Joshua 8

Old Testament · Brenton Septuagint with Greek parallel

Joshua 8

1And the Lord said to Joshua, Fear not, nor be timorous: take with you all the men of war, and arise, go up to Gai; behold, I have given into your hands the king of Gai, and his land.Καὶ εἶπε Κύριος πρὸς Ἰησοῦν, μὴ φοβηθῇς, μηδὲ δειλιάσῃς· λάβε μετὰ σοῦ πάντας τοὺς ἄνδρας τοὺς πολεμιστάς, καὶ ἀναστὰς ἀνάβηθι εἰς Γαί· ἰδοὺ δέδωκα εἰς τὰς χεῖράς σου τὸν βασιλέα Γαὶ, καὶ τὴν γῆν αὐτοῦ.

2And you shall do to Gai, as you did to Jericho and its king; and you shall take to yourself the spoil of its cattle; set now for yourself an ambush for the city behind.Καὶ ποιήσεις τὴν Γαὶ, ὃν τρόπον ἐποίησας τὴν Ἱεριχὼ, καὶ τὸν βασιλέα αὐτῆς· καὶ τὴν προνομὴν τῶν κτηνῶν προνομεύσεις σεαυτῷ· κατάστησον δὲ σεαυτῷ ἔνεδρα τῇ πόλει εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω.

3And Joshua and all the men of war rose to go up to Gai; and Joshua chose out thirty thousand mighty men, and he sent them away by night.Καὶ ἀνέστη Ἰησοῦς καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ὁ πολεμιστὴς ὥστε ἀναβῆναι εἰς Γαί. ἐπέλεξε δὲ Ἰησοῦς τριάκοντα χιλιάδας ἀνδρῶν δυνατοὺς ἐν ἰσχύϊ, καὶ ἀπέστειλεν αὐτοὺς νυκτός.

4And he charged them, saying, Do you lie in ambush behind the city: do not go far from the city, and you shall all be ready.Καὶ ἐνετείλατο αὐτοῖς, λέγων, ὑμεῖς ἐνεδρεύσατε ὀπίσω τῆς πόλεως· μὴ μακρὰν γίνεσθε ἀπὸ τῆς πόλεως, καὶ ἔσεσθε πάντες ἕτοιμοι.

5And I and all with me will draw near to the city: and it shall come to pass when the inhabitants of Gai shall come forth to meet us, as before, that we will flee from before them.Καὶ ἐγὼ καὶ πάντες οἱ μετʼ ἐμοῦ προσάξομεν πρὸς τὴν πόλιν· καὶ ἔσται ὡς ἂν ἐξέλθωσιν οἱ κατοικοῦντες Γαὶ εἰς συνάντησιν ἡμῖν, καθάπερ καὶ πρώην, καὶ φευξόμεθα ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτῶν.

6And when they shall come out after us, we will draw them away from the city; and they will say, These men flee from before us, as also before.Καὶ ὡς ἂν ἐξέλθωσιν ὀπίσω ἡμῶν, ἀποσπάσομεν αὐτοὺς ἀπὸ τῆς πόλεως· καὶ ἐροῦσι, φεύγουσιν οὗτοι ἀπὸ προσώπου ἡμῶν, ὃν τρόπον καὶ ἔμπροσθεν.

7And you shall rise up out of the ambuscade, and go into the city.Ὑμεῖς δὲ ἐξαναστήσεσθε ἐκ τῆς ἐνέδρας, καὶ πορεύσεσθε εἰς τὴν πόλιν.

8You shall do according to this word, behold! I have commanded you.Κατὰ τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο ποιήσετε· ἰδοὺ ἐντέταλμαι ὑμῖν.

9And Joshua sent them, and they went to lie in ambush; and they lay between Baethel and Gai, westward of Gai.Καὶ ἀπέστειλεν αὐτοὺς Ἰησοῦς, καὶ ἐπορεύθησαν εἰς τὴν ἔνεδραν· καὶ ἐνεκάθισαν ἀναμέσον Βαιθὴλ καὶ ἀναμέσον Γαὶ, ἀπὸ θαλάσσης τῆς Γαί.

10And Joshua rose up early in the morning, and * numbered the people; and he went up, he and the elders before the people to Gai.Καὶ ὀρθρίσας Ἰησοῦς τοπρωῒ, ἐπεσκέψατο τὸν λαόν· καὶ ἀνέβησαν αὐτὸς καὶ οἱ πρεσβύτεροι κατὰ πρόσωπον τοῦ λαοῦ ἐπὶ Γαί.

11And all the men of war went up with him, and they went forward and came over against the city eastward.Καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ὁ πολεμιστὴς μετʼ αὐτοῦ ἀνέβησαν· καὶ πορευόμενοι ἦλθον ἐξεναντίας τῆς πόλεως ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν.

