Joshua 22

NEW JERUSALEM	DOUAI-RHEIMS
1 Joshua then summoned the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh	1 At the same time Josue called the Rubenites, and the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasses,
2 and said to them, 'You have observed everything that Moses, servant of Yahweh, ordered you, andwhenever I have given you an order you have listened to me.	2 And said to them: You have done all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you: you have also obeyed me in all things,
3 You have not deserted your brothers, from long ago until today, keeping the observance of thecommandment of Yahweh your God.	3 Neither have you left your brethren this long time, until this present day, keeping the commandment of the Lord your God.
4 Now that Yahweh your God has granted your brothers the rest that he promised them, go back to yourtents, to the country belonging to you which Moses, servant of Yahweh, gave you on the other side of theJordan.	4 Therefore as the Lord your God hath given your brethren rest and peace, as he promised: return, and go to your dwellings, and to the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of the Lord gave you beyond the Jordan:
5 But take great care to practise the commandments and the Law which Moses, servant of Yahweh, hasgiven you: to love Yahweh your God, always to follow his paths, to keep his commandments, to be loyal to himand to serve him with al your heart and with al your soul.'	5 Yet so that you observe attentively, and in work fulfil the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you: that you love the Lord your God, and walk in all his ways, and keep all his commandments, and cleave to him, and serve him with all your heart, and with all your soul.
6 Joshua blessed them and sent them away, and they went home to their tents.	6 And Josue blessed them, and sent them away, and they returned to their dwellings.
7 To one half of the tribe of Manasseh, Moses had given a territory in Bashan; to the other half, Joshuagave another among their brothers on the west bank of the Jordan. As Joshua sent them home to their tents, heblessed them	7 Now to half the tribe of Manasses, Moses had given a possession in Basan: and therefore to the half that remained, Josue gave a lot among the rest of their brethren beyond the Jordan to the west. And when he sent them away to their dwellings and had blessed them,
8 and said to them, 'You are going back to your tents with great wealth, with a great deal of livestock,with silver and gold, bronze and iron and great quantities of clothing; share the spoils of your enemies with yourbrothers.'	8 He said to them : With much substance and riches, you return to your settlements, with silver and gold, brass and iron, and variety of raiment: divide the prey of your enemies with your brethren.
9 The Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh returned home, leaving the Israelites atShiloh in Canaan, and made for Gilead, the territory which belonged to them as a result of Yahweh's order giventhrough Moses.	9 So the children of Ruben, and the children of Gad, and the half tribe of Manasses returned, and parted from the children of Israel in Silo, which is in Chanaan, to go into Galaad the land of their possession, which they had obtained according to the commandment of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
10 When they came to the stone circle by the Jordan, in Canaanite territory, the Reubenites, the Gaditesand the half-tribe of Manasseh built an altar there beside the Jordan, a large, imposing altar.	10 And when they were come to the banks of the Jordan, in the land of Chanaan, they built an altar immensely great near the Jordan.
11 This came to the ears of the Israelites. 'Look,' the word went round, 'the Reubenites, the Gadites andthe half-tribe of Manasseh have built this altar on the Canaanite side, near the stone circle by the Jordan, on theIsraelites' bank.'	11 And when the children of Israel had heard of it, and certain messengers had brought them an account that the children of Ruben, and of Cad, and the half tribe of Manasses had built an altar in the land of Chanaan, upon the banks of the Jordan, over against the children of Israel:
12 At this news, the whole community of the Israelites mustered at Shiloh, to march against them andmake war on them.	12 They all assembled in Silo, to go up and fight against them.
13 The Israelites sent the priest Phinehas son of Eleazar to the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh, in Gilead,	13 And in the mean time they sent to them into the land of Galaad, Phinees the son of Eleazar the priest,
14 and with him ten leading men, one man from a leading family from each of the tribes of Israel, each ofthem being head of his family in the clans of Israel.	14 And ten princes with him, one of every tribe.
15 Having reached the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh in Gilead, they said this:	15 Who came to the children of Ruben, and of Gad, and the half tribe of Manasses, into the land of Galaad, and said to them:
16 'The whole community of Israel says as fol ows, "What do you mean by this infidelity, which you havecommitted against the God of Israel by now repudiating your al egiance to Yahweh, and by building yourselvesan altar with the intention now of rebel ing against Yahweh?	16 Thus saith all the people of the Lord: What meaneth this transgression? Why have you forsaken the Lord the God of Israel, building a sacrilegious altar, and revolting from the worship of him?
17 "Was the crime which we committed at Peor so slight -- although we have not managed to purifyourselves from that even now, in spite of the plague which has ravaged the community of Yahweh-	17 Is it a small thing to you that you sinned with Beelphegor, and the stain of that crime remaineth in us to this day? and many of the people perished.
18 that you must now repudiate your al egiance to Yahweh? For since you are in rebellion against himtoday, tomorrow his anger will be aroused against the whole community of Israel.	18 And you have forsaken the Lord to day, and to morrow his wrath will rage against all Israel.
19 "Is the country in which you have settled unclean? Then cross over into the country where Yahwehhas settled, there where Yahweh's Dwel ing now stands, and settle among us. But do not rebel against Yahwehor involve us in your rebel ion by building a rival altar to the altar of Yahweh our God.	19 But if you think the land of your possession to be unclean, pass over to the land wherein is the tabernacle of the Lord, and dwell among us: only depart not from the Lord, and from our society, by building an altar beside the altar of the Lord our God.
