Joshua 9:15 - Meaning and Application

Here is the treaty with the Gibeonites, quickly settled in Joshua 9:15. The matter was not handled with much ceremony, but the main points are clear. They agreed to let the Gibeonites live, and that was all the Gibeonites asked. In an ordinary war, that would have been a small favor, but in the wars of Canaan, where total destruction had been ordered, it was a great mercy for a Canaanite to have his life spared as plunder from the sword (Jeremiah 45:5).

This agreement was not made by Joshua alone, but by him together with the princes of the congregation. Joshua had an unusual call and special ability for leadership, yet he would not act in a matter like this without the counsel and agreement of the princes. They were not kept ignorant or pushed aside, but treated as partners in the rule. That was wise government, because shared responsibility helps guard against rash decisions.

The treaty was also confirmed by an oath. They swore to the Gibeonites, not by any of the gods of Canaan, but by the God of Israel alone (Joshua 9:19). Honest people do not fear giving firm assurances. They satisfy those they deal with, and they honor God by calling him to witness their sincerity.

The only clear fault in the whole matter was that it was done too quickly. They took some of the Gibeonites’ food and saw that it was old and dry, but they did not stop to think that this did not prove it had come from a far country. They trusted their senses, but not their judgment. They received the men because of their food, perhaps because the bread looked and tasted as though it had once been good, which made the visitors seem important and worthy of respect. But they did not ask for counsel from the Lord.

They had the Urim and Thummim with them, the sacred means by which God’s will was made known, and they could have sought guidance in this difficult case. That would have kept them from error. Instead, they trusted their own wisdom too much and thought it unnecessary to bring the matter before God. Joshua himself was not entirely blameless here. We move too fast in any business when we do not take God with us and seek him by his word and prayer. Many times we look back with regret and realize an affair failed because we did not ask counsel from the Lord. If we acknowledged him in all our ways, we would find them safer, easier, and more successful.

The fraud was soon exposed, and the league had been gained by deceit. A lying tongue lasts only for a moment, but truth comes out in time. Within three days they discovered, to their great surprise, that the cities for which these messengers had made their deal were very near, only a short march from Gilgal (Joshua 10:9). Their own scouts, soldiers sent out to learn about the land, or perhaps deserters from the enemy, may have brought them the news. Those who let Satan deceive them will soon find the truth, to their shame, and will discover that what seemed far away was actually right at hand.

The congregation was displeased by this. They did obey the limits of the treaty and did not attack the Gibeonite cities, kill the people, or take the spoil. Still, they were troubled to have their hands tied, and they complained against the princes (Joshua 9:18). It is likely that many of them were more concerned about lost profit than about obeying God’s command, though some may have been genuinely concerned for that reason. Many people are quick to criticize rulers while knowing little about the reasons behind their actions, and while they are not fit to judge matters of policy. If we are convinced in general that those over us seek the public good and truly want what is best for the people, we should make the best of what they do and not trouble ourselves with matters beyond us.

The princes then wisely worked to calm the people and settle the issue. All the princes agreed together, and their unity likely helped the people accept the result. They resolved to spare the Gibeonites’ lives, because they had clearly sworn to do so, to let them live (Joshua 9:15). The oath was lawful, or else it would not have bound them any more than Herod’s oath bound him to kill John the Baptist. God had commanded them to destroy the Canaanites, but that command should be understood with some mercy. It applied to those who stood against Israel and refused to surrender their land, not to people who had never raised a hand against them, never acted as enemies, and had instead humbled themselves before any extreme measure was taken. Israel’s kings were surely not meant to be less merciful than this (1 Kings 20:31), and the God of Israel was surely more merciful than to require such a thing. It is enough to have defeated the lion.

Besides, the reason behind the command matters. The danger God meant to prevent was that Israel would be corrupted by Canaanite idolatry (Deuteronomy 7:4). But if the Gibeonites turned from idolatry and became servants and friends of the house of God, then the danger was removed. When the reason for a law no longer exists, the law itself no longer applies in the same way, especially in a case like this. The turning of sinners can keep them from destruction.

Since the oath was lawful, both the princes and the people represented by them were bound by it. They were bound in conscience and in honor to the God of Israel, by whose name they had sworn, and whose name would have been dishonored among the Canaanites if they had broken it. They spoke like people who feared an oath (Ecclesiastes 9:2), saying, “We will let them live, so that wrath may not fall on us because of the oath we swore” (Joshua 9:20). Anyone who confirms a promise with an oath calls down divine judgment on himself if he later breaks it willfully, and he should expect God’s justice to hold him to his word. God is not mocked, so oaths must never be treated lightly. The princes would keep their promise, even if it cost them. A person who belongs to Zion swears to his own hurt and does not change (Psalm 15:4).

Joshua and the leaders, when they saw that this treaty had worked against them, did not ask Eleazar for a special release. They also did not try to argue, as some later churches did, that promises need not be kept to heretics or Canaanites. They were no friends of such tricks, which would try to escape solemn promises and even excuse perjury, that is, lying under oath.

Even though the people were upset, and their anger might have led to a riot, the leaders would not break their agreement with the Gibeonites. We must never let power or crowd pressure force us into doing what is sinful or against our conscience. Though they had been tricked into this alliance, and could have made a strong case for canceling it, they still held to it. They might have argued that the men who received the treaty were not the same as the cities named in it, because they had promised to spare certain cities that were far away, and only because they were far away. But these people were near by, so, they might have said, the promise did not apply.

Many learned men have thought that Joshua and the princes were so badly deceived by the Gibeonites that they could have lawfully taken back their promise. Yet they kept it to protect their good name and to teach Israel to honor an oath. Still, it is clear that they believed they were fully bound by it, and they feared God’s anger if they broke it. And even though the people may have disliked this choice, it was pleasing to God. When they later protected the Gibeonites, God gave them one of the greatest victories in all their wars (Joshua 10). Much later, God also strongly judged Saul for harming the Gibeonites and breaking this covenant (2 Samuel 21:1).

This should teach us how carefully we ought to keep our promises and carry out our agreements. We should be serious about our words once we have given them. If a covenant won by so many lies and tricks could not be broken, then surely we should not try to escape agreements made honestly and fairly. If another person’s fraud does not excuse our own dishonesty, then their honesty only makes our wrongdoing worse.

Though Joshua and the leaders spared the Gibeonites’ lives, they did not give them freedom. Instead, they made them hewers of wood and drawers of water for the whole congregation (Joshua 9:21). This plan calmed the unhappy people. Those who were angry that the Gibeonites were allowed to live could accept their lot when they saw them condemned to what people often think is worse than death, lifelong servitude. And those who were angry that the Gibeonites were not destroyed could be satisfied when they saw that their labor would serve the public good more than any goods they might have lost. In short, Israel would not be at a loss in either honor or profit from peace with the Gibeonites. If people can see that, they will be content.