6. the Gibeonites sent a message to the Israelite camp at Gilgal: “Joshua, please come and rescue us! The Amorite kings from the hill country have joined together and are attacking us. We are your servants, so don't let us down. Please hurry!”
7. Joshua and his army, including his best warriors, left Gilgal.
8. “Joshua,” the Lord said, “don't be afraid of the Amorites. They will run away when you attack, and I will help you defeat them.”
9. Joshua marched all night from Gilgal to Gibeon and made a surprise attack on the Amorite camp.
10. The Lord made the enemy panic, and the Israelites started killing them right and left. They chased the Amorite troops up the road to Beth-Horon and kept on killing them, until they reached the towns of Azekah and Makkedah.
11. And while these troops were going down through Beth-Horon Pass, the Lord made huge hailstones fall on them all the way to Azekah. More of the enemy soldiers died from the hail than from the Israelite weapons.
14. Never before and never since has the Lord done anything like that for someone who prayed. The Lord was really fighting for Israel.
15. After the battle, Joshua and the Israelites went back to their camp at Gilgal.
16. While the enemy soldiers were running from the Israelites, the five enemy kings ran away and hid in a cave near Makkedah.
17. Joshua's soldiers told him, “The five kings have been found in a cave near Makkedah.”
18. Joshua answered, “Roll some big stones over the mouth of the cave and leave a few soldiers to guard it.
19. But you and everyone else must keep following the enemy troops, because they will be safe if they reach their walled towns. Don't let them get away! The Lord our God is helping us get rid of them.”
20. So Joshua and the Israelites almost wiped out the enemy soldiers. Only a few safely reached their walled towns.
21. The Israelite army returned to their camp at Makkedah, where Joshua was waiting for them. No one around there dared say anything bad about the Israelites.
22. Joshua told his soldiers, “Now, move the rocks from the entrance to the cave and bring those five kings to me.”
23. The soldiers opened the entrance to the cave and brought out the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon.
24. After Joshua had called the army together, he forced the five kings to lie down on the ground. Then he called his officers forward and told them, “You fought these kings along with me, so put your feet on their necks.” The officers did,
25. and Joshua continued, “Don't ever be afraid or discouraged. Be brave and strong. This is what the Lord will do to all your enemies.”