Joshua Chapter 1
Preparations for the conquest
1 After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord spoke to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, saying,
2 “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to the Israelites.
3 I will give you every place where you set your foot, just as I promised Moses.
4 Your territory will extend from the desert and Lebanon to the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—and to the Mediterranean Sea in the west.
5 No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.
6 Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them.
7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that my servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go.
8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.
10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying,
11 “ Go through the camp and command the people, saying, ‘Prepare provisions for yourselves, for within three days you will cross the Jordan to go in to possess the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess.’”
12 Joshua also spoke to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, saying,
13 “Remember the word that Moses, the servant of the Lord, commanded you, saying, ‘The Lord your God has given you rest, and has given you this land.’”
14 Your wives, your children, and your livestock shall remain in the land that Moses has given you on this side of the Jordan. But all you mighty warriors shall cross over armed before your brothers and help them,
15 until the Lord has given rest to your brothers as to you, and they too possess the land that the Lord your God is giving them. Then you shall return to the land of your inheritance, which Moses the servant of the Lord has given you on this side of the Jordan toward the sunrise, and you shall take possession of it.
16 Then they answered Joshua, saying, “We will do everything you have commanded us, and we will go wherever you send us.
17 Just as we obeyed Moses in all things, so we will obey you; only may the Lord your God be with you, as he was with Moses.
18 Whoever rebels against your command and does not obey your words in all that you command him, let him be put to death; only be strong and courageous.”
Joshua Chapter 2
Joshua sends spies to Jericho
1 Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim, telling them, “Go, look over the land, especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.
2 The king of Jericho was told, “Some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.”
3 Then the king of Jericho sent word to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, for they have come to spy out the whole land.”
4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Some men came to me, but I didn’t know where they were from.
5 Just as the door was about to be shut at night, the men left, and I don’t know where they went. Pursue them quickly, and you will overtake them.”
6 But she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them among the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof.
7 The men pursued them along the road to the Jordan, as far as the fords, and the gate was shut after the pursuers had gone out.
8 Before they lay down, she went up to the roof and said to them,
9 “I know that the Lord has given you this land, for the fear of you has fallen on us, and all the inhabitants of the land have melted away because of you.
10 For we have heard how the Lord dried up the waters of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two Amorite kings who were on the other side of the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed.
11 When we heard these things, our hearts melted, and no one’s courage remained because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath.”
12 Now therefore, I beg you, swear to me by the Lord that, as I have shown kindness to you, you will also show kindness to my father’s house, and give me a sure sign of this:
13 that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and that you will deliver us from death.
14 They answered her, “Our lives for yours, if you do not betray this matter of ours; and when the Lord has given us the land, we will deal kindly and faithfully with you.”
15 Then she let them down by a rope through the window, for her house was in the city wall, and she lived in the wall.
16 And she said to them, “Go up into the mountains, so that those who are pursuing you will not find you, and hide there for three days, until those who are pursuing you have returned; then you may go on your way.”
17 They said to her, “We will be released from this oath you have made us swear.
18 When we enter the land, you must tie this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and gather into your house your father and mother, your brothers, and all your father’s household.
19 Anyone who goes outside the doors of your house will be responsible for their own blood, and we will be innocent. But anyone who is with you in the house will be responsible for our blood if a hand is laid on them.
20 If you betray this matter, we will be released from this oath you have made us swear.”
21 She replied, “Let it be as you have said.” Then she sent them away, and they departed, and she tied the scarlet cord in the window.
22 They traveled on and came to the mountains and stayed there three days, until their pursuers returned. And those who pursued them searched all the way, but did not find them.
23 Then the two men returned; they came down from the mountain and crossed over, and came to Joshua son of Nun, and told him all the things that had happened to them.
24 And they said to Joshua, “The Lord has delivered the whole land into our hands, and all the inhabitants of the land are fainthearted before us.”
Joshua Chapter 3
Crossing the Jordan
1 Early the next morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and came to the Jordan River, where they camped before crossing over.
