Joshua 11

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Joshua 11

The enemy in northern Cana’an posed a much more formidable force than anything Yehoshua had encountered before when they united to oppose him. The danger here was much greater not only because of their numbers, but because of their chariots and horses- weapons and styles of fighting unfamiliar to this generation.


Joshua 11:1 (JPS) And it came to pass, when Jabin king of Hazor heard thereof, that he sent to Jobab king of Madon, and to the king of Shimron, and to the king of Achshaph,

“Jabin” is most likely a title for the kings of Hazor, as we later see this same name applied to another in scripture:

Judges 4:2 (ESV) And the Lord sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-hagoyim.

That he is called “Jabin king of Canaan” emphasizes the prominence of Hazor among the northerm kingdoms. Hazor (modern el-Qedah) is located in the upper Galilee, and dominates a route of trade with Mesopotamia. It was a very powerful city-state during the bronze age.


Joshua 11:2 (JPS) and to the kings that were on the north, in the hill-country and in the Arabah south of Chinneroth, and in the Lowland, and in the regions of Dor on the west,

This is essentially the eastern edge of what we today call the West Bank. It is the Jordan Valley, from the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea. It may also include the Golan Heights just north of there

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Joshua 11:3 (JPS) to the Canaanite on the east and on the west, and the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Jebusite in the hill- country, and the Hivite under Hermon in the land of Mizpah.

Mt. Hermon is ahigh mountain north-east of the Sea of Galilee.


Joshua 11:4 (JPS) And they went out, they and all their hosts with them, much people, even as the sand that is upon the sea-shore in multitude, with horses and chariots very many.

The hyperbole here “as the sand that is upon the sea-shore in multitude” used to communicate the size of the enemy force recalls God’s promises to the patriarchs:

Genesis 22:17 (ESV) I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his [their] enemies,

Joshua 11:5 (JPS) And all these kings met together, and they came and pitched together at the waters of Merom, to fight with Israel.

The “waters of Merom” were probably in a plain, which would have been more suitable for chariot warfare. Possibly a high plain, as one meaning for “Merom” is “elevated.” This could place this battle at Lake Tiberias just north of the Sea of Galilee and in the Golan Heights.

Another leader’s heart might well have failed at this development, but Yehoshua trusted YHVH Elohe Abothekem- The Lord God of Your (his) Fathers.


Joshua 11:6 (JPS) And the LORD said unto Joshua: 'Be not afraid because of them; for to-morrow at this time will I deliver them up all slain before Israel; thou shalt hough their horses, and burn their chariots with fire.'

Miqweh Yisro’el- the Hope of Israel again gives Yehoshua assurance of victory. God assures us before battle:

1 John 4:4 (ESV) Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

“Thou shalt hough their horses, and burn their chariots” may have been a strategy to remove the technological advantage from the Cana’anites. To hamstringing means to cut the large tendon of a horses rear leg, thereby disabling it. However verse 9 later suggests this was done after the battle for other reasons. Causing a disturbance in the horses, whether tied or corralled, would have alerted the enemy camp. So timing would have been critical if done beforehand. Perhaps the job was started then and completed later.


Joshua 11:7 (JPS) So Joshua came, and all the people of war with him, against them by the waters of Merom suddenly, and fell upon them.

This attack was typical of Yehoshua- as the Marine Force Recon motto says, they were “Swift, Silent, Deadly.” They fell on the enemy coalition by surprise and with such ferocity, it threw this ill-joined army into total panic. They split and ran away in three directions, all closely pursued by the Hebrew army.


Joshua 11:8 (JPS) And the LORD delivered them into the hand of Israel, and they smote them, and chased them unto great Zidon, and unto Misrephoth-maim, and unto the valley of Mizpeh eastward; and they smote them, until they left them none remaining.

YHVH Gibor Milchamah- The Lord Mighty in Battle fights for us during our own battles.


Joshua 11:9 (JPS) And Joshua did unto them as the LORD bade him; he houghed their horses, and burnt their chariots with fire.

And YHVH Kadash- The Lord Who Sanctifies commands us after battle. Obedience after victory is every bit as important as what we do before and during battle. After the battle, when our guard is down is when the enemy sneaks back into our camp to plant the seeds of our later destruction. Destruction of the horses and chariots was done so that Yisro’el would not later trust in such weapons; but that her trust would remain in YHVH Nissi- The Lord My Banner. And while this could look back to an earlier strategy of disabling the enemies heavy weapons (verse six) before battle, the effect of disallowing the Hebrew army the use of such weapons would still be the same:

Isaiah 31:1 (KJV) Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the Lord!

