¹ And it came to pass, when all the kings who 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 of it,

² that they gathered themselves together to fight with Joshua and with Israel with one accord.

³ But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai,

⁴ they also worked shrewdly, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their donkeys, and wine-skins, old and torn and bound up,

⁵ and old and patched shoes upon their feet, and old garments upon them, and all the bread of their provision was dry and became moldy.

⁶ And they went to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him, and to the men of Israel, We have come from a far country, now therefore make ye a covenant with us.

⁷ And the men of Israel said to the Hivites, Perhaps ye dwell among us, and how shall we make a covenant with you?

⁸ And they said to Joshua, We are thy servants. And Joshua said to them, Who are ye, and from where do ye come?

⁹ And they said to him, From a very far country. Thy servants have come because of the name of Jehovah thy God, for we have heard the fame of him, and all that he did in Egypt,

¹⁰ and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon king of Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, who was at Ashtaroth.

¹¹ And our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spoke to us, saying, Take provision in your hand for the journey, and go to meet them, and say to them, We are your servants, and now make ye a covenant with us.

¹² This our bread we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we came forth to go to you, but now, behold, it is dry, and has become moldy.

¹³ And these wine-skins, which we filled, were new, and, behold, they are torn. And these our garments and our shoes have become old by reason of the very long journey.

¹⁴ And the men took of their provision, and did not ask counsel at the mouth of Jehovah.

¹⁵ And Joshua made peace with them, and made a covenant with them to let them live, and the rulers of the congregation swore to them.

¹⁶ 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.

¹⁷ And the sons of Israel journeyed, and came to their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, and Chephirah, and Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim.

¹⁸ And the sons of Israel did not smite them, because the rulers of the congregation had sworn to them by Jehovah, the God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured against the rulers.

¹⁹ But all the rulers said to all the congregation, We have sworn to them by Jehovah, the God of Israel, now therefore we may not touch them.

²⁰ This we will do to them, and let them live, lest wrath be upon us because of the oath which we swore to them.

²¹ And the rulers said to them, Let them live. So they became hewers of wood and drawers of water to all the congregation, as the rulers had spoken to them.

²² And Joshua called for them, and he spoke to them, saying, Why have ye beguiled us, saying, We are very far from you, when ye dwell among us?

²³ Now therefore ye are cursed, and there shall never fail to be bondmen of you, both hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.

²⁴ 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 very afraid for our lives because of you, and have done this thing.

²⁵ And now, behold, we are in thy hand. As it seems good and right to thee to do to us, do.

²⁶ And so he did to them, and delivered them out of the hand of the sons of Israel, that they did not kill them.

²⁷ And Joshua made them that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the altar of Jehovah to this day in the place which he should choose.