2 After three days the officers went through the camp
3 and commanded the people, saying, “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God and the Levitical priests carrying it, you shall set out from your places and follow it,
4 so that you may know the way you are to go, since you have not traveled this way before. But keep a distance of about two thousand cubits between you and the ark; do not come near it.”
5 Joshua said to the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.”
6 Then Joshua said to the priests, “Take up the ark of the covenant and go on ahead of the people.” So they took up the ark of the covenant and went on ahead of the people.
7 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “From this day forward I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, so that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.
8 You are to command the priests who carry the ark of the covenant, saying, ‘When you have come to the edge of the Jordan, stand still in the Jordan.’”
9 So Joshua said to the Israelites, “Come near and listen to the words of the Lord your God.”
10 Joshua added, “By this you will know that the living God is among you and that he will drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites.
11 See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go before you into the Jordan.
12 Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe.”
13 And when the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, touch the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan will be divided; for the waters that come down from upstream will stand still in a heap.
14 And it came to pass, when the people set out from their tents to cross the Jordan, with the priests before the people bearing the ark of the covenant,
15 When those who carried the ark entered the Jordan, and the feet of the priests who carried the ark were dipped in the water’s edge (for the Jordan overflows all its banks during harvest time),
16 the waters flowing down from upstream stood still in a heap at a great distance from Adam, the city by Zarethan, and those flowing down toward the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, stopped and were divided. So the people crossed over toward Jericho.
17 But the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan until all the people had finished crossing the Jordan, and all Israel crossed over on dry ground.
Joshua Chapter 4
The twelve stones taken from the Jordan
1 When all the people had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying,
2 “ Choose twelve men from the people, one from each tribe,
3 and command them, saying, ‘Take twelve stones from here, from the middle of the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet stood firm, and carry them over with you, and set them down in the place where you will camp tonight.’”
4 So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had chosen from the Israelites, one from each tribe.
5 And Joshua said to them, “Go over before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites,
6 so that this will be a sign among you. In time to come, when your children ask their parents, ‘What do these stones mean?’
7 you shall tell them, ‘The waters of the Jordan were divided before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; When she crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were divided; and these stones will serve as a memorial to the Israelites forever.
8 The Israelites did as Joshua had commanded them: They took twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, as the Lord had told Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of Israel, and carried them over to the place where they camped and set them up there.
9 Joshua also set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan, where the feet of the priests who carried the ark of the covenant had stood; and they have been there to this day.
10 The priests who carried the ark stood in the middle of the Jordan until everything the Lord had commanded Joshua to tell the people was done, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua; then the people hurried across.
11 When all the people had finished crossing over, the ark of the Lord and the priests also crossed over in the sight of the people.
12 The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh also crossed over armed before the Israelites, just as Moses had instructed them.
13 About forty thousand armed men, ready for battle, crossed over before the Lord to the plain of Jericho.
14 On that day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they revered him, just as they had revered Moses, all the days of his life.
15 Then the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying,
16 “Command the priests who carry the ark of the covenant law to come up out of the Jordan.”
17 Then Joshua commanded the priests, saying, “Come up out of the Jordan.”
18 And it came to pass, when the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord came up out of the midst of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet touched dry ground, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place, flowing as before over all its banks.
19 So the people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped at Gilgal, east of Jericho.
20 And Joshua set up at Gilgal the twelve stones which they had taken out of the Jordan.
21 And he spoke to the children of Israel, saying, “When in time your children ask their fathers, and say, ‘What do these stones mean?’
22 then you shall tell your children, saying, ‘Israel crossed this Jordan on dry ground.’”
23 For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, just as the Lord your God had done at the Red Sea, which he dried up before us until we had crossed over;
24 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, and so that you may fear the Lord your God always.
Joshua Chapter 5
Circumcision and Passover at Gilgal
1 When all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the coast heard how the Lord had dried up the Jordan before the Israelites until they had crossed over, their hearts melted, and they no longer dared to face the Israelites.
