Joshua 22

NEW JERUSALEM	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 Joshua then summoned the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh	1 In the same time, Joshua called the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the one half tribe of Manasseh.
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 he said to them: “You have done all that Moses, the servant of the Lord, instructed 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 forsaken your brothers during this long time, even to the present day, keeping the orders 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, since the Lord your God has given your brothers peace and quiet, just as he promised: return, and go into your tents and into the land of your possession, which Moses, the servant of the Lord, delivered to 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 And may you continue to observe attentively, and to work to fulfill, the commandment and the law that Moses, the servant of the Lord, instructed to you, so that you may love the Lord your God, and walk in all his ways, and keep all his commandments, and cling 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 Joshua blessed them, and he sent them away. And they returned to their tents.
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 the one half tribe of Manasseh, Moses had given a possession in Bashan. And therefore, to the one half that was left over, Joshua gave a lot among the remainder of their brothers across the Jordan, in the western region. And when he had blessed them and dismissed them to their tents,
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: “Return to your settlements with much substance and wealth, with silver and gold, brass and iron, and a multitude of garments. Divide the spoils of your enemies with your brothers.”
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 And the sons of Reuben, and the sons of Gad, and the one half tribe of Manasseh returned, and they went away from the sons of Israel at Shiloh, which is situated in Canaan, so that they might enter into Gilead, the land of their possession, which they had obtained according to the order 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 had arrived at the hills of the Jordan in the land of Canaan, they built an altar of immense magnitude beside 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 sons of Israel had heard of it, and certain messengers had reported to them that the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of the one half tribe of Manasseh had built an altar in the land of Canaan, upon the hills of the Jordan, facing the sons 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 at Shiloh, so that they might go up and battle 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 interim, they sent to them, in the land of Gilead, Phinehas, 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 leaders with him, one from each tribe.
15 Having reached the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh in Gilead, they said this:	15 And they went to the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of the one half tribe of Manasseh, in the land of Gilead, and they 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 “All the people of the Lord declare this: What is this transgression? Why have you forsaken the Lord, the God of Israel, by building a sacrilegious altar, and by withdrawing 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 have sinned with Baal of Peor, and that the stain of that crime continues among us, even to the present day? And many of the people have fallen.
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 yet you have forsaken the Lord today, and tomorrow his wrath will rage against all of 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 consider the land of your possession to be unclean, cross over to the land in which is the tabernacle of the Lord, and live among us. But do not withdraw from the Lord, and from our fellowship, by building an altar contrary to 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 Zerah, go against the commandment of the Lord, and so his wrath was laid over all the people of Israel? And he was only one man. If only he had perished in his wickedness alone!”
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 sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of the one half tribe of Manasseh responded to the leaders of the delegation from 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 almighty God, the Lord, the almighty God, he knows, and also Israel will understand: If we have constructed this altar with intent of transgression, let him not preserve us, but instead 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 have acted with a mind so that we might present upon it holocausts, and sacrifice, and victims of peace offerings, let him inquire 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 Instead, we have acted with this greater thought and design, that we would say: Tomorrow your sons will say to our sons: ‘What is there between you and 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 has stationed the river Jordan as the border between us and you, O sons of Reuben, O sons of Gad. And therefore, you have no part in the Lord.’ And by this occasion, your sons would turn away our sons from the fear of the Lord. And so we sought something better,
26 'So we said to each other, "Let us build this altar, not for burnt offerings or other sacrifices	26 and we said: Let us build us an altar, not for holocausts, and not 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 as a testimony between us and you, and between our descendents and your progeny, so that we may serve the Lord, and so that it may be our right to offer holocausts, and victims, and peace offerings, and so that tomorrow your sons may not say to our sons: ‘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 decide to say this, they shall respond to them: ‘Behold, the altar of the Lord, which our fathers made, not for holocausts, and not for sacrifice, but instead as 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 May this wickedness be far from us, such that we would withdraw from the Lord, and would forsake his paths, by constructing an altar to offer holocausts, and sacrifices, and victims, contrary to the altar of the Lord our God, which was built 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 Phinehas, the priest, and the leaders of the delegation who were with him, had heard this, they were pleased. And they accepted very willingly the words of the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of the one half tribe of Manasseh.
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 Phinehas, the priest, the son of Eleazar, said to them: “Now we know that the Lord is with us. For you are a stranger to this transgression. And so you have freed the sons 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 leaders, from the sons of Reuben and of Gad, out of the land of Gilead, into the parts of Canaan, to the sons of Israel. And he reported to them.
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 word pleased all who heard it. And the sons 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 sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad called the altar that they had built: Our testimony that the Lord himself is God.