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Gibeonites.

From: The New Topical Textbook By: Reuben Archer Torrey

• 1 min. read • grade level: 10

Descended from the Hivites and Amorites. Josh. 9:3, 7³And when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done unto Jericho and to Ai, (Joshua 9:3)
⁷And the men of Israel said unto the Hivites, Peradventure ye dwell among us; and how shall we make a league with you? (Joshua 9:7), with 2 Sam. 21:2²And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them; (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.) (2 Samuel 21:2).

A mighty and warlike people. Josh. 10:2²That they feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, as one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all the men thereof were mighty. (Joshua 10:2).

Cities of. Josh. 9:17¹⁷And the children of Israel journeyed, and came unto their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, and Chephirah, and Beeroth, and Kirjath-jearim. (Joshua 9:17).

ISRAEL

Deceived by. Josh. 9:4-13⁴They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up; ⁵And old shoes and clouted upon their feet, and old garments upon them; and all the bread of their provision was dry and mouldy. ⁶And they went to Joshua unto the camp at Gilgal, and said unto him, and to the men of Israel, We be come from a far country: now therefore make ye a league with us. ⁷And the men of Israel said unto the Hivites, Peradventure ye dwell among us; and how shall we make a league with you? ⁸And they said unto Joshua, We are thy servants. And Joshua said unto them, Who are ye? and from whence come ye? ⁹And they said unto him, From a very far country thy servants are come because of the name of the Lord thy God: for we have heard the fame of him, and all that he did in Egypt, ¹⁰And all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond Jordan, to Sihon king of Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, which was at Ashtaroth. ¹¹Wherefore our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spake to us, saying, Take victuals with you for the journey, and go to meet them, and say unto them, We are your servants: therefore now make ye a league with us. ¹²This our bread we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we came forth to go unto you; but now, behold, it is dry, and it is mouldy: ¹³And these bottles of wine, which we filled, were new; and, behold, they be rent: and these our garments and our shoes are become old by reason of the very long journey. (Joshua 9:4‑13).

Made a league with. Josh. 9:15¹⁵And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation sware unto them. (Joshua 9:15).

Spared on account of their oath. Josh. 9:18, 19¹⁸And the children of Israel smote them not, because the princes of the congregation had sworn unto them by the Lord God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured against the princes. ¹⁹But all the princes said unto all the congregation, We have sworn unto them by the Lord God of Israel: now therefore we may not touch them. (Joshua 9:18‑19).

Appointed, hewers of wood, &c. Josh. 9:20-27²⁰This we will do to them; we will even let them live, lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath which we sware unto them. ²¹And the princes said unto them, Let them live; but let them be hewers of wood and drawers of water unto all the congregation; as the princes had promised them. ²²And Joshua called for them, and he spake unto them, saying, Wherefore have ye beguiled us, saying, We are very far from you; when ye dwell among us? ²³Now therefore ye are cursed, and there shall none of you be freed from being bondmen, and hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God. ²⁴And they answered Joshua, and said, Because it was certainly told thy servants, how that the Lord thy God commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you, therefore we were sore afraid of our lives because of you, and have done this thing. ²⁵And now, behold, we are in thine hand: as it seemeth good and right unto thee to do unto us, do. ²⁶And so did he unto them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, that they slew them not. ²⁷And Joshua made them that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the altar of the Lord, even unto this day, in the place which he should choose. (Joshua 9:20‑27).

Attacked by the kings of Canaan. Josh. 10:1-5¹Now it came to pass, when Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem had heard how Joshua had taken Ai, and had utterly destroyed it; as he had done to Jericho and her king, so he had done to Ai and her king; and how the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel, and were among them; ²That they feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, as one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all the men thereof were mighty. ³Wherefore Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem sent unto Hoham king of Hebron, and unto Piram king of Jarmuth, and unto Japhia king of Lachish, and unto Debir king of Eglon, saying, ⁴Come up unto me, and help me, that we may smite Gibeon: for it hath made peace with Joshua and with the children of Israel. ⁵Therefore the five kings of the Amorites, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon, gathered themselves together, and went up, they and all their hosts, and encamped before Gibeon, and made war against it. (Joshua 10:1‑5).

Delivered by Israel. Josh. 10:6-10⁶And the men of Gibeon sent unto Joshua to the camp to Gilgal, saying, Slack not thy hand from thy servants; come up to us quickly, and save us, and help us: for all the kings of the Amorites that dwell in the mountains are gathered together against us. ⁷So Joshua ascended from Gilgal, he, and all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valor. ⁸And the Lord said unto Joshua, Fear them not: for I have delivered them into thine hand; there shall not a man of them stand before thee. ⁹Joshua therefore came unto them suddenly, and went up from Gilgal all night. ¹⁰And the Lord discomfited them before Israel, and slew them with a great slaughter at Gibeon, and chased them along the way that goeth up to Beth-horon, and smote them to Azekah, and unto Makkedah. (Joshua 10:6‑10).

Saul sought to destroy. 2 Sam. 21:2²And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them; (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.) (2 Samuel 21:2).

Israel plagued for Saul's cruelty to. 2 Sam. 21:1¹Then there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David inquired of the Lord. And the Lord answered, It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites. (2 Samuel 21:1).

Effected the destruction of the remnant of Saul's house. 2 Sam. 21:4-9⁴And the Gibeonites said unto him, We will have no silver nor gold of Saul, nor of his house; neither for us shalt thou kill any man in Israel. And he said, What ye shall say, that will I do for you. ⁵And they answered the king, The man that consumed us, and that devised against us that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the coasts of Israel, ⁶Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, whom the Lord did choose. And the king said, I will give them. ⁷But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of the Lord's oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul. ⁸But the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bare unto Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth; and the five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she brought up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite: ⁹And he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them in the hill before the Lord: and they fell all seven together, and were put to death in the days of harvest, in the first days, in the beginning of barley harvest. (2 Samuel 21:4‑9).

The office of the Nethinim probably originated in. 1 Chron. 9:2²Now the first inhabitants that dwelt in their possessions in their cities were, the Israelites, the priests, Levites, and the Nethinims. (1 Chronicles 9:2).

Part of, returned from the captivity. Neh. 7:25²⁵The children of Gibeon, ninety and five. (Nehemiah 7:25).

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The New Topical Textbook

• Fig-Tree, the.

• First-Born, the.

• First-Fruits, the.

• Forgetting God.

• Forgiveness of Injuries.

• Forsaking God.

• Fortresses.

• Foundation.

• Fountains and Springs.

• Gad, the Tribe of.

• Genealogies.

• Gibeonites.

• Gift of the Holy Ghost, the.

• Gifts of God, the.

• Glorifying God.