2 At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make sharp knives and circumcise the Israelites again.”
3 So Joshua made sharp knives and circumcised the Israelites at the hill of Araloth.
4 Now this is why Joshua circumcised them: All the men who had come out of Egypt, all the fighting men, had died in the wilderness along the way after they left Egypt.
5 All the people who had come out were circumcised; But all the people who were born in the wilderness along the way, after they had come out of Egypt, were not circumcised.
6 For the Israelites wandered in the wilderness forty years, until all the fighting men who had come out of Egypt were consumed, because they did not obey the voice of the Lord. Therefore the Lord swore to them that he would not let them see the land which the Lord had sworn to their ancestors to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey.
7 Joshua circumcised their sons, whom he had raised up in their place, for they were uncircumcised, because they had not been circumcised on the way.
8 When they had finished circumcising all the people, they remained in the camp until they were healed.
9 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away from you the reproach of Egypt.” Therefore the name of that place has been called Gilgal to this day.
10 The Israelites camped at Gilgal, and they celebrated the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month, at evening, in the plains of Jericho.
11 The day after the Passover they ate unleavened bread and roasted grain from the land.
12 The manna stopped the day after they ate the produce of the land, and the Israelites had no more manna, but ate the produce of the land of Canaan that year.
Joshua and the man with the drawn
13 When Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”
14 “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence and asked, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?”
15 The commander of the army of the Lord replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.
Joshua Chapter 6
The capture of Jericho
1 Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of the Israelites; no one went in or out.
2 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men.
3 March around the city once with all your fighting men; do this for six days.
4 Seven priests are to bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. On the seventh day march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets.
5 When you hear the trumpet blast, all the people are to give a loud shout, and the wall of the city will collapse. Then the people are to go up, every man straight ahead.”
6 So Joshua son of Nun summoned the priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the Lord.”
7 He said to the people, “Go on, march around the city, and let the armed men go on before the ark of the Lord.”
8 So when Joshua had spoken to the people, the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets of rams’ horns went on before the ark of the Lord, blowing the trumpets; and the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed them.
9 The armed men went before the priests who blew the trumpets, and the rear guard came after the ark, while the trumpets sounded continually.
10 Joshua commanded the people, saying, “You shall not shout, nor let your voice be heard, nor shall any word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I tell you to shout; then you shall shout.”
11 So he marched the ark of the Lord around the city once, and then they returned to the camp and spent the night there.
12 Early the next morning Joshua got up, and the priests took up the ark of the Lord.
13 The seven priests, carrying the seven trumpets of rams’ horns, went before the ark of the Lord, blowing the trumpets as they went. The armed men went before them, and the rear guard followed the ark of the Lord, while the trumpets continued to blow.
14 On the second day they marched around the city once more and returned to the camp. They did this for six days.
15 On the seventh day they got up early and marched around the city seven times in the same way; only on that day did they march around it seven times.
16 When the priests blew the trumpets the seventh time, Joshua said to the people, “Shout! For the Lord has given you the city!”
17The city and everything in it shall be devoted to the Lord for destruction. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall live, because she hid the messengers we sent.
18 But you must keep yourselves from the devoted things; do not touch or take anything from them, or you will make the camp of Israel devoted to destruction and bring trouble on it.
19 But all the silver and gold, and the articles of bronze and iron, shall be consecrated to the Lord and shall be put into the treasury of the Lord.
20 Then the people shouted, and the priests blew the trumpets; and it happened that when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, they shouted with a great shout, and the wall fell down flat. Then the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they captured it.
21 They utterly destroyed with the edge of the sword everything in the city: men and women, young and old, even the cattle, sheep, and donkeys.
22 But Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, “Go into the house of the prostitute and bring out the woman and all that belongs to her, as you swore to her.”
23 So the spies went in and brought out Rahab, her father, her mother, her brothers, and all that belonged to her; they also brought out all her relatives and put them outside the camp of Israel.
24 Then they burned the city and everything in it, but they put the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron into the treasury of the house of the Lord.
