JosuéCapítulo 10

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When 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 inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were living among them,

Adoni-zedek and his people were terrified, for Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities—larger than Ai—and all its men were warriors.

So 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:

"Come up to me and help me, and let us attack Gibeon, for it has made peace with Joshua and the Israelites."

Then the five kings of the Amorites—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon—joined forces and marched up with all their armies. They took up positions against Gibeon and attacked it.

The men of Gibeon sent word to Joshua at the camp in Gilgal: "Do not abandon your servants. Come up to us quickly, save us, and help us, for all the Amorite kings of the hill country have joined forces against us."

So Joshua marched up from Gilgal with his whole army, all his best fighting men.

And the LORD said to Joshua, "Do not be afraid of them, for I have given them into your hand. Not one of them will be able to stand against you."

Joshua came upon them suddenly, having marched all night from Gilgal.

The LORD threw them into confusion before Israel, who struck them down in a great slaughter at Gibeon, pursued them along the road up to Beth-horon, and cut them down as far as Azekah and Makkedah.

As they fled before Israel down the descent of Beth-horon, the LORD hurled great hailstones on them from the sky all the way to Azekah, and they died. More of them died from the hailstones than from the swords of the Israelites.

On the day the LORD gave the Amorites over to the Israelites, Joshua spoke to the LORD, and in the sight of Israel he said: "Sun, stand still over Gibeon, and moon, over the Valley of Aijalon."

So the sun stood still and the moon halted until the nation had taken vengeance on its enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jashar?* The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed its setting for about a full day. [*Footnote: Jashar means "the upright one"; the book is an ancient collection of songs no longer preserved.]

There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the LORD listened to the voice of a man—because the LORD was fighting for Israel.

Then Joshua returned with all Israel to the camp at Gilgal.

Now the five kings had fled and hidden in the cave at Makkedah.

When Joshua was told, "The five kings have been found, hiding in the cave at Makkedah,"

he said, "Roll large stones up to the mouth of the cave, and post men there to guard them.

But you—do not stop. Pursue your enemies and attack them from behind. Do not let them reach their cities, for the LORD your God has given them into your hand."

When Joshua and the Israelites had finished inflicting a crushing defeat on them, until they were wiped out—though a few survivors escaped to the fortified cities—

the whole army returned safely to Joshua at the camp in Makkedah, and no one dared say a word against the Israelites.

Then Joshua said, "Open the mouth of the cave and bring those five kings out to me."

So they did, bringing the five kings out of the cave to him—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon.

When they had brought these kings to Joshua, he summoned all the men of Israel and said to the commanders of the troops who had gone with him, "Come here, put your feet on the necks of these kings." So they came forward and put their feet on their necks.

Joshua said to them, "Do not be afraid or dismayed. Be strong and courageous, for this is what the LORD will do to all the enemies you fight."

Then Joshua struck the kings down and killed them, and hung them on five trees, where they remained until evening.

At sunset Joshua gave the order, and they took them down from the trees and threw them into the cave where they had been hiding. Then they placed large stones over the mouth of the cave, and those stones remain there to this very day.

That day Joshua captured Makkedah and put it and its king to the sword. He devoted the city and everyone in it to destruction, leaving no survivor, and he did to the king of Makkedah as he had done to the king of Jericho.

Then Joshua and all Israel with him moved on from Makkedah to Libnah and attacked it.

The LORD gave that city and its king into Israel's hand as well. Joshua put it to the sword along with everyone in it, leaving no survivor there, and he did to its king as he had done to the king of Jericho.

Then Joshua and all Israel with him moved on from Libnah to Lachish. He laid siege to it and attacked it.

The LORD gave Lachish into Israel's hand, and Joshua captured it on the second day. He put it to the sword along with everyone in it, just as he had done to Libnah.

Then Horam king of Gezer came up to help Lachish, but Joshua struck him down along with his people, until no survivor was left.

Then Joshua and all Israel with him moved on from Lachish to Eglon. They laid siege to it and attacked it.

They captured it that very day and put it to the sword, devoting to destruction everyone in it, just as they had done to Lachish.

Then Joshua and all Israel with him went up from Eglon to Hebron and attacked it.

They captured it and put it to the sword, along with its king, all its towns, and everyone in it. They left no survivor, just as they had done to Eglon; they devoted the city and everyone in it to destruction.

Then Joshua and all Israel with him turned back to Debir and attacked it.

They captured it, its king, and all its villages, and put them to the sword. They devoted everyone in it to destruction, leaving no survivor. Joshua did to Debir and its king as he had done to Hebron and to Libnah and its king.

So Joshua struck down the whole land—the hill country, the Negev, the western foothills, and the slopes—together with all their kings. He left no survivor but devoted everything that breathed to destruction, as the LORD, the God of Israel, had commanded.

Joshua conquered them from Kadesh-barnea to Gaza, and the whole region of Goshen as far as Gibeon.

All these kings and their lands Joshua captured in one campaign, because the LORD, the God of Israel, fought for Israel.

Then Joshua returned with all Israel to the camp at Gilgal.

