And Joshua did to them just as the Lord had told him; he hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots with fire.
Parallel translations
- WEB Joshua did to them as Yahweh told him. He hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots with fire.
- KJV And Joshua did unto them as the LORD bade him: he houghed their horses, and burnt their chariots with fire.
- BSB Joshua treated them as the LORD had told him; he hamstrung their horses and burned up their chariots.
- NKJV So Joshua did to them as the Lord had told him: he hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots with fire.
- NLT Then Joshua crippled the horses and burned all the chariots, as the Lord had instructed.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Joshua obeys God exactly, hamstringing the horses and burning the chariots. His obedience extends even to renouncing the spoils of war.
Overview
Joshua faithfully carries out the LORD's specific command to disable the enemy's military advantage. By destroying rather than keeping the chariots, Israel refuses to trust in conventional power. The verse highlights wholehearted obedience as the proper response to God's deliverance.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 2
- Josh 11:6Yahweh said to Joshua, “Don’t be afraid because of them; for tomorrow at this time, I will deliver them up all slain before Israel. You shall hamstring their horses and burn their chariots with fire.”
- Ezek 39:9–10Those who dwell in the cities of Israel shall go out, and shall make fires of the weapons and burn them, both the shields and the bucklers, the bows and the arrows, and the war clubs, and the spears, and they shall make fires of them seven years;
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Joshua — the same name as Jesus, 'the LORD saves' — leads God's people into their inheritance, a shadow of the greater Joshua who brings us into the true rest and the promised land that remains.
How Joshua 11:9 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.