1 Now it came to pass, when Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem heard how Joshua had taken Ai, and had utterly destroyed it (as he had done to Jericho and her king, so he had done to Ai and her king), and how the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel, and were among them; 2 that they feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, as one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all the men thereof were mighty. 3 Wherefore Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem sent unto Hoham king of Hebron, and unto Piram king of Jarmuth, and unto Japhia king of Lachish, and unto Debir king of Eglon, saying, 4 Come up unto me, and help me, and let us smite Gibeon; for it hath made peace with Joshua and with the children of Israel. 5 Therefore the five kings of the Amorites, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon, gathered themselves together, and went up, they and all their hosts, and encamped against Gibeon, and made war against it.

6 And the men of Gibeon sent unto Joshua to the camp to Gilgal, saying, Slack not thy hand from thy servants; come up to us quickly, and save us, and help us: for all the kings of the Amorites that dwell in the hill-country are gathered together against us. 7 So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he, and all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valor. 8 And Jehovah said unto Joshua, Fear them not: for I have delivered them into thy hands; there shall not a man of them stand before thee. 9 Joshua therefore came upon them suddenly; for he went up from Gilgal all the night. 10 And Jehovah discomfited them before Israel, and he slew them with a great slaughter at Gibeon, and chased them by the way of the ascent of Beth-horon, and smote them to Azekah, and unto Makkedah. 11 And it came to pass, as they fled from before Israel, while they were at the descent of Beth-horon, that Jehovah cast down great stones from heaven upon them unto Azekah, and they died: they were more who died with the hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword.

12 Then spake Joshua to Jehovah in the day when Jehovah delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel; and he said in the sight of Israel,

Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon;

And thou, Moon, in the valley of Aijalon.

13 And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed,

Until the nation had avenged themselves of their enemies.

Is not this written in the book of Jashar? And the sun stayed in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day. 14 And there was no day like that before it or after it, that Jehovah hearkened unto the voice of a man: for Jehovah fought for Israel.

15 And Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, unto the camp to Gilgal.

16 And these five kings fled, and hid themselves in the cave at Makkedah. 17 And it was told Joshua, saying, The five kings are found, hidden in the cave at Makkedah. 18 And Joshua said, Roll great stones unto the mouth of the cave, and set men by it to keep them: 19 but stay not ye; pursue after your enemies, and smite the hindmost of them; suffer them not to enter into their cities: for Jehovah your God hath delivered them into your hand. 20 And it came to pass, when Joshua and the children of Israel had made an end of slaying them with a very great slaughter, till they were consumed, and the remnant which remained of them had entered into the fortified cities, 21 that all the people returned to the camp to Joshua at Makkedah in peace: none moved his tongue against any of the children of Israel.

22 Then said Joshua, Open the mouth of the cave, and bring forth those five kings unto me out of the cave. 23 And they did so, and brought forth those five kings unto him out of the cave, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon. 24 And it came to pass, when they brought forth those kings unto Joshua, that Joshua called for all the men of Israel, and said unto the chiefs of the men of war that went with him, Come near, put your feet upon the necks of these kings. And they came near, and put their feet upon the necks of them. 25 And Joshua said unto them, Fear not, nor be dismayed; be strong and of good courage: for thus shall Jehovah do to all your enemies against whom ye fight. 26 And afterward Joshua smote them, and put them to death, and hanged them on five trees: and they were hanging upon the trees until the evening. 27 And it came to pass at the time of the going down of the sun, that Joshua commanded, and they took them down off the trees, and cast them into the cave wherein they had hidden themselves, and laid great stones on the mouth of the cave, unto this very day.

28 And Joshua took Makkedah on that day, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and the king thereof: he utterly destroyed them and all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining; and he did to the king of Makkedah as he had done unto the king of Jericho.

29 And Joshua passed from Makkedah, and all Israel with him, unto Libnah, and fought against Libnah: 30 and Jehovah delivered it also, and the king thereof, into the hand of Israel; and he smote it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining in it; and he did unto the king thereof as he had done unto the king of Jericho.

31 And Joshua passed from Libnah, and all Israel with him, unto Lachish, and encamped against it, and fought against it: 32 and Jehovah delivered Lachish into the hand of Israel; and he took it on the second day, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were therein, according to all that he had done to Libnah.

