Passage Resources Hebrew/Greek Your Content
Previous Next
Add parallel Print Page Options
Close WEB

Joshua 24:14-28
World English Bible

14 “Now therefore fear Yahweh, and serve him in sincerity and in truth. Put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River, in Egypt; and serve Yahweh. 15 If it seems evil to you to serve Yahweh, choose today whom you will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell; but as for me and my house, we will serve Yahweh.”

16 The people answered, “Far be it from us that we should forsake Yahweh, to serve other gods; 17 for it is Yahweh our God who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and who did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way in which we went, and among all the peoples through the middle of whom we passed. 18 Yahweh drove out from before us all the peoples, even the Amorites who lived in the land. Therefore we also will serve Yahweh; for he is our God.”

19 Joshua said to the people, “You can’t serve Yahweh, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God. He will not forgive your disobedience nor your sins. 20 If you forsake Yahweh, and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you evil, and consume you, after he has done you good.”

21 The people said to Joshua, “No, but we will serve Yahweh.” 22 Joshua said to the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen Yahweh yourselves, to serve him.”

They said, “We are witnesses.”

23 “Now therefore put away the foreign gods which are among you, and incline your heart to Yahweh, the God of Israel.”

24 The people said to Joshua, “We will serve Yahweh our God, and we will listen to his voice.”

25 So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and made for them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem. 26 Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God; and he took a great stone, and set it up there under the oak that was by the sanctuary of Yahweh. 27 Joshua said to all the people, “Behold, this stone shall be a witness against us, for it has heard all Yahweh’s words which he spoke to us. It shall be therefore a witness against you, lest you deny your God.” 28 So Joshua sent the people away, each to his own inheritance.

Read full chapter
Close NET

Joshua 24:14-28
New English Translation

14 “Now[a] obey[b] the Lord and worship[c] him with integrity and loyalty. Put aside the gods your ancestors[d] worshiped[e] beyond the Euphrates[f] and in Egypt, and worship[g] the Lord. 15 If you have no desire[h] to worship[i] the Lord, then choose today whom you will worship,[j] whether it be the gods whom your ancestors[k] worshiped[l] beyond the Euphrates,[m] or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. But I and my family[n] will worship[o] the Lord.”

16 The people responded, “Far be it from us to abandon the Lord so we can[p] worship[q] other gods! 17 For the Lord our God took us and our fathers out of slavery[r] in the land of Egypt[s] and performed these awesome miracles[t] before our very eyes. He continually protected us as we traveled and when we passed through nations.[u] 18 The Lord drove out from before us all the nations, including the Amorites who lived in the land. So we too will worship[v] the Lord, for he is our God!”

19 Joshua warned[w] the people, “You will not keep worshiping[x] the Lord, for[y] he is a holy God.[z] He is a jealous God who will not forgive[aa] your rebellion or your sins. 20 If[ab] you abandon the Lord and worship[ac] foreign gods, he will turn against you;[ad] he will bring disaster on you and destroy you,[ae] though he once treated you well.”[af]

21 The people said to Joshua, “No! We really will[ag] worship[ah] the Lord.” 22 Joshua said to the people, “Do you agree to be witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to worship the Lord?”[ai] They replied, “We are witnesses!”[aj] 23 Joshua said,[ak] “Now put aside the foreign gods that are among you and submit to[al] the Lord God of Israel.”

24 The people said to Joshua, “We will worship[am] the Lord our God and obey him.”[an]

25 That day Joshua drew up an agreement[ao] for the people, and he established rules and regulations[ap] for them in Shechem. 26 Joshua 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 sanctuary. 27 Joshua said to all the people, “Look, this stone will be a witness against us, for it has heard everything the Lord said to us.[aq] It will be a witness against you if[ar] you deny your God.” 28 When Joshua dismissed the people, they went to their allotted portions of land.[as]

