Joshua 24

1 Then Joshua assembled all the tribes of Israel at Shechem. He summoned the elders, leaders, judges, and officers of Israel, and they presented themselves before God.

And Josue gaderide alle the lynagis of Israel in to Sechem; and he clepide the grettere men in birthe, and the princes, and iugis, and maistris; and thei stoden in the siyt of the Lord.

2 And Joshua said to all the people, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Long ago your fathers, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the Euphrates and worshiped other gods.

And he spak thus to the puple, The Lord God of Israel seith these thingis, Youre fadris dwelliden at the bigynnyng biyende the flood Eufrates, Thare, the fadir of Abraham, and Nachor, and thei serueden alien goddis.

3 But I took your father Abraham from beyond the Euphrates and led him through all the land of Canaan, and I multiplied his descendants. I gave him Isaac,

Therfor Y took youre fadir Abraham fro the coostis of Mesopotanye, and Y brouyte hym in to the lond of Canaan; and Y multipliede `the seed of hym,

4 and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. I gave Esau Mount Seir to possess, but Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt.

and Y yaf Isaac to hym; and eft Y yaf to Isaac, Jacob, and Esau, of whiche Y yaf to Esau the hil of Seir, to `haue in possessioun; forsothe Jacob and hise sones yeden doun in to Egipt.

5 Then I sent Moses and Aaron, and I afflicted the Egyptians by what I did there, and afterward I brought you out.

And Y sente Moises and Aaron, and Y smoot Egipt with many signes and wondris,

6 When I brought your fathers out of Egypt and you reached the Red Sea, the Egyptians pursued them with chariots and horsemen as far as the Red Sea.

and Y ledde you and youre fadris out of Egipt. And ye camen to the see, and Egipcians pursueden youre fadris with charis, and multitude of knyytis, `til to the Reed See.

7 So your fathers cried out to the LORD, and He put darkness between you and the Egyptians, over whom He brought the sea and engulfed them. Your very eyes saw what I did to the Egyptians. Then you lived in the wilderness for a long time.

Forsothe the sones of Israel crieden to the Lord, and he settide derknessis bitwixe you and Egipcians; and he brouyte the see on hem, and hilide hem. Youre iyen sien alle thingis, whiche Y dide in Egipt. And ye dwelliden in wildirnesse in myche tyme.

8 Later, I brought you to the land of the Amorites who lived beyond the Jordan. They fought against you, but I delivered them into your hand, that you should possess their land when I destroyed them before you.

And Y brouyte you in to the lond of Ammorrei, that dwellide biyende Jordan; and whanne thei fouyten ayens you, Y bitook hem in to youre hondis, and ye hadden in possessioun `the lond of hem, and ye killiden hem.

9 Then Balak son of Zippor, the king of Moab, set out to fight against Israel. He sent for Balaam son of Beor to curse you,

Sotheli Balach, the sone of Sephor, the king of Moab, roos, and fauyt ayens Israel; and he sente, and clepide Balaam, the sone of Beor, that he schulde curse you.

10 but I would not listen to Balaam. So he blessed you again and again, and I delivered you from his hand.

And Y nolde here hym, but ayenward bi hym Y blesside you, and delyuerede you fro hise hondis.

11 After this, you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The people of Jericho fought against you, as did the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and Jebusites, and I delivered them into your hand.

And ye passiden Jordan, and camen to Jerico; and men of that citee fouyten ayens you, Ammorrei, and Feresei, and Cananei, Ethei, and Gergesei, and Euei, and Jebusei; and Y bitook hem in to youre hondis.

12 I sent the hornet ahead of you, and it drove out the two Amorite kings before you, but not by your own sword or bow.

And Y sente flies with venemouse tongis bifor you, and Y castide hem out of her places; Y kyllide twei kyngis of Ammorreis, not in thi swerd and bowe.

13 So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities that you did not build, and now you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.’

And Y yaf to you the lond in which ye traueiliden not, and citees whiche ye bildiden not, that ye schulden dwelle in tho, and vyneris, and places of olyue trees, whiche ye plauntiden not.

14 Now, therefore, fear the LORD and serve Him in sincerity and truth; cast aside the gods your fathers served beyond the Euphrates and in Egypt, and serve the LORD.

Now therfor drede ye the Lord, and serue ye hym with perfite herte and moost trewe; and do ye awei the goddis, to whiche youre fadris seruyden in Mesopotanye, and in Egipt; and serue ye the Lord.

15 But if it is unpleasing in your sight to serve the LORD, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD!”

But if it semeth yuel to you, `that ye serue the Lord, chesyng is youun to you; chese ye to you to dai that, that plesith, whom ye owen most to serue; whether to goddis, whiche youre fadris serueden in Mesopotanye, whether to the goddis of Ammorreis, in whose lond ye dwellen; forsothe Y, and myn hows schulen serue the Lord.