25 But Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, her father’s household, and all that belonged to her. And she has lived among the Israelites to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua had sent to spy out Jericho.
26 At that time Joshua made a vow, saying, “Cursed before the Lord is the man who rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho. He shall lay its foundation at the cost of his firstborn son, and at the cost of his youngest son he shall set up its gates.”
27 So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame spread throughout all the land.
Joshua Chapter 7
El pecado de Acán
1 But the Israelites committed a transgression concerning the devoted things. Achan son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things. So the Lord’s anger burned against the Israelites.
2 Then Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven, east of Bethel. He told them, “Go up and spy out the land.” So they went up and spied out Ai.
3 When they returned to Joshua, they said, “Not all the people should go up, but about two or three thousand men should go up and attack Ai. Do not weary all the people by going there, for they are few.”
4 So about three thousand men went up there from the people, but they fled before the men of Ai.
5 The men of Ai killed about thirty-six of them and pursued them from the gate as far as Shebarim. They routed them on the descent. Therefore the heart of the people melted and became like water.
6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord until evening, he and the elders of Israel; and they put dust on their heads.
7 And Joshua said, “Alas, Sovereign Lord! Why have you brought this people across the Jordan to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us? If only we had been content to stay on the other side of the Jordan!
8 Alas, Lord! What shall I say, now that Israel has turned its back on its enemies?
9 For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear of it, and they will surround us and blot out our name from the earth. Then what will you do for your great name?”
10 And the Lord said to Joshua, “Stand up; why have you fallen facedown like this?
11 Israel has sinned; they have also violated my covenant, which I commanded them to keep; They have also taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen, lied, and even put them among their belongings.
12 Therefore the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies but turn their backs on them, because they have become devoted to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy the devoted things from among you.
13 Get up and consecrate the people and say, “Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘There are devoted things among you, Israel. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove the devoted things from among you.’”
14 Tomorrow, therefore, you are to approach by your tribes. The tribe the Lord chooses is to approach by clans, the clan the Lord chooses is to approach by households, and the household the Lord chooses is to approach man by man.
15And whoever is caught with the accursed thing shall be burned with fire, he and all that he has, because he has broken the covenant of the Lord and has committed iniquity in Israel.
16 So Joshua rose early in the morning and brought Israel near by their tribes; and the tribe of Judah was taken.
17 And when he brought the tribe of Judah near, the family of the Zerahites was taken; and when he brought the family of the Zerahites near by the men, Zabdi was taken.
18 He brought his household forward men by men, and Achan son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was chosen.
19 Then Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the Lord, the God of Israel, and give him praise. Tell me now what you have done; do not hide it from me.”
20 Achan answered Joshua, “Truly I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel, and this is what I have done.
21 When I saw among the spoils a fine Babylonian robe, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. They are hidden in the ground inside my tent, with the silver underneath.”
22 So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent, and there it was, hidden in his tent, with the silver underneath.
23 So they took him from the midst of the tent and brought him to Joshua and all the children of Israel, and laid him before the Lord.
24 Then Joshua and all Israel with him took Achan the son of Zerah, the silver, the robe, the wedge of gold, his sons, his daughters, his oxen, his donkeys, his sheep, his tent, and all that he had, and brought them to the Valley of Achor.
25 And Joshua said to him, “Why have you troubled us? May the Lord trouble you this day.” And all the Israelites stoned them, and after they had stoned them, they burned them with fire.
26 And they raised over him a great heap of stones, which remains to this day. And the Lord turned from his fierce anger. Therefore, that place is called the Valley of Achor to this day.
Joshua Chapter 8
Capture and destruction of Hai
1 The Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid or discouraged. Take all the fighting men with you, and go up to Ai. See, I have delivered into your hands the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land.
2 Do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, but you may take its spoil and its livestock for yourselves. Set an ambush behind the city.”
3 So Joshua and all the fighting men set out to go up against Ai. Joshua chose 30,000 strong men and sent them out by night.
4 He commanded them, saying, “Listen carefully: Set an ambush behind the city. Do not go far from the city, and all of you be ready.
