Joshua 10:13

The context

Joshua 10 narrates the Gibeonite treaty, the attack by a coalition of Amorite kings, and a battle with hail and a long day. Verse 13 describes the sun and moon halting and then cites a source, the book of Jashar, as the place where the event is recorded in poetic form. The verse is aware that it is quoting.

What it establishes

It establishes that the narrative presents the day as extraordinary and that the writer drew on an older poetic collection to describe it. The citation is a signal about the kind of material being used.

What it does not establish

It does not specify what happened astronomically. The language is poetic and the source cited is a poem, so the verse cannot be read as an observation record. Attempts to identify a natural mechanism are reconstructions, not readings of the text.

Short note, first pass, October 2026. Corrections welcome.

Cited in these answers

• Dennis McKinsey single-handedly disproves Biblical inerrancy in his book, "Biblical Errancy" - your team should read it.

Part of Scripture, Opened — the exegetical layer behind every citation on this site. Scripture quotations are from the ESV.