Isaiah 26:4 (ESV) Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.


Joshua 11:10 (JPS) And Joshua turned back at that time, and took Hazor, and smote the king thereof with the sword: for Hazor beforetime was the head of all those kingdoms.

This hearkens back to striking the serpent’s head:

Genesis 3:14-15 (KJV) And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.


Joshua 11:11-14 (JPS) And they smote all the souls that were therein with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying them; there was none left that breathed; and he burnt Hazor with fire. And all the cities of those kings, and all the kings of them, did Joshua take, and he smote them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed them; as Moses the servant of the LORD commanded. But as for the cities that stood on their mounds, Israel burned none of them, save Hazor only - that did Joshua burn. And all the spoil of these cities, and the cattle, the children of Israel took for a prey unto themselves; but every man they smote with the edge of the sword, until they had destroyed them, neither left they any that breathed.

The slaughter of the people of the northern coalition, and especially their kings was ordered. Their cities could be taken and plunder was allowed. However Hazor was proscribed. It was to be utterly destroyed; although there was no proscription against rebuilding.

“Mounds” as used here means “tel,” a hill formed by successively building settlements or towns over earlier ones.

H8510 תֵּל têl tale By contraction from H8524; a mound: - heap, X strength.


Joshua 11:15 (JPS) As the LORD commanded Moses His servant, so did Moses command Joshua; and so did Joshua; he left nothing undone of all that the LORD commanded Moses.

Only through complete obedience is total victory won; “he left nothing undone.” This is a noble account given of a simple soldier. Only as we completely obey, paying attention to the details, can we expect this kind of success.

2 Timothy 4:7-8 (ESV) I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.


Joshua 11:16-23 presents the taking of territory west of the Jordan in very broad terms. “Whole, all, entire”- terms used in this and othr versions are all the same Hebrew word, “kol.” They are repeatedly used in this section, emphasizing the extent of the conquest.

H3605 כּוֹל כֹּל kôl kôl kole, kole From H3634; properly the whole; hence all, any or every (in the singular only, but often in a plural sense): - (in) all (manner, [ye]), altogether, any (manner), enough, every (one, place, thing), howsoever, as many as, [no-] thing, ought, whatsoever, (the) whole, whoso (-ever).

As Rav S repeatedly admonishes us, we must be careful with words like “all” which indicate everything or everyone.

Luke 2:1 (ESV) In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.

Did Ceasar register those living in the Amazon Bsain? “All” here clearly means only those people living in lands controlled by Rome. And since we know many of the inhabitants of Cana’an did escape to the regions of Philistia “all” in the following verses does not mean every single person or place (parts of Philistia were also given to Yisro’el).


Joshua 11:16-17 (JPS) So Joshua took all that land, the hill-country, and all the South, and all the land of Goshen, and the Lowland, and the Arabah, and the hill-country of Israel, and the Lowland of the same; from the bare mountain, that goeth up to Seir, even unto Baal-gad in the valley of Lebanon under mount Hermon; and all their kings he took, and smote them, and put them to death.

One after another their cities fell until the “entire” country was held by Yisro’el.


Joshua 11:18 (JPS) Joshua made war a long time with all those kings.

We are not told how long the war lasted; but it was probably about 7 yrs (45-38):

Joshua 14:10a (ESV) And now, behold, the Lord has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the Lord spoke this word to Moses,

Deuteronomy 2:14 (ESV) And the time from our leaving Kadesh-barnea until we crossed the brook Zered was thirty-eight years, until the entire generation, that is, the men of war, had perished from the camp, as the Lord had sworn to them.

Rounding is common in the Bible, and 40 is the number of cleansing and preparation. The Hebrews were cleansed of the faithless generation in the wilderness, and the new generation was prepared for the rigors and disciplined movement of an army.


Joshua 11:19-20 (JPS) There was not a city that made peace with the children of Israel, save the Hivites the inhabitants of Gibeon; they took all in battle. For it was of the LORD to harden their hearts, to come against Israel in battle, that they might be utterly destroyed, that they might have no favour, but that they might be destroyed, as the LORD commanded Moses.

