Joshua 24
1 Na Joshua el sapkin sruf nukewa lun Israel in tukeni nu Shechem. El pangoneni mwet matu, mwet kol, mwet nununku, ac mwet leum lun Israel, ac elos tukeni ye mutun God.
[Many years later], Joshua summoned representatives of all the tribes of Israel. He gathered together the elders, the leaders, the judges, and the other officials at Shechem [city]. He told them to listen to what God wanted to tell them.
2 Joshua el fahk nu sin mwet uh, “Pa inge kas ma LEUM GOD lun Israel El fahk, ‘In pacl meet ah, papa matu tomowos muta kutulap in Infacl Euphrates ac alu nu sin god saya. Sie selos pa Terah, papa tumal Abraham ac Nahor.
Joshua said to all of them, “This is what Yahweh, the God we Israeli people worship, is saying: ‘Long ago, your ancestors, including Abraham’s father Terah and Abraham’s younger brother Nahor, lived on the east side of the Euphrates River.
3 Na nga tuh usalu Abraham, papa matu tomowos, liki acn we, ac kolol sasla in acn Canaan nufon. Ac nga sang fwilin tulik puspis natul. Nga eisalang Isaac nu sel,
But I took your ancestor Abraham from that land east of the Euphrates River, and I led him as he lived in various places in this land of Canaan, and I enabled him to have many descendants. First, I enabled him to have a son, Isaac.
4 ac nu sel Isaac nga eisalang Jacob ac Esau. Nga sang acn fineol uh in acn Edom nu sel Esau tuh in ma lal. A funu Jacob, papa matu tomowos, el ac tulik natul tuh som nu Egypt.
When Isaac grew up, I enabled him to have twin sons, Jacob and Esau. I enabled Esau to live in the hilly area in Seir region, but many years later Jacob and his sons and their families went down to live in Egypt.
5 Tok nga supwalla Moses ac Aaron, ac nga aklokoalokye mwet Egypt, tusruktu nga uskowosme liki acn we.
“[Many years later], I sent Moses and his older brother Aaron to help your people, and I caused [the people of] Egypt to suffer very much because of what I did there. Then I enabled your ancestors to leave Egypt.
6 Ke nga use mwet matu lowos liki acn Egypt, mwet Egypt elos ukwalos ke chariot ac ke mwet kasrusr fin horse. Ke mwet matu lowos elos sun Meoa Srusra,
When I brought your ancestors out of Egypt, they came to the Red Sea. The Egyptian army pursued them, some riding in chariots and others on horses, and they also arrived at the Red Sea.
7 elos wowoyak nu sik ac siyuk kasru, na nga orala sie ohk inmasrlolos ac mwet Egypt. Ac nga oru tuh kof uh in sifil folokeni nu faclos mwet Egypt, ac akwalomyalosla. Kowos etu ma nga tuh oru in acn Egypt. “‘Na kowos tuh muta in acn mwesis ke pacl na loeloes se.
Then [your ancestors] pleaded with me to help them. So he caused (darkness/a very dark cloud) to come between your ancestors and the Egyptian army, so that the Egyptian army could not see your ancestors. I separated the water in the Red Sea so that your ancestors could cross it, but when the Egyptian army tried to cross in the same way to pursue them, I caused the water to come back and cover them, and the Egyptian soldiers all drowned, as your ancestors watched and were amazed [IDM]. But after that, you lived in the desert for many years.
8 Nga uskowosme nu in acn lun mwet Amor su muta kutulap in Infacl Jordan. Elos tuh mweun lain kowos, tuh nga usot kutangla nu suwos. Kowos eisla acn selos, ac nga kunauselosla ye motowos.
“Then I brought your [ancestors] to the area where the groups who were descendants of Amor lived, east of the Jordan River. They fought against you, but I enabled you to defeat them [IDM]. I [enabled you to] destroy them so that you could live in their land [IDM].
9 Na Balak wen natul Zippor, tokosra lun acn Moab, el tuyak lain kowos, ac el sapla nu sel Balaam, wen natul Beor, elan tuh selngawi kowos.
Then, Zippor’s son Balak, the King of Moab, (decided that his army would fight against/opposed) the Israelis. He summoned Beor’s son Balaam and asked him to curse you.
10 Tuh nga tia lohngol Balaam, ouinge el akinsewowoye kowos. Pa inge luman molela luk nu suwos liki inpaol Balak.
But I would not do what Balaam asked, so he (blessed/said that I would do great things for) you four times, and I did not enable the army of Moab to defeat you [IDM].
