Now it came about after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, that the Lord spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ servant, saying,

Joshua son of Nun sent two spies out from Shittim secretly and instructed them: "Find out what you can about the land, especially Jericho." They stopped at the house of a prostitute named Rahab and spent the night there.

And the king of Jericho was told about it, saying, Behold, men from the sons of Israel came in here tonight, to search out the country.

And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out: whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them.

The men said to her, "Our life for yours, if you don't talk about this business of ours; and it shall be, when Yahweh gives us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with you."

It shall come about that anyone who goes out of the doors of your house into the street, his blood shall be on his own head, and we shall be free; but anyone who is with you in the house, his blood shall be on our head if a hand is laid on him.

But if you talk about this business of ours, then we shall be guiltless of your oath which you have made us to swear."

Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure: come not near unto it, that ye may know the way by which ye must go: for ye have not passed this way heretofore.

Look! The ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth [is about to] cross [over] ahead of you into the Jordan.

It shall come about when the soles of the feet of the priests who carry the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan will be cut off, and the waters which are flowing down from above will stand in one heap.”

About forty thousand prepared for war passed over before the LORD unto battle, to the plains of Jericho.

It came about when the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord had come up from the middle of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were lifted up to the dry ground, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place, and went over all its banks as before.

Now it came about when all the kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the Canaanites who were by the sea, heard how the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the sons of Israel until they had crossed, that their hearts melted, and there was no spirit in them any longer because of the sons of Israel.

Now it came about when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us or for our adversaries?”

The Lord told Joshua, "See, I am about to defeat Jericho for you, along with its king and its warriors.

And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days.

So the ark of the LORD compassed the city, going about it once: and they came into the camp, and lodged in the camp.

And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they rose early about the dawning of the day, and compassed the city after the same manner seven times: only on that day they compassed the city seven times.

As for you, keep [away] from the things devoted to destruction so that you do not take them and bring about your own destruction, making the camp of Israel an object for destruction, bringing trouble upon it.

But the children of Israel did wrong about the cursed thing: for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the family of Judah, took of the cursed thing, moving the Lord to wrath against the children of Israel.

And they returned to Joshua, and said unto him, Let not all the people go up; but let about two or three thousand men go up and smite Ai; and make not all the people to labour thither; for they are but few.

So there went up thither of the people about three thousand men: and they fled before the men of Ai.

And the men of Ai smote of them about thirty and six men: for they chased them from before the gate even unto Shebarim, and smote them in the going down: wherefore the hearts of the people melted, and became as water.

When the Canaanites and all who live in the land hear about this, they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. Then what will You do about Your great name?”

And he took about five thousand men, and set them to lie in ambush between Bethel and Ai, on the west side of the city.

When the king of Ai saw what had happened, he and his army quickly got up early and went out to meet Israel in battle. He and all his people met at the place adjacent to the desert plain. But he didn't know about the ambush that had been set for him on the other side of the city.

When all the kings heard about Jericho and Ai, those who were west of the Jordan in the hill country, in the Judean foothills, and all along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea toward Lebanon—the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—

They answered, "Your servants have arrived from a very distant land, because of the reputation of the LORD your God, because we've heard a report about all that he did in Egypt,

So the leaders of Israel sampled their provisions, but did not ask the LORD about it.

It came about at the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were neighbors and that they were living within their land.

Now it came about when Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had captured Ai, and had utterly destroyed it (just as he had done to Jericho and its king, so he had done to Ai and its king), and that the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were within their land,

And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day.

Now it came about that after Joshua and the Israelis had finished the battle, destroying and scattering their survivors, who retreated into their fortified cities,

And Joshua said to them, "Do not be afraid or dismayed! Be strong and bold, for thus Yahweh will do to all your enemies whom you [are] about to fight.

It came about at sunset that Joshua gave a command, and they took them down from the trees and threw them into the cave where they had hidden themselves, and put large stones over the mouth of the cave, to this very day.

Then it came about, when Jabin king of Hazor heard of it, that he sent to Jobab king of Madon and to the king of Shimron and to the king of Achshaph,

And the LORD said unto Joshua, Be not afraid because of them: for to morrow about this time will I deliver them up all slain before Israel: thou shalt hough their horses, and burn their chariots with fire.

