Joshua's long day. 



127 



What had made the change ? I think we may find the answer 

 in the fact that one of the smaller cities of the Hivite republic — 

 Beeroth — was only four miles from Ai, and beyond a doubt the 

 inhabitants of Beeroth had seen the smoke of Ai ascending up 

 to heaven when Ai was burned. That was a kind of argument 

 which even the most stupid of races can understand, and the 

 conduct of the Gibeonites showed that they were not stupid. 

 '' They did work wilily and went and made as if they had been 

 ambassadors." 



The fraud succeeded ; the Israelites knew well that they were 

 forbidden to make any treaty with the inhabitants of the land 

 of Canaan ; that they had been all devoted by the word of God 

 to utter destruction. So when — " at the end of three days after 

 they had made a league with them, that they heard that they were 

 their neighbours, and that they dwelt among them ; and the 

 children of Israel journeyed, and came unto their cities on the 

 third day " — it is not remarkable that we read in the next verse, 

 " all the congregation murmured against the princes." But 

 the covenant had been made, and though the Gibeonities were 

 made bondmen, yet their lives were saved. 



The effect of this treaty was instantaneous. Let it be remem- 

 bered that Gibeon and Jerusalem, the two chief cities of the 

 Hivites and the Amorites respectively, exist at this present day, 

 and are only six miles apart ; that is to say, just about the 

 distance between the Victoria Institute and Greenwich Obser- 

 vatory. It could not have taken long for the news of the treaty 

 to reach Jerusalem, and its significance was understood there 

 at once. Joshua and the Israelites, having secured the Hivites 

 as their allies, had not merely got a foothold in the highlands, 

 but the command of the whole breadth of the Ridge ; the 

 Amorites of southern Palestine were completely cut off from their 

 allies in the north. Adonizedek, King of Jerusalem and head 

 of the Amorite confederacy, saw at once that only one chance 

 remained to him ; namely, to " rush " Gibeon before Joshua 

 could occupy it with his troops. He sent, therefore, to those of 

 his allies who were closest at hand to beg for their immediate 

 help ; namely, to the kings of Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish and 

 Eglon, that is, the kings of the southern part of the Ridge. 



So they " gathered themselves together and went up, 

 they and all their hosts, and encamped before Gibeon and 

 made war against it. And the men of Gibeon sent unto 



