约书亚记 24
1 约书亚将以色列的众支派聚集在示剑，召了以色列的长老、族长、审判官，并官长来，他们就站在 神面前。
[Many years later], Joshua summoned representatives of all the tribes of Israel. He gathered together the elders, the leaders, the judges, and the other officials at Shechem [city]. He told them to listen to what God wanted to tell them.
2 约书亚对众民说：“耶和华—以色列的 神如此说：‘古时你们的列祖，就是亚伯拉罕和拿鹤的父亲他拉，住在大河那边事奉别神，
Joshua said to all of them, “This is what Yahweh, the God we Israeli people worship, is saying: ‘Long ago, your ancestors, including Abraham’s father Terah and Abraham’s younger brother Nahor, lived on the east side of the Euphrates River.
3 我将你们的祖宗亚伯拉罕从大河那边带来，领他走遍迦南全地，又使他的子孙众多，把以撒赐给他；
But I took your ancestor Abraham from that land east of the Euphrates River, and I led him as he lived in various places in this land of Canaan, and I enabled him to have many descendants. First, I enabled him to have a son, Isaac.
4 又把雅各和以扫赐给以撒，将西珥山赐给以扫为业；后来雅各和他的子孙下到埃及去了。
When Isaac grew up, I enabled him to have twin sons, Jacob and Esau. I enabled Esau to live in the hilly area in Seir region, but many years later Jacob and his sons and their families went down to live in Egypt.
5 我差遣摩西、亚伦，并照我在埃及中所行的降灾与埃及，然后把你们领出来。
“[Many years later], I sent Moses and his older brother Aaron to help your people, and I caused [the people of] Egypt to suffer very much because of what I did there. Then I enabled your ancestors to leave Egypt.
6 我领你们列祖出埃及，他们就到了红海；埃及人带领车辆马兵追赶你们列祖到红海。
When I brought your ancestors out of Egypt, they came to the Red Sea. The Egyptian army pursued them, some riding in chariots and others on horses, and they also arrived at the Red Sea.
7 你们列祖哀求耶和华，他就使你们和埃及人中间黑暗了，又使海水淹没埃及人。我在埃及所行的事，你们亲眼见过。你们在旷野也住了许多年日。
Then [your ancestors] pleaded with me to help them. So he caused (darkness/a very dark cloud) to come between your ancestors and the Egyptian army, so that the Egyptian army could not see your ancestors. I separated the water in the Red Sea so that your ancestors could cross it, but when the Egyptian army tried to cross in the same way to pursue them, I caused the water to come back and cover them, and the Egyptian soldiers all drowned, as your ancestors watched and were amazed [IDM]. But after that, you lived in the desert for many years.
8 我领你们到约旦河东亚摩利人所住之地。他们与你们争战，我将他们交在你们手中，你们便得了他们的地为业；我也在你们面前将他们灭绝。
“Then I brought your [ancestors] to the area where the groups who were descendants of Amor lived, east of the Jordan River. They fought against you, but I enabled you to defeat them [IDM]. I [enabled you to] destroy them so that you could live in their land [IDM].
9 那时，摩押王西拨的儿子巴勒起来攻击以色列人，打发人召了比珥的儿子巴兰来咒诅你们。
Then, Zippor’s son Balak, the King of Moab, (decided that his army would fight against/opposed) the Israelis. He summoned Beor’s son Balaam and asked him to curse you.
10 我不肯听巴兰的话，所以他倒为你们连连祝福。这样，我便救你们脱离巴勒的手。
But I would not do what Balaam asked, so he (blessed/said that I would do great things for) you four times, and I did not enable the army of Moab to defeat you [IDM].
11 你们过了约旦河，到了耶利哥；耶利哥人、亚摩利人、比利洗人、迦南人、赫人、革迦撒人、希未人、耶布斯人都与你们争战；我把他们交在你们手里。
“Then you all crossed the Jordan River and came to Jericho. The people of Jericho prepared to fight against you, [and the armies of] the descendants of Amor, Periz, Canaan, Heth, Girgash, Hiv, and Jebus [all prepared to do the same thing] but I enabled you to defeat [IDM] them all.
12 我打发黄蜂飞在你们前面，将亚摩利人的二王从你们面前撵出，并不是用你的刀，也不是用你的弓。
I am the one who caused them to panic as you advanced and enabled you to defeat them, as I had enabled you to do earlier to the two kings of the groups who were descendants of Amor. You did not defeat them by using your own bows and arrows and swords; [it was I who defeated them].
13 我赐给你们地土，非你们所修治的；我赐给你们城邑，非你们所建造的。你们就住在其中，又得吃非你们所栽种的葡萄园、橄榄园的果子。’
So I gave you a land that you had not tilled/planted, and I gave you cities that you did not build. [Now] you live in those [cities] and you eat the grapes from the grapevines that you did not plant, and you eat olives from trees that you did not plant.’”
14 “现在你们要敬畏耶和华，诚心实意地事奉他，将你们列祖在大河那边和在埃及所事奉的神除掉，去事奉耶和华。
[Then Joshua said to the people], “[Because of all that] Yahweh [has done for you], revere him, and serve/worship him very faithfully. Throw away the idols that your ancestors worshiped on the east/other side of the Euphrates River and in Egypt. Serve only Yahweh.
15 若是你们以事奉耶和华为不好，今日就可以选择所要事奉的：是你们列祖在大河那边所事奉的神呢？是你们所住这地的亚摩利人的神呢？至于我和我家，我们必定事奉耶和华。”
But if you do not want to serve/worship Yahweh, you should decide today what [gods] you will serve/worship. You should decide whether you will serve/worship the gods that your ancestors who lived on the other/east side of the Euphrates River served, or whether you will serve/worship the gods that the descendants of Amor, who previously lived in the land where you are now living, [serve/worship]. But as for me and my family [MTY], we will serve/worship Yahweh!”
