1 It came about after Joshua died that the children of Israel asked the LORD, "Which of us is to go up first against the Canaanites to make war on them?"
2 The LORD answered, "Judah is to go up. I have now put the land into his hand."
3 Judah said to his brother Simeon, "Go up with me into my lot, and we will fight the Canaanites; then I in turn will go with you into your lot." And Simeon went with him.
4 So Judah went up, and the LORD handed the Canaanites and the Perizzites over to them, and at Bezek they killed ten thousand of their men.
5 At Bezek they came upon Adoni-bezek, and they fought him and defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites.
6 Adoni-bezek ran away; they chased after him, seized him, and cut off the thumbs of his hands and the big toes of his feet.
7 Adoni-bezek said, "Seventy kings, the thumbs of their hands and of their feet cut off, used to pick up scraps beneath my table. Just as I did, so God has repaid me." They took him to Jerusalem, and there he died.
8 The children of Judah made war on Jerusalem and took it; they put it to the sword and sent the city up in flames.
9 After that the children of Judah went down to fight the Canaanites living in the hill country, the Negev and the lowland.
10 Judah marched against the Canaanites living in Hebron (formerly Hebron was called Kiriath-arba), and they killed Sheshai, Ahiman and Talmai.
11 From there he marched against those who lived in Debir; in earlier times Debir was called Kiriath-sepher.
12 Caleb said, "The man who attacks Kiriath-sepher and takes it, I will give him my daughter Achsah for a wife."
13 Othniel son of Kenaz, the younger brother of Caleb, took it, and Caleb gave him his daughter Achsah for a wife.
14 When she came to him, she prompted him to ask her father for a field. She slipped down from the donkey, and Caleb asked her, "What is it you want?"
15 She answered him, "Give me a blessing. You have given me land in the Negev; give me pools of water too." So Caleb gave her the upper pools and the lower pools.
16 The sons of the Kenite, Moses' father-in-law, went up from the City of Palms with the children of Judah into the wilderness of Judah that is in the Negev of Arad, and they went and settled with the people.
17 Judah went with his brother Simeon, and they defeated the Canaanites who lived in Zephath and devoted the city to destruction; so it was named Hormah.
18 Judah also took Gaza and its territory, Ashkelon and its territory, and Ekron and its territory.
19 The LORD was with Judah, and he took over the hill country; but he was unable to dispossess those living in the valley, since they had iron chariots.
20 Hebron was given to Caleb, as Moses had promised, and he drove out of it the three sons of Anak.
21 The children of Benjamin did not dispossess the Jebusites living in Jerusalem, and to this day the Jebusites have lived in Jerusalem alongside the children of Benjamin.
22 The house of Joseph likewise went up, against Bethel, and the LORD was with them.
23 The house of Joseph had Bethel scouted out; the city's name before that had been Luz.
24 The lookouts saw a man leaving the city and said to him, "Show us, please, how to get into the city, and we will treat you kindly."
25 He showed them how to get into the city, and they put the city to the sword, but the man and his whole clan they let go.
26 The man went off to the land of the Hittites, built a city, and named it Luz; that has been its name to this day.
27 Manasseh did not dispossess Beth-shean and its towns, or Taanach and its towns, or those living in Dor and its towns, or those living in Ibleam and its towns, or those living in Megiddo and its towns; the Canaanites were intent on staying in that land.
28 When Israel became strong, they set the Canaanites to forced labor, but they did not drive them out altogether.
29 Ephraim did not dispossess the Canaanites living in Gezer, and the Canaanites went on living in Gezer in their midst.
30 Zebulun did not dispossess those living in Kitron or those living in Nahalol; the Canaanites lived in their midst and were made to do forced labor.
31 Asher did not dispossess those living in Acco or those living in Sidon, nor Ahlab, Achzib, Helbah, Aphik and Rehob.
32 The Asherites settled in the midst of the Canaanites who lived in the land, because they did not dispossess them.
33 Naphtali did not dispossess those living in Beth-shemesh or those living in Beth-anath, but settled in the midst of the Canaanites who lived in the land; those living in Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath, though, did forced labor for them.
34 The Amorites hemmed the children of Dan into the hill country and would not allow them to come down into the valley.
35 The Amorites were intent on staying at Mount Heres, at Aijalon and at Shaalbim; but when the hand of the house of Joseph weighed heavily on them, they were put to forced labor.
36 The Amorites' border went from the ascent of Akrabbim, from Sela, and on up.