Whereas Joshua 9:1–27 recounts the Gibeonites' attempt to escape destruction by means of trickery, Joshua 10:1–43 recounts the attempt of the Amorite kings. They join forces, uniting together as one in order to make the most of their numerical advantage against Israel. Though it initially seems as if they will have success (Joshua 10:1–5) they did not realize that the Lord was fighting on behalf of Israel (Joshua 10:6–15) and as a result they are routed. The rest of the chapter then recounts Israel’s capture of the five Amorite kings (Joshua 10:16–27) and the destruction of their cities (Joshua 10:28–43). As with previous chapters, Joshua 10:1–43 also contains dialogue (speeches), poetry and historical narrative (written accounts of what the people did).
1 As soon as Adoni-zedek, king of Jerusalem, heard how Joshua had captured Ai and had devoted it to destruction, doing to Ai and its king as he had done to Jericho and its king, and how the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were among them,