20 When Achan son of Zerah was unfaithful to the curse of destruction, did not the retribution comedown on the whole community of Israel, although he was only one man? Did he not have to die for his crime?" '	20 Did not Achan the son of Zare transgress the commandment of the Lord, and his wrath lay upon all the people of Israel? And he was but one man, and would to God he alone had perished in his wickedness.
21 The Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh spoke in their turn and answered theheads of the clans of Israel:	21 And the children of Ruben, and of Gad, and of the half tribe of Manasses answered the princes of the embassage of Israel:
22 'The God of gods, Yahweh, the God of gods, Yahweh wel knows, and let Israel know it too: if therehas been rebellion or infidelity to Yahweh on our part, may he refuse to save us today!	22 The Lord the most mighty God, the Lord the most mighty God, he knoweth, and Israel also shall understand: If with the design of transgression we have set up this altar, let him not save us, but punish us immediately:
23 And if we have built ourselves an altar with the intention of repudiating our al egiance to Yahweh andof presenting burnt offering and oblation or of offering communion sacrifices on it, may Yahweh himself call us to account for it!	23 And if we did it with that mind, that we might lay upon it holocausts, and sacrifice, and victims of peace offerings, let him require and judge:
24 The truth is, we have done this as a precaution: in the future, your descendants might say to ours,"What connection do you have with Yahweh, God of Israel?	24 And not rather with this thought and design, that we should say: To morrow your children will say to our children: What have you to do with the Lord the God of Israel?
25 Has not Yahweh set the frontier of the Jordan between us and you, you Reubenites and Gadites?You have no share in Yahweh." Thus, your descendants would be the cause of stopping ours from fearingYahweh.	25 The Lord hath put the river Jordan for a border between us and you, O ye children of Ruben, and ye children of Gad: and therefore you have no part in the Lord. And by this occasion you children shall turn away our children from the fear of the Lord. We therefore thought, it best,
26 'So we said to each other, "Let us build this altar, not for burnt offerings or other sacrifices	26 And said: Let us build us an altar, not for holocausts, nor to offer victims,
27 but as a witness between us and you and between our descendants after us, attesting that we toohave the right to worship Yahweh, in his presence, with our burnt offerings, our victims and our communionsacrifices. And so, in the future your descendants wil not be able to say to ours: You have no share in Yahweh."	27 But for a testimony between us and you, and our posterity and yours, that we may serve the Lord, and that we may have a right to offer both holocausts, and victims and sacrifices of peace offerings: and that your children to morrow may not say to our children: You have no part in the Lord.
28 And we furthermore said, "If ever it were to happen that they did say this either to us or to ourdescendants in the future, we should reply: Look at this structure, Yahweh's altar, made by our ancestors not forburnt offerings or other sacrifices but as a witness between us and you."	28 And if they will say so, they shall answer them: Behold the altar of the Lord, which our fathers made, not for holocausts, nor for sacrifice, but for a testimony between us and you.
29 Far be it from us to rebel against Yahweh or now to repudiate our allegiance to Yahweh by buildingan altar for burnt offerings or oblations or sacrifices, in rivalry with the altar of Yahweh our God that standsbefore his Dwel ing!'	29 God keep us from any such wickedness that we should revolt from the Lord, and leave off following his steps, by building an altar to offer holocausts, and sacrifices, and victims, beside the altar of the Lord our God, which is erected before his tabernacle.
30 When the priest Phinehas, the leaders of the community and the heads of the clans of Israel whowere with him, heard the words spoken by the Gadites, the Reubenites and the Manassehites, they approved ofthem.	30 And when Phinees the priest, and the princes of the embassage, who were with him, had heard this, they were satisfied: and they admitted most willingly the words of the children of Ruben, and Gad, and of the half tribe of Manasses.
31 The priest Phinehas son of Eleazar then said to the Reubenites, the Gadites and the Manassehites,'Today, we can see that Yahweh is among us, since you have not been unfaithful to Yahweh in this matter; thismeans that you have spared the Israelites from Yahweh's avenging hand.'	31 And Phinees the priest the son of Eleazar said to them: Now we know that the Lord is with us, because you are not guilty of this revolt, and you have delivered the children of Israel from the hand of the Lord.
32 The priest Phinehas son of Eleazar and the leaders left the Reubenites and the Gadites and wentback from Gilead to Canaan and the Israelites, to whom they reported the answer.	32 And he returned with the princes from the children of Ruben and Gad, out of the land of Galaad, into the land of Chanaan, to the children of Israel, and brought them word again.
33 The Israelites were pleased to hear this; the Israelites gave thanks to God and spoke no more ofmarching against them to make war on them and to ravage the country inhabited by the Reubenites and theGadites.	33 And the saying pleased all that heard it. And the children of Israel praised God, and they no longer said that they would go up against them, and fight, and destroy the land of their possession.
34 The Reubenites and the Gadites cal ed the altar . . . , 'Because', they said, 'it wil be a witnessbetween us that Yahweh is God.'	34 And the children of Ruben, and the children of Cad called the altar which they had built, Our testimony, that the Lord is God.