*Joshua 24:1-31
Joshua challenges the Israelites to renew their covenant with God after reminding them of his past blessings and victories.
- Joshua’s Gathering of the Tribes:
- Joshua assembles all the tribes of Israel at Shechem, summoning the elders, leaders, judges, and officials to present themselves before God.
- He recounts the history of God’s faithfulness to the Israelites, from the time of Abraham and Terah’s worship of other gods to the conquest of Canaan under Joshua’s leadership.
- God’s Intervention in History:
- Joshua reminds the Israelites of God’s miraculous interventions on their behalf, including the deliverance from slavery in Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, and the defeat of their enemies.
- He emphasizes that it was God who drove out the nations before them and gave them possession of the land, fulfilling His promise to Abraham.
- Call to Choose Whom to Serve:
- Joshua challenges the Israelites to choose whom they will serve—whether the gods their ancestors served beyond the Euphrates or the Lord, who brought them out of Egypt and gave them the land of Canaan.
- He declares his allegiance to the Lord, urging the people to fear Him and serve Him faithfully and sincerely.
- Israel’s Response:
- The people respond affirmatively, affirming their commitment to serving the Lord and forsaking other gods, acknowledging His power and faithfulness.
- They recount how God performed mighty deeds on their behalf, reaffirming their dedication to obeying His commands.
- Covenant Renewal:
- Joshua establishes a covenant and writes down the words of the covenant in the Book of the Law of God.
- He erects a stone as a witness to the covenant, symbolizing the people’s commitment to serving the Lord and obeying His commands.
- Joshua’s Death and Burial:
- Joshua dies at the age of 110, having served the Lord faithfully throughout his life.
- He is buried in the land of his inheritance at Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim, where he had led the Israelites in the conquest of Canaan.
24:1 And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God.
24:2 And Joshua said unto all the people, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor: and they served other gods.
24:3 And I took your father Abraham from the other side of the flood, and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac.
24:4 And I gave unto Isaac Jacob and Esau: and I gave unto Esau mount Seir, to possess it; but Jacob and his children went down into Egypt.
24:5 I sent Moses also and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt, according to that which I did among them: and afterward I brought you out.
24:6 And I brought your fathers out of Egypt: and ye came unto the sea; and the Egyptians pursued after your fathers with chariots and horsemen unto the Red sea.
24:7 And when they cried unto the LORD, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them, and covered them; and your eyes have seen what I have done in Egypt: and ye dwelt in the wilderness a long season.
24:8 And I brought you into the land of the Amorites, which dwelt on the other side Jordan; and they fought with you: and I gave them into your hand, that ye might possess their land; and I destroyed them from before you.
24:9 Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and warred against Israel, and sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you: 24:10 But I would not hearken unto Balaam; therefore he blessed you still: so I delivered you out of his hand.
24:11 And you went over Jordan, and came unto Jericho: and the men of Jericho fought against you, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; and I delivered them into your hand.
24:12 And I sent the hornet before you, which drave them out from before you, even the two kings of the Amorites; but not with thy sword, nor with thy bow.
24:13 And I have given you a land for which ye did not labour, and cities which ye built not, and ye dwell in them; of the vineyards and oliveyards which ye planted not do ye eat.
24:14 Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.
24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.
24:16 And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods; 24:17 For the LORD our God, he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and which did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the people through whom we passed: 24:18 And the LORD drave out from before us all the people, even the Amorites which dwelt in the land: therefore will we also serve the LORD; for he is our God.
24:19 And Joshua said unto the people, Ye cannot serve the LORD: for he is an holy God; he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins.
24:20 If ye forsake the LORD, and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you, after that he hath done you good.
24:21 And the people said unto Joshua, Nay; but we will serve the LORD.
24:22 And Joshua said unto the people, Ye are witnesses against yourselves that ye have chosen you the LORD, to serve him. And they said, We are witnesses.
24:23 Now therefore put away, said he, the strange gods which are among you, and incline your heart unto the LORD God of Israel.
24:24 And the people said unto Joshua, The LORD our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey.
24:25 So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and set them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem.
24:26 And Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God, and took a great stone, and set it up there under an oak, that was by the sanctuary of the LORD.
24:27 And Joshua said unto all the people, Behold, this stone shall be a witness unto us; for it hath heard all the words of the LORD which he spake unto us: it shall be therefore a witness unto you, lest ye deny your God.
24:28 So Joshua let the people depart, every man unto his inheritance.
24:29 And it came to pass after these things, that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being an hundred and ten years old.
24:30 And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnathserah, which is in mount Ephraim, on the north side of the hill of Gaash.
24:31 And Israel served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that overlived Joshua, and which had known all the works of the LORD, that he had done for Israel.