Berean Standard Bible

Joshua 10:1-14

1Now Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had captured Ai and devoted it to destruction1—doing to Ai and its king as he had done to Jericho and its king—and that the people of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were living near them. 2So Adoni-zedek and his people were greatly alarmed, because Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities; it was larger than Ai, and all its men were mighty.

3Therefore Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem sent word to Hoham king of Hebron, Piram king of Jarmuth, Japhia king of Lachish, and Debir king of Eglon, saying, 4“Come up and help me. We will attack Gibeon, because they have made peace with Joshua and the Israelites.”

5So the five kings of the Amorites—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon—joined forces and advanced with all their armies. They camped before Gibeon and made war against it.

6Then the men of Gibeon sent word to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal: “Do not abandon your servants. Come quickly and save us! Help us, because all the kings of the Amorites from the hill country have joined forces against us.”

7So Joshua and his whole army, including all the mighty men of valor, came from Gilgal.

8The LORD said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, for I have delivered them into your hand. Not one of them shall stand against you.”

9After marching all night from Gilgal, Joshua caught them by surprise. 10And the LORD threw them into confusion before Israel, who defeated them in a great slaughter at Gibeon, pursued them along the ascent to Beth-horon, and struck them down as far as Azekah and Makkedah. 11As they fled before Israel along the descent from Beth-horon to Azekah, the LORD cast down on them large hailstones from the sky, and more of them were killed by the hailstones than by the swords of the Israelites.

12On the day that the LORD gave the Amorites over to the Israelites, Joshua spoke to the LORD in the presence of Israel:

“O sun, stand still over Gibeon,O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.”2

13So the sun stood stilland the moon stoppeduntil the nation took vengeanceupon its enemies.3

Is this not written in the Book of Jashar?4

“So the sun stoppedin the middle of the skyand delayed going downabout a full day.”5

14There has been no day like it before or since, when the LORD listened to the voice of a man, because the LORD fought for Israel.

Read all of Joshua 10

Notes

1. Joshua 10:1 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to the LORD, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering; also in verses 28, 35, 37, 39, and 40. ↩
2. Joshua 10:12 See Jasher 88:63. ↩
3. Joshua 10:13 Or triumphed over its enemies ↩
4. Joshua 10:13 Or the Book of the Upright One, commonly cited as Jasher ↩
5. Joshua 10:13 See Jasher 88:64. ↩

Notes

Commentaries on Joshua 10