33 Then Horam king of Gezer came up to help Lachish; and Joshua smote him and his people, until he had left him none remaining.

34 And Joshua passed from Lachish, and all Israel with him, unto Eglon; and they encamped against it, and fought against it; 35 and they took it on that day, and smote it with the edge of the sword; and all the souls that were therein he utterly destroyed that day, according to all that he had done to Lachish.

36 And Joshua went up from Eglon, and all Israel with him, unto Hebron; and they fought against it: 37 and they took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and the king thereof, and all the cities thereof, and all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining, according to all that he had done to Eglon; but he utterly destroyed it, and all the souls that were therein.

38 And Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to Debir, and fought against it: 39 and he took it, and the king thereof, and all the cities thereof; and they smote them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining: as he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir, and to the king thereof; as he had done also to Libnah, and to the king thereof.

40 So Joshua smote all the land, the hill-country, and the South, and the lowland, and the slopes, and all their kings: he left none remaining, but he utterly destroyed all that breathed, as Jehovah, the God of Israel, commanded. 41 And Joshua smote them from Kadesh-barnea even unto Gaza, and all the country of Goshen, even unto Gibeon. 42 And all these kings and their land did Joshua take at one time, because Jehovah, the God of Israel, fought for Israel. 43 And Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, unto the camp to Gilgal.

1 Sabendo Adonisedec, rei de Jerusalém, que Josué se tinha apoderado de Hai e a havia votado ao interdito, que fizera a Hai e ao seu rei como tinha feito a Jericó e a seu rei, e que os gabaonitas tinham feito paz com Israel e habitavam com ele,

2 teve grande medo. Gabaon era, com efeito, uma grande cidade, uma cidade real, maior que Hai, e toda a sua população muito guerreira.

3 Adonisedec, rei de Jerusalém, mandou dizer a Oão, rei de Hebron, a Farão, rei de Jerimot, a Jafia, rei de Laquis, e a Dabir, rei de Eglon:

4 Vinde comigo e ajudai-me a ferir Gabaon, porque fez paz com Josué e os israelitas.

5 Unidos assim os cinco reis dos amorreus, o rei de Jerusalém, o rei de Hebron, o rei de Jerimot, o rei de Laquis e o rei de Eglon, saíram com todos os seus exércitos e acamparam diante de Gabaon, sitiando-a.

6 Os habitantes de Gabaon enviaram então a seguinte mensagem a Josué, que estava acampado em Gálgala: Não abandones os teus servos; vem ao nosso encontro sem demora, traze-nos socorro e livra-nos, porque todos os reis dos amorreus da montanha se coligaram contra nós.

7 Josué subiu de Gálgala com todos os seus guerreiros e todos os seus valentes.

8 O Senhor disse-lhe: Não os temas, porque os entreguei em tuas mãos; nenhum deles te poderá resistir.

9 Josué, tendo passado toda a noite a subir de Gálgala, caiu de repente sobre eles.

10 O Senhor semeou no meio deles o terror diante de Israel, e este infligiu-lhes uma terrível derrota diante de Gabaon, e perseguiu-os pelo caminho que sobe a Betoron, batendo-os até Azeca e Maceda.

11 Enquanto fugiam diante de Israel, na descida de Betoron, o Senhor mandou sobre eles do céu uma tempestade de granizo até Azeca; e foram mais numerosos os que morreram sob essa chuva de pedras do que os que pereceram pela espada dos israelitas.

12 Josué falou ao Senhor no dia em que ele entregou os amorreus nas mãos dos filhos de Israel, e disse em presença dos israelitas: Sol, detém-te sobre Gabaon, e tu, ó lua, sobre o vale de Ajalon.

13 E o sol parou, e a lua não se moveu até que o povo se vingou de seus inimigos. Isto acha-se escrito no Livro do Justo. O sol parou no meio do céu, e não se apressou a pôr-se pelo espaço de quase um dia inteiro.

14 Não houve, nem antes nem depois, um dia como aquele, em que o Senhor tenha obedecido à voz de um homem, porque o Senhor combatia por Israel.

