Joshua 11:13
Ver. 13. But as for the cities that stood still in their strength,.... Whose walls were not demolished when taken, as Kimchi and Jarchi interpret it, or that "stood upon their heaps" {y}; upon an eminence, being built on hills and mountains:Israel burned none of them; but reserved them for their own habitations, being well fortified, and having no need of new walls being built to them, or being in a very agreeable situation:save Hazor only, [that] did Joshua burn; because it was the chief city where the scheme was formed, and the combination against Israel was made, and was the rendezvous of the confederate forces against them: the Jews have a tradition {z}, that God said to Moses, and Moses said to Joshua, that he should burn it, and that only.{y} Mlt le "super tumulum eorum", Montanus; "quae erant in collibus et in tamulis sitae", V. L. {z} Bereshit Rabba, sect. 81. fol. 71. 1. Joshua 11:14Ver. 14. And all the spoil of these cities, and the cattle, the children of Israel took for a prey unto themselves,.... The gold, silver, household goods, corn, wine, oil, or any mercantile goods, together with cattle of every sort, all were taken by them for a prey, for their own use and benefit, which was allowed them:but every man they smote with the edge of the sword, until they had destroyed them, neither left they any to breathe; for which they had warrant so to do from the Lord, as follows. Joshua 11:15Ver. 15. As the Lord commanded Moses his servant, so did Moses command Joshua,.... Which was to destroy the people of the land, De 7:1;so did Joshua, he left nothing undone of all that the Lord commanded Moses; both with respect to the destruction of the people, and of all their images, pictures, altars, groves, and high places; see Ex 34:11. Joshua 11:16Ver. 16. So Joshua took all that land,.... The whole land of Canaan, described as follows, both as to the southern and northern parts of it:the hills; the hill country of Judea, of which see Lu 1:39;and all the south country; where lived the five kings; and those of other places, the account of the taking of which we have in the preceding chapter, Jos 10:40;and all the land of Goshen; see Jos 10:41;and the valley, and the plain; the low places and campaign fields which lay between the hills and mountains; particularly all the plain and campaign country near Eleutheropolis, towards the north and west, Jerom says, in his day, was called "Sephela", or "the vale" {a}:and the mountain of Israel, and the valley of the same; by which may be meant Jerusalem, situated on a mountain, and is so called, Eze 17:23; and its valley may be the valley of Hinnom or of Jehoshaphat, as they were after called, which were near it: some think the hill of Samaria or the mountains about that are meant.{a} De loc. Heb. fol. 94. M. Joshua 11:17Ver. 17. [Even] from the mount Halak, that goeth up unto Seir,.... Or the "smooth" and "bald" mountain, which had no trees on it, as some interpret it, observed by Kimchi; it was a mount on the borders of Edom, to which the land of Canaan reached on that side:even unto Baalgad, in the valley of Lebanon, under Mount Hermon; and so describes the northern part of the land conquered by Joshua:and all their kings he took, and smote them, and slew them; both in the southern and northern parts of the land. Joshua 11:18Ver. 18. Joshua made war a long time with all those kings. For, though the account of the conquest of them is put together, and lies in a small compass, yet those victories were not obtained at once, or in a few days, as were those of the five kings, and others, related in the preceding chapter, Jos 10:10; but were the work of some years; Josephus {b} says five years, but the common notion of the Jews is, that Joshua was seven years in subduing the land of Canaan {c}; our Bishop Usher {d} thinks it was done in six years; and it may be concluded that it was about six or seven years ere this work was completely finished.{b} Antiqu. l. 5. c. 1. sect. 19. {c} Seder Olam Rabba, c. 11. p. 31. {d} Annal. Vet. Test. p. 39, 40. Joshua 11:19Ver. 19. There was not a city that made peace with the children of Israel,.... Though, according to the Jews, Joshua, upon his first landing in Canaan, sent letters and messages to all the inhabitants of the land, offering them peace on certain terms; particularly that he sent three messages, or proposed three things to them; that those who had a mind to flee might flee; that those who were desirous of making peace might make it; and they that were for war, let them fight; all were for the last, and so perished {e}:save the Hivites and the inhabitants of Gibeon; these, some have thought, did not hear of the offers of peace, others think they did, and at first rejected them, but repenting were obliged to take the crafty methods they did to obtain it, of which see Jos 9:1;all [other] they took in battle; refusing to submit to them and make peace with them.{e} Hieros. Sheviith, fol. 37. 