Joshua 1

1 And it came to pass after the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord, that the Lord spoke unto Joshua the son of Nun, the minister of Moses, saying,

After Moses, who served Yahweh [well], died, Yahweh said to Nun’s son Joshua, who had been Moses’ assistant,

2 Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, pass over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, to the children of Israel.

“[You know that] my servant Moses is [now] dead. So now get ready to lead all these [Israeli] people across the Jordan [River]. Enter the land that I will soon give to you.

3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.

I will give to you all the land that you walk on, as I promised Moses.

4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your boundary.

That land will extend from the desert [in the south], to the Lebanon [Mountains in the northwest], and to the big Euphrates River [in the northeast], and to the Mediterranean Sea on the west. [It will include] all the land where the descendants of Heth [live].

5 No man shall be able to stand up before thee all the days of thy life; as I was with Moses, so will I be with thee: I will not let thee fail, nor forsake thee.

No group will be able to oppose [and defeat] you during your life. I will help you as I helped Moses. I will always be with [LIT] you; I will never forsake you.

6 Be strong and of a good courage; for thou shalt divide for an inheritance unto this people the land, which I swore unto their fathers to give to them.

“Be strong and courageous, because you are the one who will lead these Israeli people [and enable them] to possess the land that I solemnly promised to their ancestors that I would give them.

7 Only be thou strong and very courageous, to observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant hath commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left; in order that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest.

Just be strong and very courageous. Be sure to obey all the laws that my servant Moses gave to you. In order that you may be successful wherever you go, do not stop obeying any of them [IDM].

8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, in order that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein; for then shalt thou make thy way prosperous, and then shalt thou have good success.

Make sure to habitually read [to the people some of] the laws [that God gave Moses]. Meditate on those laws [every] day and [every] night. And be sure to obey all those laws. If you do that, you will be successful in everything that you do [DOU].

9 Behold, I have commanded thee, Be strong and of good courage; be not dismayed, neither be thou discouraged; for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.

Do not forget [RHQ] that I have commanded you to be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid, and do not be discouraged, because I, Yahweh, your God, will (be with/help) you wherever you go.”

10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying,

Then Joshua commanded the leaders of the people of Israel,

11 Pass through the midst of the camp, and command the people, saying, Prepare yourselves provisions; for after only three days more ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the Lord your God giveth you, to possess it.

“Go throughout the camp and tell the people this: ‘Prepare all the food that you will take with you, because the day after tomorrow you will cross this Jordan [River], in order to possess the land that Yahweh, our God, is about to give you.’”

12 And to the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to half the tribe of Menasseh, spoke Joshua, saying,

But to the [clans that were] descendants of Reuben and Gad, and to the half clan [that were descendants] of Manasseh, Joshua said,

13 Remember the word which Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, saying, The Lord your God hath granted you rest, and hath given you this land;

“Do not forget what Moses, the servant of Yahweh, commanded you: ‘Yahweh, your God, has given you this land in order that you can [live here] safely/peacefully.’

14 Your wives, your little ones, and your cattle, shall remain in the land which Moses gave you on this side of the Jordan; but ye shall pass over armed before your brethren, all the mighty men of valor, and help them;

Your wives and your children and your livestock may stay [here] in this land on the east side of the Jordan [River], but all your soldiers must cross [the river], ahead of the people of the other tribes. They must take all their weapons with them. You must continue to help your fellow Israelis

15 Until the Lord shall have granted your brethren rest, as he hath done to you, and they also have taken possession of the land which the Lord your God giveth them: then shall ye return unto the land of your possession, and possess it, which Moses the servant of the Lord gave you on this side of the Jordan, toward the rising of the sun.

until they are able to live there safely/peacefully, as Yahweh has enabled you to do. You must help them until after they have conquered all the people in the land that Yahweh, your God, is giving them. After that, your soldiers may return to live in this land that Moses gave to you here on the east side of the Jordan [River].”

16 And they answered Joshua, saying, All that thou hast commanded us will we do, and whithersoever thou wilt send us will we go.

The people answered Joshua, “We will do everything that you have commanded us to do, and we will go wherever you tell us to go.

17 Entirely so as we have hearkened unto Moses, thus will we hearken unto thee: only the Lord thy God be with thee, as he was with Moses.

As we obeyed all that Moses told us to do, we will obey all that you tell us to do. We pray that Yahweh will (be with/help) you as he (was with/helped) Moses.

18 Every man that doth rebel against thy order, and will not hearken unto thy words in all that thou mayest command him, shall be put to death: only be strong and of a good courage.

Anyone who (rejects what you say/opposes you) and does not obey what you command [DOU], we will execute. But we want you to be strong and courageous!”