Iosue 22
1 Eodem tempore vocavit Iosue Rubenitas, et Gaditas, et dimidiam tribum Manasse,
Joshua then summoned the leaders of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of the tribe of Manasseh.
2 dixitque ad eos: Fecistis omnia quae praecepit vobis Moyses famulus Domini: mihi quoque in omnibus obedistis,
He said to them, “You have done everything that Moses, who served Yahweh [well], told you to do. You have also done what I told you to do.
3 nec reliquistis fratres vestros longo tempore, usque in praesentem diem, custodientes imperium Domini Dei vestri.
For a long time you have helped the other tribes [to defeat their enemies]. You have obeyed everything that Yahweh your God commanded you to do.
4 Quia igitur dedit Dominus Deus vester fratribus vestris quietem et pacem, sicut pollicitus est: revertimini, et ite in tabernacula vestra, et in terram possessionis, quam tradidit vobis Moyses famulus Domini trans Iordanem:
He promised to give peace to us Israelis, and he has done what he promised. So now you may go back to your homes, to the land that Moses gave to you, on the east side of the Jordan [River].
5 ita dumtaxat, ut custodiatis attente, et opere compleatis mandatum et legem quam praecepit vobis Moyses famulus Domini, ut diligatis Dominum Deum vestrum, et ambuletis in omnibus viis eius, et observetis mandata illius, adhaereatisque ei, ac serviatis in omni corde, et in omni anima vestra.
Moses also commanded you to love Yahweh your God and to obey his commands, and to continue to worship him and serve him by everything that you think and everything that you do.”
6 Benedixitque eis Iosue, et dimisit eos. Qui reversi sunt in tabernacula sua.
Then Joshua blessed them and said goodbye to them, and they [prepared to] leave and return to their homes [on the east side of the Jordan River].
7 Dimidiae autem tribui Manasse possessionem Moyses dederat in Basan: et idcirco mediae, quae superfuit, dedit Iosue sortem inter ceteros fratres suos trans Iordanem ad Occidentalem plagam. Cumque dimitteret eos in tabernacula sua, et benedixisset eis,
Moses had given the Bashan region to half the tribe of Manasseh, and land on the west side of the Jordan [River] to the other half of the tribe. Before they left, he [asked God to] bless them.
8 dixit ad eos: In multa substantia atque divitiis revertimini ad sedes vestras, cum argento et auro, aere ac ferro, et veste multiplici: dividite praedam hostium cum fratribus vestris.
He said, “Go back to your homes and to all the things that you have taken from your enemies—the many animals and silver and gold and [things made of] bronze and iron, and many beautiful clothes. But you should share some of those things with other people of your tribe.”
9 Reversique sunt, et abierunt filii Ruben, et filii Gad, et dimidia tribus Manasse, a filiis Israel de Silo, quae sita est in Chanaan, ut intrarent Galaad Terram possessionis suae, quam obtinuerant iuxta imperium Domini in manu Moysi.
So the people of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh left the other Israelis at Shiloh in Canaan land, to return to their homes in the Gilead region. That was the area that belonged to them. It had been allotted to them by Moses as Yahweh had commanded.
10 Cumque venissent ad tumulos Iordanis in Terram Chanaan, aedificaverunt iuxta Iordanem altare infinitae magnitudinis.
The people from those three tribes arrived near the western side of the Jordan River, at a town called Geliloth. There they built a large altar. [Then they crossed the Jordan River to the Gilead region].
11 Quod cum audissent filii Israel, et ad eos certi nuncii detulissent aedificasse filios Ruben, et Gad, et dimidiae tribus Manasse, altare in Terra Chanaan, super Iordanis tumulos, contra filios Israel:
But the other Israelis who were still at Shiloh heard about the altar that those men had built.
12 convenerunt omnes in Silo, ut ascenderent, et dimicarent contra eos.
They became very angry with the men of those tribes, so they decided to fight them.
13 Et interim miserunt ad illos in Terram Galaad Phinees filium Eleazari sacerdotem,
The Israelis sent Phinehas, who was the son of Eleazar the Supreme Priest, to [talk with] the people of those three tribes.
14 et decem principes cum eo, singulos de singulis tribubus.
They also sent one leader from each of the ten tribes that were still at Shiloh. Each of them was a leader of his clan.
15 Qui venerunt ad filios Ruben, et Gad, et dimidiae tribus Manasse in Terram Galaad, dixeruntque ad eos:
Those leaders went to the Gilead region to talk to the people of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh. They said,
16 Haec mandat omnis populus Domini: Quae est ista transgressio? Cur reliquistis Dominum Deum Israel, aedificantes altare sacrilegum, et a cultu illius recedentes?
“All the other Israelis are asking, ‘Why have you rebelled against the God whom we Israelis [worship] by building an altar for yourselves?
17 An parum vobis est quod peccastis in Beelphegor, et usque in praesentem diem macula huius sceleris in nobis permanet? multi enim de populo corruerunt.
Have you forgotten what happened at Peor, [when some Israelis sinned by worshiping the god that the Moab people-group worship]? Many Israelis became very sick and died because of that sin, and we are still suffering because of their sin.
18 Et vos hodie reliquistis Dominum, et cras in universum Israel ira eius desaeviet.
Are you now turning away from obeying Yahweh and refusing to do what he wants? If you do not stop rebelling against Yahweh today, he will be angry with all of us Israelis tomorrow.’
19 Quod si putatis immundam esse terram possessionis vestrae, transite ad Terram, in qua tabernaculum Domini est, et habitate inter nos: tantum ut a Domino, et a nostro consortio non recedatis, aedificato altari praeter altare Domini Dei nostri.
