And they said unto Joshua, We are thy servants. And Joshua said unto them, Who are ye? and from whence come ye?
Parallel translations
- WEB They said to Joshua, “We are your servants.” Joshua said to them, “Who are you? Where do you come from?”
- BSB “We are your servants,” they said to Joshua. Then Joshua asked them, “Who are you and where have you come from?”
- NKJV But they said to Joshua, “We are your servants.” And Joshua said to them, “Who are you, and where do you come from?”
- NASB So they said to Joshua, “We are your servants.” Then Joshua said to them, “Who are you and where do you come from?”
- NLT They replied, “We are your servants.” “But who are you?” Joshua demanded. “Where do you come from?”
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
The Gibeonites profess to be Israel's servants, and Joshua probes their identity and origin. Joshua questions but does not yet consult God.
Overview
Calling themselves servants, the Gibeonites bid for favor and a treaty. Joshua's questions show prudence, yet the narrative builds toward the central failure of not asking counsel of Yahweh. The exchange highlights how even wise leaders can be deceived when they lean on their own discernment apart from God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Deut 20:11And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace, and open unto thee, then it shall be, that all the people that is found therein shall be tributaries unto thee, and they shall serve thee.
- 2 Kgs 10:5And he that was over the house, and he that was over the city, the elders also, and the bringers up of the children, sent to Jehu, saying, We are thy servants, and will do all that thou shalt bid us; we will not make any king: do thou that which is good in thine eyes.
- Josh 9:11Wherefore our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spake to us, saying, Take victuals with you for the journey, and go to meet them, and say unto them, We are your servants: therefore now make ye a league with us.
- Josh 9:25And now, behold, we are in thine hand: as it seemeth good and right unto thee to do unto us, do.
- Gen 9:25–26And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.
- Josh 9:23Now therefore ye are cursed, and there shall none of you be freed from being bondmen, and hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.
- Josh 9:27And 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.
- 1 Kgs 9:20–21And all the people that were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which were not of the children of Israel,
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 9:8 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.