Joshua 9:23

Joshua 9:23 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Now therefore ye are cursed, and there shall none of you be freed from being bondmen, and hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.
• New International Version (NIV)You are now under a curse: You will never be released from service as woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)Now therefore you are cursed, and some of you shall never be anything but servants, cutters of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God."
• New King James Version (NKJV)Now therefore, you are cursed, and none of you shall be freed from being slaves—woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God.”

Context of Joshua 9:23

21We will let them live, but they will become our servants. They will cut wood and they will fetch water for all the Israelite people.’ That is what the Israelite leaders decided to do. 22Joshua called the Gibeonites to come to him. He asked them, ‘Why did you deceive us like that? You said that you lived far away from us. But you really live near to us. Because you told lies to us, you will always have to be our servants. You will cut wood and you will fetch water to serve our God.’ 24The Gibeonites said to Joshua, ‘We heard about the command that the Lord your God had given to his servant, Moses. We know that he told Moses to take the whole of our land for you to live in. We know that you must kill all the people who live there now. Because of that, we were very afraid that you would kill us. That is why we did what we did. 25Now we are under your power. You must decide what to do with us. Do whatever you think is right and good.’

Joshua 9:23 word by word

וְעַתָּ֖ה אֲרוּרִ֣ים אַתֶּ֑ם וְלֹֽא־יִכָּרֵ֨ת מִכֶּ֜ם עֶ֗בֶד וְחֹטְבֵ֥י עֵצִ֛ים וְשֹֽׁאֲבֵי־מַ֖יִם לְבֵ֥ית אֱלֹהָֽי׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• cursedאָרַר'ârar · to curseH779
• and there shall none of you be freedכָּרַתkârath · to cut: cutH3772
• from being bondmenעֶ֫בֶד‛ebed · servant/slaveH5650
• and hewersחָטַבchâţab · to chopH2404
• of woodעֵץ‛êts · tree: woodH6086
• and drawersשָׁאַבshâ'ab · to drawH7579
• of waterמַיmayim · waterH4325
• for the houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: templeH1004
• of my Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430

Cross-references for Joshua 9:23

• Genesis 9:25He said, ‘I curse Canaan! He will become a slave that must serve his brothers.’
• Leviticus 27:28A man might give to the Lord something that the man has. Everything that a man gives like that is holy. It might be a person, an animal or land. The priest must not sell it. A man cannot take it back. Everything that someone gives to the Lord is most holy.
• Joshua 9:21We will let them live, but they will become our servants. They will cut wood and they will fetch water for all the Israelite people.’ That is what the Israelite leaders decided to do.

Commentaries on Joshua 9:23

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23Now therefore ye are cursed - Does not this refer to what was pronounced by Noah, Genesis 9:26, against Ham and his posterity? Did not the curse of Ham imply slavery, and nothing else? Cursed be Canaan, a servant of servants shall he be; and does it not sufficiently appear that nothing else than perpetual slavery is implied in the curse of the Gibeonites? They were brought, no doubt, under tribute; performed the meanest offices for the Israelites, being…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 22-27Verses 22-27 The Gibeonites do not justify their lie, but plead that they did it to save their lives. And the fear was not merely of the power of man; one might flee from that to the Divine protection; but of the power of God himself, which they saw engaged against them. Joshua sentences them to perpetual bondage. They must be servants, but any work becomes honourable, when it is done for the house of the Lord, and the offices thereof. Let us, in like…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 23under a curse: This means they became servants. At that time, the house of my God was the tabernacle. Later, it was the temple in Jerusalem.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 18-2718-27. the children of Israel smote them not--The moral character of the Gibeonites' stratagem was bad. The princes of the congregation did not vindicate either the expediency or the lawfulness of the connection they had formed; but they felt the solemn obligations of their oath; and, although the popular clamor was loud against them, caused either by disappointment at losing the spoils of Gibeon, or by displeasure at the apparent breach of the divine…Read the comment

Topics related to Joshua 9:23

• Church
• Contracts
• Joshua
• Kirjath-Jearim
• Magnanimity
• Servant

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Alliance
• Drawer of water
• Gibeon
• Slave
• Wilily
• Abinadab
• Chephirah
• Exodus, the Book of

Commentaries on Joshua 9

• 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
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings