He told them, “Look, set an ambush behind the city. Don’t go very far from the city; all of you be ready!

Joshua said to the people, “Do you agree to be witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to worship the Lord?” They replied, “We are witnesses!”

But they said to Joshua, “We are willing to be your subjects.” So Joshua said to them, “Who are you and where do you come from?”

Joshua said, “Why have you brought disaster on us? The Lord will bring disaster on you today!” All Israel stoned him to death. (They also stoned and burned the others.)

He replaced them with their sons, whom Joshua circumcised. They were uncircumcised; their fathers had not circumcised them along the way.

But be careful when you are setting apart the riches for the Lord. If you take any of it, you will make the Israelite camp subject to annihilation and cause a disaster.

Now you are condemned to perpetual servitude as woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God.”

and told them: “You have carried out all the instructions of Moses the Lord’s servant, and you have obeyed all I have told you.

They went to the land of Gilead to the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, and said to them:

Now today you dare to turn back from following the Lord! You are rebelling today against the Lord; tomorrow he may break out in anger against the entire community of Israel.

The Lord your God will drive them out from before you and remove them, so you can occupy their land as the Lord your God promised you.

“Go through the camp and command the people, ‘Prepare your supplies, for within three days you will cross the Jordan River and begin the conquest of the land the Lord your God is ready to hand over to you.’”

So now, promise me this with an oath sworn in the Lord’s name. Because I have shown allegiance to you, show allegiance to my family. Give me a solemn pledge

Then Joshua said to them, “Don’t be afraid and don’t panic! Be strong and brave, for the Lord will do the same thing to all your enemies you fight.

So Joshua said to the Israelites: “How long do you intend to put off occupying the land the Lord God of your ancestors has given you?

I gave you a land in which you had not worked hard; you took up residence in cities you did not build and you are eating the produce of vineyards and olive groves you did not plant.’

Then Joshua and all Israel took Achan, son of Zerah, along with the silver, the robe, the bar of gold, his sons, daughters, ox, donkey, sheep, tent, and all that belonged to him and brought them up to the Valley of Disaster.

If you have no desire to worship the Lord, choose today whom you will worship, whether it be the gods whom your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. But I and my family will worship the Lord!”