5 Then I and all the people who are with me will approach the city, and when they come out against us as they did before, we will flee before them.”
6 They will pursue us until we draw them away from the city, for they will say, “They are fleeing from us as before.” So we will flee before them.
7 Then you will rise from the ambush and take the city, for the Lord your God will deliver it into your hands.
8 When you have taken it, set it on fire. You must do as the Lord commanded you.
9 So Joshua sent them out, and they went into ambush and lay between Bethel and Ai, west of Ai. Joshua remained that night among the people.
10 Early the next morning Joshua mustered the people, and he and the elders of Israel went up before the people to Ai.
11 All the fighting men who were with him went up and approached, and they came to the front of the city and encamped north of Ai, with the valley between them and Ai.
12 So he took about five thousand men and set them in ambush between Bethel and Ai, west of the city.
13 This was the army’s position: the whole camp north of the city, and their ambush west of the city. That night Joshua advanced into the middle of the valley.
14 When the king of Ai saw this, he and his people hurried early in the morning. At the appointed time, the men of the city went out to meet Israel in battle, facing the Arabah, not knowing that an ambush had been set behind the city.
15 So Joshua and all Israel pretended to be defeated and fled before them along the way of the wilderness.
16 All the people who were in Ai rallied to pursue them, and they followed Joshua, drawing them far from the city.
17 Not a man remained in Ai or Bethel but went out after Israel, and in pursuing Israel they left the city open.
18 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Stretch out the spear that is in your hand toward Ai, for I will give it into your hand.” So Joshua stretched out the spear that was in his hand toward the city.
19 And the men who were lying in ambush rose up from their place and ran as soon as he raised his hand, and came to the city and captured it, and hastened to set it on fire.
20 The men of Ai turned around, and when they looked, the smoke of the city was rising to the sky. They could not flee either way, for the people who had fled toward the wilderness turned against those who were pursuing them.
21 When Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had taken the city and that the smoke was rising from the city, they turned and attacked the men of Ai.
22 The others came out of the city to meet them, and so they were surrounded in the midst of Israel, one group on one side and the other on the other. And they struck them down until not one of them escaped.
23 But they took the king of Ai alive and brought him to Joshua.
24 And when the Israelites had finished killing all the inhabitants of Ai in the open country and in the wilderness where they had pursued them, and all had fallen by the edge of the sword until they were consumed, all the Israelites returned to Ai and struck it down also with the edge of the sword.
25 The number of those who fell that day, both men and women, was twelve thousand, all the inhabitants of Ai.
26 For Joshua did not draw back his hand, which he had stretched out with the spear, until he had utterly destroyed all the inhabitants of Ai.
27 But the Israelites took for themselves the livestock and the spoil of the city, according to the word of the Lord that he had commanded Joshua.
28 So Joshua burned Ai and made it a heap of ruins, a desolation forever to this day.
29 And he hanged the king of Ai on a tree until evening; and when the sun had set, Joshua commanded that his body be taken down from the tree and thrown at the gate of the city; and they raised over it a great heap of stones, which remains to this day.
Reading of the Law on Mount Ebal
30 Then Joshua built an altar to the Lord, the God of Israel, on Mount Ebal,
31 as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded the Israelites, as it is written in the Book of the Law of Moses. It was an altar of uncut stones, on which no iron tool had been used. On it they offered burnt offerings to the Lord and sacrificed peace offerings.
32 He also wrote there on the stones a copy of the Law of Moses, which he wrote in the presence of the Israelites.
33 All Israel, with their elders, officers, and judges, stood on either side of the ark before the Levitical priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, both foreigners and native-born Israelites. Half of them faced Mount Gerizim, and the other half faced Mount Ebal, just as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded, so that they might first bless the people of Israel.
34 After this, he read all the words of the law, the blessings and the curses, according to all that is written in the Book of the Law.
35 There was not a word of all that Moses commanded that Joshua did not read before all the congregation of Israel, and before the women, the children, and the foreigners who lived among them.
