not a moment was to be lost, Joshua instantly arrayed all his forces, and by a forced march suddenly burst. upon the Amorite kings, as they lay encamped before the city. Unable to offer any effectual resistance to this utterly unexpected attack, they were helpless before the Hebrew leader, and the Lord who fought for Israel. Numbers were slaughtered at Gibeon itself, numbers fled along the rocky ascent leading to Upper Beth-horon (the house of Caves), about four miles distant. Hence, however, they were chased by the triumphant Israelites along the rough descent leading to Lower Beth-horon, and thence to Azekah and Makkedah, when a terrific storm burst forth; the Lord thundered out of heaven and cast down great hailstones upon the flying Canaanites, so that they were more which died with the hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword (Josh. x. 11). Standing on the summit of Upper Beth-horon1, Joshua watched the foe flying in helpless confusion towards the western lowlands. The Lord had already delivered them into his hands, and time only was needed to render the rout complete and enable his forces to avenge themselves on their enemies. But the day was far advanced, and he feared the Canaanites might yet make good their escape. In the sight, then, of all Israel, he cried, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon, and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon (the place of deer or gazelles). And the Lord, who fought for Israel, hearkened to the voice of His servant: the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, and in the lengthened afternoon the pursuit was continued without pause or rest. Arrived at Makkedah, some

1 In this same locality Judas Maccabæus won his first great victory over the forces of Syria (1 Macc. iii. 16—24), and later the Roman army under Cestius Gallus was totally cut up by the insurgent Jews (Joseph. B. J. II. 19, 8, 9). See Stanley's S. and P. p. 212; Smith's Bib, Dict., Article Beth-horon.

where in the Shephelah or maritime plain, the five kings hid themselves in a well-known cave1 shaded by trees. But thither also the tide of battle brought the triumphant Joshua, who bade his followers only pause to roll great stones to the mouth of the cave, and set men by it for to keep them. Longer he would not tarry; intent upon the pursuit he urged his forces to smite the hindmost of their foes, and prevent their escaping into their cities. His words were obeyed, nor till they had made an end of slaying the Canaanites with a great slaughter did the pursuers return to Makkedah. Here a camp was formed, and the mouth of the cave having been opened, the five kings were dragged forth in the sight of Joshua and all the men of Israel. As they lay prostrate upon the ground, the Israelite leader bade the captains of the men of war put their feet on their necks, and then smote them, and slew them, and hanged them upon five trees, until the evening. Then, as the sun went down upon that memorable day, like which was no day before or after it, they were taken down, and flung into the cave where they had vainly tried to conceal themselves, great stones were once more rolled to its mouth, and the royal sepulchre was closed (Josh. x. 16—27).

Such was the issue of the eventful battle of Beth-horon. It sealed the fate of every important city of southern Palestine. One after another, Makkedah and Libnah, Lachish and Eglon, Hebron and Debir fell before the victorious Israelites. From one captured city they passed on to another conquering and to conquer, till they had smitten all the country of the hills and of the south, and of the vale, and of the springs from Kadesh-Barnea in the southern desert to the central plain of Esdraelon (Josh. x. 41).

1 See Keil on Joshua, p. 219; and Article Makkedah in Smith's Bib. Dictionary.

CHAPTER III.

BATTLE OF MEROM AND DIVISION OF THE

INTER

LAND.

JOSH. XI.-XXI. B. C. 1450-1444.

NTELLIGENCE of the decisive battle of Beth-horon before long reached the ears of that powerful chief in northern Palestine, who has been already mentioned, JABIN, the Wise, whose capital Hazor was the principal fortress in that part of the country. Determined to make a last effort to defeat the Israelites he rallied round his standard1 not only the chiefs in his own immediate neighbourhood, but from the plains south of the sea of Galilee, or, as it was then called, the sea of Chinnereth, from the valley of the Jordan, the maritime plain of Dor, and the as yet unconquered fortress of Jebus.

