The Fall of Ai

8 And the Lord said to Joshua, ^f“Do not fear and do not be dismayed. Take all the fighting men with you, and arise, go up to Ai. See, ^gI have given into your hand the king of Ai, and his people, his city, and his land. 2 And you shall do to Ai and its king as you did ^hto Jericho and its king. Only ⁱits spoil and its livestock you shall take as plunder for yourselves. Lay an ambush against the city, behind it.”

3 So Joshua and all the fighting men arose to go up to Ai. And Joshua chose 30,000 mighty men of valor and sent them out by night. 4 And he commanded them, “Behold, ^jyou shall lie in ambush against the city, behind it. Do not go very far from the city, but all of you remain ready. 5 And I and all the people who are with me will approach the city. And when they come out against us ^kjust as before, we shall flee before them. 6 And they will come out after us, until we have ^ldrawn them away from the city. For they will say, ‘They are fleeing from us, just as before.’ So we will flee before them. 7 Then you shall rise up from the ambush and seize the city, for the Lord your God will give it into your hand. 8 And as soon as you have taken the city, you shall set the city on fire. You shall do according to the word of the Lord. ^mSee, I have commanded you.” 9 So Joshua sent them out. And they went to the place of ambush and lay between Bethel and Ai, to the west of Ai, but Joshua spent that night among the people.

10 Joshua arose early in the morning and mustered the people and went up, he and the elders of Israel, before the people to Ai. 11 And ⁿall the fighting men who were with him went up and drew near before the city and encamped on the north side of Ai, with a ravine between them and Ai. 12 He took about 5,000 men and set them in ambush between Bethel and Ai, to the west of the city. 13 So they stationed the forces, the main encampment that was north of the city and its rear guard west of the city. But Joshua spent that night in the valley. 14 And as soon as the king of Ai saw this, he and all his people, the men of the city, hurried and went out early to the appointed place¹ toward ^othe Arabah to meet Israel in battle. ^pBut he did not know that there was an ambush against him behind the city. 15 And Joshua and all Israel ^qpretended to be beaten before them and fled in the direction of the wilderness. 16 So all the people who were in the city were called together to pursue them, and as they pursued Joshua they ^rwere drawn away from the city. 17 Not a man was left in Ai or Bethel who did not go out after Israel. They left the city open and pursued Israel.

18 Then the Lord said to Joshua, ^s“Stretch out the javelin that is in your hand toward Ai, for I will give it into your hand.” And Joshua stretched out the javelin that was in his hand toward the city. 19 And the men in the ambush rose quickly out of their place, and as soon as he had stretched out his hand, they ran and entered the city and captured it. And they hurried to set the city on fire. 20 So when the men of Ai looked back, behold, the smoke of the city went up to heaven, and they had no power to flee this way or that, for the people who fled to the wilderness turned back against the pursuers. 21 And when Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had captured the city, and that the smoke of the city went up, then they turned back and struck down the men of Ai. 22 And the others came out from the city against them, so they were in the midst of Israel, some on this side, and some on that side. And Israel struck them down, until there was ^tleft none that survived or escaped. 23 But the king of Ai they took alive, and brought him near to Joshua.

24 When Israel had finished killing all the inhabitants of Ai in the open wilderness where they pursued them, and all of them to the very last had fallen by the edge of the sword, all Israel returned to Ai and struck it down with the edge of the sword. 25 And all who fell that day, both men and women, were 12,000, all the people of Ai. 26 But Joshua did not draw back his hand with which he ^ustretched out the javelin until he had devoted all the inhabitants of Ai to destruction.² 27 Only the livestock and the spoil of that city Israel took as their plunder, according to the word of the Lord that he ^vcommanded Joshua. 28 So Joshua burned Ai and made it forever a ^wheap of ruins, as it is to this day. 29 ^xAnd he hanged the king of Ai on a tree until evening. ^yAnd at sunset Joshua commanded, and they took his body down from the tree and threw it at the entrance of the gate of the city and ^zraised over it a great heap of stones, which stands there to this day.

