Joshua 9:21

Study note

Setting — The assembled Israelite leaders address the Gibeonite delegates after deciding to spare their lives to avoid violating their sworn oath. They issue a binding decree that the Gibeonites will remain alive but serve the community.

The words — יִֽחְי֑וּ (yich.Yu) means “let them live,” and חֹטְבֵ֨י עֵצִ֤ים וְ/שֹֽׁאֲבֵי־ (cho.te.Vei 'e.Tzim ve./sho.'a.vei-) translates literally to “cutters of wood and drawers of water.”

The thread — The text records a permanent labor arrangement that parallels Deuteronomy 29:11’s description of foreigners cutting wood and drawing water, and directly establishes the condition repeated in Joshua 9:23 and Joshua 9:27.

Why it lands — The passage documents a concrete administrative decision that prioritizes oath-keeping over military conquest, requiring the reader to observe how covenant fidelity dictates the legal status of defeated peoples.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.