1 And it came to pass when all the kings who were by the Jordan, in the hills and in the lowland and in all the coasts of the Great Sea toward Lebanon; the Hittite, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite; heard about it,

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

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

4 they did shrewdly, and went and pretended to be ambassadors. And they took old sacks on their donkeys, old wineskins torn and bound up,

5 old and patched sandals on their feet, and old garments on themselves; and all the bread of their provision was dry and in crumbs.

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 distant land; now therefore, make a treaty with us.

7 And the men of Israel said to the Hivites, Perhaps you are dwelling among us; so how can we make a treaty with you?

8 But they said to Joshua, We are your servants. And Joshua said to them, Who are you, and where do you come from?

9 So they said to him: Your servants have come from a very distant land, because of the name of Jehovah your God; for we have heard of His fame, and all that He has done in Egypt,

10 and all that He has done to the two kings of the Amorites beyond the Jordan; to Sihon king of Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, who was at Ashtaroth.

11 Therefore our elders and all the inhabitants of our land spoke to us, saying, Take provisions with you for the journey, and go to meet them, and say to them, We are your servants; now therefore, make a treaty with us.

12 This bread of ours we took hot for our provision from our houses on the day we departed to come to you. But now behold, it is dry and crumbly.

13 And these wineskins which we filled were new, and behold, they are torn; and these our garments and our sandals have become old because of the very long journey.

14 And the men of Israel took some of their provisions; but they did not ask at the mouth of Jehovah.

15 And Joshua made peace with them, and made a treaty with them to let them live; and the leaders of the congregation swore to them.

16 And it happened at the end of three days, after they had made the treaty with them, that they heard that they were their neighbors, dwelling among them.

17 And the children of Israel journeyed and came to their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kirjath Jearim.

18 But the sons of Israel did not strike them, because the leaders of the congregation had sworn to them by Jehovah the God of Israel. And all the congregation grumbled against the leaders.

19 Then all the leaders said to all the congregation, We have sworn to them by Jehovah the God of Israel; now therefore, we cannot touch them.

20 This we will do to them: We will let them live, that wrath not be upon us because of the oath which we have sworn to them.

21 And the leaders said to them, Let them live, but let them be woodcutters and drawers of water for all the congregation, as the leaders have spoken to them.

22 And Joshua summoned them, and he spoke to them, saying, Why have you deceived us, saying, We are very far from you, when you are dwelling among us?

23 Now therefore, you are cursed, and none of you shall fail to be slaves, woodcutters and drawers of water for the house of my God.

24 And they answered Joshua and said, Because it was reported and told to your servants that Jehovah your God had commanded His servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land before you; therefore we were greatly afraid for our souls because of you, and have done this thing.

25 And now behold, we are in your hands; do with us as seems good and right in your eyes to do.

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

27 And that day Joshua made them woodcutters and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of Jehovah, in the place which He would choose, even to this day.

1 E SUCEDEU que, ouvindo isto todos os reis, que estavam daquém do Jordão, nas montanhas, e nas campinas, em toda a costa do grande mar, em frente do Líbano, os heteus, e os amorreus, os cananeus, os ferezeus, os heveus, e os jebuseus, 2 Se ajuntaram eles de comum acordo, para pelejar contra Josué e contra Israel. 3 E os moradores de Gibeom ouvindo o que Josué fizera com Jericó e com Ai, 4 Usaram também de astúcia, e foram e se fingiram embaixadores: e tomaram sacos velhos sobre os seus jumentos, e odres de vinho velhos, e rotos, e remendados; 5 E nos seus pés sapatos velhos e remendados, e vestidos velhos sobre si: e todo o pão que traziam para o caminho era seco e bolorento. 6 E vieram a Josué, ao arraial, a Gilgal, e lhe disseram a ele e aos homens de Israel: Vimos duma terra distante; fazei pois agora concerto conosco. 7 E os homens de Israel responderam aos heveus: Porventura habitais no meio de nós; como pois faremos concerto convosco? 8 Então disseram a Josué: Nós somos teus servos. E disse-lhes Josué: Quem sois vós, e donde vindes? 9 E lhe responderam: Teus servos vieram duma terra mui distante, por causa do nome do Senhor teu Deus: porquanto ouvimos a sua fama, e tudo quanto fez no Egito; 10 E tudo quanto fez aos dois reis dos amorreus, que estavam dalém do Jordão, a Seom rei de Hesbom, e a Ogue, rei de Basã, que estava em Astarote. 11 Pelo que nossos anciãos e todos os moradores da nossa terra nos falaram, dizendo: Tomai convosco em vossas mãos provisão para o caminho, e ide-lhes ao encontro: e dizei-lhes: Nós somos vossos servos; fazei pois agora concerto conosco. 12 Este nosso pão tomamos quente das nossas casas para nossa provisão, no dia em que saímos para vir a vós: e ei-lo aqui agora já seco e bolorento: 13 E estes odres, que enchemos de vinho, eram novos, ei-los aqui já rotos: e estes nossos vestidos e nossos sapatos já se têm envelhecido, por causa do mui longo caminho. 14 Então aqueles homens tomaram da sua provisão: e não pediram conselho à boca do Senhor. 15 E Josué fez paz com eles, e fez um concerto com eles, que lhes daria a vida: e os príncipes da congregação lhes prestaram juramento. 16 E sucedeu que, ao fim de três dias, depois de fazerem concerto com eles, ouviram que eram seus vizinhos, e que moravam no meio deles. 17 Porque, partindo os filhos de Israel, chegaram às suas cidades ao terceiro dia: e suas cidades eram Gibeom, e Cefira, e Beerote, e Quiriate-Jearim. 18 E os filhos de Israel os não feriram; porquanto os príncipes da congregação lhes juraram pelo Senhor Deus de Israel: pelo que toda a congregação murmurava contra os príncipes. 19 Então todos os príncipes disseram a toda a congregação: Nós juramos-lhes pelo Senhor Deus de Israel: pelo que não podemos tocar-lhes. 20 Isto, porém, lhes faremos: dar-lhes-emos a vida; para que não haja grande ira sobre nós, por causa do juramento que já lhes temos jurado. 21 Disseram-lhes pois os príncipes: Vivam, e sejam rachadores de lenha e tiradores de água para toda a congregação, como os príncipes lhes têm dito. 22 E Josué os chamou, e falou-lhes dizendo: Por que nos enganastes, dizendo: Mui longe de vós habitamos, morando vós no meio de nós? 23 Agora pois sereis malditos: e dentre vós não deixará de haver servos, nem rachadores de lenha, nem tiradores de água, para a casa do meu Deus. 24 Então responderam a Josué, e disseram: Porquanto com certeza foi anunciado aos teus servos que o Senhor teu Deus ordenou a Moisés, seu servo, que vos desse toda esta terra, e destruísse todos os moradores da terra diante de vós, tememos muito por nossas vidas por causa de vós; por isso fizemos assim. 25 E eis que agora estamos na tua mão: faze aquilo que te pareça bom e reto que se nos faça. 26 Assim pois lhes fez: e livrou-os das mãos dos filhos de Israel, e não os mataram. 27 E, naquele dia, Josué os deu como rachadores de lenha, e tiradores de água para a congregação e para o altar do Senhor até ao dia de hoje, no lugar que escolhesse.