“If [you think that Yahweh considers] that your land here is not suitable for worshiping him, come back to our land where Yahweh’s Sacred Tent is. We can share our land with you. But do not rebel against Yahweh and against us by building another altar for Yahweh our God.
20 Nonne Achan filius Zare praeteriit mandatum Domini, et super omnem populum Israel ira eius incubuit? Et ille erat unus homo, atque utinam solum periisset in scelere suo.
Do you remember what happened when Zerah’s son Achan refused to obey [Yahweh’s command to destroy everything in Jericho]? That one man disobeyed God’s command, but many [HYP] other Israelis were punished. Achan died because of his sin, but other Israelis also died.”
21 Responderuntque filii Ruben et Gad, et dimidia tribus Manasse principibus legationis Israel:
The [leaders of the] tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh replied,
22 Fortissimus Deus Dominus, ipse novit, et Israel simul intelliget: si praevaricationis animo, hoc altare construximus, non custodiat nos, sed puniat nos in praesenti:
“Yahweh, the Almighty God, knows [why we did that], and we want you to know, too. If we have done something wrong [against Yahweh], you may kill us.
23 et si ea mente fecimus ut holocausta, et sacrificium, et pacificas victimas super eo imponeremus, ipse quaerat et iudicet:
If we have disobeyed one of Yahweh’s laws, we request that he should punish us. We did not build that new altar to completely burn animals as sacrifices to Yahweh, or to offer on it sacrifices of grain or sacrifices to maintain fellowship with God.
24 et non ea magis cogitatione atque tractatu, ut diceremus: Cras dicent filii vestri filiis nostris: Quid vobis et Domino Deo Israel?
“This is the reason that we built that altar: We were afraid/worried that some day your descendants would say that our descendants are not true Israelis. We were afraid that then they would say, ‘You are not allowed to worship Yahweh, the God whom we Israelis [worship].
25 terminum posuit Dominus inter nos et vos, o filii Ruben, et filii Gad, Iordanem fluvium: et idcirco partem non habetis in Domino. Et per hanc occasionem avertent filii vestri filios nostros a timore Domini. Putavimus itaque melius,
Yahweh caused the Jordan River to be a boundary between us and you people of the tribes of Reuben and Gad. So you are not allowed to worship Yahweh.’ We were worried that your descendants would force our descendants to stop worshiping Yahweh.
26 et diximus: Extruamus nobis altare, non in holocausta, neque ad victimas offerendas,
“That is the reason that we decided to build that [new] altar. But it is not an altar for completely burning sacrifices of animals and [burning other] sacrifices.
27 sed in testimonium inter nos et vos, et sobolem nostram vestramque progeniem, ut serviamus Domino, et iuris nostri sit offerre et holocausta, et victimas, et pacificas hostias: et nequaquam dicant cras filii vestri filiis nostris: Non est vobis pars in Domino.
We built that new altar to prove/show to you and to us and to all of our descendants that we worship Yahweh by completely burning animal sacrifices and offerings of grain and offerings to maintain fellowship with Yahweh [only at the place Yahweh chooses]. We do not want your descendants to say to our descendants, ‘You do not belong to Yahweh.’
28 Quod si voluerint dicere, respondebunt eis: Ecce altare Domini, quod fecerunt patres nostri, non in holocausta, neque in sacrificium, sed in testimonium nostrum ac vestrum.
“In the future, if your descendants say that, our descendants can say, ‘Look at the altar that our ancestors made! It is exactly like Yahweh’s altar [that our ancestors built], but we do not burn sacrifices on it. It only shows that we are Israelis!’
29 Absit a nobis hoc scelus ut recedamus a Domino, et eius vestigia relinquamus, extructo altari ad holocausta, et sacrificia, et victimas offerendas, praeter altare Domini Dei nostri, quod extructum est ante tabernaculum eius.
We certainly do not want to rebel against Yahweh or stop doing what he desires, by building an altar for completely burning some sacrifices and burning grain offerings and making [other] sacrifices. [We know that] there is only one true altar for Yahweh our God, and it is in front of the Sacred Tent [at Shiloh].”
30 Quibus auditis, Phinees sacerdos, et principes legationis Israel, qui erant cum eo, placati sunt: et verba filiorum Ruben, et Gad, et dimidiae tribus Manasse, libentissime susceperunt.
When Phinehas the priest and the other [ten] leaders heard what they said, they were pleased.
31 Dixtque Phinees filius Eleazari sacerdos ad eos: Nunc scimus quod nobiscum sit Dominus, quoniam alieni estis a praevaricatione hac, et liberastis filios Israel de manu Domini.
So Phinehas said to them, “Now we know that Yahweh is with all of us Israelis, and that you were not rebelling against him [when you built that altar]. And we know that Yahweh will not punish us Israelis [because of your having done that].”
32 Reversusque est cum principibus a filiis Ruben et Gad de Terra Galaad, finium Chanaan ad filios Israel, et retulit eis.
Then Phinehas and the Israeli leaders left the people of the tribes of Reuben and Gad in the Gilead region, and returned to Canaan. There they told the other Israelis what had happened.
33 Placuitque sermo cunctis audientibus. Et laudaverunt Deum filii Israel, et nequaquam ultra dixerunt, ut ascenderent contra eos, atque pugnarent, et delerent Terram possessionis eorum.
They were pleased, and they thanked God. And they did not talk any more about fighting against the people of the tribes of Reuben and Gad and destroying everything in their land.
34 Vocaveruntque filii Ruben, et filii Gad altare, quod extruxerant, Testimonium nostrum, quod Dominus ipse sit Deus.
The people of the tribes of Reuben and Gad named their new altar ‘A reminder to us all that Yahweh is God’.
