Joshua, 24

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.

1. Joshua summoned all the tribes of Israel in Shechem, and assembled the elders, leaders, judges and secretaries. And together they presented themselves before God.

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.

2. Addressing the people, Joshua said to them: "Yahweh, the God of Israel, commands me to say to you: Your ancestors lived beyond the Euphrates River - Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor - serving other gods.

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.

3. But I brought Abraham your father from beyond the Euphrates and led him through the whole land of Canaan. Then I gave him a son Isaac, that he might have numerous descendants.

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.

4. And to Isaac, I gave two sons: Esau and Jacob. Esau received the mountains of Seir as his inheritance, while Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt.

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.

5. Then I sent Moses and Aaron to punish Egypt in the way that you know, that you might leave.

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.

6. Then I brought your fathers out of Egypt and you came to the sea. The Egyptians pursued you with chariots and horses as far as the Red Sea.

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.

7. Then you cried to Yahweh, and he put immense darkness between you and the Egyptians. He made the sea go back on them and they were drowned. You have witnessed all the things he did in Egypt, and then you lived in the desert for a long time.

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.

8. Then I brought you to the land of the Amorites who were on the east of the Jordan. You fought them but it was I who gave them into your hand; you destroyed them and you seized their lands.

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:

9. Balak, the son of Zippor, king of Moab, declared war on Israel and commanded Balaam son of Beor to curse you.

10. But I would not hearken unto Balaam; therefore he blessed you still: so I delivered you out of his hand.

10. But I would not listen to him, so Balaam blessed you and I saved you from the hands of Balak.

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.

11. Then you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. And the landlords of Jericho fought against you: the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites and Jebusites declared war on you, but I gave them to you.

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.

12. The two Amorite kings fled from you because of the swarm of hornets that attacked them and not because of your sword and bow.

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.

13. I gave you lands which you have not tilled, cities which you did not build but in which you now live. I gave you vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant but from which you now eat.

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.

14. So fear Yahweh, and be sincere and faithful in serving him. Set aside those gods your fathers worshiped in Mesopotamia and Egypt. Serve only 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.

15. But if you do not want to serve Yahweh, make known this very day whom you shall serve - whether they be the gods your fathers served in Mesopotamia or the gods of the Amorites who formerly occupied the land in which you now live. As for me, I and my household will serve Yahweh."

16. And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;

16. The people answered: "May God not permit that we ever abandon Yahweh to serve other gods!

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:

17. For it was he who brought us and our fathers out of Egypt, the house of slavery. It was he who did those great wonders that we have seen; he protected us on the way and through all the land where we passed,

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.

18. driving away before us all the nations especially the Amorites who lived in this land. So we shall also serve Yahweh: he is our God!"

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.

19. Joshua asked the people: "Will you be able to serve Yahweh? He is a Holy God, a Jealous God who does not tolerate wickedness or faults.

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.

20. If you abandon Yahweh to serve other gods, he will turn against you and just as he has done you so much good, so shall he punish you and destroy you."

21. And the people said unto Joshua, Nay; but we will serve the LORD.

21. The people replied: "No, may it not be as you say. We will serve Yahweh."

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.

22. Joshua said: "You yourselves are witnesses that you have chosen Yahweh to serve him." They answered: "We are witnesses."

23. Now therefore put away, [said he], the strange gods which [are] among you, and incline your heart unto the LORD God of Israel.

23. Joshua then said, "Remove now from your midst any other gods and serve Yahweh, the God of Israel, with all your heart."

24. And the people said unto Joshua, The LORD our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey.

24. The people answered: "We will serve Yahweh, our God, and obey his commands."

25. So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and set them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem.

25. On that day at Shechem, Joshua made a covenant with the people and fixed laws and ordinances.

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.

26. He also wrote down everything expressed in the book of the Law of God; he chose a great stone and put it under the oak tree in the sacred place of Yahweh.

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.

27. Then Joshua said to the people: "This stone shall be a witness to all that Yahweh said to us, for it heard all these words. It shall be a witness against you, lest you deal falsely with Yahweh."

28. So Joshua let the people depart, every man unto his inheritance.

28. Joshua immediately sent the people away and everyone returned to his land.

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.

29. After all these deeds, Joshua, son of Nun and servant of Yahweh, died at the age of a hundred and ten.

30. And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnathserah, which [is] in mount Ephraim, on the north side of the hill of Gaash.

30. They buried him in his land at Timnath-serah, in the hill country of Ephraim, to the north of Mount Gaash.

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.

31. Israel served Yahweh throughout the whole life of Joshua and of the elders who outlived Joshua and who had witnessed all the wonders Yahweh did for Israel.

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.

32. The Israelites brought from Egypt the bones of Joseph. They buried them at Shechem in a place in the field which Jacob bought from the children of Hamor, the father of Shechem, for a hundred pieces of money. This became the possession of the children of Joseph.

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.

33. Eleazar the son of Aaron also died and they buried him on the hill given to his son Phinehas on the mountains of Ephraim.