Thematic Bible: Gibeonites


Thematic Bible



So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons (descendants) of Israel but of the remnant (survivors) of the Amorites. The Israelites had sworn [an oath] to [spare] them, but Saul in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah had sought to strike down the Gibeonites). Verse ConceptsTribes Of IsraelZeal

But when the people of Gibeon [the Hivites] heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai,

But the men of Israel said to the Hivites, “Perhaps you are living within our land; how then can we make a covenant (treaty) with you?” Verse ConceptsAliancesAllegiances

Now the first [of the returned exiles] who lived [again] in their possessions in their cities were Israel, the priests, the Levites, and the Nethinim (temple servants).

The Gibeonites said to him, We will accept no silver or gold of Saul or of his house; neither for us shall you kill any man in Israel. David said, I will do for you what you say. They said to the king, The man who consumed us and planned to prevent us from remaining in any territory of Israel, Let seven men of his sons be delivered to us and we will hang them up before the Lord at Gibeah of Saul, [on the mountain] of the Lord. And the king said, I will give them. read more.
But the king spared Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the Lord's oath that was between David and Jonathan son of Saul. But the king took the two sons of Rizpah daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth, and the five sons of [Merab] daughter of Saul, whom she bore to Adriel son of Barzillai the Meholathite. He delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hung them up on the hill before the Lord, and all seven perished together. They were put to death in the first days of barley harvest.

But the Israelites did not slay them, because the leaders of the assembly had sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel, [to spare them]. And all the assembly murmured against the leaders. But all the leaders said to all the assembly, We have sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel, so now we may not touch them.

This we will do to them: we will let them live, lest wrath be upon us because of the oath which we swore to them. And the leaders said to them, Let them live [and be our slaves]. So they became hewers of wood and drawers of water for all the assembly, just as the leaders had said of them. Joshua called the men and said, Why did you deceive us, saying, We live very far from you, when you dwell among us? read more.
Now therefore you are cursed, and of you there shall always be slaves, hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God. They answered Joshua, Because it was surely told your servants that the Lord your God commanded His servant Moses to give you all the land and to destroy all the land's inhabitants from before you. So we feared greatly for our lives because of you, and have done this thing. And now, behold, we are in your hand; do as it seems good and right in your sight to do to us. So he did to them, and delivered them out of the hand of the Israelites, so that they did not kill them. But Joshua then made them hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the Lord, to this day, in the place which He should choose.

And the men of Gibeon sent to Joshua at the camp in Gilgal, saying, Do not relax your hand from your servants; come up to us quickly and save us and help us, for all the kings of the Amorites who dwell in the hill country are gathered against us. So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he and all the warriors with him and all the mighty men of valor. And the Lord said to Joshua, Do not fear them, for I have given them into your hand; there shall not a man of them stand before you. read more.
So Joshua came upon them suddenly, having gone up from Gilgal all night. And the Lord caused [the enemies] to panic before Israel, who slew them with a great slaughter at Gibeon and chased them along the way that goes up to Beth-horon and smote them as far as Azekah and Makkedah.

They worked cunningly, and went pretending to be ambassadors and took [provisions and] old sacks on their donkeys and wineskins, old, torn, and mended, And old and patched shoes on their feet and wearing old garments; and all their supply of food was dry and moldy. And they went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and the men of Israel, We have come from a far country; so now, make a covenant with us. read more.
But the men of Israel said to the Hivites, Perhaps you live among us; how then can we make a covenant with you? They said to Joshua, We are your servants. And Joshua said to them, Who are you? From where have you come? 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 the fame of Him, and all that He did in Egypt, 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 lived in Ashtaroth. So our elders and all the residents of our country said to us, Take provisions for the journey and go to meet [the Israelites] and say to them, We are your servants; and now make a covenant with us. This our bread we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we set out to go to you; but now behold, it is dry and has become moldy. These wineskins (bottles) which we filled were new, and behold, they are torn; and our garments and our shoes have become old because of the very long journey.

There was famine in the days of David for three consecutive years; and David sought the presence (face) of the Lord [asking the reason]. The Lord replied, “It is because of Saul and his bloody house, because he put the Gibeonites to death.” Verse ConceptsGod, Activity OfFamine, Examples OfFace Of GodGod's Activity In IsraelAnger Of God, Examples OfThree YearsFound GuiltyFamily Problemssaul

the sons of Gibeon, 95; Verse ConceptsThe Number NinetyNineties

When Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem heard how Joshua had taken Ai and had utterly destroyed it, doing to Jericho and its king as he had done to Ai and its king, and how the residents of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were among them, He feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all its men were mighty. So Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem sent to Hoham king of Hebron, to Piram king of Jarmuth, to Japhia king of Lachish, and to Debir king of Eglon, saying, read more.
Come up to me and help me, and let us smite Gibeon, for it has made peace with Joshua and with the Israelites. Then the five kings of the Amorites -- "the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon -- "gathered their forces and went up with all their armies and encamped before Gibeon to fight against it.

So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons (descendants) of Israel but of the remnant (survivors) of the Amorites. The Israelites had sworn [an oath] to [spare] them, but Saul in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah had sought to strike down the Gibeonites). Verse ConceptsTribes Of IsraelZeal

Joshua made peace with them and made a covenant (treaty) with them, to let them live; and the leaders of the congregation [of Israel] swore an oath to them. Verse ConceptsCovenant RelationshipsSealing A CovenantAgreements, LegalKept Alive By Men

he [and his people] feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all its men were mighty. Verse ConceptsCityLargenessFearing Other People

Then the sons of Israel set out and came to their cities on the third day. Now the cities [of the Hivites] were Gibeon and Chephirah and Beeroth and Kiriath-jearim. Verse ConceptsThe Third Day Of The WeekCities In Israel

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 the fame of Him, and all that He did in Egypt, 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 lived in Ashtaroth. So our elders and all the residents of our country said to us, Take provisions for the journey and go to meet [the Israelites] and say to them, We are your servants; and now make a covenant with us. read more.
This our bread we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we set out to go to you; but now behold, it is dry and has become moldy. These wineskins (bottles) which we filled were new, and behold, they are torn; and our garments and our shoes have become old because of the very long journey.

Joshua called the men and said, Why did you deceive us, saying, We live very far from you, when you dwell among us? Now therefore you are cursed, and of you there shall always be slaves, hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God. They answered Joshua, Because it was surely told your servants that the Lord your God commanded His servant Moses to give you all the land and to destroy all the land's inhabitants from before you. So we feared greatly for our lives because of you, and have done this thing. read more.
And now, behold, we are in your hand; do as it seems good and right in your sight to do to us. So he did to them, and delivered them out of the hand of the Israelites, so that they did not kill them. But Joshua then made them hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the Lord, to this day, in the place which He should choose.