12-13And the ambuscade was on the west side of the city.Καὶ τὰ ἔνεδρα τῆς πόλεως ἀπὸ θαλάσσης·

14And it came to pass when the king of Gai saw it, he hasted and went out to meet them direct to the battle, he and all the people that were with him: and he knew not that there was an ambuscade formed against him behind the city.Καὶ ἐγένετο ὡς εἶδε βασιλεὺς Γαὶ, ἔσπευσε καὶ ἐξῆλθεν εἰς συνάντησιν αὐτοῖς ἐπʼ εὐθείας εἰς τὸν πόλεμον, αὐτὸς καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ὁ μετʼ αὐτοῦ· καὶ αὐτὸς οὐκ ᾔδει ὅτι ἔνεδρα αὐτῷ ἐστιν ὀπίσω τῆς πόλεως.

15And Joshua and Israel saw, and retreated from before them.Καὶ εἶδε, καὶ ἀνεχώρησεν Ἰησοῦς καὶ Ἰσραὴλ ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτῶν.

16And they pursued after the children of Israel, and they themselves went to a distance from the city.Καὶ κατεδίωξαν ὀπίσω τῶν υἱῶν Ἰσραήλ· καὶ αὐτοὶ ἀπέστησαν ἀπὸ τῆς πόλεως.

17There was no one left in Gai who did not pursue after Israel; and they left the city open, and pursued after Israel.Οὐ κατελείφθη οὐδεὶς ἐν τῇ Γαὶ, ὃς οὐ κατεδίωξεν ὀπίσω Ἰσραήλ· καὶ κατέλιπον τὴν πόλιν ἠνεῳγμένην, καὶ κατεδίωξαν ὀπίσω Ἰσραήλ·

18And the Lord said to Joshua, Stretch forth your hand with the spear that is in your hand toward the city, for I have delivered it into your hands; and the liers in wait shall rise up quickly out of their place.Καὶ εἶπε Κύριος πρὸς Ἰησοῦν, ἔκτεινον τὴν χεῖρά σου ἐν τῷ γαισῷ τῷ ἐν τῇ χειρί σου ἐπὶ τὴν πόλιν, εἰς γὰρ τὰς χεῖράς σου παραδέδωκα αὐτήν· καὶ τὰ ἔνεδρα ἐξαναστήσονται ἐν τάχει ἐκ τοῦ τόπου αὐτῶν. Καὶ ἐξέτεινεν Ἰησοῦς τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ τὸν γαισὸν ἐπὶ τὴν πόλιν·

19And Joshua stretched out his hand and his spear toward the city, and the ambuscade rose up quickly out of their place; and they came forth when he stretched out his hand; and they entered into the city, and took it; and they hasted and † burnt the city with fire.καὶ τὰ ἔνεδρα ἐξανέστησαν ἐν τάχει ἐκ τοῦ τόπου αὐτῶν· καὶ ἐξήλθοσαν ὅτε ἐξέτεινε τὴν χεῖρα, καὶ εἰσήλθοσαν καὶτὴν πόλιν, καὶ κατελάβοντο αὐτήν· καὶ σπεύσαντες ἐνέπρησαν τὴν πόλιν ἐν πυρί.

20And when the inhabitants of Gai looked round behind them, then they saw the smoke going up out of the city to heaven, and they were no longer able to flee this way or that way.Καὶ περιβλέψαντες οἱ κάτοικοι Γαὶ εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω αὐτῶν, καὶ ἐθεώρουν καπνὸν ἀναβαίνοντα ἐκ τῆς πόλεως εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν· καὶ οὐκ ἔτι εἶχον ποῦ φύγωσιν ὧδε ἢ ὧδε.

21And Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambuscade ‡ had taken the city, and that the smoke of the city went up to heaven; and they turned and struck the men of Gai.Καὶ Ἰησοῦς καὶ πᾶς Ἰσραὴλ εἶδον, ὅτι ἔλαβον τὰ ἔνεδρα τὴν πόλιν, καὶ ὅτι ἀνέβη ὁ καπνὸς τῆς πόλεως εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν· καὶ μεταβαλλόμενοι, ἐπάταξαν τοὺς ἄνδρας τῆς Γαί.

22And these came forth out of the city to meet them; and they were in the midst of the army, some being on this side, and some on that; and they struck them until there was not left of them one who survived and escaped.Καὶ οὗτοι ἐξήλθοσαν ἐκ τῆς πόλεως εἰς συνάντησιν· καὶ ἐκενήθησαν ἀναμέσον τῆς παρεμβολῆς, οὗτοι ἐντεῦθεν καὶ οὗτοι ἐντεῦθεν· καὶ ἐπάταξαν αὐτοὺς ἕως τοῦ μὴ καταλειφθῆναι αὐτῶν σεσωσμένον καὶ διαπεφευγότα.

