Joshua 10:39

36. And Joshua went up from Eglon, and all Israel with him, unto Hebron; and they fought against it: 36. Ascendit postea Josue et universus Israel cum eo ab Eglon in Hebron, et oppugnaverunt eam. 37. And they took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and the king thereof, and all the cities thereof, and all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining, according to all that he had done to Eglon; but destroyed it utterly, and all the souls that were therein. 37. Et ceperunt eam, et percusserunt acie gladii, et regem ejus, et omnia oppida ejus, atque omnem animam quae illic erat: non reliquit superstitem prorsus ut fecerat Eglon. Perdidit ergo eam atque omnem animam quae illic erat. 38. And Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to Debir; and fought against it: 38. Postea reversus est Josue, et universus Israel cum eo in Debir, et oppugnavit eam. 39. And he took it, and the king thereof, and all the cities thereof; and they smote them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining: as he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir, and to the king thereof; as he had done also to Libnah, and to her king. 39. Et ceperunt eam, et percusserunt acie gladii, et regem ejus, et omnia oppida ejus, percusseruntque eos acie gladii, atque interfecerunt omnem animam quae illic erat. Non reliquit superstitem, quemadmodum fecerat Hebron, sic fecit Debir, et regi ejus: et quemadmodum fecerat Libna, et regi ejus.

And Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to Debir,.... A city, according to Kimchi, which he passed by when he went to Hebron, and did not fight against it; but, when he had taken Hebron, returned and took it; and which Bunting {h} says was but a mile from it, and twenty two miles from Jerusalem, towards the south; it is the same with Kirjathsepher and Kirjathsannah, Joshua 15:15; the city of a book or books; and the Rabbins say {i}, that with the Persians Debir signifies the same, and had its name from a library which was here kept, or from the archives in which the most memorable things since the flood were recorded; or from the making of paper or parchment, or whatsoever was made use of for writing, and of which volumes of books were made: and fought against it; it refusing to submit to him upon his summons. {h} Travels of the Patriarchs, &c. p. 96. {i} T. Bab. Avodah Zarah, fol. 24. 2. Joshua 10:39 Ver. 39. And he took it, and the king thereof, and all the cities thereof,....

10:28-43 Joshua made speed in taking these cities. See what a great deal of work may be done in a little time, if we will be diligent, and improve our opportunities. God here showed his hatred of the idolatries and other abominations of which the Canaanites had been guilty, and shows us how great the provocation was, by the greatness of the destruction brought upon them. Here also was typified the destruction of all the enemies of the Lord Jesus, who, having slighted the riches of his grace, must for ever feel the weight of his wrath. The Lord fought for Israel. They could not have gotten the victory, if God had not undertaken the battle. We conquer when God fights for us; if he be for us, who can be against us?

And he took it, and the king thereof, and all the cities thereof,.... For this also was a royal city, and had others dependent on it; and therefore must lie further from Hebron than before suggested; and indeed Burchard (k) says it was five or six miles from it, and another writer (l) says ten miles: and they smote them with the edge of the sword; the inhabitants of Debir, and the other cities adjacent to it: and utterly destroyed all the souls that were therein, he left none remaining; and yet it seems this city recovered again, and was reinhabited, and after the death of Joshua was taken by Othniel, Judges 1:11; unless, as before observed, with respect to Hebron, there is there a more particular account of the taking of it at this time: as he had done to Hebron, so did he to Debir, and to the king thereof, as he had done also to Libnah and her king; that is, slew them. (k) Apud Masium in loc. (l) Fuller's Pisgah Sight of Palestine, B. 2. c. 13. p. 276.

And he took it, and the king thereof, and all the cities thereof; and they smote them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining: as he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir, and to the king thereof; as he had done also to Libnah, and to her king.

Jos 10:28-42. Seven More Kings Conquered. 28-42. that day Joshua took Makkedah—In this and the following verses is described the rapid succession of victory and extermination which swept the whole of southern Palestine into the hands of Israel. "All these kings and their land did Joshua take at one time, because the Lord God of Israel fought for Israel. And Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, unto the camp to Gilgal."

Joshua then turned southwards with all Israel (i.e., all the army), attacked Debir and took it, and the towns dependent upon it, in the same manner as those mentioned before. Debir, formerly called Kirjath-sepher, i.e., book town, πόλις γραμμάτων (lxx Joshua 15:15 ; Judges 1:11 ), and Kirjath-sanna, i.e., in all probability the city of palm branches ( Joshua 15:49 ), was given up by Judah to the priests ( Joshua 21:15 ). It stood upon the mountains of Judah ( Joshua 15:49 ), to the south of Hebron, but has not yet been certainly discovered, though V. de Velde is probably correct in his supposition that it is to be seen in the ruins of Dilbeh, on the peak of a hill to the north of Wady Dilbeh, and on the road from Dhoberiyeh to Hebron, about two hours to the south-west of the latter. For, according to Dr.

Stewart, there is a spring at Dilbeh, the water of which is conducted by an aqueduct into the Birket el Dilbeh, at the foot of the said hill, which would answer very well to the upper and lower springs at Debir, if only Debir might be placed, according to Joshua 15:49 , so far towards the north. (Note: Knobel imagines that Debir is to be found in the modern village of Dhoberiyeh (Dhabarije), five hours to the south-west of Hebron, on the south-west border of the mountains of Judah, upon the top of a mountain, because, in addition to the situation of this village, which is perfectly reconcilable with Joshua 15:49, there are remains of a square tower there (according to Krafft, a Roman tower), which point to an ancient fortification (vid., Rob. Pal. i. pp. 308ff.; Ritter, Erdk. xvi. pp. 202ff.), and because the name, which signifies "placed behind the back," agrees with Debir, the hinder part or back (?), and Kirjath-sepher, if interpreted by the Arabic words, which signify "extremitas, margo, ora." But both reasons prove very little. The meanings assigned to Debir and Kirjath-sepher are improbable and arbitrary. Moreover, it has not been shown that there are any springs near Dhoberiyeh, such as there were in the neighbourhood of Debir (Joshua 15:19.).