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.

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.

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;

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.

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

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.

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,

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.

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;

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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

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!

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.

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

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

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.