Again encouraged by the Lord with the promise of a decisive victory, Joshua did not shrink from encountering this formidable confederacy. Setting forth on a forced march, he burst upon the combined armies of the northern chiefs, as they were encamped by the waters of Merom. As before, his attack was irresistible. The Lord delivered the vast hosts of the foe into the hands of Israel, who smote them with great slaughter, and chased them as far as the friendly city of great Zidon on the west, and the valley of Mizpeh on the east. This was the first occasion on which the Israelites encountered the horses and iron chariots of the Canaanites. According to the special command of their leader (Josh. xi. 6), they cut the ham-strings of their horses, so as to render them unfit for further use, and burnt the chariots

1 "As the British chiefs were driven to the Land's End before the advance of the Saxon, so at this Land's End of Palestine the kings were gathered for this last struggle." S. and P. p. 391.

with fire. Hazor, the stronghold of Jabin, was captured and burnt, its king and all its inhabitants were put to the sword, the flocks and herds only being reserved as spoil for the people.

The battle of Merom was the last of Joshua's recorded engagements, but a long war, considered to have lasted nearly seven years, now occupied his energies, during which he proved his fidelity to the instructions given by the great Lawgiver of the nation. As the Lord commanded Moses His servant, so did Moses command Joshua, and so did Joshua, till by the time he had completed his campaigns, six nations and thirty-one kings had swelled the roll of his triumphs (Josh. xi. 18 -23; xii. 24).

At length, when he was old and stricken in years, he was commanded to divide the conquered territory among the nine tribes and the half tribe of Manasseh.

The mode adopted was twofold.

I. In some cases individual chiefs claimed particular spots on the score of their own prowess, or putting themselves at the head of armed predatory expeditions conquered certain portions with the sword. The chief instance of this was afforded by the aged compeer of Joshua, CALEB the son of Jephunneh, who now won distinction and renown for his own tribe of Judah. Forty-five years had elapsed since as one of the twelve spies in company with Joshua he had come down the Valley of the Cluster to Hebron, the fortress of the giant Arba, where they gathered the enormous bunch of Syrian grapes. On that memorable day Moses had rewarded his eminent faithfulness by promising him the land whereon his feet had trod as an inheritance for himself and his children for ever (Num. xiv. 23, 24; Josh. xiv. 9). This winding Valley, then, of the Cluster, this mountain (Josh. xiv. 12) on which rose the stronghold of the Anakims, was the portion Caleb desired for

himself, and hence with the Divine aid he vowed to drive forth its gigantic possessors, and take it for his own.

Joshua willingly granted his request, and the great warrior of the tribe of Judah went up against the city of Arba, and drove out the sons of Anak, Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai. Thence he proceeded southward to DEBIR or Kirjath-sephir1, the City of Books, probably a sacred oracular place, and promised to give to its successful assailant his daughter Achsah in marriage. Thereupon OTHNIEL his nephew, or according to others his younger brother, attacked and took the fortress, and won the promised prize. On the way to Othniel's house, Achsah dismounted from the ass on which she rode, and begged her father to give her some "better heritage than the dry and thirsty frontier of the desert.” Below the spot on which rose the newly captured fortress was a bubbling rivulet, falling into a rich valley. Thou hast given me, said she, a south land, give me also the bubbling rills, and he gave her the upper and lower bubblings, and thus Hebron and Debir with the rich valley below became the inheritance of the great warrior of Judah, and was long after known by his name (1 Sam. xxv. 3; XXX. 14).

2. But the more general mode of dividing the conquered land, in accordance with the Divine instructions, was by casting lots before the Tabernacle at Shiloh, in the presence of Joshua, the High-priest, and the elders of the nation. As the distribution of the tribes of REUBEN, GAD, and the half-tribe of MANASSEH on the

1 See Keil on Joshua, x. 39. The etymology, however, is not certain. It was also called Kirjath-sannah, city of palms (Josh. xv. 49). See Wilton's Negeb, 212 n.

2 The position of Shiloh is very definitely described in Judg. xxi. 19, as on the north side of Bethel, on the east side of the highway that goeth up from Bethel to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah. Exactly in the position here indicated, Dr Robinson found a ruin called Seilun.

"We