Consulta

Resumen2

Capítulo 10

Main Theme: The Lord fights for Israel and grants them a miraculous victory over the five Amorite kings and their cities.

Content: When five Amorite kings, led by Adoni-Zedek of Jerusalem, attack Gibeon because it has made peace with Israel, Joshua comes to its aid in fulfillment of the Lord's promise of victory. The Lord intervenes by throwing panic among the enemies and sending large hailstones from heaven that kill more than the sword does. Joshua prays for the sun and moon to stand still, and the Lord answers his prayer—an unprecedented event. The five kings are found hiding in a cave, killed, and hanged. Then Joshua systematically conquers the cities of Makkedah, Libnah, Lachish, Eglon, Hebron, and Debir.

Key Words/Images:

Hailstones from heaven – God's direct intervention in battle shows that victory is His work, not merely Israel's military strength.
The sun stands still – A unique miracle where God answers a human prayer and extends the day to complete the victory.
The five kings in the cave – Symbolizes how God's enemies cannot hide and that judgment is inevitable.
Herem (the ban) – The total destruction of the cities as an expression of God's judgment and obedience to His command.

Contexto histórico

Historical and Cultural Context for Joshua 10

People

Adoni-Zedek (אֲדֹנִי־צֶדֶק, "my lord is righteousness") was the king of Jerusalem and leader of a coalition of five Amorite kings. His name follows a pattern known from earlier rulers of Jerusalem—in Genesis 14:18 we encounter Melchizedek ("king of righteousness"). The Amarna letters from the 14th century BC mention Jerusalem rulers such as Abdi-Heba, confirming the city's significance as a political center during this period. The other four kings—Hoham (הוֹהָם) of Hebron, Japhia (יָפִיעַ) of Lachish, Piram (פִּרְאָם) of Jarmuth, and Debir (דְּבִיר), king of Eglon—represented important city-states in the Shephelah (lowlands) and the southern highlands.

Places

The chapter covers a large geographical area from Gibeon in the north to Kadesh-Barnea in the south. Gibeon (modern el-Jib) lies about 9–10 km north-northwest of Jerusalem and was archaeologically a significant city in the Bronze Age. The Beth-Horon pass was the strategically important main route between the coastal plain and the highlands—a natural location for pursuing fleeing enemies. Lachish (Tell ed-Duweir) has been thoroughly excavated and shows destruction layers from the late Bronze Age, although the dating of these layers is debated. The cave at Makkedah, where the five kings hid, has never been securely identified, but the area around the Aijalon Valley contains many natural caves in the limestone.

Events and Customs

The ritual of placing a foot on the necks of defeated kings (v. 24) is well documented in ancient Near Eastern iconography. Egyptian and Assyrian reliefs depict victors trampling their enemies, symbolizing total submission and dominance. Hanging on trees (v. 26) was not an execution method but a public display of already killed enemies to demonstrate victory and bring shame. Joshua's command to take down the bodies before sunset (v. 27) follows the instruction in Deuteronomy 21:22–23 and shows that even in warfare, the laws of the Torah applied.

Key Terms

Herem (חֵרֶם, "ban/devotion to destruction") is used repeatedly in the chapter regarding the conquered cities. This was not arbitrary destruction but a religious act in which everything was "given over" to God—nothing could be kept as war booty. The term "Book of Jashar" (סֵפֶר הַיָּשָׁר, "the Book of the Upright," v. 13) refers to a lost poetic collection also mentioned in 2 Samuel 1:18, which evidently contained ancient heroic songs from Israel's early history.

Chapter-Specific Findings

Excavations at Lachish have revealed massive destruction layers testifying to violent conquests in the late Bronze Age, illustrating the city's military significance throughout history. At Gibeon, archaeologists have found a large water reservoir and industrial winepress installations, confirming the city's description as "great" and important (v. 2). The hailstorm described in verse 11 cannot be verified archaeologically, but such catastrophic storms are climatologically possible in the region and are also mentioned in other ancient Near Eastern texts as divine intervention in war.

Personas8

Japhia1 Piram1 Joshua20 Debir2 Jacob3 Hoham1 Horam1 Adoni-Zedek2

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Palabras clave7

Joshua — The main character in the book of Joshua, a leader of the people of Israel after Moses' death, who led them into the promised land of Canaan.
Canaan — The area that God promised to give to the people of Israel, which Joshua and his army conquered. Today's Israel, Palestine, and parts of Lebanon and Jordan.
Gibeonites — The inhabitants of Gibeon, a city in Canaan, who made a peace treaty with Joshua and the Israelites, leading to conflict with other Canaanite kings.
The Sun Standing Still — A miracle that occurred under Joshua's leadership, where the sun and moon stood still in the sky to give the Israelites time to complete their victory over the Canaanites.
Amorites — One of the groups living in Canaan before the arrival of the Israelites. They fought against Joshua and his army but were eventually defeated.
Hailstones — Large hail that fell from the sky and killed many Amorites during the battle between the Israelites and the Canaanites. This was seen as a sign of God's help and support for the Israelites.
Five Kings — The kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon, who allied themselves against Gibeon and the Israelites. They were eventually captured and killed by Joshua and his army.