Joshua 24

NEW JERUSALEM	KING JAMES BIBLE
1 Joshua gathered al the tribes of Israel together at Shechem; he then summoned al the elders ofIsrael, its leaders, judges and officials, and they presented themselves in God's presence.	1 And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God.
2 Joshua then said to al the people: 'Yahweh, the God of Israel, says this, "From time immemorial, yourancestors, Terah, father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the River, and served other gods.	2 And Joshua said unto all the people, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor: and they served other gods.
3 I then brought your ancestor Abraham from beyond the River and led him through the length andbreadth of Canaan. I increased his descendants and I gave him Isaac.	3 And I took your father Abraham from the other side of the flood, and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac.
4 To Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. To Esau I gave possession of the mountainous country of Seir.Jacob and his sons went down into Egypt.	4 And I gave unto Isaac Jacob and Esau: and I gave unto Esau mount Seir, to possess it; but Jacob and his children went down into Egypt.
5 I then sent Moses and Aaron, and plagued Egypt with the wonders that I worked there; final y I broughtyou out.	5 I sent Moses also and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt, according to that which I did among them: and afterward I brought you out.
6 I brought your ancestors out of Egypt, and you came to the Sea; the Egyptians pursued your ancestorswith chariots and horsemen, to the Sea of Reeds.	6 And I brought your fathers out of Egypt: and ye came unto the sea; and the Egyptians pursued after your fathers with chariots and horsemen unto the Red sea.
7 They then called to Yahweh, and he spread a thick fog between you and the Egyptians, and made thesea go back on them and cover them. You saw with your own eyes what I did in Egypt. Then, for a long while,you lived in the desert.	7 And when they cried unto the LORD, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them, and covered them; and your eyes have seen what I have done in Egypt: and ye dwelt in the wilderness a long season.
8 I then brought you into the country of the Amorites, who used to live on the further side of the Jordan;they made war on you and I put them at your mercy; after which, you took possession of their country, since Idestroyed them before you.	8 And I brought you into the land of the Amorites, which dwelt on the other side Jordan; and they fought with you: and I gave them into your hand, that ye might possess their land; and I destroyed them from before you.
9 Next, Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, rose to make war on Israel, and sent for Balaam son of Beorto come and curse you.	9 Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and warred against Israel, and sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you:
10 But I would not listen to Balaam; instead, he had to bless you, and I saved you from his power.	10 But I would not hearken unto Balaam; therefore he blessed you still: so I delivered you out of his hand.
11 "You then crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho, but the inhabitants of Jericho made war on you:Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites and Jebusites, and I put them al at your mercy.	11 And ye went over Jordan, and came unto Jericho: and the men of Jericho fought against you, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; and I delivered them into your hand.
12 I sent hornets ahead of you, which drove out the two Amorite kings before you; this was not the workof your sword or of your bow.	12 And I sent the hornet before you, which drave them out from before you, even the two kings of the Amorites; but not with thy sword, nor with thy bow.
13 And now I have given you a country for which you have not toiled, towns you have not built, althoughyou live in them, vineyards and olive groves you have not planted, although you eat their fruit."	13 And I have given you a land for which ye did not labour, and cities which ye built not, and ye dwell in them; of the vineyards and oliveyards which ye planted not do ye eat.
14 'So now, fear Yahweh and serve him truly and sincerely; banish the gods whom your ancestorsserved beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve Yahweh.	14 Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.
15 But if serving Yahweh seems a bad thing to you, today you must make up your minds whom you domean to serve, whether the gods whom your ancestors served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites inwhose country you are now living. As regards my family and me, we shal serve Yahweh.'	15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.
16 The people replied, 'Far be it from us to desert Yahweh and to serve other gods!	16 And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;
17 Yahweh our God was the one who brought us and our ancestors here from Egypt, from the place ofslave-labour, who worked those great wonders before our eyes and who kept us safe all along the way wetravel ed and among all the peoples through whom we passed.	17 For the LORD our God, he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and which did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the people through whom we passed:
18 And Yahweh has driven all the nations out for us, including the Amorites who used to live in thecountry. We too shal serve Yahweh, for he is our God.'	18 And the LORD drave out from before us all the people, even the Amorites which dwelt in the land: therefore will we also serve the LORD; for he is our God.
19 Joshua then said to the people, 'You will not be able to serve Yahweh, since he is a holy God, he is ajealous God who wil not tolerate either your misdeeds or your sins.	19 And Joshua said unto the people, Ye cannot serve the LORD: for he is an holy God; he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins.
20 If you desert Yahweh and serve the foreigners' gods, he will turn and maltreat you anew and, in spiteof having been good to you in the past, wil destroy you.'	20 If ye forsake the LORD, and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you, after that he hath done you good.
21 The people replied to Joshua, 'No! Yahweh is the one we mean to serve.'	21 And the people said unto Joshua, Nay; but we will serve the LORD.
22 Joshua then said to the people, 'You are witnesses to yourselves that you have chosen Yahweh, toserve him.' They replied, 'Witnesses we are!'	22 And Joshua said unto the people, Ye are witnesses against yourselves that ye have chosen you the LORD, to serve him. And they said, We are witnesses.
23 'Then banish the foreign gods which you have with you and give your al egiance to Yahweh, God ofIsrael!'	23 Now therefore put away, said he, the strange gods which are among you, and incline your heart unto the LORD God of Israel.
24 The people replied to Joshua, 'Yahweh our God is the one whom we shall serve; his voice we shalobey!'	24 And the people said unto Joshua, The LORD our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey.
25 That day Joshua made a covenant for the people; he laid down a statute and ordinance for them atShechem.	25 So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and set them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem.
26 Joshua wrote these words in the Book of the Law of God. He then took a large stone and set it upthere, under the oak tree in Yahweh's sanctuary.	26 And Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God, and took a great stone, and set it up there under an oak, that was by the sanctuary of the LORD.
27 Joshua then said to all the people, 'Look, this stone will be a witness to us, since it has heard al thewords that Yahweh has spoken to us: it wil be a witness against you, in case you should deny your God.'	27 And Joshua said unto all the people, Behold, this stone shall be a witness unto us; for it hath heard all the words of the LORD which he spake unto us: it shall be therefore a witness unto you, lest ye deny your God.
28 Joshua then dismissed the people, every one to his own heritage.	28 So Joshua let the people depart, every man unto his inheritance.
29 After this, Joshua son of Nun, servant of Yahweh, died; he was a hundred and ten years old.	29 And it came to pass after these things, that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being an hundred and ten years old.
30 He was buried on the estate which he had received as his heritage, at Timnath-Serah which lies inthe highlands of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.	30 And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnath-serah, which is in mount Ephraim, on the north side of the hill of Gaash.
31 Israel served Yahweh throughout the lifetime of Joshua and throughout the lifetime of those elderswho outlived Joshua and had known al the deeds which Yahweh had done for the sake of Israel.	31 And Israel served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that overlived Joshua, and which had known all the works of the LORD, that he had done for Israel.
32 As regards the bones of Joseph, which the Israelites had brought from Egypt, these were buried atShechem in the plot of ground which Jacob had bought for a hundred pieces of silver from the sons of Hamorfather of Shechem, and which had become the heritage of the sons of Joseph.	32 And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for an hundred pieces of silver: and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph.
33 Eleazar son of Aaron then died and was buried at Gibeah, the town of his son Phinehas, which hadbeen given to him in the highlands of Ephraim.	33 And Eleazar the son of Aaron died; and they buried him in a hill that pertained to Phinehas his son, which was given him in mount Ephraim.