Joshua Renews the Covenant

30 At that time Joshua built an altar to the Lord, the God of Israel, ^aon Mount Ebal, 31 just as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded the people of Israel, as it is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, “an altar of uncut stones, upon which no man has wielded an iron tool.” And they offered on it burnt offerings to the Lord and sacrificed peace offerings. 32 And there, in the presence of the people of Israel, he wrote on ^bthe stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he had written. 33 And all Israel, ^csojourner as well as native born, with their elders and officers and their judges, stood on opposite sides of the ark before the Levitical priests ^dwho carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, half of them in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, ^ejust as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded at the first, to bless the people of Israel. 34 And afterward ^fhe read all the words of the law, ^gthe blessing and the curse, according to all that is written in the Book of the Law. 35 There was not a word of all that Moses commanded that Joshua did not read before all the assembly of Israel, ^hand the women, and the little ones, and ⁱthe sojourners who lived³ among them.

The Gibeonite Deception

9 As soon as all the kings who were beyond the Jordan ^jin the hill country and in the lowland all along the coast ^kof the Great Sea toward Lebanon, ^lthe 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 ^mGibeon heard what Joshua had done ⁿto Jericho and ^oto 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 ^pthe 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 ^qthe Hivites, “Perhaps you live among us; then ^rhow can we make a covenant with you?” 8 They said to Joshua, ^s“We are your servants.” And Joshua said to them, “Who are you? And where do you come from?” 9 They said to him, ^t“From a very distant country your servants have come, because of the name of the Lord your God. ^uFor we have heard a report of him, and all that he did in Egypt, 10 ^vand 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 ^wAshtaroth. 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 ^xdid not ask counsel from the Lord. 15 And Joshua ^ymade 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 ^zand that they lived among them. 17 And the people of Israel set out and reached their cities on the third day. ^aNow 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 ^bwrath be upon us, ^cbecause of the oath that we swore to them.” 21 And the leaders said to them, “Let them live.” So they became ^dcutters of wood and drawers of water for all the congregation, just as the leaders ^ehad said of them.

22 Joshua summoned them, and he said to them, “Why did you deceive us, saying, ^f‘We are very far from you,’ when ^gyou dwell among us? 23 Now therefore you are cursed, and some of you shall never be anything but servants, ^hcutters 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 ⁱcommanded his servant Moses to give you all the land and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you—so ^jwe 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 ^kcutters of wood and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the Lord, to this day, ^lin the place that he should choose.

The Sun Stands Still

10 As soon as Adoni-zedek, king of Jerusalem, heard how Joshua had captured Ai and had devoted it to destruction,^{1 m}doing to Ai and its king ⁿas he had done to Jericho and its king, and ^ohow the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were among them, 2 ^phe² feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all its men were warriors. 3 So Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem sent to Hoham king of Hebron, to Piram king of Jarmuth, to Japhia king of Lachish, and to Debir king of Eglon, saying, 4 “Come up to me and help me, and let us strike Gibeon. For ^qit has made peace with Joshua and with the people of Israel.” 5 Then the five kings of the Amorites, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon, ^rgathered their forces and went up with all their armies and encamped against Gibeon and made war against it.

6 And the men of Gibeon sent to Joshua ^sat the camp in Gilgal, saying, “Do not relax your hand from your servants. Come up to us quickly and save us and help us, for all the kings of the Amorites who dwell in the hill country are gathered against us.” 7 So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he and ^tall the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valor. 8 And the Lord said to Joshua, ^u“Do not fear them, for I have given them into your hands. ^vNot a man of them shall stand before you.” 9 So Joshua came upon them suddenly, having marched up all night from Gilgal. 10 ^wAnd the Lord threw them into a panic before Israel, who³ struck them with a great blow at Gibeon and chased them by the way of ^xthe ascent of Beth-horon and struck them as far as Azekah and Makkedah. 11 And as they fled before Israel, while they were ^xgoing down the ascent of Beth-horon, ^ythe Lord threw down large stones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died. There were more who died because of the hailstones than the sons of Israel killed with the sword.

12 At that time Joshua spoke to the Lord in the day when the Lord gave the Amorites over to the sons of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel,

Is this not written in the Book of Jashar? The sun stopped in the midst of heaven and did not hurry to set for about a whole day. 14 ^aThere has been no day like it before or since, when the Lord heeded the voice of a man, for ^bthe Lord fought for Israel.