23And they took the king of Gai alive, and brought him to Joshua.Καὶ τὸν βασιλέα τῆς Γαὶ συνέλαβον ζῶντα, καὶ προσήγαγον αὐτὸν πρὸς Ἰησοῦν.

24And when the children of Israel had ceased slaying all that were in Gai, and in the fields, and in the mountain on the descent, from whence they pursued them even to the end, then Joshua returned to Gai, and struck it with the edge of the sword.Καὶ ὡς ἐπαύσαντο οἱ υἱοὶ Ἰσραὴλ ἀποκτείνοντες πάντας τοὺς ἐν τῇ Γαὶ, καὶ τοὺς ἐν τοῖς πεδίοις, καὶ ἐν τῷ ὄρει ἐπὶ τῆς καταβάσεως, οὗ κατεδίωξαν αὐτοὺς ἀπʼ αὐτῆς εἰς τέλος, καὶ ἐπέστρεψεν Ἰησοῦς εἰς Γαὶ, καὶ ἐπάταξεν αὐτὴν ἐν στόματι ῥομφαίας.

25-26And they that fell in that day, men and women, were twelve thousand: they killed all the inhabitants of Gai.Καὶ ἐγενήθησαν οἱ πεσόντες ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἀπὸ ἄνδρος καὶ ἕως γυναικὸς, δώδεκα χιλιάδες, πάντας τοὺς κατοικοῦντας Γαί.

27Beside the spoils that were in the city, all things which the children of Israel took as spoil for themselves according to the command of the Lord, as the Lord commanded Joshua.Πλὴν τῶν σκύλων τῶν ἐν τῇ πόλει πάντα, ἃ ἐπρονόμευσαν ἑαυτοῖς οἱ υἱοὶ Ἰσραήλ κατὰ πρόσταγμα Κυρίου, ὃν τρόπον συνέταξε Κύριος τῷ Ἰησοῖ.

28And Joshua burnt the city with fire: he made it an uninhabited heap for ever, even to this day.Καὶ ἐνεπύρισεν Ἰησοῦς τὴν πόλιν ἐν πυρί· χῶμα ἀοίκητον εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα ἔθηκεν αὐτὴν ἕως τῆς ἡμέρας ταύτης.

29And he hanged the king of Gai on a § gallows; and he remained on the tree till evening: and when the sun went down, Joshua gave charge, and they took down his body from the tree, and cast it into ** a pit, and they set over him a heap of stones until this day.Καὶ τὸν βασιλέα τῆς Γαὶ ἐκρέμασεν ἐπὶ ξύλου διδύμου· καὶ ἦν ἐπὶ τοῦ ξύλου ἕως ἑσπέρας· καὶ ἐπιδύνοντος τοῦ ἡλίου συνέταξεν Ἰησοῦς, καὶ καθείλοσαν τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τοῦ ξύλου, καὶ ἔῤῥιψαν αὐτὸ εἰς τὸν βόθρον· καὶ ἐπέστησαν αὐτῷ σωρὸν λίθων, ἕως τῆς ἡμέρας ταύτης.

30Then Joshua built an altar to the Lord God of Israel in mount Gaebal,

31as Moses the servant of the Lord commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the law of Moses, an altar of unhewn stones, on which iron †† had not been lifted up; and he offered there whole burnt offerings to the Lord, and a peace-offering.

32And Joshua wrote upon the stones ‡‡ a copy of the law, even the law of Moses, before the children of Israel.

33And all Israel, and their elders, and their judges, and their scribes, passed on one side and on the other before the ark; and the priests and the Levites took up the ark of the covenant of the Lord; and the stranger and the native were there, who were half of them near mount Garizin, and half near mount Gaebal, as Moses the servant of the Lord commanded at first, to bless the people.

34And afterwards Joshua read accordingly all the words of this law, the blessings and the curses, according to all things written in the law of Moses.

35There was not a word of all that Moses charged Joshua, which Joshua read not in the ears of all the assembly of the children of Israel, the men, and the women, and the children, and the strangers that joined themselves to Israel.

Translator's Notes

These notes come from the printed edition of Sir Lancelot Brenton's classic English translation of the Septuagint (LXX), and record where the Greek differs from the English rendering or admits more than one reading.

• v. 10*Gr. reviewed.
• v. 19†Or, set it on fire.
• v. 21‡Gr. took.
• v. 29§Gr. double tree.
• v. 29**Gr. the pit or trench. For vv. 30-35, see chap. 8:2.
• v. 31††Gr. was not lifted up.
• v. 32‡‡Or, a Deuteronomy.