¶It happened, when all the kings who were beyond the Jordan, in the hill country, and in the lowland, and on all the shore of the great sea in front of Lebanon, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, heard of it

that they gathered themselves together to fight with Joshua and with Israel, with one accord.

¶Then Joshua built an altar to Yahweh, the God of Israel, in Mount Ebal,

as Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of uncut stones, on which no man had lifted up any iron. They offered burnt offerings on it to Yahweh, and sacrificed peace offerings.

He wrote there on the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he wrote in the presence of the children of Israel.

All Israel, and their elders and officers, and their judges, stood on this side of the ark and on that side before the priests the Levites, who carried the ark of Yahweh’s covenant, the foreigner as well as the native; half of them in front of Mount Gerizim, and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the servant of Yahweh had commanded at the first, that they should bless the people of Israel.

Afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessing and the curse, according to all that is written in the book of the law.

There was not a word of all that Moses commanded, which Joshua didn’t read before all the assembly of Israel, with the women, the little ones, and the foreigners who were among them.

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

they also resorted to a ruse, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks on their donkeys, and wineskins, old and torn and bound up,

and old and patched shoes on their feet, and wore old garments. All the bread of their provision was dry and moldy.and the hollows of their shoes and their sandals were old and cobbledᵃ on their feet and the clothing over them was worn and the bread of their provisions was dry and moldy, having been devouredᴮ

They went to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him, and to the men of Israel, “We have come from a far country. Now therefore make a covenant with us.”

¶The men of Israel said to the Hivites, “What if you live among us. How could we make a covenant with you?”

¶They said to Joshua, “We are your servants.”
¶Joshua said to them, “Who are you? Where do you come from?”

¶They said to him, “Your servants have come from a very far country because of the name of Yahweh your God; for we have heard of his fame, all that he did in Egypt,

and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon king of Heshbon and to Og king of Bashan, who was at Ashtaroth.

Our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spoke to us, saying, ‘Take provision in your hand for the journey, and go to meet them, and tell them, “We are your servants. Now make a covenant with us.”’