Deuteronomy 31:7-8

31:7 Then Moses called out to Joshua ¹  in the presence of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you will accompany these people to the land that the Lord promised to give their ancestors, ²  and you will enable them to inherit it. 31:8 The Lord is indeed going before you – he will be with you; he will not fail you or abandon you. Do not be afraid or discouraged!”

Deuteronomy 31:14

The Commissioning of Joshua

31:14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “The day of your death is near. Summon Joshua and present yourselves in the tent ³  of meeting ⁴  so that I can commission him.” ⁵  So Moses and Joshua presented themselves in the tent of meeting.

Joshua 1:5-9

1:5 No one will be able to resist you ⁶  all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not abandon you or leave you alone. 1:6 Be strong and brave! You must lead these people in the conquest of this land that I solemnly promised their ancestors I would hand over to them. ⁷  1:7 Make sure you are ⁸  very strong and brave! Carefully obey ⁹  all the law my servant Moses charged you to keep! ¹⁰  Do not swerve from it to the right or to the left, so that you may be successful ¹¹  in all you do. ¹²  1:8 This law scroll must not leave your lips! ¹³  You must memorize it ¹⁴  day and night so you can carefully obey ¹⁵  all that is written in it. Then you will prosper ¹⁶  and be successful. ¹⁷  1:9 I repeat, ¹⁸  be strong and brave! Don’t be afraid and don’t panic, ¹⁹  for I, the Lord your God, am with you in all you do.” ²⁰ 

¹ tn The Hebrew text includes “and said to him.” This has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

² tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 20).

³ tc The LXX reads “by the door of the tent” in line with v. 10 but also, perhaps, as a reflection of its tendency to avoid over-familiarity with Yahweh and his transcendence.

⁴ tn Heb “tent of assembly” (מוֹעֵד אֹהֶל, ’ohel mo’ed); this is not always the same as the tabernacle, which is usually called מִשְׁכָּן (mishkan, “dwelling-place”), a reference to its being invested with God’s presence. The “tent of meeting” was erected earlier than the tabernacle and was the place where Yahweh occasionally appeared, especially to Moses (cf. Exod 18:7-16; 33:7-11; Num 11:16, 24, 26; 12:4).

⁵ tn Heb “I will command him.”

⁶ tn Heb “A man will not stand before you.” The second person pronouns in this verse are singular, indicating Joshua is the addressee.

⁷ tn Heb “For you will cause these people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give to them.” The pronoun “them” at the end of the verse refers to either the people or to the fathers.

⁸ tn Or “Only be.”

⁹ tn Heb “so you can be careful to do.” The use of the infinitive לִשְׁמֹר (lishmor, “to keep”) after the imperatives suggests that strength and bravery will be necessary for obedience. Another option is to take the form לִשְׁמֹר as a vocative lamed (ל) with imperative (see Isa 38:20 for an example of this construction), which could be translated, “Indeed, be careful!”

¹⁰ tn Heb “commanded you.”

¹¹ tn Heb “be wise,” but the word can mean “be successful” by metonymy.

¹² tn Heb “in all which you go.”

¹³ tn Heb “mouth.”

¹⁴ tn Heb “read it in undertones,” or “recite it quietly” (see HALOT 1:237).

¹⁵ tn Heb “be careful to do.”

¹⁶ tn Heb “you will make your way prosperous.”

¹⁷ tn Heb “and be wise,” but the word can mean “be successful” by metonymy.

¹⁸ tn Heb “Have I not commanded you?” The rhetorical question emphasizes the importance of the following command by reminding the listener that it is being repeated.

¹⁹ tn Or perhaps, “don’t get discouraged!”

²⁰ tn Heb “in all which you go.”