Joshua 23:13-24:15

English Standard Version

¹³know for certain that ^(A)the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you, ^(B)but they shall be a snare and a trap for you, a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good ground that the Lord your God has given you.

¹⁴“And now ^(C)I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that ^(D)not one word has failed of all the good things^[a] that the Lord your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed. ¹⁵But just as all the good things that the Lord your God promised concerning you have been fulfilled for you, so the Lord will bring upon you ^(E)all the evil things, until he has destroyed you from off this good land that the Lord your God has given you, ¹⁶if you transgress the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them. Then the anger of the Lord will be kindled against you, and you shall perish quickly from off the good land that he has given to you.”

The Covenant Renewal at Shechem

24 Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel ^(F)to Shechem and ^(G)summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel. And ^(H)they presented themselves before God. ²And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Long ago, ^(I)your fathers lived beyond the Euphrates,^[b] Terah, the father of Abraham and of Nahor; and ^(J)they served other gods. ³^(K)Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River^[c] and ^(L)led him through all the land of Canaan, and made his offspring many. ^(M)I gave him Isaac. ⁴And to Isaac I gave ^(N)Jacob and Esau. ^(O)And I gave Esau the hill country of Seir to possess, ^(P)but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt. ⁵^(Q)And I sent Moses and Aaron, ^(R)and I plagued Egypt with what I did in the midst of it, and ^(S)afterward I brought you out.

⁶“‘Then ^(T)I brought your fathers out of Egypt, and ^(U)you came to the sea. ^(V)And the Egyptians pursued your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. ⁷^(W)And when they cried to the Lord, ^(X)he put darkness between you and the Egyptians ^(Y)and made the sea come upon them and cover them; ^(Z)and your eyes saw what I did in Egypt. ^(AA)And you lived in the wilderness a long time. ⁸Then I brought you to the land of the Amorites, who lived on the other side of the Jordan. ^(AB)They fought with you, and I gave them into your hand, and you took possession of their land, and I destroyed them before you. ⁹^(AC)Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel. ^(AD)And he sent and invited Balaam the son of Beor to curse you, ¹⁰^(AE)but I would not listen to Balaam. ^(AF)Indeed, he blessed you. So I delivered you out of his hand. ¹¹^(AG)And you went over the Jordan and came to Jericho, ^(AH)and the leaders of Jericho fought against you, and also ^(AI)the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And I gave them into your hand. ¹²And I sent ^(AJ)the hornet before you, which drove them out before you, the two kings of the Amorites; it was ^(AK)not by your sword or by your bow. ¹³I gave you a land on which you had not labored ^(AL)and cities that you had not built, and you dwell in them. You eat the fruit of vineyards and olive orchards that you did not plant.’

Choose Whom You Will Serve

¹⁴^(AM)“Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. ^(AN)Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. ¹⁵^(AO)And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, ^(AP)choose this day whom you will serve, whether ^(AQ)the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or ^(AR)the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. ^(AS)But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”