Joshua warned the people, “You will not keep worshiping the Lord, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God who will not forgive your rebellion or your sins.

I repeat, be strong and brave! Don’t be afraid and don’t panic, for I, the Lord your God, am with you in all you do.”

Any man who rebels against what you say and does not obey all your commands will be executed. But be strong and brave!”

But the woman hid the two men and replied, “Yes, these men were clients of mine, but I didn’t know where they came from.

When it was time to shut the city gate for the night, the men left. I don’t know where they were heading. Chase after them quickly, for you have time to catch them!”

They went to the hill country and stayed there for three days, long enough for those chasing them to return. Their pursuers looked all along the way but did not find them.

Now all the men who left were circumcised, but all the sons born on the journey through the desert after they left Egypt were uncircumcised.

He replaced them with their sons, whom Joshua circumcised. They were uncircumcised; their fathers had not circumcised them along the way.

The manna stopped appearing the day they ate some of the produce of the land; the Israelites never ate manna again.

Joshua kept holding out his curved sword until Israel had annihilated all who lived in Ai.

The Israelites did not attack them because the leaders of the community had sworn an oath to them in the name of the Lord God of Israel. The whole community criticized the leaders,

but all the leaders told the whole community, “We swore an oath to them in the name of the Lord God of Israel. So now we can’t hurt them!

We must let them live so we can escape the curse attached to the oath we swore to them.”

Now you are condemned to perpetual servitude as woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God.”

The Lord told Joshua, “Don’t be afraid of them, for I am handing them over to you. Not one of them can resist you.”

There has not been a day like it before or since. The Lord obeyed a man, for the Lord fought for Israel!

Then the whole army safely returned to Joshua at the camp in Makkedah. No one dared threaten the Israelites.

They annihilated everyone who lived there with the sword – no one who breathed remained – and burned Hazor.

But Israel did not burn any of the cities located on mounds, except for Hazor; it was the only one Joshua burned.

No city made peace with the Israelites (except the Hivites living in Gibeon); they had to conquer all of them,