Joshua 10:2

Joshua 10:2 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)That they feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, as one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all the men thereof were mighty.
• New International Version (NIV)He and his people were very much alarmed at this, because Gibeon was an important city, like one of the royal cities; it was larger than Ai, and all its men were good fighters.
• English Standard Version (ESV)he 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.
• New King James Version (NKJV)that they 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 mighty.

Context of Joshua 10:2

1Now Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had captured Ai and devoted it to destruction—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. So 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.”

Joshua 10:2 word by word

וַיִּֽירְא֣וּ מְאֹ֔ד כִּ֣י עִ֤יר גְּדוֹלָה֙ גִּבְע֔וֹן כְּאַחַ֖ת עָרֵ֣י הַמַּמְלָכָ֑ה וְכִ֨י הִ֤יא גְדוֹלָה֙ מִן־הָעַ֔י וְכָל־אֲנָשֶׁ֖יהָ גִּבֹּרִֽים׃Read the interlinear

• So Adoni-zedek and his people were greatlyמְאֹדme'ôd · muchH3966
• alarmedיָרֵאyârê' · to fearH3372
• becauseכִּיkîy · forH3588
• Gibeonגִּבְעוֹןgib‛ôn · GibeonH1391
• a greatגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
• cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• like oneאֶחָד'echâd · oneH259
• of the royalמַמְלָכָהmamlâkâh · kingdomH4467
• itהוּאhû' hîy' · he/she/itH1931
• thanמִן־min minnîy minnêy · fromH4480
• Aiעַי‛ay ‛ayâ' ‛ayâth · AiH5857
• and allכֹּלkôl kôl · allH3605
• its menאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
• were mightyגִּבּוֹרgibbôr gibbôr · mighty manH1368

Cross-references for Joshua 10:2

• Joshua 2:9and said to them, “I know that the LORD has given you this land and that the fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who dwell in the land are melting in fear of you.
• Exodus 15:14The nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the dwellers of Philistia.
• Deuteronomy 11:25No man will be able to stand against you; the LORD your God will put the fear and dread of you upon all the land, wherever you set foot, as He has promised you.
• Deuteronomy 28:10Then all the peoples of the earth will see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they will stand in awe of you.
• Psalms 48:4For behold, the kings assembled; they all advanced together.
• Proverbs 1:26in turn I will mock your calamity; I will sneer when terror strikes you,
• Proverbs 10:24What the wicked man dreads will overtake him, but the desire of the righteous will be granted.
• Hebrews 10:27but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume all adversaries.
• Revelation 6:15Then the kings of the earth, the nobles, the commanders, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and free man hid in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains.
• Joshua 10:40So Joshua conquered the whole region—the hill country, the Negev, the foothills, and the slopes, together with all their kings—leaving no survivors. He devoted to destruction everything that breathed, just as the LORD, the God of Israel, had commanded.
• 1 Samuel 27:5Then David said to Achish, “If I have found favor in your eyes, let me be assigned a place in one of the outlying towns, so I can live there. For why should your servant live in the royal city with you?”
• 2 Samuel 12:26Meanwhile, Joab fought against Rabbah of the Ammonites and captured the royal fortress.

Commentaries on Joshua 10:2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2As one of the royal cities - Not a regal city, but great, well inhabited and well fortified, as those cities which served for the royal residence generally were. It does not appear that the Gibeonites had any king - they seem to have been a small but powerful republic, all the men thereof were mighty, merely governed by their elders: for in their address to Joshua, Joshua 9:11, they mention no king, but simply state that they were sent by their elders and…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2Gibeon was apparently not a royal city. It may have been under the control of Canaan. They controlled Jerusalem before Gibeon made a covenant with Joshua. Or Gibeon could have been an independent town led by a few leading families.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. they feared greatly--The dread inspired by the rapid conquests of the Israelites had been immensely increased by the fact of a state so populous and so strong as Gibeon having found it expedient to submit to the power and the terms of the invaders. as one of the royal cities--Although itself a republic (Jos 9:3), it was large and well-fortified, like those places in which the chiefs of the country usually established their residence.Read the comment

Topics related to Joshua 10:2

• Adoni-Zedek
• Armies
• Cities
• Confederacies
• Jerusalem
• War

In the dictionaries

• Ai
• Gibeon
• Gibeon, Gibeonite
• Adonizedec
• Eglon (2)
• Exodus, the Book of
• Hoham
• Jerusalem
• Joshua, Book of
• Lachish

Commentaries on Joshua 10

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings