| International Standard Version | NET Bible |
| 1Then Joshua assembled together all of the tribes of Israel at Shechem. He called for the leaders, officials, judges, and tribal officers of Israel. They assembled in formation before God, | 1Joshua assembled all the Israelite tribes at Shechem. He summoned Israel's elders, rulers, judges, and leaders, and they appeared before God. |
| 2and Joshua told all of the people, "This is what the LORD God of Israel has to say: 'Long ago your ancestors lived beyond the Euphrates River, including Terah, father of both Abraham and Nahor, where they served other gods. | 2Joshua told all the people, "Here is what the LORD God of Israel says: 'In the distant past your ancestors lived beyond the Euphrates River, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor. They worshiped other gods, |
| 3Then I took your ancestor Abraham from the other side of the Euphrates River and led him through the entire land of Canaan. I multiplied his descendants, and gave him his son Isaac. | 3but I took your father Abraham from beyond the Euphrates and brought him into the entire land of Canaan. I made his descendants numerous; I gave him Isaac, |
| 4I gave Jacob and Esau to Isaac. And I gave Mount Seir to Esau as his possession, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt. | 4and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. To Esau I assigned Mount Seir, while Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt. |
| 5Later I commissioned Moses and Aaron, and I inflicted plagues on Egypt by what I did among them. Afterwards, I brought all of you out. | 5I sent Moses and Aaron, and I struck Egypt down when I intervened in their land. Then I brought you out. |
| 6Then I brought your ancestors out of Egypt, and you came to the Sea, and the Egyptians followed your ancestors with chariots and horsemen to the Reed Sea. | 6When I brought your fathers out of Egypt, you arrived at the sea. The Egyptians chased your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. |
| 7But when they cried out to the LORD, he placed darkness between you and the Egyptians, brought the sea upon the Egyptians, and swallowed them up. Your own eyes saw what I did in Egypt. Then you lived in the desert for a long time. | 7Your fathers cried out for help to the LORD; he made the area between you and the Egyptians dark, and then drowned them in the sea. You witnessed with your very own eyes what I did in Egypt. You lived in the wilderness for a long time. |
| 8I brought you into the territory of the Amorites, who lived on the other side of the Jordan River. They fought you, but I gave them into your control, and you took possession of their land. I destroyed them from your presence. | 8Then I brought you to the land of the Amorites who lived east of the Jordan. They fought with you, but I handed them over to you; you conquered their land and I destroyed them from before you. |
| 9Then Zippor's son, King Balak of Moab, showed up and fought against Israel. He sent word to Balaam, summoning Beor's son to put a curse on you. | 9Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, launched an attack against Israel. He summoned Balaam son of Beor to call down judgment on you. |
| 10But I wasn't willing to listen to Balaam. So he had to bless you, and I delivered you from his control. | 10I refused to respond to Balaam; he kept prophesying good things about you, and I rescued you from his power. |
| 11Next, you crossed the Jordan River and arrived at Jericho. But the citizens of Jericho fought you, as did the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and the Jebusites, so I gave them into your control. | 11You crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The leaders of Jericho, as well as the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and Jebusites, fought with you, but I handed them over to you. |
| 12Then I sent hornets ahead of you to drive out two kings of the Amorites before you without your using either sword or bow. | 12I sent terror ahead of you to drive out before you the two Amorite kings. I gave you the victory; it was not by your swords or bows. |
| 13I gave you a land for which you never worked and cities that you didn't build, but that you have lived in. You're eating from vineyards and olive groves that you didn't plant.' | 13I gave you a land in which you had not worked hard; you took up residence in cities you did not build and you are eating the produce of vineyards and olive groves you did not plant.' |
| 14"Now you must fear the LORD and serve him in faithfulness and truth. Throw away the gods that your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt. Instead, serve the LORD. | 14Now obey the LORD and worship him with integrity and loyalty. Put aside the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates and in Egypt and worship the LORD. |
| 15If you think it's the wrong thing for you to serve the LORD, then choose for yourselves today whom you will serve—the gods whom your ancestors served on the other side of the Euphrates River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose territories you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." | 15If you have no desire to worship the LORD, choose today whom you will worship, whether it be the gods whom your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. But I and my family will worship the LORD!" |
| 16In response, the people said, "Far be it from us that we should abandon the LORD to serve other gods, | 16The people responded, "Far be it from us to abandon the LORD so we can worship other gods! |
| 17since the LORD our God is the one who brought us and our ancestors up from the land of Egypt, from a life of slavery. He did those great things right in front of us, preserving us along the way that we traveled and among all the peoples through whose territory we passed. | 17For the LORD our God took us and our fathers out of slavery in the land of Egypt and performed these awesome miracles before our very eyes. He continually protected us as we traveled and when we passed through nations. |
| 18The LORD expelled all the people before us, including the Amorites who lived in the land. Therefore, we also will serve the LORD, since he is our God." | 18The LORD drove out from before us all the nations, including the Amorites who lived in the land. So we too will worship the LORD, for he is our God!" |
| 19So Joshua told the people, "You will not be able to serve the LORD, because he is a God of Holiness. He is a jealous God, and he will forgive neither your transgressions nor your sins. | 19Joshua warned the people, "You will not keep worshiping the LORD, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God who will not forgive your rebellion or your sins. |
| 20If you abandon the LORD and serve foreign deities, then he will turn and do you harm, consuming you after all the good he has done for you." | 20If you abandon the LORD and worship foreign gods, he will turn against you; he will bring disaster on you and destroy you, though he once treated you well." |
| 21"No," the people replied to Joshua. "We will serve the LORD." | 21The people said to Joshua, "No! We really will worship the LORD!" |
| 22Joshua responded, "You are giving testimony against yourselves, that you have chosen to serve the LORD." They replied, "We are witnesses!" | 22Joshua said to the people, "Do you agree to be witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to worship the LORD?" They replied, "We are witnesses!" |
| 23Joshua said, "Therefore abandon the foreign gods that are among you, and turn your hearts to the LORD, the God of Israel." | 23Joshua said, "Now put aside the foreign gods that are among you and submit to the LORD God of Israel." |
| 24The people replied, "We will serve the LORD our God and obey his voice." | 24The people said to Joshua, "We will worship the LORD our God and obey him." |
| 25So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, making statutes and ordinances in Shechem. | 25That day Joshua drew up an agreement for the people, and he established rules and regulations for them in Shechem. |
| 26He wrote these words in the Book of the Law of God, took a large stone, moved it under the shade of the oak tree that was near the sanctuary of the LORD, | 26Joshua wrote these words in the Law Scroll of God. He then took a large stone and set it up there under the oak tree near the LORD's shrine. |
| 27and then told all of the people, "Look! This stone will testify for us, because it has heard everything that the LORD has spoken to us. So it will stand as a witness against you in the event that you deny your God." | 27Joshua said to all the people, "Look, this stone will be a witness against you, for it has heard everything the LORD said to us. It will be a witness against you if you deny your God." |
| 28Then Joshua dismissed the people, and each man returned to his territorial inheritance. | 28When Joshua dismissed the people, they went to their allotted portions of land. |
| 29Some time later, Joshua servant of the LORD died at the age of 110 years, and | 29After all this Joshua son of Nun, the LORD's servant, died at the age of one hundred ten. |
| 30they buried him in his territorial inheritance at Timnath-serah in the mountainous region of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash. | 30They buried him in his allotted territory in Timnath Serah in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash. |
| 31Israel served the LORD for the entire lifetimes of Joshua and of the officials who outlived Joshua, that is, the ones who had personally known everything that the LORD had done for Israel. | 31Israel worshiped the LORD throughout Joshua's lifetime and as long as the elderly men who outlived him remained alive. These men had experienced firsthand everything the LORD had done for Israel. |
| 32They also buried the bones of Joseph, which the Israelis brought up from Egypt, in the parcel of ground at Shechem that Jacob had purchased from the descendants of Shechem's father Hamor, for 100 pieces of silver. It became part of the inheritance of the descendants of Joseph. | 32The bones of Joseph, which the Israelites had brought up from Egypt, were buried at Shechem in the part of the field that Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem, for one hundred pieces of money. So it became the inheritance of the tribe of Joseph. |
| 33Later, Aaron's son Eleazar also died, and they buried him at Gibeah, which belonged to his son Phinehas, and which had been given to him in the mountainous region of Ephraim. | 33Eleazar son of Aaron died, and they buried him in Gibeah in the hill country of Ephraim, where his son Phinehas had been assigned land. |
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