Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis

The Book of Joshua relates the settlement of the people of Israel in the Promised Land after the Exodus. Its position within the Hebrew Bible is unique. On the one hand, it resumes and ends the Exodus account after Moses' death, shortly before entering the land of Canaan. On the other hand, it sets the beginning of a new era in Israel's history: the occupation of the Promised Land until the deportation to Babylon. Joshua is thus at the heart of numerous theological debates on the historical dimension of these conquest accounts, or the redaction of the Hebrew Bible - Pentateuch, Hexateuch, Deuteronomistic History, Former Prophets, etc.Addressing those questions requires a rigorous philological approach based on a detailed study of the biblical text. By comparing various textual witnesses and traditions, by analyzing the vocabulary, syntax and literary structure, by taking into account new epigraphical data and methods, one can reach a better understanding of this major work and confront the results with modern theories. To carry on this ambitious task, the present study focuses on a key element of the Book of Joshua: the southern military campaign (Josh. 10).