11 Na kowos fahsr sasla Infacl Jordan ac tuku nu Jericho. Mwet kol in acn Jericho elos tuh mweun lain kowos oana ke mwet Amor, mwet Periz, mwet Canaan, mwet Hit, mwet Girgash, mwet Hiv, ac mwet Jebus tuh lain kowos, tuh nga sifil pacna oru tuh kowos in kutangulosla nufon.
“Then you all crossed the Jordan River and came to Jericho. The people of Jericho prepared to fight against you, [and the armies of] the descendants of Amor, Periz, Canaan, Heth, Girgash, Hiv, and Jebus [all prepared to do the same thing] but I enabled you to defeat [IDM] them all.
12 Ke kowos utyak nu in acn we, nga akfohsyalosyak in tuh ukwauk tokosra luo lun mwet Amor. Kutangla lowos tia ma ke cutlass ac mwe pisr nutuwos.
I am the one who caused them to panic as you advanced and enabled you to defeat them, as I had enabled you to do earlier to the two kings of the groups who were descendants of Amor. You did not defeat them by using your own bows and arrows and swords; [it was I who defeated them].
13 Ouinge nga sot nu suwos sie acn su kowos tia taknelik fac, ac siti ma kowos tia musaela. Inge kowos muta we ac mongo ke fokin grape ac olive, su ma kowos tia yukwiya.’”
So I gave you a land that you had not tilled/planted, and I gave you cities that you did not build. [Now] you live in those [cities] and you eat the grapes from the grapevines that you did not plant, and you eat olives from trees that you did not plant.’”
14 Na Joshua el sifil fahk nu selos, “Kowos in akfulatye LEUM GOD, ac kulansap nu sel ke oaru ac inse pwaye. Sisla kutena god su ma mwet matu lowos elos tuh alu nu se in acn Mesopotamia ac Egypt, ac kulansupu LEUM GOD mukena.
[Then Joshua said to the people], “[Because of all that] Yahweh [has done for you], revere him, and serve/worship him very faithfully. Throw away the idols that your ancestors worshiped on the east/other side of the Euphrates River and in Egypt. Serve only Yahweh.
15 Kowos fin tia lungse kulansupu LEUM GOD, kowos sulela misenge lah su kowos ac kulansupu, lah ac god su mwet matu lowos elos tuh alu nu se in acn Mesopotamia, ku god lun mwet Amor su kowos muta in acn selos misenge. Funu nga ac mwet in lohm sik, kut ac fah kulansupu LEUM GOD.”
But if you do not want to serve/worship Yahweh, you should decide today what [gods] you will serve/worship. You should decide whether you will serve/worship the gods that your ancestors who lived on the other/east side of the Euphrates River served, or whether you will serve/worship the gods that the descendants of Amor, who previously lived in the land where you are now living, [serve/worship]. But as for me and my family [MTY], we will serve/worship Yahweh!”
16 Na mwet ah topuk ac fahk, “Kut ac fah tiana ku in sisla LEUM GOD ac kulansupu kutena god saya!
The Israeli people answered, “We will never quit [serving/worshiping] Yahweh! We would never [think of] [IDM] serving/worshiping other gods!
17 LEUM GOD lasr pa uskutme, oayapa mwet matu lasr, liki acn Egypt, acn su kut tuh moul in kohs we. Kut liye pac mwenmen puspis El orala. El karingin kut ke fufahsryesr lasr inmasrlon facl puspis.
It was our God, Yahweh, who brought our parents and grandparents up out of Egypt. [He rescued them] from that land where they were slaves. As he rescued them, they saw him perform great miracles. He protected them all the time when they were traveling. He protected them from all the people-groups through whose territory they traveled.
18 Ke kut utyak nu in acn ingan, LEUM GOD El lusla mwet Amor su muta we. Ke ma inge, kut ac fah wi pac kulansupu LEUM GOD, tuh El God lasr.”
As our forefathers advanced, Yahweh expelled the descendants of Amor and the other people-groups who lived in this land. Yahweh is our God, so [we are saying that] we also will serve/worship him.”
19 Ac Joshua el fahk nu sin mwet uh, “Sahp kowos ac tia ku in kulansupu LEUM GOD. El sie God mutal, ac El sie God loloik. El ac tia nunak munas ke seakos lowos ac ma koluk lowos.
Joshua replied to the people, “[I think that] you are not able to serve/worship Yahweh, because he is a holy God. He will not forgive your sinning and rebelling [against him]. He demands that you serve/worship only him [IDM].
20 Kowos fin forla lukel ac kulansap nu sin god saya, El ac fah forla liki kowos ac akkeokye kowos ac kunauskowosla, finne El tuh arulana wo nu suwos meet.”
He has been good to you [in the past], but if you turn away from him and serve/worship foreign/other gods, he will turn [against you] and he will cause you to experience disasters. He will punish [IDM] you severely!”
