Joshua 24

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.

Joshua summoned all the clans of Israel to Shechem, including their elders, leaders, judges, and officials. They all stood in the presence of God, filled with a sense of awe and reverence.

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.

Joshua passionately addressed everyone, "The Lord, our God, reminds us that our ancestors, including Terah, Abraham's father, lived across the river long ago, worshipping different gods."

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.

I took your forefather Abraham from beyond the river and guided him through the expanse of Canaan. I blessed him with countless descendants, beginning with his son Isaac.

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.

I blessed Isaac with two sons, Jacob and Esau. I gifted Esau with the ownership of Mount Seir, while Jacob and his descendants journeyed to Egypt.

I sent Moses also and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt, according to that which I did among them: and afterward I brought you out.

I sent Moses and Aaron, struck Egypt with plagues by what I did there, and then I led you out.

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.

I guided your ancestors out of Egypt, leading them to the sea. But the Egyptians chased them, with their chariots and horsemen, right up to the Red Sea.

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.

When they pleaded with God, He shielded you from the Egyptians with a veil of darkness and unleashed the sea upon them. You witnessed His power in Egypt and lived in the wilderness for a long time.

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.

I led you to the Amorite's territory, across the Jordan. They resisted, but I handed them over to you. You claimed their land as your own, and I wiped them out for you.

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:

Balak, Moab's king, fueled by anger and fear, waged war against Israel. Desperate, he summoned Balaam to cast a curse upon you.

But I would not hearken unto Balaam; therefore he blessed you still: so I delivered you out of his hand.

Despite Balaam's attempts, I didn't listen to him. Instead, he continued to bless you. So, I saved you from his grasp.

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.

You crossed the Jordan, reaching Jericho. There, you battled Jericho's men and tribes like the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and Jebusites. Yet, I ensured your victory.

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.

I cleared your path with a swarm of hornets, chasing away your enemies, including the two Amorite kings. It wasn't your sword or bow that did it, but my divine intervention.

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.

I've gifted you a land you didn't toil for, cities you didn't construct, yet you live in them. You enjoy the fruits of vineyards and olive groves you didn't plant.

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.

Respect and love God wholeheartedly, be honest and true in your service to Him. Let go of the false idols your ancestors worshipped, and devote yourself fully to God.

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.

If you feel it's wrong to serve God, decide today who you'll follow - the gods your ancestors worshipped, or the gods of the people whose land you live in. But for me and my family, we choose to serve God.

And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;

The people passionately responded, "May God never allow us to abandon Him for other gods!"

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:

Our God, the LORD, is the one who freed us and our ancestors from the chains of Egypt. He performed incredible miracles before our eyes and protected us on our journey, even among those we encountered.

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.

With immense power, God drove out all the nations before us, including the Amorites who lived in the land. In gratitude and reverence, we pledge to serve Him, for He is our God.

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.

Joshua warned the people, "You are not able to serve the Lord, for He is a holy God; He is a jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion or your sins."

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.

If you abandon God and follow foreign gods, He will turn against you, bring disaster on you, and destroy you, even after He has been good to you.

And the people said unto Joshua, Nay; but we will serve the LORD.

The people passionately declared to Joshua, "No, we choose to faithfully serve the Lord."

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.

Joshua looked at the people and said, "Remember, you've chosen to serve the Lord. You're your own witnesses." They responded, "Yes, we are witnesses."

Now therefore put away, said he, the strange gods which are among you, and incline your heart unto the LORD God of Israel.

He urged, "Get rid of the foreign gods that are among you, and open your heart to the loving God of Israel."

And the people said unto Joshua, The LORD our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey.

The people passionately assured Joshua, "We will faithfully serve our God, and dutifully heed His call."

So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and set them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem.

That day, Joshua passionately forged a sacred agreement with the people, establishing a guiding law for them in Shechem.

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.

Joshua, filled with reverence, etched these sacred words into God's law book. He then placed a large stone beneath a nearby oak tree, standing tall by the Lord's sanctuary.

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.

Joshua passionately told everyone, "Look at this stone, it's our reminder. It has 'heard' everything God has told us. It will stand as proof, so none of you can ever forget or deny God."

So Joshua let the people depart, every man unto his inheritance.

With a heavy heart, Joshua released the people, each returning to their own cherished homes.

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.

After all that had happened, Joshua, Nun's son and God's faithful servant, passed away peacefully at the ripe age of 110.

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.

They laid him to rest in the land he had inherited, at Timnathserah in the hill country of Ephraim, just north of Gaash's hill.

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.

Throughout Joshua's life and even after, Israel remained faithful to God. The elders who outlived Joshua, who had witnessed God's miracles for Israel, also continued to serve the Lord.

And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for an hundred pieces of silver: and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph.

The children of Israel carried Joseph's bones from Egypt and laid them to rest in Shechem, on a piece of land Jacob had bought from Hamor's sons for a hundred silver pieces. This land then became the cherished inheritance of Joseph's descendants.

And Eleazar the son of Aaron died; and they buried him in a hill that pertained to Phinehas his son, which was given him in mount Ephraim.

Eleazar, Aaron's son, passed away. They laid him to rest on a hill, a gift to his son Phinehas, located in Mount Ephraim.