Joshua 24

1 And Joshua gathered together all the tribes of Israel, unto Shechem, —and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers, and they presented themselves before God.

And Joshua gathered all the tribe of Israel to Selo, and convoked their elders, and their officers, and their judges, and set them before God.

2 Then said Joshua unto all the people—Thus, saith Yahweh, God of Israel, Beyond the River, dwelt your fathers from age-past times, [unto] Terah, father of Abraham, and father of Nahor, —and they served other gods.

And Joshua said to all the people, Thus says the Lord God of Israel, Your fathers at first sojourned beyond the river, [even] Thara, the father of Abraam and the father of Nachor; and they served other gods.

3 So I took your father, Abraham, from beyond the River, and led him through all the land of Canaan, —and multiplied his seed, and gave unto him, Isaac;

And I took your father Abraam from the other side of the river, and I guided him through all the land, and I multiplied his seed;

4 and gave unto Isaac Jacob and Esau, —and gave unto Esau, Mount Seir, to possess it, but, Jacob and his sons, went down into Egypt.

and I gave to him Isaac, and to Isaac Jacob and Esau: and I gave to Esau mount Seir for him to inherit: and Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt, and became there a great and populous and mighty nation: and the Egyptians afflicted them.

5 Then sent I Moses and Aaron, and plagued Egypt, according to that which I did in their midst, and, afterwards, brought you forth.

And I struck Egypt with the wonders that I wrought among them.

6 Yea I brought forth your fathers, out of Egypt, and ye came unto the sea, and the Egyptians pursued after your fathers, with chariots and with horsemen, unto the Red Sea.

And afterwards [God] brought out our fathers from Egypt, and you entered into the Red Sea; and the Egyptians pursued after our fathers with chariots and horses into the Red Sea.

7 So they made outcry unto Yahweh, and he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought in upon them the sea, and covered them, —and your eyes beheld what I did with the Egyptians. And, when ye had remained in the desert many days,

And we cried aloud to the Lord; and he put a cloud and darkness between us and the Egyptians, and he brought the sea upon them, and covered them; and your eyes have seen all that the Lord did in the land of Egypt; and you were in the wilderness many days.

8 then I brought you into the land of the Amorites, who were dwelling over the Jordan, and they fought with you, —then delivered I them into your hand, and ye took possession of their land, so I destroyed them from before you.

And he brought us into the land of the Amorites that lived beyond Jordan, and the Lord delivered them into our hands; and you inherited their land, and utterly destroyed them from before you.

9 Then rose up Balak, son of Zippor, king of Moab, and made war with Israel, —and sent and called for Balaam son of Beor, to curse you;

And Balac, king of Moab, son of Sepphor, rose up, and made war against Israel, and sent and called Balaam to curse us.

10 but I was not willing to hearken unto Balaam, —so, he kept on blessing, you, and I rescued you out of his hand.

But the Lord your God would not destroy you; and he greatly blessed us, and rescued us out of their hands, and delivered them [to us].

11 Then passed ye over the Jordan, and came in unto Jericho, and, when they would have made war with you—even the lords of Jericho—the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Girgashite, the Hivite and the Jebusite, then delivered I them into your hand.

And you crossed over Jordan, and came to Jericho; and the inhabitants of Jericho fought against us, the Amorite, and the Chananite, and the Pherezite, and the Evite, and the Jebusite, and the Chettite, and the Gergesite, and the Lord delivered them into our hands.

12 And I sent before you the hornet, which drave them out from before you, the two kings of the Amorites, —not with thy sword, nor with thy bow.

And he sent forth the hornet before you; and he drove them out from before you, [even] twelve kings of the Amorites, not with your sword, nor with your bow.

13 Thus I gave unto you a land on which thou hadst not laboured, and cities which ye had not built, and ye proceeded to dwell therein, —of vineyards and oliveyards, which ye planted not, ye are eating.

And he gave you a land on which you did not labor, and cities which you did not build, and you were settled in them; and you eat [of] vineyards and olive yards which you did not plant.

14 Now, therefore, revere ye Yahweh, and serve him, in sincerity and in truth, —and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River, and in Egypt, and serve ye Yahweh.

And now fear the Lord, and serve him in righteousness and justice; and remove the strange gods, which our fathers served beyond the river, and in Egypt; and serve the Lord.

15 But, if it be, a vexation, in your eyes, to serve Yahweh, choose ye for yourselves, to-day, whom ye will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served, that were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye are dwelling, —but, I and my house, will serve Yahweh.

But if it seem not good to you to serve the Lord, choose to yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods of your fathers that were on the other side of the river, or the gods of the Amorites, among whom you dwell upon their land: but I and my house will serve the Lord, for he is holy.

