A Merciful Sentence

Joshua now sentences the Gibeonites for their deception. His question—“ ‘Why have you deceived us, saying, “We are very far from you,” when you dwell near us?’ ”—is rhetorical in nature. It is, essentially, a statement of the Gibeonites’ crime. And because they committed such a crime, Joshua says, they are cursed. As Canaanites living in the land promised to Israel, they were under the curse of the herem, God’s command that all Canaanites be killed. By their duplicity they have gained their lives, but they remain under a curse and thus shall live out their lives as woodcutters and water carriers. It will be their lot to perpetually fulfill two of the most menial, toilsome, repetitive tasks confronting the people of their time. In this condemnation of the Gibeonites to lowly servitude, Matthew Henry and some other commentators see the fulfillment of the curse Noah pronounced on his grandson Canaan: “ ‘Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants he shall be to his brethren’ ” (Gen. 9:25).

It would seem that this outcome would be most unpleasant for the Gibeonites, who, we are told, are citizens of a great city (Josh. 10:2). Yet they seem to accept it with equanimity, and their reply to Joshua reveals the reason. They explain that they knew Israel was commanded to exterminate them, and therefore they “ ‘were very much afraid for [their] lives.’ ” It has become clear to them now that the Israelite leaders plan to keep their oath and permit them to live. Thus, even subjugation to menial servitude seems to be a blessing compared with what happened to the inhabitants of Jericho and Ai.

In truth, their subjugation is a blessing. In order to placate the grumbling Israelites, the leaders had proposed that the Gibeonites be made woodcutters and water carriers “ ‘for all the congregation’ ” (9:21). But Joshua mitigates the sentence by assigning them to serve not just the people but also “ ‘the house of my God’ ” (9:23). Thus, they are given work that “required their personal attendance upon the altar of God …, which would bring them to the knowledge of the law of God,” Henry writes. In other words, they are given a ring-side seat to the Israelites’ worship, a situation the Lord can use to call some of them to faith if He pleases to do so. Thus, Israel’s God once again shows His mercy even in the midst of judgment and condemnation.