Joshua Chapter 9
The cunning of the Gibeonites
1 When all the kings east of the Jordan, in the mountains and in the foothills, and along the entire coast of the Great Sea facing Lebanon—the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—heard these things,
2 they joined forces to fight against Joshua and Israel.
3 But the inhabitants of Gibeon, when they heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai,
4 acted craftily. They went and pretended to be ambassadors, taking old sacks on their donkeys, old wineskins, torn and patched,
5 old and mended sandals on their feet, and old clothes on their bodies. All the bread they took for the journey was dry and moldy.
6 Then they came to Joshua at the camp in Gilgal and said to him and to the men of Israel, “We have come from a very distant land; now make a covenant with us.”
7 The Israelites answered the Hivites, “Perhaps you live among us. How then can we make a treaty with you?”
8 They answered Joshua, “We are your servants.” Joshua asked them, “Who are you, and where do you come from?”
9 They replied, “Your servants have come from a very far country, because of the name of the Lord your God. We have heard of his fame and all that he did in Egypt,
10 and all that he did to the two Amorite kings across the Jordan: Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan, who lived in Ashtaroth.
11 Therefore our elders and all the people of our land said to us, ‘Take provisions for the journey and go out to meet them and say to them, “We are your servants; now make a treaty with us.”’”
12 This bread of ours we took hot from our houses for the journey on the day we left to come to you; but look, it is now dry and moldy.
13 These wineskins we filled were new; but look, they are now torn. These clothes and our sandals of ours are also worn out because of the long journey.
14 The men of Israel took some of their provisions, but did not inquire of the Lord.
15 So Joshua made peace with them and entered into a covenant with them, granting them their lives; and the leaders of the congregation also swore an oath to it.
16 Three days after they had made a covenant with them, they heard that they were their neighbors and lived among them.
17 So the Israelites set out, and on the third day they came to their cities: Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim.
18And the children of Israel did not kill them, because the leaders of the congregation had sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured against the leaders.
19 But all the leaders answered the whole congregation, “We have sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel; therefore, we cannot touch them now.
20 This is what we will do to them: We will let them live, so that wrath will not come upon us because of the oath we swore to them.”
21 So the leaders said of them, “Let them live.” And they became woodcutters and water carriers for the whole community, and the leaders spared their lives, just as they had promised.
22 Then Joshua summoned them and said to them, “Why have you deceived us, saying, ‘We live far away from you,’ when in fact you live among us?
23 Now therefore, you are cursed, and there will never cease to be servants among you, those who cut wood and draw water for the house of my God.”
24 They answered Joshua, “Since it was made known to your servants that the Lord your God had commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land before you, we were greatly afraid for our lives because of you, and so we did this.
25 Now therefore, we are in your hand; Do whatever seems good and right to you for us.
26 And he did so for them; he delivered them from the hand of the children of Israel, and they did not kill them.
27 And Joshua appointed them that day to be woodcutters and water carriers for the congregation and for the altar of the Lord in the place that the Lord would choose, which they are to this day.
Joshua Chapter 10
Defeat of the Amorites
1 When Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had captured Ai and utterly destroyed it (as he had done to Jericho and its king), and that the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with the Israelites and were among them,
2 he was greatly afraid, for Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities, larger than Ai, and all its men were mighty warriors.
3 So Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem sent to Hoham king of Hebron, Piram king of Jarmuth, Japhia king of Lachish, and Debir king of Eglon, saying,
4 “Come up to me and help me, and let us fight against Gibeon, for it has made peace with Joshua and with the Israelites.”
5 Now the five Amorite kings—the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon—joined forces and marched up with all their armies. They camped near Gibeon and attacked it.
6 Then the inhabitants of Gibeon sent word to Joshua at the camp in Gilgal, saying, “Do not withhold help from your servants. Come up quickly to us to defend us and help us, for all the Amorite kings who live in the hill country have joined forces against us.”
7 So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he and all the fighting men with him, all the mighty warriors.
8 The Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, for I have delivered them into your hands, and not one of them will be able to stand against you.”