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Joshua 24:14 sn Joshua quotes the Lord’s words in vv. 2b-13 (note that the Lord speaks in the first person in these verses); in vv. 14-15 Joshua himself exhorts the people (note the third person references to the Lord).
  2. Joshua 24:14 tn Heb “fear.”
  3. Joshua 24:14 tn Or “and serve.”
  4. Joshua 24:14 tn Heb “your fathers.”
  5. Joshua 24:14 tn Or “served.”
  6. Joshua 24:14 tn Heb “the river,” referring to the Euphrates. This has been specified in the translation for clarity; see v. 3.
  7. Joshua 24:14 tn Or “and serve.”
  8. Joshua 24:15 tn Heb “if it is bad in your eyes.”
  9. Joshua 24:15 tn Or “to serve.”
  10. Joshua 24:15 tn Or “will serve.”
  11. Joshua 24:15 tn Heb “your fathers.”
  12. Joshua 24:15 tn Or “served.”
  13. Joshua 24:15 tn Heb “the river,” referring to the Euphrates. This has been specified in the translation for clarity; see v. 3.
  14. Joshua 24:15 tn Heb “house.”
  15. Joshua 24:15 tn Or “will serve.”
  16. Joshua 24:16 tn Heb “to.”
  17. Joshua 24:16 tn Or “can serve.”
  18. Joshua 24:17 tn Heb “of the house of slavery.”
  19. Joshua 24:17 tn Heb “for the Lord our God, he is the one who brought up us and our fathers from the land of Egypt, from the house of slaves.”
  20. Joshua 24:17 tn Or “great signs.”
  21. Joshua 24:17 tn Heb “and he guarded us in all the way in which we walked and among all the peoples through whose midst we passed.”
  22. Joshua 24:18 tn Or “will serve.”
  23. Joshua 24:19 tn Heb “said to.”
  24. Joshua 24:19 tn Heb “you are not able to serve.”
  25. Joshua 24:19 sn For an excellent discussion of Joshua’s logical argument here, see T. C. Butler, Joshua (WBC), 274-75.
  26. Joshua 24:19 tn In the Hebrew text both the divine name (אֱלֹהִים, ʾelohim) and the adjective (קְדֹשִׁים, qedoshim, “holy”) are plural. Normally the divine name, when referring to the one true God, takes singular modifiers, but this is a rare exception where the adjective agrees grammatically with the honorific plural noun. See GKC §124.i and IBHS 122.
  27. Joshua 24:19 tn Heb “lift up” or “take away.”sn This assertion obviously needs qualification, for the OT elsewhere affirms that God does forgive. Joshua is referring to the persistent national rebellion against the Mosaic covenant that eventually causes God to decree unconditionally the nation’s exile.
  28. Joshua 24:20 tn Or “when.”
  29. Joshua 24:20 tn Or “and serve.”
  30. Joshua 24:20 tn The words “against you” are added for clarification.
  31. Joshua 24:20 tn Heb “bring you to an end.”
  32. Joshua 24:20 tn Heb “after he did good for you.”
  33. Joshua 24:21 tn The translation assumes that כִּי (ki) is emphatic. Another option is to take it as explanatory, “No, for we will….”
  34. Joshua 24:21 tn Or “will serve.”
  35. Joshua 24:22 tn Heb “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen for yourselves the Lord to serve him.”
  36. Joshua 24:22 sn Like witnesses in a court of law, Israel’s solemn vow to worship the Lord will testify against them in the divine court if the nation ever violates its commitment.
  37. Joshua 24:23 tn The words “Joshua said” are supplied for clarification.
  38. Joshua 24:23 tn Heb “bend your heart toward.” The term לֵבָב (levav, “heart”) probably here refers to the people’s volition or will.
  39. Joshua 24:24 tn Or “will serve.”
  40. Joshua 24:24 tn Heb “and listen to his voice.”
  41. Joshua 24:25 tn Heb “cut a covenant.”
  42. Joshua 24:25 tn Heb “a statute and a judgment.”
  43. Joshua 24:27 tn Heb “all the words of the Lord which he spoke with us.”
  44. Joshua 24:27 tn Or “lest,” “so that you might not.”
  45. Joshua 24:28 tn Heb “And Joshua sent the people away, each to his inheritance.”
Next
Joshua 23
Judges 1
Next
dropdown
World English Bible (WEB)

by Public Domain. The name "World English Bible" is trademarked.

New English Translation (NET)

NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.