24:14 Now 8 obey 9 the Lord and worship 10 him with integrity and loyalty. Put aside the gods your ancestors 11 worshiped 12 beyond the Euphrates 13 and in Egypt and worship 14 the Lord. 24:15 If you have no desire 15 to worship 16 the Lord, choose today whom you will worship, 17 whether it be the gods whom your ancestors 18 worshiped 19 beyond the Euphrates, 20 or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. But I and my family 21 will worship 22 the Lord!”
24:16 The people responded, “Far be it from us to abandon the Lord so we can 23 worship 24 other gods! 24:17 For the Lord our God took us and our fathers out of slavery 25 in the land of Egypt 26 and performed these awesome miracles 27 before our very eyes. He continually protected us as we traveled and when we passed through nations. 28 24:18 The Lord drove out from before us all the nations, including the Amorites who lived in the land. So we too will worship 29 the Lord, for he is our God!”
24:19 Joshua warned 30 the people, “You will not keep worshiping 31 the Lord, for 32 he is a holy God. 33 He is a jealous God who will not forgive 34 your rebellion or your sins. 24:20 If 35 you abandon the Lord and worship 36 foreign gods, he will turn against you; 37 he will bring disaster on you and destroy you, 38 though he once treated you well.” 39
24:21 The people said to Joshua, “No! We really will 40 worship 41 the Lord!” 24:22 Joshua said to the people, “Do you agree to be witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to worship the Lord?” 42 They replied, “We are witnesses!” 43 24:23 Joshua said, 44 “Now put aside the foreign gods that are among you and submit to 45 the Lord God of Israel.”
24:24 The people said to Joshua, “We will worship 46 the Lord our God and obey him.” 47
24:25 That day Joshua drew up an agreement 48 for the people, and he established rules and regulations 49 for them in Shechem.
1 map For location see Map5-B2; Map6-E1; Map7-E1; Map8-E3; Map10-A2; Map11-A1.
2 tn Or perhaps, “citizens.”
3 tn Traditionally, “the hornet” (so KJV, NKJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV) but the precise meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain (cf. NEB “panic”).
4 tn The LXX has “twelve,” apparently understanding this as a reference to Amorite kings west of the Jordan (see Josh 5:1, rather than the trans-Jordanian Amorite kings Sihon and Og (see Josh 2:10; 9:10).
5 tn Heb “and it drove them out from before you, the two kings of the Amorites, not by your sword and not by your bow.” The words “I gave you the victory” are supplied for clarification.
5 tn Or perhaps, “for.”
6 tn The words “the produce of” are supplied for clarification.
7 sn Joshua quotes the
8 tn Heb “fear.”
9 tn Or “and serve.”
10 tn Heb “your fathers.”
11 tn Or “served.”
12 tn Heb “the river,” referring to the Euphrates. This has been specified in the translation for clarity; see v. 3.
13 tn Or “and serve.”
9 tn Heb “if it is bad in your eyes.”
10 tn Or “to serve.”
11 tn Or “will serve.”
12 tn Heb “your fathers.”
13 tn Or “served.”
14 tn Heb “the river,” referring to the Euphrates. This has been specified in the translation for clarity; see v. 3.
15 tn Heb “house.”
16 tn Or “will serve.”
11 tn Heb “to.”
12 tn Or “can serve.”
13 tn Heb “of the house of slavery.”
14 tn Heb “for the
15 tn Or “great signs.”
16 tn Heb “and he guarded us in all the way in which we walked and among all the peoples through whose midst we passed.”
15 tn Or “will serve.”
17 tn Heb “said to.”
18 tn Heb “you are not able to serve.”
19 sn For an excellent discussion of Joshua’s logical argument here, see T. C. Butler, Joshua (WBC), 274-75.
20 tn In the Hebrew text both the divine name (אֱלֹהִים, ’elohim) and the adjective (קְדֹשִׁים, qÿdoshim, “holy”) are plural. Normally the divine name, when referring to the one true God, takes singular modifiers, but this is a rare exception where the adjective agrees grammatically with the honorific plural noun. See GKC §124.i and IBHS 122.
21 tn Heb “lift up” or “take away.”
19 tn Or “when.”
20 tn Or “and serve.”
21 tn The words “against you” are added for clarification.
22 tn Heb “bring you to an end.”
23 tn Heb “after he did good for you.”
21 tn The translation assumes that כִּי (ki) is emphatic. Another option is to take it as explanatory, “No, for we will….”
22 tn Or “will serve.”
23 tn Heb “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen for yourselves the
24 sn Like witnesses in a court of law, Israel’s solemn vow to worship the Lord will testify against them in the divine court if the nation ever violates its commitment.
25 tn The words “Joshua said” are supplied for clarification.
26 tn Heb “bend your heart toward.” The term לֵבָב (levav, “heart”) probably here refers to the people’s volition or will.
27 tn Or “will serve.”
28 tn Heb “and listen to his voice.”
29 tn Heb “cut a covenant.”
30 tn Heb “a statute and a judgment.”