1. All the kings west of the Jordan River heard about these things. These were the kings of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. They lived in the mountains and on the western mountain slopes. They also lived along the whole Mediterranean Sea coast.
2. All these kings gathered to fight Joshua and the Israelites.
3. The people of Gibeon heard how Joshua had defeated Jericho and Ai.
4. So they decided to trick the Israelites. They gathered old leather wine bags that were cracked and mended. They put them on the backs of their donkeys. They also put old sacks on their donkeys.
5. The men put old sandals on their feet and wore old clothes. They took some dry, moldy bread.
6. Then they went to Joshua in the camp near Gilgal.The men spoke to Joshua and the men of Israel. They said, “We have traveled from a faraway country. Make a peace agreement with us.”
7. The men of Israel said to these Hivites, “Maybe you live near us. How can we make a peace agreement with you?”
8. The Hivites said to Joshua, “We are your servants.”But Joshua asked, “Who are you? Where do you come from?”
9. The men answered, “We are your servants. We have come from a far country. We came because we heard of the fame of the Lord your God. We heard about what he has done. We heard about everything he did in Egypt.
10. We heard that he defeated the two kings of the Amorites. They were from the east side of the Jordan River: Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan who was king in Ashtaroth.
11. So our elders and our people spoke to us. They said, ‘Take food for your journey. Go and meet the Israelites. Tell them, “We are your servants. Make a peace agreement with us.”’
12. “Look at our bread. When we left home it was warm and fresh. But now it is dry and moldy.
13. Look at our leather winebags. When we left home they were new and filled with wine. Now they are cracked and old. Look at our clothes and sandals. The long journey has almost destroyed them.”