And their coasts were from Aroer that lieth on the bank of the river Arnon, and the city that lieth in the river, and all the plain about Medeba,

The descendants of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the Lord promised Moses the man of God at Kadesh-barnea about you and me.

Today I am still as strong as when Moses sent me out. I can fight and go about my daily activities with the same energy I had then.

Now then, give me that hill country about which the LORD spoke back on that day, because you yourself heard back then that the Anakim were there, with great reinforced cities. Perhaps the LORD will be with me and I will expel them, just as the LORD said."

and it went out southward of the ascent of Akrabbim, and passed along to Zin, and went up by the south of Kadesh-barnea, and passed along by Hezron, and went up to Addar, and turned about to Karka;

and the border turned about from Baalah westward unto mount Seir, and passed along unto the side of mount Jearim on the north (the same is Chesalon), and went down to Beth-shemesh, and passed along by Timnah;

And the west border was to the great sea, and the coast thereof. This is the coast of the children of Judah round about according to their families.

It came about that when she came to him, she persuaded him to ask her father for a field. So she alighted from the donkey, and Caleb said to her, “What do you want?”

And from Ekron out to the sea, all that lieth about Ashdod with their villages.

And the border went out toward the sea to Michmethah on the north side; and the border went about eastward unto Taanathshiloh, and passed by it on the east to Janohah;

It came about when the sons of Israel became strong, they put the Canaanites to forced labor, but they did not drive them out completely.

And Joshua said to the {Israelites}, "{How long} [will] you be slack about going to take possession of the land that Yahweh, the God of your ancestors, has given you?

And {the men went immediately}, and Joshua commanded the ones going to describe the land, saying, "Go and walk about through the land, write [a description], and return to me, and here I will cast a lot for you before Yahweh at Shiloh."

And the border extended thence , and turned about on the west quarter southward, from the mountain that lieth before Beth-horon southward; and the goings out thereof were at Kiriath-baal (the same is Kiriath-jearim), a city of the children of Judah: this was the west quarter.

And Jordan was the border of it on the east side. This was the inheritance of the children of Benjamin, by the coasts thereof round about, according to their families.

And all the villages that were round about these cities to Baalathbeer, Ramath of the south. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families.

and, from thence, it passed along in front on the east, towards Gath-hepher, towards Eth-kazin, - and goeth out at Rimmon which turneth about towards Neah;

and the border turned about it on the north to Hannathon; and the goings out thereof were at the valley of Iphtah-el;

"Tell the people of Israel to set apart cities of refuge about which I spoke to you through Moses,

and spake unto them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan saying, "The LORD commanded by Moses, to give us cities to dwell in and the fields about them, for our cattle."

And they gave them the city of Arba the father of Anak, which city is Hebron, in the hill country of Judah, with the suburbs thereof round about it.

These cities were every one with their suburbs round about them: thus were all these cities.

And the LORD gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand.

The Lord kept faith with the house of Israel about all the good which he said he would do for them, and all his words came true.

And when they came unto the region about the Jordan, that is in the land of Canaan, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh built there an altar by the Jordan, a great altar to look upon.

And the children of Israel heard say, Behold, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh have built an altar in the forefront of the land of Canaan, in the region about the Jordan, on the side that pertaineth to the children of Israel.

Did not Achan, the son of Zerah, do wrong about the cursed thing, causing wrath to come on all the people of Israel? And not on him only came the punishment of death.

Therefore we said, ‘It shall also come about if they say this to us or to our generations in time to come, then we shall say, “See the copy of the altar of the Lord which our fathers made, not for burnt offering or for sacrifice; rather it is a witness between us and you.”’

The Israelites were pleased with the report, and they praised God. They spoke no more about going to war against them to ravage the land where the Reubenites and Gadites lived.

And it came to pass a long time after that the LORD had given rest unto Israel from all their enemies round about, that Joshua waxed old and stricken in age.

Look! {I am about to die}, and you know in all your hearts and souls that not one thing {failed} from all the good things that Yahweh your God promised concerning you; everything {has been fulfilled}; {not one thing failed}.

Since every good thing the Lord your God promised you has come about, so He will bring on you every bad thing until He has annihilated you from this good land the Lord your God has given you.

I refused to respond to Balaam; he kept prophesying good things about you, and I rescued you from his power.

It came about after these things that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being one hundred and ten years old.