched sandals on their feet, and worn-out clothes. And all their provisions were dry and crumbly. 6 And they went to Joshua in ^acthe camp at Gilgal and said to him and to the men of Israel, “We have come from a distant country, so now make a covenant with us.” 7 But the men of Israel said to ^adthe Hivites, “Perhaps you live among us; then ^aehow can we make a covenant with you?” 8 They said to Joshua, ^af“We are your servants.” And Joshua said to them, “Who are you? And where do you come from?” 9 They said to him, ^ag“From a very distant country your servants have come, because of the name of the Lord your God. ^ahFor we have heard a report of him, and all that he did in Egypt, 10 ^aiand all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon the king of Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, who lived in ^ajAshtaroth. 11 So our elders and all the inhabitants of our country said to us, ‘Take provisions in your hand for the journey and go to meet them and say to them, “We are your servants. Come now, make a covenant with us.”’ 12 Here is our bread. It was still warm when we took it from our houses as our food for the journey on the day we set out to come to you, but now, behold, it is dry and crumbly. 13 These wineskins were new when we filled them, and behold, they have burst. And these garments and sandals of ours are worn out from the very long journey.” 14 So the men took some of their provisions, but ^akdid not ask counsel from the Lord. 15 And Joshua ^almade peace with them and made a covenant with them, to let them live, and the leaders of the congregation swore to them.

16 At the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, they heard that they were their neighbors ^amand that they lived among them. 17 And the people of Israel set out and reached their cities on the third day. ^anNow their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim. 18 But the people of Israel did not attack them, because the leaders of the congregation had sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel. Then all the congregation murmured against the leaders. 19 But all the leaders said to all the congregation, “We have sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel, and now we may not touch them. 20 This we will do to them: let them live, lest ^aowrath be upon us, ^apbecause of the oath that we swore to them.” 21 And the leaders said to them, “Let them live.” So they became ^aqcutters of wood and drawers of water for all the congregation, just as the leaders ^arhad said of them.

22 Joshua summoned them, and he said to them, “Why did you deceive us, saying, ^as‘We are very far from you,’ when ^atyou dwell among us? 23 Now therefore you are cursed, and some of you shall never be anything but servants, ^aucutters of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.” 24 They answered Joshua, “Because it was told to your servants for a certainty that the Lord your God had ^avcommanded his servant Moses to give you all the land and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you—so ^awwe feared greatly for our lives because of you and did this thing. 25 And now, behold, we are in your hand. Whatever seems good and right in your sight to do to us, do it.” 26 So he did this to them and delivered them out of the hand of the people of Israel, and they did not kill them. 27 But Joshua made them that day ^axcutters of wood and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the Lord, to this day, ^ayin the place that he should choose.

Joshua 11

Conquests in Northern Canaan

1 When Jabin, king of Hazor, heard of this, he ^azsent to Jobab king of Madon, and to the king of Shimron, and to the king of Achshaph, 2 and to the kings who were in the northern hill country, and in the ^baArabah south of ^bbChinneroth, and in the lowland, and ^bcin Naphoth-dor on the ^bdwest, 3 to the Canaanites in the east and the west, the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, and the ^beJebusites in the hill country, and the ^bfHivites under ^bgHermon in the land of ^bhMizpah. 4 And they came out with all their troops, a great horde, in number ^bilike the sand that is on the seashore, with very many horses and chariots. 5 And all these kings joined their forces and came and encamped together at the waters of Merom to fight against Israel.

6 And the Lord said to Joshua, ^bj“Do not be afraid of them, for tomorrow at this time I will give over all of them, slain, to Israel. You shall ^bkhamstring their horses and burn their ^blchariots with fire.” 7 So Joshua and all his warriors came ^bmsuddenly against them by the waters of Merom and fell upon them. 8 And the Lord gave them into the hand of Israel, who struck them and chased them as far as ^bnGreat Sidon and ^boMisrephoth-maim, and eastward as far as the Valley of ^bpMizpeh. And they struck them until he left none remaining. 9 And Joshua did to them ^bqjust as the Lord said to him: he hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots with fire.

10 And Joshua turned back at that time and captured ^brHazor and struck its king with the sword, for Hazor formerly was the head of all those kingdoms. 11 And they struck with the sword all who were in it, devoting them to destruction; ^{▼▼That is, setting apart ( devoting) as an offering to the Lord (for destruction); also verses 12, 20, 21} ^btthere was none left that breathed. And he burned Hazor with fire. 12 And all the cities of those kings, and all their kings, Joshua captured, and struck them with the edge of the sword, devoting them to destruction, ^bujust as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded. 13 But none of the cities that stood on mounds did Israel burn, except Hazor alone; that Joshua burned. 14 And all the spoil of these cities and the livestock, the people of Israel took for their plunder. But every person they struck with the edge of the sword until they had destroyed them, and they did not leave any who breathed. 15 ^bvJust as the Lord had commanded Moses his servant, ^bwso Moses commanded Joshua, ^bxand so Joshua did. He left nothing undone of all that the Lord had commanded Moses.

16 So Joshua took all that land, ^bythe hill country and all the Negeb and ^bzall the land of Goshen ^caand the lowland ^cband the Arabah ^ccand the hill country of Israel and its lowland 17 ^cdfrom Mount Halak, which rises toward Seir, as far as ^ceBaal-gad in the Valley of Lebanon below ^cfMount Hermon. And he captured ^cgall their kings and struck them and put them to death. 18 Joshua made war ^cha long time with all those kings. 19 There was not a city that made peace with the people of Israel except ^cithe Hivites, the inhabitants of Gibeon. They took them all in battle. 20 For it was the Lord’s doing ^cjto harden their hearts that they should come against Israel in battle, in order that they should be devoted to destruction and should receive no mercy but be destroyed, ^ckjust as the Lord commanded Moses.

21 And Joshua came at that time and cut off ^clthe Anakim from the hill country, from Hebron, from Debir, from Anab, and from all the hill country of Judah, and from all the hill country of Israel. Joshua devoted them to destruction with their cities. 22 There was none of the Anakim left in the land of the people of Israel. Only in Gaza, ^cmin Gath, and in Ashdod did some remain. 23 So Joshua took the whole land, ^cnaccording to all that the Lord had spoken to Moses. ^coAnd Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel ^cpaccording to their tribal allotments. And the land had rest from war.