As I’ve said before, God doesn’t make our hearts hard just by executive fiat. He is fair and patient, only destroying us when all hope of repentance is gone. Even if He did give them an extra dose of hardness, it was because He knew any treaty would be a ruse and they would eventually destroy His people along with themselves. Or more likely, He knew when His armies came against them the inhabitants of the northern kingdoms would, in the pride of their own strength, harden their hearts more and come against the Israelites. The mere presence of good, let alone its attempt to take territory, always hardens the heart of evil.

This reflects back to Pharoah and the exodus:

Exodus 4:21 (ESV) And the Lord said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the miracles that I have put in your power. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go.


Joshua 11:21-22 (JPS) And Joshua came at that time, and cut off the Anakim from the hill-country, from Hebron, from Debir, from Anab, and from all the hill-country of Judah, and from all the hill-country of Israel; Joshua utterly destroyed them with their cities. There was none of the Anakim left in the land of the children of Israel; only in Gaza, in Gath, and in Ashdod, did some remain.

These very Anakim, renowned for their stature who had instilled such fear and dread in the spies sent into the land by Moshe were themselves now handily defeated and dispossessed. Many went into the Philistine cities of Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod. We can however infer they later returned, as Calev had to deal with them again:

Joshua 15:14 (ESV) And Caleb drove out from there the three sons of Anak, Sheshai and Ahiman and Talmai, the descendants of Anak.

Deuteronomy 9:2 (ESV) a people great and tall, the sons of the Anakim, whom you know, and of whom you have heard it said, ‘Who can stand before the sons of Anak?’

Because Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod are all Philistine cities, this may mean they and the Anakites were related peoples. The giant Goliath was from Gath:

1 Samuel 17:4 (ESV) And there came out from the camp of the Philistines a champion named Goliath of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. [cubit- @ 18 inches]


Joshua 11:23 (JPS) So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the LORD spoke unto Moses; and Joshua gave it for an inheritance unto Israel according to their divisions by their tribes. And the land had rest from war.

That “the land had rest from war” means the start of the territorial assignments. Every Hebrew was to be given their inheritance from Rum Roz- The One Who Lifts My Head. With the help of Elohe Mauzi- God of My Strength, Yehoshua defeated thirty one kings. He claimed their land and wealth for El Elohe Yisro’el and His people. Our Joshua, Yeshua HaMoshiach, has defeated our enemies too, spiritual and temporal, and now reigns over all in heaven:

Ephesians 1:19-22 (ESV) and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church,

Through Yeshua we can “reign in life” and claim victory before we engage in battle:

Romans 5:17 (ESV) For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.


So now the power of all the kings in Ha’Eretz is broken and the Hebrews possess the land. But not all these enemies were destroyed nor all their cities taken.

Joshua 13:1-6a (ESV) Now Joshua was old and advanced in years, and the Lord said to him, “You are old and advanced in years, and there remains yet very much land to possess. This is the land that yet remains: all the regions of the Philistines, and all those of the Geshurites (from the Shihor, which is east of Egypt, northward to the boundary of Ekron, it is counted as Canaanite; there are five rulers of the Philistines, those of Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron), and those of the Avvim, in the south, all the land of the Canaanites, and Mearah that belongs to the Sidonians, to Aphek, to the boundary of the Amorites, and the land of the Gebalites, and all Lebanon, toward the sunrise, from Baal-gad below Mount Hermon to Lebo-hamath, all the inhabitants of the hill country from Lebanon to Misrephoth-maim, even all the Sidonians.

It would not be until the reign of Melech Dovid that the Canaanites would be subdued.


Deuteronomy 7:22 (ESV) The Lord your God will clear away these nations before you little by little. You may not make an end of them at once, lest the wild beasts grow too numerous for you.

Thee was (and is) a higher lesson to be learned here. This was a conquest begun in power of El Gibbor. Only in trusting dependence on Him could it be completed. Only in the power of the Ruach Ha’Kodesh would the nation of Yisro’el flourish. Ha’Eretz was given them in faith; but much remained for them to do that only faith could accomplish. Any yielding, adjustments or accommodations given to the goyim around them would result in weakness and victory for ha’satan, the real enemy. I always say of religion, politics and warfare, “Never compromise with evil!”

Dan C

References: JPS Study Tnk, W Wiersbe, EB Meyer, Edersheim, Pastor Ed Cole, Pastor Bill Best, Rav S, my father and others