All the country of the hills - See the note on Deuteronomy 1:7 . Destroyed all that breathed - Every person found in arms who continued to resist; these were all destroyed, - those who submitted were spared: but many no doubt made their escape, and afterwards reoccupied certain parts of the land. See Joshua 10:36 , Joshua 10:37 . read more
Verse 29 29.Then Joshua. passed, etc We have now a description of the taking of the cities, out of which the army of the enemy had been raised; and herein God displayed his power no less wonderfully than in the open field, especially when the rapidity is considered. For although those who had fled hither in trepidation might have produced some degree of panic, still, when the fear was allayed, they might be useful for defense. (104) The garrison had been increased by their numbers. When,... read more
Verse 40 40.So Joshua smote all the country, etc Here the divine authority is again interposed in order completely to acquit Joshua of any charge of cruelty. Had he proceeded of his own accord to commit an indiscriminate massacre of women and children, no excuse could have exculpated him from the guilt of detestable cruelty, cruelty surpassing anything of which we read as having been perpetrated by savage tribes scarcely raised above the level of the brutes. But that at which all would... read more
The great victory and its results. Many of the considerations which this passage suggests have been already anticipated. Thus the celerity of Joshua's march (verse 9) suggests the same set of ideas as Joshua 4:10 . The destruction of the cities teaches the same lessons as the destruction of Jericho; while the miraculous interposition in the battle of Beth-horon is hardly to be distinguished, as a source of spiritual instruction, from the destruction of Jericho. Again, the confederacy... read more
And that day, i.e; the day of the battle of Beth-horon. Not only did Joshua smite his enemies "unto Makkedah," but the incarceration of the kings in a cave at Makkedah showed that in the headlong flight of the enemy, Makkedah, which though not mentioned by name among the cities of the confederation, was no doubt, to a certain extent, implicated in it. It is worthy of remark that while Libnah, Debir, and Makkedah are mentioned among the cities destroyed in this campaign, though they are not... read more
All Israel. The expression is not to be pressed in a literal sense. "All Israel" is simply equivalent to "all his disposable troops." Libnah . This belonged to the lowlands of Palestine. See note on Joshua 9:1 ; also Joshua 15:42 . It became a Levitical city. It revolted from Judah in the reign of Joram ( 2 Kings 8:22 ). It seems to have returned to its allegiance, since we find it not included in the conquest of Israel by Shalmaneser, while, on the other hand, it undergoes a siege... read more
And Joshua passed. No indication of time is given in the rest of this chapter. The campaign was probably an affair of some weeks, though none of the cities could have made a prolonged resistance. read more
Then Horam king of Gezer. It is remarkable that, as Gezer lay somewhat out of the line of march, Joshua did not capture it. Accordingly, in spite of the alleged carelessness of our compiler, who is credited with having put together shreds of the various narratives in the most perfunctory manner, he takes care to add ( Joshua 16:10 ) that the inhabitants of Gezer were not driven out. In like manner, with the single exception of Hebron, the people of which must have at once chosen another... read more
Went up. The accuracy of the geographical details must here be noticed. Joshua "passes" from one city to another in the plain. He "goes up" to Hebron, which is situated among the hills. See note on verse 3; cf. also Joshua 11:21 ; Joshua 14:12 . Hebron . Commentators of the school of Maurer and De Wette regard the taking of Hebron and Debir as irreconcilable with Joshua 11:21 , Joshua 14:12 , Joshua 15:13-17 . But this is by no means certain. The operations of Joshua were sudden,... read more
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Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Joshua 10:39
Destroyed all the souls - נפש כל את ויחרימו vaiyacharimu eth col nephesh , they brought every person under an anathema; they either slew them or reduced them to a state of slavery. Is it reasonable to say those were slain who were found in arms, of the others they made slaves? read more