And after Joshua died, the twelve tribal leaders consulted YAHWEH for a prophetic sign and asked, “Which tribe do you choose to be the first to lead the attack against the Canaanites?”
YAHWEH answered them, “Let Judah take the lead. I have delivered the land into their hands.”
Judah then enlisted support from their brother-tribe Simeon, saying, “Follow us into our territory and fight with us against the Canaanites; then we will do the same for you.” So the Simeonites agreed and joined them.
When Judah advanced, YAHWEH gave them victory over the Canaanites and Perizzites, and they defeated ten thousand men at Bezek. They encountered King Adoni-Bezek fleeing with his army on the battlefield. They pursued him, captured him, and defeated the Canaanites and Perizzites. Then they cut off Adoni-Bezek’s thumbs and big toes. Adoni-Bezek confessed, “I once had seventy kings picking up scraps under my table with their thumbs and big toes cut off. Now God has paid me back for what I did to them!” They took him captive to Jerusalem, where he died.
The men of Judah attacked Jerusalem and captured it. They killed the inhabitants of the city and set it on fire. Afterward, the men of Judah continued their advance and attacked the Canaanites living in the hill country, the southern desert region, and the western lowlands. Under Caleb’s leadership, they fought against the Canaanites living in Hebron, formerly known as Kiriath Arba, and killed the three Canaanite families descended from Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai. From there, they attacked the city of Debir, formerly known as Kiriath Sepher. Caleb announced, “I will give my daughter Achsah in marriage to the man who attacks and captures Kiriath Sepher.”
Caleb’s nephew Othniel the Kenizzite captured Kiriath Sepher; and Caleb gave him his daughter Achsah in marriage.
One day, Othniel nagged her to ask her father for a field as a wedding gift, so she went to him. When she got down from her donkey, Caleb said to her, “What can I do for you?”
“Please, give me a blessing,” she replied. “I know you’ve already given me some arid desert land, but please give me a field with springs of water.” So Caleb blessed her with a field that had both upper and lower springs.
The descendants of Moses’ father-in-law, the Kenite, joined the people of Judah, and went with them from Jericho, the City of Date Palms, to the Judean wilderness. The Kenites had settled there among the Amalekites at Arad.
Judah and their brother-tribe Simeon advanced to the city of Zephath and wiped out the Canaanites living there. That’s why they now call the city Hormah. The men of Judah captured Gaza, Ashkelon, Ekron, and the territories surrounding each of these cities.
YAHWEH’s presence and power were with the men of Judah and they were able to conquer the hill country, but because the people of the lowlands had war chariots, they failed to drive them out. Because Caleb conquered the three giants, the sons of Anak, he was given the city of Hebron.
The tribe of Benjamin, however, failed to conquer the Jebusites living in Jerusalem. So to this day, the Jebusites live among the Benjamites in Jerusalem.
YAHWEH’s presence and power were with Joseph’s descendants, so they advanced toward Bethel and sent men ahead to spy out the city that was formerly known as Luz. The spies confronted a man coming out of Bethel and they said to him, “Show us the way to enter the city and we will treat you well.” So he showed the spies a secret entrance into the city, and they killed everyone living in Bethel with the sword except that man and his family. Later the man and his family moved to the land of the Hittites and built a town. The new town has kept the name Luz to this day.
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