Joshua 22–23

Chapter 22

¹Then Joshua called the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh, ²and said unto them, Ye have kept all that Moses the servant of Jehovah commanded you, and have hearkened to my voice in all that I commanded you. ³Ye have not left your brethren these many days unto this day, and ye have kept the charge of the commandment of Jehovah your God. ⁴And now Jehovah your God hath given rest to your brethren, as he said unto them; and now return, and get you unto your tents, unto the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of Jehovah gave you beyond the Jordan. ⁵Only, take great heed to do the commandment and the law, which Moses the servant of Jehovah commanded you, to love Jehovah your God, and to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave unto him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul. ⁶And Joshua blessed them, and sent them away; and they went to their tents. ⁷And to half the tribe of Manasseh Moses had given inheritance in Bashan, and to the other half thereof had Joshua given among their brethren on this side the Jordan westward. And when Joshua sent them away to their tents, he blessed them also, ⁸and spoke to them, saying, Return unto your tents with much wealth and with very much cattle, with silver, and with gold, and with copper, and with iron, and with clothing, in very great quantity; divide the spoil of your enemies with your brethren. ⁹And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh returned, and departed from the children of Israel out of Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go to the country of Gilead, into the land of their possession, of which they had become possessed, according to the word of Jehovah through Moses.

¹⁰And they came to the districts of the Jordan that are in the land of Canaan; and the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh built there an altar by the Jordan, an altar of grand appearance. ¹¹And the children of Israel heard say, Behold, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh have built an altar over against the land of Canaan, in the districts of the Jordan, separately from the children of Israel. ¹²And when the children of Israel heard of it, the whole assembly of the children of Israel gathered together at Shiloh, to go up against them to war. ¹³And the children of Israel sent to the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, into the land of Gilead, Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, ¹⁴and with him ten princes, of each father’s house a prince, out of all the tribes of Israel; and each of them was head of a father’s house, of the thousands of Israel. ¹⁵And they came to the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, to the land of Gilead, and spoke with them, saying, ¹⁶Thus saith the whole assembly of Jehovah: What wickedness is this which ye have committed against the God of Israel, to turn away this day from following Jehovah, in that ye have built yourselves an altar, rebelling this day against Jehovah? ¹⁷Is the iniquity of Peor too little for us? from which we are not cleansed until this day, although there was a plague in the assembly of Jehovah. ¹⁸And ye turn away this day from following Jehovah; and it will be, that since ye rebel this day against Jehovah, to-morrow he will be wroth with the whole assembly of Israel. ¹⁹Notwithstanding, if the land of your possession is unclean, come over into the land of the possession of Jehovah, where Jehovah’s tabernacle dwelleth, and take possession amongst us; but rebel not against Jehovah, and rebel not against us, in building for yourselves an altar besides the altar of Jehovah our God. ²⁰Did not Achan the son of Zerah commit a trespass in the accursed thing? and wrath fell on all the assembly of Israel, and he perished not alone in his iniquity.

²¹And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh answered and said to the heads of the thousands of Israel, ²²The •God of gods, Jehovah, the •God of gods, Jehovah, he knoweth, and Israel he shall know it; if it is in rebellion, or if in trespass against Jehovah, —save us not this day! ²³—that we have built for ourselves an altar to turn from following Jehovah, and if it is to offer up burnt-offering and oblation on it, and if to offer peace-offerings thereon, let Jehovah himself require it from us; ²⁴and if we have not done it from fear of this thing, saying, In future your children will speak to our children, saying, What have ye to do with Jehovah the God of Israel? ²⁵Jehovah hath made the Jordan a border between us and you, ye children of Reuben and children of Gad, ye have no portion in Jehovah! And so shall your children make our children cease from fearing Jehovah. ²⁶And we said, Let us now set to work to build an altar, not for burnt-offering, nor for sacrifice, ²⁷but to be a witness between us and you, and between our generations after us, that we might do service to Jehovah before him with our burnt-offerings, and with our sacrifices, and with our peace-offerings; that your children may not say to our children in future, Ye have no portion in Jehovah. ²⁸And we said, If it shall be that in future they so say to us and to our generations, we will say, Behold the pattern of the altar of Jehovah which our fathers made, not for burnt-offering, nor for sacrifice, but as a witness between us and you. ²⁹Far be it from us that we should rebel against Jehovah, and turn this day from following Jehovah, in building an altar for burnt-offering, for oblation, and for sacrifice, besides the altar of Jehovah our God that is before his tabernacle.

³⁰And when Phinehas the priest and the princes of the assembly and the heads of the thousands of Israel that were with him heard the words that the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the children of Manasseh spoke, it was good in their sight. ³¹And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest said unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the children of Manasseh, This day we perceive that Jehovah is among us, because ye have not committed this trespass against Jehovah: now have ye delivered the children of Israel out of the hand of Jehovah. ³²And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, and the princes, returned from the children of Reuben, and from the children of Gad, out of the land of Gilead, to the land of Canaan, to the children of Israel, and brought them word again. ³³And the thing was good in the sight of the children of Israel, and the children of Israel blessed God, and no more said that they would go up in warfare against them, to destroy the land in which the children of Reuben and the children of Gad dwelt. ³⁴And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad gave a name to the altar; for it is a witness between us that Jehovah is God.

Chapter 23

¹And it came to pass a long time after that Jehovah had given rest to Israel from all their enemies round about, and Joshua had become old, advanced in age, ²that Joshua called for all Israel, for their elders, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers, and said unto them, I am become old, advanced in age; ³and ye have seen all that Jehovah your God hath done to all these nations because of you. For Jehovah your God is he that hath fought for you. ⁴Behold, I have divided unto you by lot for an inheritance, according to your tribes, these nations that remain, from the Jordan, as well as all the nations that I have cut off, as far as the great sea toward the sun-setting. ⁵And Jehovah your God, he will expel them from before you, and dispossess them from out of your sight; and ye shall take possession of their land, as Jehovah your God hath said unto you. ⁶And be ye very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, that ye turn not aside therefrom to the right hand or to the left; ⁷that ye enter not among these nations, these that remain among you; and ye shall make no mention of the name of their gods, nor cause to swear by them, neither serve them, nor bow yourselves unto them; ⁸but ye shall cleave unto Jehovah your God, as ye have done unto this day. ⁹For Jehovah hath dispossessed from before you great and strong nations; and as to you, no man hath been able to stand before you unto this day. ¹⁰One man of you chaseth a thousand; for Jehovah your God, he it is that fighteth for you, as he hath said unto you.

¹¹Take great heed therefore unto your souls, that ye love Jehovah your God. ¹²For if ye in any wise go back, and cleave unto the residue of these nations, these that remain among you, and make marriages with them, and come in unto them and they unto you: ¹³know for a certainty that Jehovah your God will no more dispossess these nations from before you, and they shall be snares and traps unto you, and scourges in your sides, and thorns in your eyes, until ye perish from off this good land which Jehovah your God hath given you. ¹⁴And behold, I am going this day the way of all the earth; and ye know in all your heart, and in all your soul, that not one thing hath failed of all the good words that Jehovah your God hath spoken concerning you: all are come to pass unto you—not one thing hath failed thereof. ¹⁵But it shall come to pass, that as every good word hath been fulfilled to you, that Jehovah your God spoke to you, so will Jehovah bring upon you every evil word, until he have destroyed you from off this good land which Jehovah your God hath given you; ¹⁶when ye transgress the covenant of Jehovah your God which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods, and bow yourselves unto them, so that the anger of Jehovah shall be kindled against you, and ye shall perish quickly from off the good land which he hath given unto you.