Joshua Chapter 24
Covenant Renewed at Shechem
1 Then Joshua gathered the tribes to Shechem with their elders, heads, judges, and officers. They presented themselves to God. 2 Joshua said,
“Yahveh God of Israel, says, ‘Your ancestors lived beyond the Euphrates River. Nahor and Terah, Abraham’s father, served other gods. 3 I led Abraham from there all over Canaan and multiplied his offspring. I gave him Isaac, 4 and gave Isaac Jacob and Esau. I gave Esau the hill country of Seir, but Jacob and his descendants went down to Egypt. 5 I sent Moses and Aaron, and plagued Egypt in its own land. 6 Afterwards I brought you out of there. You came to the Red Sea, and the Egyptians chased you with chariots and cavalry to the sea. 7 When you cried out to me, I put darkness between you and them, and made the sea cover them. You saw that and lived a long time in the desert. 8 Then I brought you to Amorite country east of the Jordan. They fought you, and I destroyed them in front of you. You took their land. 9 Then Balak Ben-Zippor, king of Moab, rose up to oppose you. He sent for Balaam Ben-Beor and invited him to curse you. 10 But I wouldn’t listen to Balaam. So he blessed you, and I delivered you from him. 11 You crossed the Jordan to Jericho, and the people in Jericho fought you as did the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and Jebusites. I gave them to you. 12 I sent hornets to drive out the two Amorite kings. Your sword and bow didn’t do it. 13 I gave you a land you hadn’t worked and towns you didn’t build, and you lived in them. You’re eating the fruit from vineyards and olive orchards you didn’t plant.’ Josh 24:1-13
14 “Now then, respect Yahveh, serve him sincerely and faithfully. Put away the gods your ancestors served beyond the River and in Egypt. 15 If you won’t serve him, choose today who you will serve: the gods of your ancestors beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites where you’re living. My house and I will serve Yahveh.”
16The people answered,
“We’ll never leave Yahveh and serve other gods. 17 He’s the one that brought us and our ancestors out of slavery in Egypt. He did those great signs for us and preserved us all the way among the nations we passed through. 18 He drove the Amorites out of the land, so we’ll serve Yahveh. He’s our God.”
19 But Joshua told the people,
“You can’t serve Yahveh, a holy, exclusive God that won’t forgive your sins. 20 If you serve foreign gods, he’ll consume you, after doing you good.”
21 “No! We’ll serve Yahveh.”
22 “You’re witnesses to yourselves that you’ve chosen to serve Yahveh.”
“We’re witnesses.”
23 “Then put away your foreign gods. Incline your heart to Yahveh God of Israel.”
24 “We’ll serve Yahveh our God and obey him.”
Josh 24:14-24
25 Joshua made a covenant with them that day at Shechem, with a statute and an ordinance 26 that he wrote in the Law of God. He set up a large stone there under the oak in Yahveh’s sanctuary. 27 He told the people,
“This stone will testify against us. It has heard everything Yahveh told us. It’ll testify against you so you won’t deal falsely with him.”
28 Joshua sent everybody home to their inheritance.
Leaders Buried in the Promised Land
29 After that, Joshua died at 110. 30 They buried him in his inheritance at Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim north of Mount Gaash. 31 Israel served Yahveh all his life and the lives of the elders that outlived him and knew what Yahveh had done for Israel.
32 The Israelites had brought up Joseph’s bones from Egypt and buried them at Shechem in the piece of ground Jacob bought from the descendants of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for 100 pieces of money. It became an inheritance for Joseph’s descendants.
33 Eleazar, Aaron’s son, died, and they buried him at Gibeah, the town of Phinehas his son, which had been given to him in the hill country of Ephraim.
Josh 24:25-33