Joshua 10:16
in Joshua 10Now the five kings had fled and hidden in the cave at Makkedah.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And these five kings fled, and hid themselves in the cave at Makkedah.
KJV
But these five kings fled, and hid themselves in a cave at Makkedah.
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This verse in Joshua 10
Commentary
8 notes on this verseHid 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.
This site's exposition
hidden in the cave at Makkedah
on Joshua 10:16-19
The five kings are sealed in the cave under guard, so Joshua takes the fighting first and the trophy last. His order is “Do not let them reach their cities”. Matthew Henry notes the watch costs men he could have used in the chase, and he sets it anyway.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
But let us also see what it means when it says there were five kings and they fled into caves. We have often said the battle of Christians is twofold. Indeed, for those who are perfect, such as Paul and the Ephesians, it was not, as the apostle himself says, "a battle against flesh and blood but against principalities and authorities, against the rulers of darkness in this world and spiritual forces of iniquity in the heavens." But for the weaker ones and those not yet mature, the battle is still waged against flesh and blood, for those are still assaulted by carnal faults and frailties. I think this is indicated even in this passage; for we said that a war was declared by five kings against the Gibeonites, whose figure I maintained was of those who are immature. These, therefore, are assaulted by five kings. Now these five kings indicate the five corporeal senses: sight, hearing, taste, touch and smell; for it must be through one of these that each person falls away into sin. These five senses are compared to those five kings who fight the Gibeonites, that is, carnal persons. That they are said to have fled into caves can be indicated, perhaps, because a cave is a place buried in the depths of the earth. Therefore, those senses that we mentioned above are said to have fled into caves when, after being placed in the body, they immerse themselves in earthly impulses and do nothing for the work of God but all for the service of the body.
For if the armed host of the Lord was represented by the trumpets of the priests, we may see in Jericho a type of the overthrow of the world by the preaching of the gospel. And to pass over endless details (for it is not my purpose now to unfold all the mysteries of the Old Testament), five kings who previously reigned in the land of promise and opposed the gospel army were overcome in battle with Joshua.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
A cave - A place of the greatest secrecy; but there is no escaping the eye or hand of God. At Makkedah - Hebrew. in Makkedah, not in the city, for that was not yet taken; but in the territory of it.
But these five kings fled,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
The last act, probably the next day, was the disposal of the prisoners, among whom the five kings were consigned to the infamous doom of being slain (De 20:16, 17); and then their corpses were suspended on five trees till the evening.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
The thread of the narrative, broken by the four intermediate verses, Jos 10:12-15, is now resumed from Jos 10:11.
The words behind it
7 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיָּנֻ֕סוּ | vaiyanusu | and they fled | H5127 → | 159 times |
| חֲמֵ֖שֶׁת | chameshet | [the] five | H2568 → | 343 times |
| הַמְּלָכִ֣ים | hamelakhim | the kings | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| הָאֵ֑לֶּה | haeleh | <the> these | H428 → | 746 times |
| וַיֵּחָבְא֥וּ | vaiyechaveu | and they hid themselves | H2244 → | 33 times |
| בַמְּעָרָ֖ה | vamearah | in the cave | H4631 → | 37 times |
| בְּמַקֵּדָֽה׃ | bemakedah | at Makkedah | H4719 → | 9 times |
וַיָּנֻ֕סוּand they fled
vaiyanusuH5127 →159 times
חֲמֵ֖שֶׁת[the] five
chameshetH2568 →343 times
הַמְּלָכִ֣יםthe kings
hamelakhimH4428 →2525 times
הָאֵ֑לֶּה<the> these
haelehH428 →746 times
וַיֵּחָבְא֥וּand they hid themselves
vaiyechaveuH2244 →33 times
בַמְּעָרָ֖הin the cave
vamearahH4631 →37 times
בְּמַקֵּדָֽה׃at Makkedah
bemakedahH4719 →9 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Samuel 13:6Seeing that they were in danger because their troops were hard-pressed, the men of Israel hid in caves and thickets, among the rocks, and in cellars and cisterns.
it leads to
- Judges 6:2
and the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of the Midianites, the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in the mountains, caves, and strongholds.
- Hebrews 11:38
The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and hid in caves and holes in the ground.
- 1 Samuel 24:3
Soon Saul came to the sheepfolds along the road, where there was a cave, and he went in to relieve himself. And David and his men were hiding in the recesses of the cave.
- Philippians 1:23
I am torn between the two. I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better indeed.
- Judges 10:9
The Ammonites also crossed the Jordan to fight against Judah, Benjamin, and the house of Ephraim, and Israel was in deep distress.
- Judges 6:2
Through
1 Samuel 24:8After that, David got up, went out of the cave, and called out to Saul, “My lord the king!” When Saul looked behind him, David bowed facedown in reverence
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 25:23–24
When Abigail saw David, she quickly got off the donkey, fell facedown, and bowed before him.
- Romans 13:7
Pay everyone what you owe him: taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due.
- 1 Samuel 26:17
Then Saul recognized David’s voice and asked, “Is that your voice, David my son?” “It is my voice, my lord and king,” David said.
- 1 Samuel 25:23–24
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Joshua
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Against Jovinianus 1.21; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Origen of Alexandria, HOMILIES ON JOSHUA 11.4.