15 So ^cJoshua returned, and all Israel with him, to the camp at Gilgal.

Five Amorite Kings Executed

16 These five kings fled and hid themselves in the cave at ^dMakkedah. 17 And it was told to Joshua, “The five kings have been found, hidden in the cave at Makkedah.” 18 And Joshua said, “Roll large stones against the mouth of the cave and set men by it to guard them, 19 but do not stay there yourselves. Pursue your enemies; ^eattack their rear guard. Do not let them enter their cities, for the Lord your God has given them into your hand.” 20 When Joshua and the sons of Israel had finished striking them with a great blow ^funtil they were wiped out, and when the remnant that remained of them had entered into the fortified cities, 21 then all the people returned safe to Joshua in the camp at Makkedah. ^gNot a man moved his tongue against any of the people of Israel.

22 Then Joshua said, “Open the mouth of the cave and bring those five kings out to me from the cave.” 23 And they did so, and brought those five kings out to him from the cave, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon. 24 And when they brought those kings out to Joshua, Joshua summoned all the men of Israel and said to the chiefs of the men of war who had gone with him, “Come near; put your feet on the necks of these kings.” Then they came near and put their feet on their necks. 25 And Joshua said to them, ^h“Do not be afraid or dismayed; be strong and courageous. ⁱFor thus the Lord will do to all your enemies against whom you fight.” 26 And afterward Joshua struck them and put them to death, and he hanged them on five trees. And ^jthey hung on the trees until evening. 27 But at the time of the going down of the sun, Joshua commanded, and ^kthey took them down from the trees and threw them into the cave where they had hidden themselves, and they set large stones against the mouth of the cave, which remain to this very day.

28 As for ^lMakkedah, Joshua captured it on that day and struck it, and its king, with the edge of the sword. He devoted to destruction every person in it; he left none remaining. And he did to the king of Makkedah ^mjust as he had done to the king of Jericho.

Conquest of Southern Canaan

29 Then Joshua and all Israel with him passed on from Makkedah to ⁿLibnah and fought against Libnah. 30 And the Lord gave it also and its king into the hand of Israel. And he struck it with the edge of the sword, and every person in it; he left none remaining in it. And he did to its king ^mas he had done to the king of Jericho.

31 Then Joshua and all Israel with him passed on from Libnah to ^oLachish and laid siege to it and fought against it. 32 And the Lord gave Lachish into the hand of Israel, and he captured it on the second day and struck it with the edge of the sword, and every person in it, as he had done to Libnah.

33 Then Horam king of ^pGezer came up to help Lachish. And Joshua struck him and his people, until he left none remaining.

34 Then Joshua and all Israel with him passed on from Lachish to ^qEglon. And they laid siege to it and fought against it. 35 And they captured it on that day, and struck it with the edge of the sword. And he devoted every person in it to destruction that day, as he had done to Lachish.

36 Then Joshua and all Israel with him went up from Eglon to ^rHebron. And they fought against it 37 and captured it and struck it with the edge of the sword, and its king and its towns, and every person in it. He left none remaining, as he had done to Eglon, and devoted it to destruction and every person in it.

38 Then Joshua and all Israel with him turned back to ^sDebir and fought against it 39 and he captured it with its king and all its towns. And they struck them with the edge of the sword and devoted to destruction every person in it; he left none remaining. Just as he had done to Hebron and to Libnah and its king, so he did to Debir and to its king.

40 So Joshua struck the whole land, the hill country and the Negeb and the lowland ^tand the slopes, and all their kings. He left none remaining, ^ubut devoted to destruction all that breathed, just as the Lord God of Israel commanded. 41 And Joshua struck them from ^vKadesh-barnea as far as Gaza, and all the country of ^wGoshen, as far as Gibeon. 42 And Joshua captured all these kings and their land at one time, ^xbecause the Lord God of Israel fought for Israel. 43 ^yThen Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to the camp at Gilgal.

Conquests in Northern Canaan

11 When Jabin, king of Hazor, heard of this, he ^zsent 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 ^aArabah south of ^bChinneroth, and in the lowland, and ^cin Naphoth-dor on the ^dwest, 3 to the Canaanites in the east and the west, the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, and the ^eJebusites in the hill country, and the ^fHivites under ^gHermon in the land of ^hMizpah. 4 And they came out with all their troops, a great horde, in number ⁱlike 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, ^j“Do not be afraid of them, for tomorrow at this time I will give over all of them, slain, to Israel. You shall ^khamstring their horses and burn their ^lchariots with fire.” 7 So Joshua and all his warriors came ^msuddenly 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 ⁿGreat Sidon and ^oMisrephoth-maim, and eastward as far as the Valley of ^pMizpeh. And they struck them until he left none remaining. 9 And Joshua did to them ^qjust as the Lord said to him: he hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots with fire.