16 百姓回答说：“我们断不敢离弃耶和华去事奉别神；
The Israeli people answered, “We will never quit [serving/worshiping] Yahweh! We would never [think of] [IDM] serving/worshiping other gods!
17 因耶和华—我们的 神曾将我们和我们列祖从埃及地的为奴之家领出来，在我们眼前行了那些大神迹，在我们所行的道上，所经过的诸国，都保护了我们。
It was our God, Yahweh, who brought our parents and grandparents up out of Egypt. [He rescued them] from that land where they were slaves. As he rescued them, they saw him perform great miracles. He protected them all the time when they were traveling. He protected them from all the people-groups through whose territory they traveled.
18 耶和华又把住此地的亚摩利人都从我们面前赶出去。所以，我们必事奉耶和华，因为他是我们的 神。”
As our forefathers advanced, Yahweh expelled the descendants of Amor and the other people-groups who lived in this land. Yahweh is our God, so [we are saying that] we also will serve/worship him.”
19 约书亚对百姓说：“你们不能事奉耶和华；因为他是圣洁的 神，是忌邪的 神，必不赦免你们的过犯罪恶。
Joshua replied to the people, “[I think that] you are not able to serve/worship Yahweh, because he is a holy God. He will not forgive your sinning and rebelling [against him]. He demands that you serve/worship only him [IDM].
20 你们若离弃耶和华去事奉外邦神，耶和华在降福之后，必转而降祸与你们，把你们灭绝。”
He has been good to you [in the past], but if you turn away from him and serve/worship foreign/other gods, he will turn [against you] and he will cause you to experience disasters. He will punish [IDM] you severely!”
21 百姓回答约书亚说：“不然，我们定要事奉耶和华。”
But the people replied to Joshua, “No, [we will not turn away from worshiping/serving Yahweh] We will serve/worship Yahweh!”
22 约书亚对百姓说：“你们选定耶和华，要事奉他，你们自己作见证吧！”他们说：“我们愿意作见证。”
Then Joshua said, “You yourselves are saying that you have decided to serve/worship Yahweh.” They replied, “Yes, we are saying that.”
23 约书亚说：“你们现在要除掉你们中间的外邦神，专心归向耶和华—以色列的 神。”
Then Joshua said, “Since [you have decided] that, you must throw away all the other gods/idols that you have among you. You must also promise that you will wholeheartedly give yourselves to Yahweh, the God whom we Israelis [serve/worship].”
24 百姓回答约书亚说：“我们必事奉耶和华—我们的 神，听从他的话。”
The people replied, “We will serve/worship Yahweh, our God, and obey him.”
25 当日，约书亚就与百姓立约，在示剑为他们立定律例典章。
That day, Joshua established an agreement between the people and Yahweh. He wrote for them all the laws that they were required to obey.
26 约书亚将这些话都写在 神的律法书上，又将一块大石头立在橡树下耶和华的圣所旁边。
He wrote all those laws on a scroll. He called it ‘The laws of God’. Then he [told some men to] set up a large stone there at Shechem, under the [large] oak tree near the place where [they worshiped] Yahweh.
27 约书亚对百姓说：“看哪，这石头可以向我们作见证；因为是听见了耶和华所吩咐我们的一切话，倘或你们背弃你们的 神，这石头就可以向你们作见证。”
He said to all the people, “Look! [It is as though] this stone has heard everything that Yahweh said to you [and that you promised Yahweh]. It will serve as a witness against you if you rebel against your God!”
28 于是约书亚打发百姓各归自己的地业去了。
Then Joshua sent the people away, and all of them returned to their own areas/homes.
29 这些事以后，耶和华的仆人嫩的儿子约书亚，正一百一十岁，就死了。
Some time after that, Nun’s son Joshua, the faithful servant of Yahweh, died. He was 110 years old when he died.
30 以色列人将他葬在他地业的境内，就是在以法莲山地的亭拿·西拉，在迦实山的北边。
The Israeli people buried his body on his own property in Timnath-Serah [town] town. It is north of Gaash Mountain in the hilly area of the tribe who were descendants of Ephraim.
31 约书亚在世和约书亚死后，那些知道耶和华为以色列人所行诸事的长老还在的时候，以色列人事奉耶和华。
The Israeli people served/worshiped Yahweh as long as Joshua was alive. After Joshua died, they continued serving/worshiping Yahweh while the elders who had experienced everything that Yahweh had done for the Israeli people were still alive.
32 以色列人从埃及所带来约瑟的骸骨，葬埋在示剑，就是在雅各从前用一百块银子向示剑的父亲、哈抹的子孙所买的那块地里；这就作了约瑟子孙的产业。
Joseph’s bones, which the Israeli people had brought with them from Egypt, were also buried at Shechem. The people buried them in the piece of land that Jacob had bought long ago for 100 pieces of silver from Hamor, the father of Shechem. That piece of land was in the area that was given to the people who were descendants of Ephraim and Manasseh, Joseph’s sons.
33 亚伦的儿子以利亚撒也死了，就把他葬在他儿子非尼哈所得以法莲山地的小山上。
Eleazar, the Supreme Priest, the son of Aaron, also died. They buried his body at Gibeah, in the area that had been given to Eleazar’s son Phinehas, in the hilly area that belonged to the people who were descendants of Ephraim.
