Bible Study Joshua 11
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Joshua 11 · WEB

The Northern Campaign; Summary of Conquest

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When Jabin king of Hazor heard of it, he sent to Jobab king of Madon, to the king of Shimron, to the king of Achshaph,
2and to the kings who were on the north, in the hill country, in the Arabah south of Chinneroth, in the lowland, and in the heights of Dor on the west,
3to the Canaanite on the east and on the west, the Amorite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Jebusite in the hill country, and the Hivite under Hermon in the land of Mizpah.
4They went out, they and all their armies with them, many people, even as the sand that is on the seashore in multitude, with very many horses and chariots.
5All these kings met together, and they came and encamped together at the waters of Merom to fight against Israel.
6Yahweh said to Joshua, "Don't be afraid because of them; for tomorrow at this time I will deliver them up all slain before Israel. You shall hamstring their horses and burn their chariots with fire."
7So Joshua came, and all the people of war with him, against them by the waters of Merom suddenly, and fell on them.
8Yahweh delivered them into the hand of Israel, and they struck them and chased them to great Sidon, and to Misrephoth Maim, and to the valley of Mizpeh eastward. They struck them until they left no one remaining.
9Joshua did to them as Yahweh told him. He hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots with fire.
10Joshua turned back at that time and took Hazor and struck its king with the sword; for Hazor used to be the head of all those kingdoms.
11They struck all the souls who were in it with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying them. There was no one remaining who breathed. He burned Hazor with fire.
12Joshua took all the cities of those kings, with their kings, and he struck them with the edge of the sword and utterly destroyed them, as Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded.
13But as for the cities that stood on their mounds, Israel burned none of them, except Hazor only. That Joshua burned.
14The children of Israel took all the plunder of these cities and the livestock as plunder for themselves; but every man they struck with the edge of the sword, until they had destroyed them. They left no one remaining.
15As Yahweh commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua. Joshua did so. He left nothing undone of all that Yahweh commanded Moses.
16So Joshua took all that land: the hill country, all the South, all the land of Goshen, the lowland, the Arabah, the hill country of Israel, and its lowland;
17from Mount Halak, that goes up to Seir, even to Baal Gad in the valley of Lebanon under Mount Hermon. He took all their kings, struck them, and put them to death.
18Joshua made war a long time with all those kings.
19There was not a city that made peace with the children of Israel, except the Hivites, the inhabitants of Gibeon. They took all in battle.
20For it was of Yahweh to harden their hearts, to come against Israel in battle, that he might utterly destroy them, that they might have no favor, but that he might destroy them, as Yahweh commanded Moses.
21Joshua came at that time and cut off the Anakim from the hill country, from Hebron, from Debir, from Anab, and from all the hill country of Judah, and from all the hill country of Israel. Joshua utterly destroyed them with their cities.
22There were no Anakim left in the land of the children of Israel. Only in Gaza, in Gath, and in Ashdod, did some remain.
23So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that Yahweh spoke to Moses. Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel according to their divisions by their tribes. The land had rest from war.
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Summary

Jabin of Hazor organizes a massive northern coalition — described as an army "as the sand on the seashore" with many horses and chariots. God assures Joshua and commands him to hamstring the horses and burn the chariots, neutralizing the enemy's greatest technological advantage. Joshua attacks at the waters of Merom and wins decisively. Hazor, the dominant northern city, is burned. The chapter then provides a broad summary of the entire conquest: Joshua obeyed everything Moses commanded, the land stretches from Mount Halak in the south to Mount Hermon in the north, the giant Anakim are eliminated from the highlands, and the land finally rests from war.

Themes

  • God's faithfulness to complete what He promised despite overwhelming opposition
  • Total obedience to God's command as the key to the conquest's success
  • The elimination of the Anakim — the fear that once stopped Israel now conquered
  • Rest as the goal and fruit of faithful obedience to God

Key verses

  • Josh 11:15 — “As Yahweh commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua. Joshua did so. He left nothing undone of all that Yahweh commanded Moses.”
  • Josh 11:23 — “So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that Yahweh spoke to Moses...The land had rest from war.”
  • Josh 11:6 — “Don't be afraid because of them; for tomorrow at this time I will deliver them up all slain before Israel.”

Context & background

Hazor is located in the upper Galilee region of modern northern Israel, north of the Sea of Galilee. Extensive excavations at Tel Hazor (one of the largest archaeological sites in Israel) have confirmed its status as the dominant city of Canaan during the Late Bronze Age — a massive urban center of perhaps 40,000 people with strong connections to Egypt and the broader ancient Near East. A destruction layer consistent with the biblical account has been found at the site. The waters of Merom are believed to be in the hills west of the Sea of Galilee. Mount Hermon (in modern Lebanon/Syria) marked the northern boundary of the conquest. The Anakim were a race of giants whose presence had terrified the first generation of spies (Numbers 13:33) — their defeat signals the reversal of that earlier failure.

Cross-references

  • 1 Samuel 17:4 — Goliath of Gath — the Anakim remnant remaining in Gaza and Gath after Joshua
  • Deuteronomy 20:16-18 — The command for total destruction of Canaanite cities that Joshua fulfills
  • Hebrews 4:9-10 — The "rest" the land enjoys anticipates the eschatological rest God promises His people
  • Judges 4:2 — Jabin king of Hazor (or his successor) resurfaces as an oppressor in the time of Deborah
  • Numbers 13:28,33 — The Anakim were the giants that terrified the first spies; now Joshua defeats them

Check your reading

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  1. Observe

    What military advantage did the northern coalition possess, and what did God command Joshua to do about it?

  2. Observe

    What does verse 15 say about the chain of obedience from Yahweh to Moses to Joshua?

  3. Interpret

    How should we understand verse 20, which says God hardened the Canaanites' hearts so they would not seek peace?

  4. Interpret

    What does the defeat of the Anakim in chapter 11 say about what God can accomplish through a trusting generation?

  5. Apply

    What does Joshua's destruction of the horses and chariots teach about radical obedience?

  6. Apply

    "The land had rest from war" — what does this promise of rest mean for believers today?

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