3. Joshua 11:20Ver. 20. For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts,.... As he hardened the hearts of Pharaoh and the Egyptians, that his power might be displayed in their destruction:that they should come against Israel battle; and so fall in it:that he might destroy them utterly; for their abominable wickedness, idolatry, incest, &c. they had been guilty of:[and] that they might have no favour; which they would have had, had they made peace as the Gibeonites did; or that they might not pray and make supplication, the Lord not giving them a spirit of supplication, but an hard heart, as Gussetius {f} observes the words may be interpreted, though he seems to prefer the former, sense:but that he might destroy them, as the Lord commanded Moses; De 7:1.{f} Comment. Ebr. p. 272. Joshua 11:21Ver. 21. And at that time came Joshua,.... After he had made a conquest of the land, or at the time he made it, as before related:and cut off the Anakims from the mountains; whither, upon the conquest of the land, they had betaken themselves, and lived in dens and caves: these were giants, so called from Anak the father of them; though these are not to be restrained to his posterity, but include all other giants in the land; and the Targum renders the word by "mighty men"; and as some of them dwelt in mountains, others in cities, as follows:from Hebron; where the children of Anak dwelt when the spies were sent into the land between forty and fifty years before this; and though the inhabitants of Hebron had been before destroyed by Joshua, these Anakims, who very likely then made their escape, returned and took possession of it after Joshua's departure, and while he was engaged in making other conquests; as we find that after this others of the same race again possessed it, and were in the possession of it after the death of Joshua, when they were slain by the tribe of Judah, Jud 1:10; from Debir: where others of them also had got after the conquest of it; unless we suppose, as I see no great reason to object to it, that these were cut off both at Hebron and Debir, at the time of the taking of them, of which see Jos 10:36;from Anab; a city which fell to the lot of the tribe of Judah, Jos 15:50. Jerom {g} says, in his time it was a village, near Diospolis or Lydda, about four miles from it to the east, and called Bethoannaba; but he says, that most affirm it to be eight miles from it, and called Bethannaba: Masius conjectures, that it is the same with the city of Nob; for, he says, that travellers in those parts affirm, that the city Nob is called Bethanoba and Bethanopolis:and from all the mountains of Judah; the hill country of Judea, and the mountains round about Jerusalem:and from all the mountains of Israel; as those about Samaria, and elsewhere:Joshua destroyed them utterly with their cities; which they had formerly inhabited, or had got into the possession of.{g} De loc. Heb. fol. 88. C. Joshua 11:22Ver. 22. There was none of the Anakims left in the land of the children of Israel,.... For those that escaped the sword fled elsewhere, particularly to the following places:only in Gaza, in Gath, and in Ashdod there remained; that is, some of the Anakims or giants; these were three of the five principalities of the Philistines, and were never conquered and possessed by Israel, see Jos 13:3; of the city of Gaza, See Gill on "Am 1:7";See Gill on "Am 1:8"; andSee Gill on "Zep 2:4"; and of Gath, See Gill on "Am 6:2"; Ashdod is the same with Azotus, See Gill on "Ac 8:40": Mela says {h}, the port of Azotus was a mart for the merchandises of Arabia, and was built on such an eminence, that from the top of it, at the fourth watch, might be seen the rising of the sun at the mountain Azotus; see"Who discomfited the right wing, and pursued them unto the mount Azotus.'' (1 Maccabees 9:15)this city held out a siege of twenty nine years against Psammitticus, king of Egypt, See Gill on "Isa 20:1".{h} De Situ Orbis, l. 1. c. 10. Joshua 11:23Ver. 23. So Joshua took the whole land,.... Of Canaan, the far greater and better part of it, all before described; all that he went against, he failed not in any of his attempts; no place stood out against him that he besieged or summoned, all yielded to him:according to all that the Lord said unto Moses: in De 11:23;and Joshua gave it for an inheritance unto Israel, according to their divisions by their tribes; as is after related in this book:and the land rested from war; there were no combinations of any of the dispersed Canaanites, or insurrections made by them, nor any annoyance given to Israel by the Philistines, who inhabited five principal cities, with what belonged to them; nor did Joshua attempt anything more in a warlike manner: and so it became a land of rest, as the heavenly Canaan will be to the spiritual Israel and church of God, after their militant state is ended, in which they now are; being engaged with many spiritual enemies, the Canaanites that are in the land, but then their warfare will be ended.
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.