1 It happened, 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 Yeshua and with Israel, with one accord.
3 But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Yeshua had done to Jericho and to Ai,
4 they also resorted to a ruse, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks on their donkeys, and wine-skins, old and torn and bound up,
5 and old and patched shoes on their feet, and old garments on them; and all the bread of their provision was dry and had become moldy.
6 They went to Yeshua to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him, and to the men of Israel, We have come from a far country: so make a covenant with us.
7 The men of Israel said to the Hivites, What if you dwell among us; and how shall we make a covenant with you?
8 They said to Yeshua, We are your servants. Yeshua said to them, Who are you? and where do you come from?
9 They said to him, From a very far country your servants have come because of the name of the Lord your God: for we have heard his fame, 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 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 tell them, We are your servants: so now make a covenant with us.
12 This bread of ours we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we departed to go to you; but now, look, it is dry, and has become moldy:
13 and these wine skins, which we filled, were new; and, look, they are torn: and these our garments and our shoes have become old because of the very long journey.
14 The men looked at their provision, and didn't ask counsel from the mouth of the Lord.
15 Yeshua made peace with them, and made a covenant with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation swore to them.
16 It happened 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 lived near them.
17 The people of Israel traveled, and came to their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, and Chephirah, and Beeroth, and Kiriath Jearim.
18 The people of Israel didn't kill them, because the princes of the congregation had sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel. All the congregation murmured against the princes.
19 But all the princes said to all the congregation, We have sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel: therefore we may not touch them.
20 We will do this to them, and let them live; lest wrath be on us, because of the oath which we swore to them.
21 The princes said to them, Let them live: so they became wood cutters and water carriers to all the congregation, as the princes had spoken to them.
22 Yeshua called for them, and he spoke to them, saying, Why have you deceived us, saying, We are very far from you; when you dwell near us?
23 Now therefore you are cursed, and you shall never cease to be bondservants, both wood cutters and water carriers for the house of my God.
24 They answered Yeshua, and said, Because it was certainly told your servants, how that the Lord your 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 Now, behold, we are in your hand: do as it seems good and right to you to do to us.
26 So he did to them, and delivered them out of the hand of the people of Israel, that they didn't kill them.
27 That day Yeshua made those wood cutters and water carriers for the congregation, and for the altar of the Lord, to this day, in the place which he should choose.