Joshua 约书亚记09

9Now when all the kings west of the Jordan heard about these things-those in the hill country, in the western foothills, and along the entire coast of the Great Sea as far as Lebanon (the kings of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites)-
2they came together to make war against Joshua and Israel.
3However, when the people of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai,
4they resorted to a ruse¹: They went as a delegation² whose donkeys were loaded with worn-out sacks and old wineskins, cracked and mended.
5The men put worn and patched sandals on their feet and wore old clothes. All the bread of their food supply was dry and moldy³.
6Then they went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and the men of Israel, "We have come from a distant country; make a treaty with us."
7The men of Israel said to the Hivites, "But perhaps you live near us. How then can we make a treaty with you?"
8"We are your servants," they said to Joshua. But Joshua asked, "Who are you and where do you come from?"
9They answered: "Your servants have come from a very distant country because of the fame of the Lord your God. For we have heard reports of him: all that he did in Egypt,
10and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan-Sihon king of Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, who reigned⁴ in Ashtaroth.
11And our elders and all those living in our country said to us, 'Take provisions for your journey; go and meet them and say to them, "We are your servants; make a treaty with us." '
12This bread of ours was warm when we packed it at home on the day we left to come to you. But now see how dry and moldy it is.
13And these wineskins that we filled were new, but see how cracked they are. And our clothes and sandals are worn out by the very long journey."
14The men of Israel sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the Lord .
15Then Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live, and the leaders of the assembly ratified⁵ it by oath.
16Three days after they made the treaty with the Gibeonites, the Israelites heard that they were neighbors, living near them.
17So the Israelites set out and on the third day came to their cities: Gibeon, Kephirah, Beeroth and Kiriath Jearim.
18But the Israelites did not attack them, because the leaders of the assembly had sworn an oath to them by the Lord , the God of Israel. The whole assembly grumbled⁶ against the leaders,
19but all the leaders answered, "We have given them our oath by the Lord , the God of Israel, and we cannot touch them now.
20This is what we will do to them: We will let them live, so that wrath⁷ will not fall on us for breaking the oath we swore to them."
21They continued, "Let them live, but let them be woodcutters and water carriers for the entire community." So the leaders' promise to them was kept.
22Then Joshua summoned the Gibeonites and said, "Why did you deceive us by saying, 'We live a long way from you,' while actually you live near us?
23You are now under a curse: You will never cease to serve as woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God."
24They answered Joshua, "Your servants were clearly told how the Lord your God had commanded his servant Moses to give you the whole land and to wipe out all its inhabitants from before you. So we feared for our lives because of you, and that is why we did this.
25We are now in your hands. Do to us whatever seems good and right to you."
26So Joshua saved them from the Israelites, and they did not kill them.
27That day he made the Gibeonites woodcutters and water carriers for the community and for the altar of the Lord at the place the Lord would choose. And that is what they are to this day.

1 ruse   

n.诡计，计策；诡计

参考例句：

• The children thought of a clever ruse to get their mother to leave the house so they could get ready for her surprise.孩子们想出一个聪明的办法使妈妈离家，以便他们能准备给她一个惊喜。It is now clear that this was a ruse to divide them.现在已清楚这是一个离间他们的诡计。

2 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

3 moldy   

adj.发霉的

参考例句：

• She chucked the moldy potatoes in the dustbin.她把发霉的土豆扔进垃圾箱。
• Oranges can be kept for a long time without going moldy.橙子可以存放很长时间而不腐烂。

4 reigned   

vi.当政，统治（reign的过去式形式）

参考例句：

• Silence reigned in the hall. 全场肃静。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Night was deep and dead silence reigned everywhere. 夜深人静，一片死寂。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 ratified   

v.批准，签认（合约等）( ratify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The treaty was declared invalid because it had not been ratified. 条约没有得到批准，因此被宣布无效。
• The treaty was ratified by all the member states. 这个条约得到了所有成员国的批准。

6 grumbled   

抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 发牢骚； 咕哝； 发哼声

参考例句：

• He grumbled at the low pay offered to him. 他抱怨给他的工资低。
• The heat was sweltering, and the men grumbled fiercely over their work. 天热得让人发昏，水手们边干活边发着牢骚。

7 wrath   

n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒

参考例句：

• His silence marked his wrath. 他的沉默表明了他的愤怒。
• The wrath of the people is now aroused. 人们被激怒了。