Joshua 10:2 NIV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Joshua 10:1-6

Joshua and the hosts of Israel had now been a good while in the land of Canaan, and no great matters were effected; they were made masters of Jericho by a miracle, of Ai by stratagem, and of Gibeon by surrender, and that was all; hitherto the progress of their victories had not seemed proportionable to the magnificence of their entry and the glory of their beginnings. Those among them that were impatient of delays, it is probable, complained of Joshua's slowness, and asked why they did not... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joshua 10:2

That they feared greatly ,.... The king of Jerusalem and his people, lest they should fall into the hands of the Israelites, and be used as Jericho and Ai, and the kings and inhabitants of them were, and that they would be the next that should fall a sacrifice to them; for Gibeon was fifty furlongs from Jerusalem, as Josephus says F1 De Bello Jud. l. 2. c. 19. sect. 1. ; and in another place he says F2 Antiqu. l. 7. c. 11. sect. 7. but forty, which were but five miles; and if... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Joshua 10:2

As one of the royal cities - Not a regal city, but great, well inhabited and well fortified, as those cities which served for the royal residence generally were. It does not appear that the Gibeonites had any king - they seem to have been a small but powerful republic, all the men thereof were mighty, merely governed by their elders: for in their address to Joshua, Joshua 9:11 , they mention no king, but simply state that they were sent by their elders and the inhabitants of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 10:1-43

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

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 10:2

That they feared greatly. Joshua had certainly obtained an excellent strategic position in the heart of the country; but it was not this which apparently most alarmed the kings who constituted the confederacy, though they did not fail to observe that, as the words "and were among them" show. It was the weight and importance of Gibeon itself, and the fact that its inhabitants were now enlisted, not on the side of the Canaanites, but against them. As one of the royal cities. Observe the... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Joshua 10:2-3

Joshua 10:2-3. They feared greatly Namely, Adoni-zedek and his people, he being spoken of ( Jos 10:1 ) as a public person, representing all his people. Gibeon was as one of the royal cities Either really a royal city, and having a king, or equal to one of the royal cities, though it had not a king. It seems indeed to have been governed by elders, Joshua 9:11. Adoni- zedek sent Either because he was superior to them, or because he was nearest the danger, and most forward in the work. read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Joshua 10:1-43

Victory in southern Canaan (10:1-43)The five kings who between them controlled much of southern Canaan saw Joshua’s control of Gibeon as a threat to their security. They decided to conquer Gibeon and so stop any further move south by Israel (10:1-5).Joshua faced his biggest battle thus far. He knew that it would be a life-or-death struggle, but God encouraged him with the assurance of victory (6-8). God then helped make victory possible by causing some unusual changes in the weather that were... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Joshua 10:2

men. Hebrew, plural of ish or 'enosh . App-14 . read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Joshua 10:2

2. they feared greatly—The dread inspired by the rapid conquests of the Israelites had been immensely increased by the fact of a state so populous and so strong as Gibeon having found it expedient to submit to the power and the terms of the invaders. as one of the royal cities—Although itself a republic ( :-), it was large and well-fortified, like those places in which the chiefs of the country usually established their residence. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Joshua 10:1-5

Israel’s continuing success led her enemies to exert increasing opposition against the people of God. This chapter records the Canaanites’ first aggressive action against the Israelites.The Jebusites lived in and around Jebus, ancient Salem (Genesis 14:18). The writer called this town Jerusalem here for the first time in Scripture. "Jerusalem" means "the founding (or possession) of peace." Adonizedek (lit. lord of righteousness) and Melchizedek (king of righteousness, Genesis 14:18) were titles... read more