11 The king of Jarmuth, one; The king of Lachish, one;
And Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem sendeth unto Hoham king of Hebron, and unto Piram king of Jarmuth, and unto Japhia king of Lachish, and unto Debir king of Eglon, saying, `Come up unto me, and help me, and we smite Gibeon, for it hath made peace with Joshua, and with the sons of Israel.' And five kings of the Amorite (the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon) are gathered together, and go up, they and all their camps, and encamp against Gibeon, and fight against it. And the men of Gibeon send unto Joshua, unto the camp at Gilgal, saying, `Let not thy hand cease from thy servants; come up unto us `with' haste, and give safety to us, and help us; for all the kings of the Amorite, dwelling in the hill-country, have been assembled against us.' And Joshua goeth up from Gilgal, he, and all the people of war with him, even all the mighty men of valour. And Jehovah saith unto Joshua, `Be not afraid of them, for into thy hand I have given them, there doth not stand a man of them in thy presence.' And Joshua cometh in unto them suddenly (all the night he hath gone up from Gilgal), and Jehovah doth crush them before Israel, and it smiteth them -- a great smiting -- at Gibeon, and pursueth them the way of the ascent of Beth-Horon, and smiteth them unto Azekah, and unto Makkedah. And it cometh to pass, in their fleeing from the face of Israel -- they `are' in the descent of Beth-Horon -- and Jehovah hath cast upon them great stones out of the heavens, unto Azekah, and they die; more are they who have died by the hailstones than they whom the sons of Israel have slain by the sword. Then speaketh Joshua to Jehovah in the day of Jehovah's giving up the Amorites before the sons of Israel, and he saith, before the eyes of Israel, `Sun -- in Gibeon stand still; and moon -- in the valley of Ajalon;' and the sun standeth still, and the moon hath stood -- till the nation taketh vengeance `on' its enemies; is it not written on the Book of the Upright, `and the sun standeth in the midst of the heavens, and hath not hasted to go in -- as a perfect day?' And there hath not been like that day before it or after it, for Jehovah's hearkening to the voice of a man; for Jehovah is fighting for Israel. And Joshua turneth back, and all Israel with him, unto the camp at Gilgal. And these five kings flee, and are hidden in a cave at Makkedah, and it is declared to Joshua, saying, `The five kings have been found hidden in a cave at Makkedah.' And Joshua saith, `Roll great stones unto the mouth of the cave, and appoint over it men to watch them; and ye, stand not, pursue after your enemies, and ye have smitten the hindmost of them; suffer them not to go in unto their cities, for Jehovah your God hath given them into your hand.' And it cometh to pass, when Joshua and the sons of Israel finish to smite them -- a very great smiting, till they are consumed, and the remnant who have remained of them go in unto the fenced cities, that all the people turn back to the camp, unto Joshua, `at' Makkedah, in peace; none moved sharply his tongue against the sons of Israel. And Joshua saith, `Open ye the mouth of the cave, and bring out unto me these five kings from the cave;' and they do so, and bring out unto him these five kings from the cave: the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon.
And Joshua passeth over, and all Israel with him, from Libnah to Lachish, and encampeth against it, and fighteth against it; And Jehovah giveth Lachish into the hand of Israel, and it captureth it on the second day, and smiteth it by the mouth of the sword, and every person who `is' in it, according to all that it did to Libnah.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Joshua 12
Commentary on Joshua 12 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 12
Jos 12:1-6. The Two Kings Whose Countries Moses Took and Disposed of.
1. Now these are the kings of the land, which the children of Israel smote, and possessed their land on the other side Jordan—This chapter contains a recapitulation of the conquests made in the promised land, with the additional mention of some places not formerly noted in the sacred history. The river Arnon on the south and mount Hermon on the north were the respective boundaries of the land acquired by the Israelites beyond Jordan (see Nu 21:21-24; De 2:36; 3:3-16 [and see on De 2:24]).
Jos 12:7-24. The One and Thirty Kings on the West Side of Jordan, Which Joshua Smote.
7. Baal-gad … even unto … Halak—(See on Jos 11:17). A list of thirty-one chief towns is here given; and, as the whole land contained a superficial extent of only fifteen miles in length by fifty in breadth, it is evident that these capital cities belonged to petty and insignificant kingdoms. With a few exceptions, they were not the scenes of any important events recorded in the sacred history, and therefore do not require a particular notice.