Every other city in Canaan either fights Israel or falls to it. Gibeon tries a third way: deception. Its men turn up at the camp in worn-out clothes with mouldy bread, claiming to be travellers from far away, and ask for a treaty. Israel inspects the evidence, finds it convincing, and swears an oath — without once asking God. Three days later the truth comes out, and the oath still has to be kept.
A study in Joshua 9 · Arthur Baldwin · StandUp4Jesus.Org · 8 min read
They Did Work Wilily
“They 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; and old shoes and clouted upon their feet, and old garments upon them; and all the bread of their provision was dry and mouldy.”
Joshua 9:4-5
The Gibeonites had heard about Jericho and Ai and drawn a shrewd conclusion: they could not beat Israel, so they would join it — by a lie. Every prop is chosen to sell the story of a long journey: cracked wineskins, patched sandals, stale bread. It is a careful, well-staged deception, and it works, because the one check that would have exposed it never happens.
They Asked Not Counsel At The Mouth Of The LORD
“And the men took of their victuals, and asked not counsel at the mouth of the LORD. And 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 9:14-15
Here is the whole failure in one line. The leaders examined the bread, felt the worn leather, weighed the story — and it all pointed the right way. What they did not do was ask God, who would have told them these men lived an hour’s walk away. It is the same mistake as the first attack on Ai: acting on good-looking evidence without consulting the One who sees what the evidence hides.
“These representations prevailed. The Hebrews ‘asked not counsel at the mouth of the Lord. And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation sware unto them.’”
Ellen G. White · Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 505
We Have Sworn Unto Them By The LORD
“But 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. This 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.”
Joshua 9:19-20
The people want the treaty torn up; the leaders will not. The oath was obtained by fraud, but it was sworn in the name of the LORD, and that name cannot be used and then discarded. This is the person the psalmist describes as fit to stand in God’s holy place: one “that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not” (Psalm 15:4). Centuries later, when King Saul broke this very treaty and killed Gibeonites, God held Israel accountable for it (2 Samuel 21:1). A promise made in God’s name stays binding even when keeping it costs you.
“And though the oath had been secured by deception, it was not to be disregarded. The obligation to which one’s word is pledged—if it do not bind him to perform a wrong act—should be held sacred. No consideration of gain, of revenge, or of self-interest can in any way affect the inviolability of an oath or pledge.”
Ellen G. White · Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 506
Hewers Of Wood And Drawers Of Water
“And 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 9:27
The outcome is curse and mercy at once. The Gibeonites live — but as bonded servants, and the poverty costume they wore to deceive becomes their permanent uniform. Yet the work assigned to them is at the tabernacle: cutting wood and carrying water “for the altar of the LORD.” Liars by trade, they are stationed for generations at the place of worship. Had they simply come and told the truth — like Rahab — they could have been received as full members of Israel (Leviticus 19:34). The lie bought their lives and cost them their standing.
“But it would have fared better with the Gibeonites had they dealt honestly with Israel. While their submission to Jehovah secured the preservation of their lives, their deception brought them only disgrace and servitude.”
Ellen G. White · Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 507