15 Depois disso, Josué com toda a sua tropa voltou para o acampamento de Gálgala.

16 Ora, os cinco reis tinham fugido, e tinham se escondido numa caverna, em Maceda.

17 E noticiaram-no a Josué: Foram encontrados os cinco reis escondidos numa caverna, em Maceda.

18 Josué respondeu: Rolai grandes pedras para a entrada da caverna, e ponde homens junto a ela em guarda.

19 Vós, porém, não vos detenhais, mas persegui vossos inimigos; não os deixeis entrar em suas cidades, porque o Senhor, vosso Deus, os entregou em vossas mãos.

20 Tendo Josué e os israelitas acabado de massacrá-los, até o extermínio - apenas uns poucos puderam escapar e recolher-se às suas cidades fortes -,

21 todo o povo voltou tranqüilamente ao acampamento, junto de Josué, em Maceda, e ninguém se atreveu a abrir a boca contra os filhos de Israel.

22 Josué disse então: Abri a entrada da caverna, e trazei-me os cinco reis que lá estão. Assim o fizeram.

23 Foram tirados da caverna os cinco reis, o rei de Jerusalém, o rei de Hebron, o rei de Jerimot, o rei de Laquis e o rei de Eglon.

24 Quando foram conduzidos a Josué, ele chamou todos os homens de Israel e disse aos chefes dos guerreiros que o tinham acompanhado: Aproximai-vos e ponde o pé sobre o pescoço destes reis. Tendo-se eles aproximado e posto o pé sobre o pescoço deles,

25 disse-lhes de novo: Não temais, nem tremais. Tende coragem e sede fortes, porque é assim que fará o Senhor a todos os inimigos que haveis de combater.

26 Dizendo isso, Josué feriu-os de morte e suspendeu-os em cinco árvores, onde estiveram até a tarde.

27 Ao pôr-do-sol, mandou que fossem descidos das árvores e lançados na caverna onde se tinham refugiado, e puseram à entrada grandes pedras, que ali se encontram ainda hoje.

28 No mesmo dia apoderou-se Josué de Maceda, e passou-a ao fio da espada juntamente com seu rei; votou ao interdito a cidade com todo ser vivo que nela havia, sem nada poupar. E fez ao rei de Maceda como tinha feito ao rei de Jericó.

29 Passou em seguida com todo o Israel a Libna, e atacaram-na.

30 O Senhor entregou-a com seu rei nas mãos de Israel, que passou ao fio da espada a cidade com todo ser vivo que nela havia, não deixando escapar nenhum. E fez ao seu rei como tinha feito ao rei de Jericó.

31 De Libna passou Josué com todo o Israel a Laquis, onde levantou o seu acampamento, sitiando-a.

32 O Senhor lha entregou, e Israel apoderou-se dela no segundo dia, passando-a ao fio da espada com todo ser vivo, como tinha feito a Libna.

33 Então, Horão, rei de Gaser, veio em socorro de Laquis, mas Josué o derrotou com todo o seu povo até o extermínio completo.

34 De Laquis, passou Josué com todo o seu povo a Eglon; levantaram ali o seu acampamento, e atacaram-na.

35 Tomaram-na no mesmo dia, e passaram-na ao fio da espada, votando ao interdito todo ser vivo, como tinha feito a Laquis.

36 Subiu em seguida com todo o Israel de Eglon a Hebron, e atacaram-na.

37 Tomaram Hebron e passaram ao fio da espada a cidade com seu rei, seus arrabaldes e todo ser vivo, sem nada deixar escapar, como tinham feito a Eglon. A cidade foi votada ao interdito com todo ser vivo.

38 Dali Josué, com todo o Israel, voltou-se contra Dabir e atacou-a;

39 apoderou-se dela, juntamente com seu rei, e passou-os ao fio da espada. Votou ao interdito toda alma viva que nela se achava, sem nada poupar, e fez a Dabir e ao seu rei como tinha feito a Hebron e a Libna com seus reis.

40 Josué feriu toda a terra: a montanha, o Negeb, a planície, as colinas com todos os seus reis, sem poupar ninguém, votando ao interdito tudo o que respirava, segundo a ordem do Senhor, Deus de Israel.

41 Tudo foi assim ferido por Josué, de Cades-Barne a Gaza, toda a terra de Gosen até Gabaon.

42 Josué apoderou-se, de uma só vez, desse país e de seus reis, porque o Senhor, Deus de Israel, combatia por ele.

43 Depois voltou Josué com todo o Israel para o acampamento de Gálgala.