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          DASV: Joshua 9    

1 Now when all the kings in the hill country west of the Jordan River,
and in the western foothills, and on all the coast of the
Mediterranean Sea as far as Lebanon, the Hittites, Amorites,
Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, heard of
what happened,
2 they joined forces uniting to fight against Joshua and Israel.

3 But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had
done to Jericho and Ai,
4 they developed a cunning plot. They went and put worn-out
sacks on their donkeys, took old cracked and patched wineskins,
5 put dilapidated sandals on their feet and put on old tattered
clothes. All their bread provisions were dried out and moldy.
6 They came to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him
and the men of Israel, "We have come from a distant country.
So make a treaty with us."
7 But the men of Israel said to the Hivites, "What if you live
among us. How can we make a treaty with you?"
8 They replied to Joshua, "We are your servants." Joshua
asked, "Who are you? And where do you come from?"
9 They told him, "Your servants have come from a distant country
because we have heard of the reputation of the name of the
LORD your God, and all that he did in Egypt,
10 and all he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were
east of the Jordan River, to Sihon king of Heshbon,
and Og king of Bashan, who was at Ashtaroth.
11 Our elders and all the inhabitants of our country told us,
"Take provisions in your hand for the journey, and go,
meet them, and say to them, 'We are your servants.
Come now make a treaty with us.'
12 This bread we took was still warm when we loaded our
provisions from our houses the day we left to meet you.
Look, now it is dry and moldy.
13 These wineskins were new when we filled them. Look,
now they are cracked. Our clothes and sandals are worn
out because the journey was so long."
14 The Israelite men accepted some of their provisions,
but did not ask for the LORD's advise.
15 So Joshua made a peace treaty with them, guaranteeing
to let them live. The leaders of the community sealed
it with an oath.

16 Three days after having made the treaty with them,
they heard that they were, in fact, their neighbors,
and lived near them.
17 The Israelites set out and came to their cities on the
third day. Now their towns were Gibeon, Kephirah, Beeroth
and Kiriath-jearim.
18 But the Israelites did not attack them because the
leaders of the congregation had made a promise to them
by the LORD, the God of Israel. So all the community
grumbled against the leaders.
19 But all the leaders replied to all the community,
"We have sworn to them by the LORD, the God of Israel,
so we cannot touch them.
20 Here is what we will do to them. Let them live,
so God's wrath will not come upon us because of the
oath we swore to them."
21 The leaders said to them, "Let them live."
So they became woodcutters and water carriers for the whole
community, just as the leaders had said concerning them.
22 Then Joshua summoned the Gibeonites saying, "Why did you
trick us, saying, 'We live far from you,' when in fact you
live right here among us?
23 Now therefore you are cursed you will always be slaves,
both woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God."
24 Then they answered Joshua, "Because your servants were
clearly told how the LORD your God commanded his servant Moses
to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants
of the land before you. Therefore we were terrified for our
lives because of you, which is why we did this.
25 Now, we are in your hand. Do to us what seems good and
right for you to do to us."
26 So Joshua delivered them out of the hand of the Israelites,
so that they did not kill them.
27 But Joshua made them that day woodcutters and water carriers
for the community, and for the altar of the LORD, in the place
he would choose. That is what they do to this day.

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