Joshua 9: The Gibeonites Save Themselves by Trickery
The defeat of Ai is a watershed moment for the biblical author, representing the point at which Israel fights in earnest. But before they fight, they inadvertently save one of their opponents from destruction.
The Gibeonites Save Themselves by Trickery: Joshua 9
Following the defeat of Ai, the kings that reside in the promised land fear the Israelites and band together as one to defeat them: the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. But the Gibeonites have a different plan. They go out to the Israelites under the pretense that they are a wandering people to ask for a peace treaty. To complete the illusion they prepare worn out goods: sacks, donkeys, sandals, clothes - they even carry moldy bread!
[The Gibeonites then approach Joshua in Gilgal; which is where the Israelites resided quite a few chapters back. Don't worry about this fact - it helps to think of the bible as an anthology of stories. The author is not concerned with contradictions that are brought about from combining traditions.]
When the Gibeonites approach the Israelites and say, "We have come from a far country; so now make a treaty with us," the Israelites are suspicious that these people do indeed live among them. The Gibeonites win over the Israelites by flattery, saying that though they are from a far-away country, they have heard the name of the Lord and all that he did in Egypt and the Amorites and King Sihon and King Og. Their elders apparently told them to journey out to make a treaty with the Israelites. The Gibeonites then pull out the moldy bread and display all their worn trappings.
Joshua makes peace with the people - without consulting the Lord. Three days later Joshua is checking his mail when a Gibeonite walks by. Just kidding. But really, the Israelites do learn that they have been had. The Israelites set out for Gibeon - not to attack. The leaders explain to the congregation of Israel that they are bound by an oath invoking the Lord not to attack the Gibeonites. So instead the Israelites force the Gibeonites to become slaves: "hewers of wood and drawers of water," which they remain "to this day."
When Joshua confronts the Gibeonites, they explain that really they got a good deal out of the whole situation. They would have been destroyed had they not approached the Israelites and made a treaty. Apparently it is better to live a slave than to die fighting for freedom:
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