Joshua 22

1 Then Joshua calls for the Reubenite, and for the Gadite, and for the half-tribe of Manasseh,

At the same time Josue called the Rubenites, and the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasses,

2 and says to them, “You have kept the whole of that which Moses, servant of YHWH, commanded you, and you listen to my voice, to all that I have commanded you;

And said to them: You have done all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you: you have also obeyed me in all things,

3 you have not left your brothers these many days to this day, and have kept the charge—the command of your God YHWH.

Neither have you left your brethren this long time, until this present day, keeping the commandment of the Lord your God.

4 And now, your God YHWH has given rest to your brothers, as He spoke to them; and now, turn, and go for yourselves to your tents, to the land of your possession, which Moses, servant of YHWH, has given to you beyond the Jordan.

Therefore as the Lord your God hath given your brethren rest and peace, as he promised: return, and go to your dwellings, and to the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of the Lord gave you beyond the Jordan:

5 Only, be very watchful to do the command and the Law which Moses, servant of YHWH, commanded you, to love your God YHWH, and to walk in all His ways, and to keep His commands, and to cleave to Him, and to serve Him, with all your heart, and with all your soul.”

Yet so that you observe attentively, and in work fulfill the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you: that you love the Lord your God, and walk in all his ways, and keep all his commandments, and cleave to him, and serve him with all your heart, and with all your soul.

6 And Joshua blesses them, and sends them away, and they go to their tents.

And Josue blessed them, and sent them away, and they returned to their dwellings.

7 And to the half-tribe of Manasseh Moses has given, in Bashan, and to its [other] half Joshua has given with their brothers beyond the Jordan westward; and also when Joshua has sent them away to their tents, then he blesses them,

Now to half the tribe of Manasses, Moses had given a possession in Basan: and therefore to the half that remained, Josue gave a lot among the rest of their brethren beyond the Jordan to the west. And when he sent them away to their dwellings and had blessed them,

8 and speaks to them, saying, “Turn back to your tents with great riches, and with very much livestock, with silver, and with gold, and with bronze, and with iron, and with very much raiment; divide the spoil of your enemies with your brothers.”

He said to them: With much substance and riches, you return to your settlements, with silver and gold, brass and iron, and variety of raiment: divide the prey of your enemies with your brethren.

9 And the sons of Reuben, and the sons of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, turn back and go from the sons of Israel out of Shiloh, which [is] in the land of Canaan, to go to the land of Gilead, to the land of their possession, in which they have possession, according to the command of YHWH, by the hand of Moses;

So the children of Ruben, and the children of Gad, and the half tribe of Manasses returned, and parted from the children of Israel in Silo, which is in Chanaan, to go into Galaad the land of their possession, which they had obtained according to the commandment of the Lord by the hand of Moses.

10 and they come to the districts of the Jordan, which [are] in the land of Canaan, and the sons of Reuben, and the sons of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, build an altar there by the Jordan—a great altar in appearance.

And when they were come to the banks of the Jordan, in the land of Chanaan, they built an altar immensely great near the Jordan.

11 And the sons of Israel hear, saying, “Behold, the sons of Reuben, and the sons of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, have built the altar at the frontier of the land of Canaan, in the districts of the Jordan, at the passage of the sons of Israel.”

And when the children of Israel had heard of it, and certain messengers had brought them an account that the children of Ruben, and of Cad, and the half tribe of Manasses had built an altar in the land of Chanaan, upon the banks of the Jordan, over against the children of Israel:

12 And the sons of Israel hear, and all the congregation of the sons of Israel is assembled at Shiloh, to go up against them to war;

They all assembled in Silo, to go up and fight against them.

13 and the sons of Israel send to the sons of Reuben, and to the sons of Gad, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh—to the land of Gilead—Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest,

And in the mean time they sent to them into the land of Galaad, Phinees the son of Eleazar the priest,

14 and ten princes with him, one prince—one prince for a house of a father, for all the tribes of Israel, and each of them a head of a house of their fathers, for the thousands of Israel.

And ten princes with him, one of every tribe.

15 And they come to the sons of Reuben, and to the sons of Gad, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh, to the land of Gilead, and speak with them, saying,

Who came to the children of Ruben, and of Gad, and the half tribe of Manasses, into the land of Galaad, and said to them:

16 “Thus said all the congregation of YHWH: What [is] this trespass which you have trespassed against the God of Israel, to turn back today from after YHWH, by your building an altar for yourselves, for your rebelling today against YHWH?

Thus saith all the people of the Lord: What meaneth this transgression? Why have you forsaken the Lord the God of Israel, building a sacrilegious altar, and revolting from the worship of him?

17 Is the iniquity of Peor little to us, from which we have not been cleansed until this day—and the plague is in the congregation of YHWH,

Is it a small thing to you that you sinned with Beelphegor, and the stain of that crime remaineth in us to this day? and many of the people perished.

18 that you turn back today from after YHWH? And it has been [that] you rebel against YHWH today, and tomorrow He is angry against all the congregation of Israel.

And you have forsaken the Lord today, and tomorrow his wrath will rage against all Israel.

19 And surely, if the land of your possession is unclean, pass over for yourselves to the land of the possession of YHWH, where the Dwelling Place of YHWH has dwelt, and have possession in our midst; and do not rebel against YHWH, and do not rebel against us, by your building an altar for yourselves, besides the altar of our God YHWH.

