Joshua 11:18

18 Joshua fought against these kings for a long time.

Joshua 11:18 Meaning and Commentary

Joshua 11:18

Joshua made war a long time with all those kings.
] For, though the account of the conquest of them is put together, and lies in a small compass, yet those victories were not obtained at once, or in a few days, as were those of the five kings, and others, related in the preceding chapter, ( Joshua 10:10-14 ) ; but were the work of some years; Josephus F2 says five years, but the common notion of the Jews is, that Joshua was seven years in subduing the land of Canaan F3; our Bishop Usher F4 thinks it was done in six years; and it may be concluded that it was about six or seven years ere this work was completely finished.


FOOTNOTES:

F2 Antiqu. l. 5. c. 1. sect. 19.
F3 Seder Olam Rabba, c. 11. p. 31.
F4 Annal. Vet. Test. p. 39, 40.

Joshua 11:18 In-Context

16 Joshua took the whole country: the mountains, the southern desert, all of Goshen, the foothills, the valley (the Arabah), and the Israel mountains with their foothills,
17 from Mount Halak, which towers over the region of Seir, all the way to Baal Gad in the Valley of Lebanon in the shadows of Mount Hermon. He captured their kings and then killed them.
18 Joshua fought against these kings for a long time.
19 Not one town made peace with the People of Israel, with the one exception of the Hivites who lived in Gibeon. Israel fought and took all the rest.
20 It was God's idea that they all would stubbornly fight the Israelites so he could put them under the holy curse without mercy. That way he could destroy them just as God had commanded Moses.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.