Joshua 11:12

12 Joshua captured and massacred all the royal towns with their kings, the holy curse commanded by Moses the servant of God.

Joshua 11:12 Meaning and Commentary

Joshua 11:12

And all the cities of those kings, and all the kings of them
did Joshua take
As particularly Madon, Shimron, and Achshaph, with others which he marched unto, after he had burnt Hazor; in which he took their kings, whither they had fled, or else he had taken them before in the pursuit:

and smote them with the edge of the sword;
both the kings and the inhabitants of those cities:

[and] he utterly destroyed them, as Moses the servant of the Lord
commanded;
so that, in doing what he did, he did not indulge a spirit of revenge, cruelty, and avarice, but had regard purely to the command of Moses, which was of God, ( Deuteronomy 7:1 Deuteronomy 7:2 ) .

Joshua 11:12 In-Context

10 Then Joshua came back and took Hazor, killing its king. Early on Hazor had been head of all these kingdoms.
11 They killed every person there, carrying out the holy curse - not a breath of life left anywhere. Then he burned down Hazor.
12 Joshua captured and massacred all the royal towns with their kings, the holy curse commanded by Moses the servant of God.
13 But Israel didn't burn the cities that were built on mounds, except for Hazor - Joshua did burn down Hazor.
14 The People of Israel plundered all the loot, including the cattle, from these towns for themselves. But they killed the people - total destruction. They left nothing human that breathed.
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.