16 Then responded the people, and said, Far be it from us, that we should forsake Yahweh, —to serve other gods;

And the people answered and said, Far be it from us to forsake the Lord, so as to serve other gods.

17 for, as for Yahweh our God, he, brought up both us and our fathers, out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of servants, —and who did before our eyes, these great signs, and preserved us throughout all the way wherein we journeyed, and among all the peoples through the midst of whom we passed;

The Lord our God, he is God; he brought up us and our fathers from Egypt, and kept us in all the way wherein we walked, and among all the nations through whom we passed.

18 then did Yahweh drive out all the peoples, even the Amorites were dwelling in the land, from before us, —we too, will serve Yahweh, for, he, is our God.

And the Lord cast out the Amorite, and all the nations that inhabited the land from before us: yes, we will serve the Lord, for he is our God.

19 Then said Joshua unto the people—Ye cannot serve Yahweh, for, a holy God, he is, a jealous GOD, he is, he will not forgive your transgression, nor your sins.

And Joshua said to the people, Indeed you will not be able to serve the Lord, for God is holy; and he being jealous will not forgive your sins and your transgressions.

20 When ye forsake Yahweh, and serve the gods of a stranger, then will he turn, and inflict on you calamity, and consume you, after that he hath dealt well with you.

Whenever you shall forsake the Lord and serve other gods, then he shall come upon you and afflict you, and consume you, because he has done you good.

21 But the people said unto Joshua, —Nay! but, Yahweh, will we serve.

And the people said to Joshua, Nay, but we will serve the Lord.

22 Then said Joshua unto the people—Witnesses, are ye, against yourselves, that, ye yourselves, have chosen you Yahweh, to serve him. And they said: Witnesses!

And Joshua said to the people, You [are] witnesses against yourselves, that you have chosen the Lord to serve him.

23 Now, therefore, put ye away the gods of the stranger, that are in your midst, —and incline your heart unto Yahweh, God of Israel.

And now take away the strange gods that are among you, and set your heart right toward the Lord God of Israel.

24 And the people said unto Joshua, —Yahweh our God, will we serve, and, unto his voice, will we hearken.

And the people said to Joshua, We will serve the Lord, and we will listen to his voice.

25 So then Joshua solemnised a covenant for the people, on that day, —and set for them a statute and a regulation, in Shechem.

So Joshua made a covenant with the people on that day, and gave them a law and an ordinance in Selo before the tabernacle of the God of Israel.

26 And Joshua wrote these words in the scroll of the law of God, —and took a great stone, and set it up there, under the oak that was by the sanctuary of Yahweh.

And he wrote these words in the book of the laws of God: and Joshua took a great stone, and set it up under the oak before the Lord.

27 And Joshua said unto all the people—Lo! this stone, shall serve against us as a witness, for, it, hath heard all the sayings of Yahweh, which he hath spoken with us, —so shall it serve against you as a witness, lest ye should act deceptively against your God.

And Joshua said to the people, Behold, this stone shall be among you for a witness, for it has heard all the words that have been spoken to it by the Lord; for he has spoken to you this day; and this [stone] shall be among you for a witness in the last days, whenever you shall deal falsely with the Lord my God.

28 And Joshua sent the people away, every man unto his inheritance.

And Joshua dismissed the people, and they went every man to his place.

29 And it came to pass, after these things, that Joshua son of Nun, servant of Yahweh, died, being a hundred and ten years old.

And it came to pass after these things that Joshua the son of Naue the servant of the Lord died, [at the age] of a hundred and ten years.

30 And they buried him within the bounds of his own inheritance, in Timnath-serah, which is in the hill country of Ephraim, on the north of Mount Gaash.

And they buried him by the borders of his inheritance in Thamnasarach in the mount of Ephraim, northward of the mount of Galaad.

31 So then Israel served Yahweh all the days of Joshua, —and all the days of the elders who prolonged their days after Joshua, and who had known all the work of Yahweh, which he had wrought for Israel.

And Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that lived as long as Joshua, and all that knew all the works of the Lord which he wrought for Israel.

32 And, the bones of Joseph—which the sons of Israel had brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in the portion of field, which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor, father of Shechem, for a hundred pieces of money, —and they belonged unto the sons of Joseph, as an inheritance.

And the children of Israel brought up the bones of Joseph out of Egypt, and buried [them] in Sicima, in the portion of the land which Jacob bought of the Amorites who lived in Sicima for a hundred ewe-lambs; and he gave it to Joseph for a portion.

33 And, Eleazar son of Aaron, died, —and they buried him in the hill of Phinehas his son, which was given to him, in the hill country of Ephraim.

And it came to pass afterwards that Eleazar the high-priest the son of Aaron died, and was buried in Gabaar of Phinees his son, which he gave him in mount Ephraim.