Joshua 9:1
And it came to pass, when all the kings which were on this side Jordan, in the hills, and in the valleys, and in all the coasts of the great sea over against Lebanon, the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, heard thereof;
Joshua 9:1 stands in Israel's onward advance, when knowledge of the mighty workings of the God of the Hebrews for them and of the victories He had given them had gone before them and was heard by all the kings west of the Jordan, in the hills and valleys and along the coasts of the great sea toward Lebanon — Hittite, Amorite, Canaanite, Perizzite, Hivite, and Jebusite. Some among the heathen who heard these reports were learning that He alone was the true God. The Gibeonites were a numerous people dwelling in the midst of the land who renounced their heathenism and united with Israel and shared in the blessings of the covenant, proving that such mercy toward idolaters who acknowledged divine authority was not confined to Rahab alone.
To secure a treaty with Israel they falsely claimed to have come from a very distant country. Israel's leaders made peace with them and promised to let them live without asking the Lord for counsel, and that unwise neglect brought punishment. Three days afterward Israel discovered that the Gibeonites lived close by among them, yet the leaders kept the oath rather than break it.