16 The people replied, “Far be it from us to forsake the LORD to serve other gods!

And al the puple answeride and seide, Fer be it fro vs that we forsake the Lord, and serue alien goddis.

17 For the LORD our God brought us and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and performed these great signs before our eyes. He also protected us throughout our journey and among all the nations through which we traveled.

`Oure Lord God hym silf ledde vs and oure fadris out of the lond of Egipt, fro the hows of seruage, and dide grete signes in oure siyt; and he kepte vs in al the weie, bi which we yeden, and in alle puplis, bi whiche we passiden; and he castide out alle folkis,

18 And the LORD drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites who lived in the land. We too will serve the LORD, because He is our God!”

Ammorrei, the dwellere of the lond, in to which we entriden. Therfor we schulen serue the Lord, for he is `oure Lord God.

19 But Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the LORD, for He is a holy God; He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your rebellion or your sins.

And Josue seide to the puple, Ye moun not serue the Lord; for God is hooli, and a strong feruent louyere, and he foryyueth not youre trespassis and synnes.

20 If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, He will turn and bring disaster on you and consume you, even after He has been good to you.”

If ye forsaken the Lord, and seruen alien goddis, the Lord schal turne `hym silf, and schal turment you, and schal distrie, after that he hath youe goodis to you.

21 “No!” replied the people. “We will serve the LORD!”

And the puple seide to Josue, It schal not be so, as thou spekist, but we schulen serue the Lord.

22 Then Joshua told them, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to serve the LORD.” “We are witnesses!” they said.

And Josue seide to the puple, Ye ben witnessis, that ye han chose the Lord to you, that ye serue him. And thei answeriden, We ben witnessis.

23 “Now, therefore,” he said, “get rid of the foreign gods among you and incline your hearts to the LORD, the God of Israel.”

Therfor, he seide, Now do ye awei alien goddis fro the myddis of you, and bowe ye youre hertis to the Lord God of Israel.

24 So the people said to Joshua, “We will serve the LORD our God and obey His voice.”

And the puple seide to Josue, We schulen serue `oure Lord God, and we schulen be obedient to hise heestis.

25 On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people, and there at Shechem he established for them a statute and ordinance.

Therfor Josue smoot a boond of pees in that dai, and settide forth to the puple comaundementis and domes in Sichen.

26 Joshua recorded these things in the Book of the Law of God. Then he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak that was near the sanctuary of the LORD.

And he wroot alle these wordis in the book of Goddis lawe. And he took a greet stoon, and puttide it vndur an ook, that was in the seyntuarie of the Lord.

27 And Joshua said to all the people, “You see this stone. It will be a witness against us, for it has heard all the words the LORD has spoken to us, and it will be a witness against you if you ever deny your God.”

And he seide to al the puple, Lo! this stoon schal be to you in to witnessing, that ye herden alle the wordis of the Lord, whiche he spak to you, lest perauenture ye wolden denye aftirward, and lye to youre Lord God.

28 Then Joshua sent the people away, each to his own inheritance.

And he lefte the puple, ech man in to his possessioun.

29 Some time later, Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died at the age of 110.

And after these thingis Josue, the sone of Nun, the `seruaunt of the Lord, diede, an hundride yeer eld and ten.

30 And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.

And thei birieden hym in the costis of his possessioun, in Thannath of Sare, which is set in the hil of Effraym, fro the north part of the hil Gaas.

31 Israel had served the LORD throughout the days of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had experienced all the works that the LORD had done for Israel.

And Israel seruede the Lord in alle the daies of Josue, and of the eldre men, that lyueden in long tyme aftir Josue, and whiche eldre men knewen alle the werkis of the Lord, whiche he hadde do in Israel.

32 And the bones of Joseph, which the Israelites had brought up out of Egypt, were buried at Shechem in the plot of land that Jacob had purchased from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred pieces of silver. So it became an inheritance for Joseph’s descendants.

Also `the sones of Israel birieden the boonys of Joseph, whiche thei baren fro Egipt in Sichen, in the part of the feeld, which feeld Jacob bouyte of the sones of Emor, fadir of Sichen, for an hundrid yonge scheep; and it was in to possessioun of the sones of Joseph.

33 Eleazar son of Aaron also died, and they buried him at Gibeah, which had been given to his son Phinehas in the hill country of Ephraim.

Also Eliazar, sone of Aaron, preest, diede; and Fynees and hise sones biryden hym in Gabaa, which was youun to hym in the hil of Efraym.