Joshua 23
New King James Version
Joshua’s Farewell Address
23 Now it came to pass, a long time after the Lord (A)had given rest to Israel from all their enemies round about, that Joshua (B)was old, advanced in age. 2 And Joshua (C)called for all Israel, for their elders, for their heads, for their judges, and for their officers, and said to them:
“I am old, advanced in age. 3 You have seen all that the (D)Lord your God has done to all these nations because of you, for the (E)Lord your God is He who has fought for you. 4 See, (F)I have divided to you by lot these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from the Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, as far as the Great Sea westward. 5 And the Lord your God (G)will expel them from before you and drive them out of your sight. So you shall possess their land, (H)as the Lord your God promised you. 6 (I)Therefore be very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, (J)lest you turn aside from it to the right hand or to the left, 7 and lest you (K)go[a] among these nations, these who remain among you. You shall not (L)make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause anyone to (M)swear by them; you shall not (N)serve them nor bow down to them, 8 but you shall (O)hold fast to the Lord your God, as you have done to this day. 9 (P)For the Lord has [b]driven out from before you great and strong nations; but as for you, no one has been able to stand against you to this day. 10 (Q)One man of you shall chase a thousand, for the Lord your God is He who fights for you, (R)as He promised you. 11 (S)Therefore take careful heed to yourselves, that you love the Lord your God. 12 Or else, if indeed you do (T)go back, and cling to the remnant of these nations—these that remain among you—and (U)make marriages with them, and go in to them and they to you, 13 know for certain that (V)the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations from before you. (W)But they shall be snares and traps to you, and scourges on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from this good land which the Lord your God has given you.
14 “Behold, this day (X)I[c] am going the way of all the earth. And you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that (Y)not one thing has failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spoke concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one word of them has failed. 15 (Z)Therefore it shall come to pass, that as all the good things have come upon you which the Lord your God promised you, so the Lord will bring upon you (AA)all harmful things, until He has destroyed you from this good land which the Lord your God has given you. 16 [d]When you have transgressed the covenant of the Lord your God, which He commanded you, and have gone and served other gods, and bowed down to them, then the (AB)anger of the Lord will burn against you, and you shall perish quickly from the good land which He has given you.”
Footnotes
- Joshua 23:7 associate with
- Joshua 23:9 dispossessed
- Joshua 23:14 I am going to die.
- Joshua 23:16 Or if ever
Joshua 23
English Standard Version
Joshua's Charge to Israel's Leaders
23 A long time afterward, when the Lord had given (A)rest to Israel from all their surrounding enemies, and Joshua (B)was old and well advanced in years, 2 Joshua (C)summoned all Israel, its elders and heads, its judges and officers, and said to them, “I am now old and well advanced in years. 3 And you have seen all that the Lord your God has done to all these nations for your sake, (D)for it is the Lord your God who has fought for you. 4 Behold, (E)I have allotted to you as an inheritance for your tribes those nations that remain, along with all the nations that I have already cut off, from the Jordan to the Great Sea in the west. 5 The Lord your God (F)will push them back before you and drive them out of your sight. And you shall possess their land, (G)just as the Lord your God promised you. 6 Therefore, (H)be very strong to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, (I)turning aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left, 7 (J)that you may not mix with these nations remaining among you (K)or make mention of the names of their gods (L)or swear by them or serve them or bow down to them, 8 (M)but you shall cling to the Lord your God just as you have done to this day. 9 (N)For the Lord has driven out before you great and strong nations. And as for you, (O)no man has been able to stand before you to this day. 10 (P)One man of you puts to flight a thousand, since it is the Lord your God (Q)who fights for you, just as he promised you. 11 (R)Be very careful, therefore, to love the Lord your God. 12 For if you turn back and cling to the remnant of these nations remaining among you (S)and make marriages with them, so that you associate with them and they with you, 13 know for certain that (T)the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you, (U)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 (V)I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that (W)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. 15 But 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 (X)all the evil things, until he has destroyed you from off this good land that the Lord your God has given you, 16 if 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.”
Footnotes
- Joshua 23:14 Or words; also twice in verse 15
Giosué 23
Conferenza Episcopale Italiana
2. ULTIMO DISCORSO DI GIOSUE'
Giosuè riassume la sua opera
23 Molto tempo dopo che il Signore aveva dato riposo a Israele, liberandolo da tutti i nemici che lo circondavano, Giosuè, ormai vecchio e molto avanti negli anni, 2 convocò tutto Israele, gli anziani, i capi, i giudici e gli scribi del popolo e disse loro: «Io sono vecchio, molto avanti negli anni. 3 Voi avete visto quanto il Signore vostro Dio ha fatto a tutte queste nazioni, scacciandole dinanzi a voi; poiché il Signore vostro Dio ha combattuto per voi. 4 Ecco io ho diviso tra voi a sorte, come possesso per le vostre tribù, il paese delle nazioni che restano e di tutte quelle che ho sterminate, dal Giordano fino al Mar Mediterraneo, ad occidente. 5 Il Signore vostro Dio le disperderà egli stesso dinanzi a voi e le scaccerà dinanzi a voi e voi prenderete possesso del loro paese, come il Signore vostro Dio vi ha detto.
Condotta in mezzo ai popoli stranieri
6 Siate forti nell'osservare ed eseguire quanto è scritto nel libro della legge di Mosè, senza deviare né a destra, né a sinistra, 7 senza mischiarvi con queste nazioni che rimangono fra di voi; non pronunciate neppure il nome dei loro dei, non ne fate uso nei giuramenti; non li servite e non vi prostrate davanti a loro: 8 ma restate fedeli al Signore vostro Dio, come avete fatto fino ad oggi. 9 Il Signore ha scacciato dinanzi a voi nazioni grandi e potenti; nessuno ha potuto resistere a voi fino ad oggi. 10 Uno solo di voi ne inseguiva mille, perché il Signore vostro Dio combatteva per voi come aveva promesso. 11 Abbiate gran cura, per la vostra vita, di amare il Signore vostro Dio. 12 Perché, se fate apostasia e vi unite al resto di queste nazioni che sono rimaste fra di voi e vi imparentate con loro e vi mescolate con esse ed esse con voi, 13 allora sappiate che il Signore vostro Dio non scaccerà più queste genti dinanzi a voi, ma esse diventeranno per voi una rete, una trappola, un flagello ai vostri fianchi; diventeranno spine nei vostri occhi, finché non siate periti e scomparsi da questo buon paese che il Signore vostro Dio vi ha dato. 14 Ecco io oggi me ne vado per la via di ogni abitante della terra; riconoscete con tutto il cuore e con tutta l'anima che neppur una di tutte le buone promesse, che il Signore vostro Dio aveva fatto per voi, è caduta a vuoto; tutte sono giunte a compimento per voi: neppure una è andata a vuoto. 15 Ma, come ogni buona parola che il Signore vostro Dio vi aveva detta è giunta a compimento per voi, così il Signore farà giungere a vostro danno tutte le sue parole di minaccia, finché vi abbia sterminati da questo buon paese che il vostro Dio, il Signore, vi ha dato. 16 Se trasgredite l'alleanza che il Signore vostro Dio vi ha imposta, e andate a servire altri dei e vi prostrate davanti a loro, l'ira del Signore si accenderà contro di voi e voi perirete presto, scomparendo dal buon paese che egli vi ha dato».
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
