encamped before Gibeon, and made war againſt it. e This name being here taken largely or generally for any of the Canaanites, as is frequent ; for to ſpeak ſtriftly, the Citizens of _ bron here mentioned, v. 3. were Hittites ; thus the Gibeoniter, who were Hivites, Joſ. 11. 19. are called Amorites, 2 Sam. 21. 2. It is reaſonably ſuppoſed, that the 4morites being numerous and _— ous beyond Jordan, did pour forth Colonies or Forces into the _
of Canaan, and there ſubdued divers places, and ſo communicate
their name to all the reſt. h 61 And the men of Gibeon ſegt f unto Joſhua to the
camp to Gilgal, ſaying, Slack not thy hand g from thy ſervants h, come up to us quickly, and ſave us, and help us : for all the kings of the Amorites, that dwell in the
mountains z, are gathered together againſt us.
f Or, had ſent,. when their Enemies were drawn towards them, which they could eaſily learn. g Do not negle&nor delay to help us. h Whom thou art obliged to proteC both in Duty as thou art our Maſter and Ruler ; and by thy own Intereſt, we being part of thy Poſſeſſions; and in ingenuity,becauſe we have given our ſelves to thee, and put our ſelves under thy Prote&tion. 7 In the moun= tainous Country. : | s
7 So Joſhua aſcended & from Gilgal, he, and all the people of war with him,and /all the mighty men of valour
k Having, no doubt, asked advice of God firſt, which is implied by the Anſwer God gives to him, v. 8. / Or, even, or that is, as this Particle. is oft uſed, hath been noted before. So it ſeemsputhere by way of Explication and Refiriftion ; having faid all the people of war, he now adds, even all the mighty men, &c. 1. e. an Army of the molt valiant men picked out from the reſt ; for it is not probable, either thar he would take ſo many hundred thouſands with him, which would have hindred one another,or that he would leave the Camp without an Army to defend it.
8 © Andthe LORD ſaid unto Joſbua,Fear them not : for I have delivered thetn into thine hand ; there ſhal not a man of them ſtand before thee-
9 Joſhua therefore came unto them ſuddenly m, a4
went up from Gilgal all night ».
7 Though aſſured by God of the ViQory, yet he uſeth all pru- dent means, and ſurprizeth them. » Ir is not ſaid, that he went from Gilgal to Gibeonin a nights ſpace ; but only that he travelled all night: unto which you may add part either of the foregoing, or of the following day.
2 10 And the LORD * + diſcomfited them' before Ifra-
+Ortery;. £1, and flew them o with a great ſlaughter at Gibeon p, fri So Gr, and chaſed them along the way that goeth upto Betho- ron, and ſmote them to Azekah, and unto Makkedah. o Or, he flewthem ; either God, or Iſrael; for Gods work is de- ſcribed v" 11. p Heb. in Gibeon, not in the City, but in the Terrt- tory belonging toir ; as Joſhua is ſaid to be in Jericho, Joſh. 5. 13. 11 And it came to paſs asthey fled from before Iſrael, and were inthe going down to Bethoron,that the LORD calt down great ſtones q from heaven upon them unto Azekah, and they died ; They were moe which died with hailſtones, than they whom the children of Iſrael
ſlew with the ſword. | q.i, e. Hailſtones of extraordinary greatneſs and hardneſs, caſt down with that certainty, as to hit the Canaanites, and not their Purſuers the Jſ-aelites; and with that force as to kill them. Joſephus affirms, That Thunder and Lightning were mixed with the Hail, which may ſeemprobable from Ha. 3. 11: : 12 C Then ſpake Joſhuauntothe LORD rin the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the 'k, ., Children-of Iſrael, and hefaid in the fight of Iſrael s, * 11. Hab, Oun Tf ſtand thou ſtill upon Gibeon?, and thou moon in
3.1, the valley « of Ajalon x.
T Heb, be »r To wit, in way of Petition for this Miracle : being moved to beg it out of zeal to. deſtroy Gods Enemies,and dire&ed to it by the motion of Gods Spirit,and 'recciving a gracious Anſwer, and being filled with _ Confidence of the ſucceſs, he ſpeaks the fotlowing words before the people, that they mighr be Witneſſes of it. s ( 2. e.) In'the preſence and audience of 1ſrael.; ſeeing being ſometimes put for hearing, as Gen.42.1. compare with 4#+ 75.12: Although theſe words may ſeem rather. to be joyned with the following, thus,. in the ſight of Iſrael, ſtand till, O-Syn, &c. which ſenſe the Hebrew ac< cents favour. t 1. ce. Over and above. or againſt Gibeon.” (7 e.) In that place and. poſture ,in which now it ſtands-towards and looks upon Gibeon,. Let it riat go down lower, and by degrees, out : fthe fight of Gibeon, Itmiay ſeem, that the-Sun was declining, and Joſbus per-
Chap.
*Ifa. 28,
ceiving that his work was great and.long, and histime but ſhort, begs of God the lengrhning out of the day,: and thar- the Sun and moon might ftop their courſe, and keep the place in which rhey now
were, 4 Or, upon the valley ; as before, upon Gibeon;z the Prepolition 4
i
WH U 4. Chap.
being the ſame there and here. . x Either, r. that fialov which was in the Tribe of Zebulon, Judg: 12: 12: Northward from Gibcon. Or rather, 2. that Ajalon which was in the Tribe of Dan, 7eſ. 19. 42. Juadg. 1. 35. Weſtward from Gibeen. For, 1. this was nearer Gibeox
Sun and Moon, which is from Eaſt ro Weſt. 5. This way the bat-= tel went from Gibeon Weſtward to £Hjalon, and 1o further WeRtward even to Lachiſh, v.31. And he mentions two places; Grbeon and 4- jalon, not as if the Sun ſtood over the. one and the Moon over the other, which is abſurd and ridiculousto affirm, eſpecially theſe pla- ces being ſo near the one to the other;butpartly to vary the phraſe, as is common in Poetical Paſſages; partly becauſe he was in his March in the Purſuit of his, Enemies, to paſs from Gikeon to 4jalon ; and he begs that he may have the help and benefit of lenger lighr to purſue them, and to that end that the Sun might fiand 1till, and the Moon aJſo ; not that he needed the Moons light when he had the Suns ; but becauſe it was fir,” either that both Sun and Mcon ſhould go, or that both ſhould ſtand fill to prevent Diſorder and Confuſion in the heavenly Bodies. JS
13 And the Sun ſtood ſtill y, and the moon ſtayed, until the people had avenged themſelves upon their ene-
ed not to go down abouta whole day 4. | | y Heb- was ſilent ; 1. e. ſtill, 2s this Phraſe is commonly uſed, as