And it came to pass, when all the kings that were beyond the Jordan, in the hill-country, and in the lowland, and on all the shore of the great sea in front of Lebanon, the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, heard thereof;
that they gathered themselves together, to fight with Joshua and with Israel, with one accord.
But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done unto Jericho and to Ai,
they also did work wilily, and went and {According to Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac, took provisions. See verse 12.}made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine-skins, old and rent and bound up,
and old and patched shoes upon their feet, and old garments upon them; and all the bread of their provision was dry and was become mouldy.
And they went to Joshua unto the camp at Gilgal, and said unto him, and to the men of Israel, We are come from a far country: now therefore make ye a covenant with us.
And the men of Israel said unto the Hivites, Peradventure ye dwell among us; and how shall we make a covenant with you?
And they said unto Joshua, We are thy servants. And Joshua said unto them, Who are ye? and from whence come ye?
And they said unto him, From a very far country thy servants are come because of the name of Jehovah thy God: for we have heard the fame of him, and all that he did in Egypt,
and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon king of Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, who was at Ashtaroth.
And our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spake to us, saying, Take provision in your hand for the journey, and go to meet them, and say unto them, We are your servants: and now make ye a covenant with us.
This our bread we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we came forth to go unto you; but now, behold, it is dry, and is become mouldy:
and these wine-skins, which we filled, were new; and, behold, they are rent: and these our garments and our shoes are become old by reason of the very long journey.
And the men took of their provision, and asked not counsel at the mouth of Jehovah.
And Joshua made peace with them, and made a covenant with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation sware unto them.
And it came to pass at the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were their neighbors, and that they dwelt among them.
And the children of Israel journeyed, and came unto their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, and Chephirah, and Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim.
And the children of Israel smote them not, because the princes of the congregation had sworn unto them by Jehovah, the God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured against the princes.
But all the princes said unto all the congregation, We have sworn unto them by Jehovah, the God of Israel: now therefore we may not touch them.
This we will do to them, and let them live; lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath which we sware unto them.
And the princes said unto them, Let them live: so they became hewers of wood and drawers of water unto all the congregation, as the princes had spoken unto them.
And Joshua called for them, and he spake unto them, saying, Wherefore have ye beguiled us, saying, We are very far from you; when ye dwell among us?
Now therefore ye are cursed, and there {Hebrew: shall not be cut off from you.}shall never fail to be of you bondmen, both hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.
And they answered Joshua, and said, Because it was certainly told thy servants, how that Jehovah thy God commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you; therefore we were sore afraid for our lives because of you, and have done this thing.
And now, behold, we are in thy hand: as it seemeth good and right unto thee to do unto us, do.
And so did he unto them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, that they slew them not.
And Joshua made them that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the altar of Jehovah, unto this day, in the place which he should choose.
Querverweise zu Josua 9,20 Jos 9,20
And there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David sought the face of Jehovah. And Jehovah said, It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he put to death the Gibeonites.
And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah);
and David said unto the Gibeonites, What shall I do for you? and wherewith shall I make atonement, that ye may bless the inheritance of Jehovah?
And the Gibeonites said unto him, It is no matter of silver or gold between us and Saul, or his house; {Or, neither for us shall thou put any man to death in Israel}neither is it for us to put any man to death in Israel. And he said, What ye shall say, that will I do for you.
And they said unto the king, The man that consumed us, and that devised against us, {Or, so that we have been destroyed}that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the borders of Israel,
let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto Jehovah in Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of Jehovah. And the king said, I will give them.
And he also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God: but he stiffened his neck, and {Hebrew: strengthened.}hardened his heart against turning unto Jehovah, the God of Israel.
It is a snare to a man {Or, rashly to utter holy words Or, to devour that which is holy}rashly to say, It is holy,And after vows to make inquiry.
Say now to the rebellious house, Know ye not what these things mean? tell them, Behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, and took the king thereof, and the princes thereof, and brought them to him to Babylon.
And he took of the seed royal, and made a covenant with him; he also brought him under an oath, and took away the mighty of the land;
that the kingdom might be {Hebrew: low.}base, that it might not lift itself up, but that by keeping his covenant it might stand.
But he rebelled against him in sending his ambassadors into Egypt, that they might give him horses and much people. Shall he prosper? shall he escape that doeth such things? shall he break the covenant, and yet escape?
As I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, surely in the place where the king dwelleth that made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant he brake, even with him in the midst of Babylon he shall die.
Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company help him in the war, when they cast up mounds and build forts, to cut off many persons.
For he hath despised the oath by breaking the covenant; and behold, he had given his hand, and yet hath done all these things; he shall not escape.
Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: As I live, surely mine oath that he hath despised, and my covenant that he hath broken, I will even bring it upon his own head.
And I will spread my net upon him, and he shall be taken in my snare, and I will bring him to Babylon, and will enter into judgment with him there for his trespass that he hath trespassed against me.
And all his fugitives in all his bands shall fall by the sword, and they that remain shall be scattered toward every wind: and ye shall know that I, Jehovah, have spoken it.
Then said he unto me, This is the curse that goeth forth over the face of the whole land: for every one that stealeth shall be cut off on the one side according to it; and every one that sweareth shall be cut off {Or, from hence}on the other side according to it.
I will cause it to go forth, saith Jehovah of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by my name; and it shall abide in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.
And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against the false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the sojourner from his right, and fear not me, saith Jehovah of hosts.
without understanding, covenant-breakers, without natural affection, unmerciful:
for fornicators, for abusers of themselves with men, for menstealers, for liars, for false swearers, and if there be any other thing contrary to the {Greek: healthful.}sound {Or, teaching}doctrine;