But if you think the land of your possession to be unclean, pass over to the land wherein is the tabernacle of the Lord, and dwell among us: only depart not from the Lord, and from our society, by building an altar beside the altar of the Lord our God.

20 Did Achan son of Zerah not commit a trespass in the devoted thing, and there was wrath on all the congregation of Israel? And he alone did not expire in his iniquity.”

Did not Achan the son of Zare transgress the commandment of the Lord, and his wrath lay upon all the people of Israel? And he was but one man, and would to God he alone had perished in his wickedness.

21 And the sons of Reuben, and the sons of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, answer and speak with the heads of the thousands of Israel:

And the children of Ruben, and of Gad, and of the half tribe of Manasses answered the princes of the embassage of Israel:

22 “The God of gods—YHWH, the God of gods—YHWH, He is knowing, and Israel—he knows, if [we are] in rebellion, and if in trespass against YHWH, do not save us this day!

The Lord the most mighty God, the Lord the most mighty God, he knoweth, and Israel also shall understand: If with the design of transgression we have set up this altar, let him not save us, but punish us immediately:

23 [If we] are building an altar for ourselves to turn back from after YHWH, and if to cause burnt-offering and present to go up on it, and if to make peace-offerings on it—YHWH Himself requires [it].

And if we did it with that mind, that we might lay upon it holocausts, and sacrifice, and victims of peace offerings, let him require and judge:

24 And nevertheless, we have done it from fear of [this] thing, saying, Hereafter your sons speak to our sons, saying, And what have you to [do with] YHWH God of Israel?

And not rather with this thought and design, that we should say: Tomorrow your children will say to our children: What have you to do with the Lord the God of Israel?

25 For YHWH has put a border between us and you, O sons of Reuben, and sons of Gad—Jordan; you have no portion in YHWH—and your sons have caused our sons to cease, not to fear YHWH.

The Lord hath put the river Jordan for a border between us and you, O ye children of Ruben, and ye children of Gad: and therefore you have no part in the Lord. And by this occasion you children shall turn away our children from the fear of the Lord. We therefore thought, it best,

26 And we say, Now let us prepare to build the altar for ourselves—not for burnt-offering, nor for sacrifice—

And said: Let us build us an altar, not for holocausts, nor to offer victims,

27 but it [is] a witness between us and you, and between our generations after us, to do the service of YHWH before Him with our burnt-offerings, and with our sacrifices, and with our peace-offerings, and your sons do not say hereafter to our sons, You have no portion in YHWH.

But for a testimony between us and you, and our posterity and yours, that we may serve the Lord, and that we may have a right to offer both holocausts, and victims and sacrifices of peace offerings: and that your children tomorrow may not say to our children: You have no part in the Lord.

28 And we say, And it has been, when they say [so] to us, and to our generations hereafter, that we have said, See the pattern of the altar of YHWH, which our fathers made—not for burnt-offering nor for sacrifice—but it [is] a witness between us and you.

And if they will say so, they shall answer them: Behold the altar of the Lord, which our fathers made, not for holocausts, nor for sacrifice, but for a testimony between us and you.

29 Far be it from us to rebel against YHWH, and to turn back from after YHWH today, to build an altar for burnt-offering, for present, and for sacrifice, apart from the altar of our God YHWH, which [is] before His Dwelling Place.”

God keep us from any such wickedness that we should revolt from the Lord, and leave off following his steps, by building an altar to offer holocausts, and sacrifices, and victims, beside the altar of the Lord our God, which is erected before his tabernacle.

30 And Phinehas the priest, and the princes of the congregation, and the heads of the thousands of Israel, who [are] with him, hear the words which the sons of Reuben, and the sons of Gad, and the sons of Manasseh have spoken, and it is good in their eyes.

And when Phinees the priest, and the princes of the embassage, who were with him, had heard this, they were satisfied: and they admitted most willingly the words of the children of Ruben, and Gad, and of the half tribe of Manasses.

31 And Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest says to the sons of Reuben, and to the sons of Gad, and to the sons of Manasseh, “Today we have known that YHWH [is] in our midst, because you have not committed this trespass against YHWH—then you have delivered the sons of Israel out of the hand of YHWH.”

And Phinees the priest the son of Eleazar said to them: Now we know that the Lord is with us, because you are not guilty of this revolt, and you have delivered the children of Israel from the hand of the Lord.

32 And Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest, and the princes, turn back from the sons of Reuben, and from the sons of Gad, out of the land of Gilead, to the land of Canaan, to the sons of Israel, and bring them back word;

And he returned with the princes from the children of Ruben and Gad, out of the land of Galaad, into the land of Chanaan, to the children of Israel, and brought them word again.

33 and the thing is good in the eyes of the sons of Israel, and the sons of Israel bless God, and have not spoken to go up against them to war, to destroy the land which the sons of Reuben, and the sons of Gad, are dwelling in.

And the saying pleased all that heard it. And the children of Israel praised God, and they no longer said that they would go up against them, and fight, and destroy the land of their possession.

34 And the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad proclaim concerning the altar, that, “[It is] a witness between us that YHWH [is] God.”

And the children of Ruben, and the children of Cad called the altar which they had built, Our testimony, that the Lord is God.