Joshua 10:16

_BUT THESE FIVE KINGS FLED, AND HID THEMSELVES IN A CAVE AT MAKKEDAH._ These five kings fled, and hid themselves in a cave (Hebrew, the cave) at Makkedah. The pursuit was continued without interruption to Makkedah, at the foot of the western mountains, where Joshua seems to have halted with the main body of his troops, while a detachment was sent forward to Scour the country in pursuit of the remaining stragglers, a few of whom succeeded in reaching the neighbouring cities. The last act, probably the next day, was the disposal of the prisoners, among whom the five kings (see the note at Joshua 10:37) were consigned to the infamous doom of being slain (Deuteronomy 20:16), and then their corpses suspended on five trees until the evening....

15-27 None moved his tongue against any of the children of Israel. This shows their perfect safety. The kings were called to an account, as rebels against the Israel of God. Refuges of lies will but secure for God's judgment. God punished the abominable wickedness of these kings, the measure of whose iniquity was now full. And by this public act of justice, done upon these ringleaders of the Canaanites in sin, he would possess his people with the greater dread and detestation of the sins of the nations that God cast out from before them. Here is a type and figure of Christ's victories over the powers of darkness, and of believers' victories through him. In our spiritual conflicts we must not be satisfied with obtaining some important victory. We must pursue our scattered enemies, searching out the remains of sin as they rise up in our hearts, and thus pursue the conquest. In so doing, th...

Verse Joshua 10:16. _HID THEMSELVES IN A CAVE_] It is very likely that this cave was a fortified place among some rocks; for there were many such places in different parts of Palestine....

The thread of the narrative, broken by the four intermediate verses, Joshua 10:12, is now resumed from Joshua 10:11....

EXPOSITION THE BATTLE OF BETH-HORON, AND THE SUBJUGATION OF SOUTHERN PALESTINE.— JOSHUA 10:1 ADONI-ZEDEC (cf. Melchizedek in Genesis 14:18). The _name_ given to the king of Jerusalem was good enough, and no doubt was a survival of earlier and purer times. In the days of Melchizedek the name corresponded to the character. JERUSALEM. Hebrew, _Jerushalaim, _with the usual dual termination. It has been generally supposed to be the same with Salem, or rather Shalem, the city of which Melehizedek was king, and this is supported by the fact t

BUT THESE FIVE KINGS FLED,.... They were not killed by hailstones, nor slain by the sword of the Israelites, but made their escape, being reserved by the providence of God for a more shameful end: AND HID THEMSELVES IN A CAVE AT MAKKEDAH; not in the city of Makkedah, which as yet was not in the hands of Israel, whereas this cave was, as appears by what follows; but it was in some hill, or mountain, near it; in the border of it, as Kimchi expresses it, and where a hill is shown to this day in which it was, as Drusius says....

10. THE VICTORIOUS CONQUEST CHAPTER 10 _ 1. Adoni-zedec and his confederacy (Joshua 10:1)_ 2. The war (Joshua 10:7) 3. The miracle (Joshua 10:12) 4. The victory won (Joshua 10:16) 5. The five kings slain (Joshua 10:22) 6. Further conquests (Joshua 10:28) The name Jerusalem is mentioned here for the first time in the Bible. (Salem in...

DEFEAT AND DEATH OF THE FIVE KINGS. Here we have the account of the famous battle of Bethhoron. Five kings band themselves together against Gibeon; the Gibeonites send for help to Joshua, who comes upon the enemy suddenly and completely routs them. It is hardly necessary to say that the adjuration to the sun to stand still is purely poetical, and is to be compared with the words of Deborah's song, The stars in their courses fought against Sisera. The compiler of this book, however, took it as an actual prayer that was really granted, as is seen from the words, So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven. Mr. Stanley Cook would omit the third line and make the fourth line part of the appeal, which would then run, Sun, stand thou still at Gibeon, and thou, moon, on the valley of Aijalon, till Yahweh (not the people) hath avenged himself on his enemies. He also gives the interesting infor...

Flight and Execution of the Five Kings 16. _But these five kings_ Here the regular historical narrative is resumed. The second stage in the flight was over. "In the lengthened day granted to Joshua's prayer" now commences the third stage. The tide of fugitives rolled on, hotly pursued by the Israelites through the pass of Lower Beth-horon to Azekah, and thence to Makkedah....

_VER._ 16. _BUT THESE FIVE KINGS FLED_— That is, the kings mentioned above, in ver. 3. _And hid themselves,_ &c. escaped from the sword of the conqueror; they had eluded the pursuit and the hail, by taking a different road from that of their main army: perhaps too they had prepared, for any event, beasts to carry them off with all dispatch. Be that as it may, they _retired_ into a cavern _near_ Makkedah, (for so the Hebrew particle should be rendered here and in ver. 10.) and there concluded themselves safe. Caves, it seems, dug in the rocks, are very common in those countries; they are places of retreat, and forts, whither the people retire at the time of war and invasion. We find several accounts of them collected by Reland in his Palaest. Sacr. l. iii. p. 648....