21 Na mwet uh fahk nu sel Joshua, “Mo! Kut ac kulansap na nu sin LEUM GOD.”
But the people replied to Joshua, “No, [we will not turn away from worshiping/serving Yahweh] We will serve/worship Yahweh!”
22 Na Joshua el fahk, “Kowos mwet loh lowos sifacna ke kowos fahk mu kowos sulela tuh kowos in kulansupu LEUM GOD.” Ac elos fahk, “Aok, kut ac mwet loh lasr sifacna.”
Then Joshua said, “You yourselves are saying that you have decided to serve/worship Yahweh.” They replied, “Yes, we are saying that.”
23 Na Joshua el fahk nu selos, “Fin pwaye, kowos sisla liki kowos god saya nukewa ma oan yuruwos an, ac sang insiowos in pwayena nu sin LEUM GOD lun Israel.”
Then Joshua said, “Since [you have decided] that, you must throw away all the other gods/idols that you have among you. You must also promise that you will wholeheartedly give yourselves to Yahweh, the God whom we Israelis [serve/worship].”
24 Na mwet ah fahk nu sel Joshua, “Kut ac fah kulansap nu sin LEUM GOD lasr, ac akos ma sap lal.”
The people replied, “We will serve/worship Yahweh, our God, and obey him.”
25 Ke len sac Joshua el orala sie wulela nu sin mwet uh in acn Shechem, ac el sang nu selos ma sap ac ma oakwuk elos in fahsr kac.
That day, Joshua established an agreement between the people and Yahweh. He wrote for them all the laws that they were required to obey.
26 Ac Joshua el simusla ma inge in book in Ma Sap Lun God. Na el eis sie eot lulap ac tulokunak ye sak oak soko sisken Lohm Nuknuk sin LEUM GOD.
He wrote all those laws on a scroll. He called it ‘The laws of God’. Then he [told some men to] set up a large stone there at Shechem, under the [large] oak tree near the place where [they worshiped] Yahweh.
27 Ac Joshua el fahk nu sin mwet uh, “Liye, eot se inge ac fah mwe loh lasr. El lohng kas nukewa ma LEUM GOD El fahk nu sesr. El ac fah mwe loh lain kowos tuh kowos in tia lain God lowos.”
He said to all the people, “Look! [It is as though] this stone has heard everything that Yahweh said to you [and that you promised Yahweh]. It will serve as a witness against you if you rebel against your God!”
28 Na Joshua el supwalik mwet uh, ac elos nukewa folokla, kais sie nu in acn sel sifacna.
Then Joshua sent the people away, and all of them returned to their own areas/homes.
29 Tukun ma inge, mwet kulansap lun LEUM GOD, Joshua wen natul Nun, el misa ke el yac siofok singoul matwal.
Some time after that, Nun’s son Joshua, the faithful servant of Yahweh, died. He was 110 years old when he died.
30 Na elos piknilya in acn sel in Timnath Serah su oan fineol uh in acn Ephraim, su oasr epang in Fineol Gaash.
The Israeli people buried his body on his own property in Timnath-Serah [town] town. It is north of Gaash Mountain in the hilly area of the tribe who were descendants of Ephraim.
31 Mwet Israel elos kulansupu LEUM GOD ke lusen moul lal Joshua nufon, ac tukun el misa ah, elos tafwelana ke lusen moul lun mwet kol lalos su liye ma nukewa ma LEUM GOD El oru nu sin Israel.
The Israeli people served/worshiped Yahweh as long as Joshua was alive. After Joshua died, they continued serving/worshiping Yahweh while the elders who had experienced everything that Yahweh had done for the Israeli people were still alive.
32 Ac srel Joseph, su mwet ah use liki acn Egypt, elos pikinya Shechem ke ipin acn se ma Jacob el tuh molela ke ipin silver siofok sin tulik natul Hamor, su papa tumal Shechem. Tok ipin acn se inge tuh itukyang tuh in mwe usru lun tulik natul Joseph.
Joseph’s bones, which the Israeli people had brought with them from Egypt, were also buried at Shechem. The people buried them in the piece of land that Jacob had bought long ago for 100 pieces of silver from Hamor, the father of Shechem. That piece of land was in the area that was given to the people who were descendants of Ephraim and Manasseh, Joseph’s sons.
33 Ac Eleazar, wen natul Aaron, el misa ac pukpuki in acn Gibeah ke ipin acn se fineol in acn Ephraim, ma tuh itukyang lal Phinehas, wen natul.
Eleazar, the Supreme Priest, the son of Aaron, also died. They buried his body at Gibeah, in the area that had been given to Eleazar’s son Phinehas, in the hilly area that belonged to the people who were descendants of Ephraim.