9 So Joshua came upon them suddenly, having marched all night from Gilgal.
10 The Lord threw them into confusion before Israel, and struck them with a great slaughter at Gibeon. He pursued them along the road that goes up to Beth-horon and struck them down as far as Azekah and Makkedah.
11 As they fled from Israel on the descent from Beth-horon, the Lord hurled large hailstones on them from the sky as far as Azekah, and they died. More died from the hailstones than the Israelites killed with the sword.
12 On the day the Lord delivered the Amorites into the hands of Israel, Joshua spoke to the Lord and said in the presence of Israel, “Sun, stand still over Gibeon, and you, moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.”
13 So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, until the nation had avenged itself on its enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jasher? And the sun stood still in the middle of the sky, and did not hasten to set for about a whole day.
14 There has been no day like it before or since, a day when the Lord listened to the voice of a man; for the Lord was fighting for Israel.
15 Then Joshua and all Israel with him returned to the camp at Gilgal.
16 But the five kings fled and hid in a cave at Makkedah.
17 Now Joshua was told that the five kings had been found hiding in a cave at Makkedah.
18 So Joshua said, “Roll large stones against the entrance of the cave, and station men to guard it.
19 Do not wait, but pursue your enemies and strike them from the rear, but do not let them enter their cities, for the Lord your God has delivered them into your hands.”
20 When Joshua and the Israelites had finished striking them down with a great slaughter until they had destroyed them, the survivors fled into their fortified cities.
21 All the people returned safely to Joshua at the camp at Makkedah; not one of them spoke against any of the Israelites.
22 Then Joshua said, “Open the entrance to the cave and bring the five kings out.”
23 So they did, and brought out the five kings from the cave: the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon.
24 When they had brought them to Joshua, Joshua summoned all the men of Israel and said to the commanders of the fighting men who had come with him, “Come near and put your feet on the necks of these kings.” So they came near and put their feet on their necks.
25 Joshua said to them, “Do not be afraid or discouraged. Be strong and courageous, for this is what the Lord will do to all your enemies against whom you are fighting.”
26 After this, Joshua struck them down and killed them, and hung them on five poles. They remained hanging on the poles until evening.
27 When the sun was setting, Joshua commanded that they be taken down from the poles and thrown into the cave where they had hidden. Large stones were placed at the entrance of the cave, which remain to this day.
28 That same day Joshua captured Makkedah and struck it with the edge of the sword, killing its king. He utterly destroyed it and all who lived in it, leaving nothing alive. He did to the king of Makkedah as he had done to the king of Jericho.
29 From Makkedah, Joshua and all Israel with him went on to Libnah and fought against Libnah.
30 And the Lord delivered Lachish and its king into the hand of Israel, and struck it down with the edge of the sword, all who were alive in it, leaving nothing alive. And he did to its king as he had done to the king of Jericho.
31 Then Joshua and all Israel with him went on from Libnah to Lachish, and encamped near it, and fought against it.
32 And the Lord delivered Lachish into the hand of Israel, and they took it the next day, and struck it down with the edge of the sword, all who were alive in it, just as he had done to Libnah.
33 Then Horam king of Gezer came up to help Lachish, but Joshua destroyed him and his people, leaving none alive.
34 From Lachish Joshua and all Israel with him went on to Eglon, and encamped near it, and fought against it.
35 And they took it the same day, and struck it down with the edge of the sword. And that day he killed all who lived in it, as he had done at Lachish.
36 Then Joshua and all Israel with him went up from Eglon to Hebron and attacked it.
37 They captured it and put its king and all its cities to the sword, destroying all who lived in it and leaving nothing alive, just as they had done to Eglon.
38 Then Joshua and all Israel with him went back to Debir and attacked it.
39 They captured it, its king, and all its cities. They put them to the sword and destroyed all who lived in them, leaving nothing alive, just as they had done to Hebron and Libnah and its king.
40 So Joshua attacked the entire region of the hill country, the Negev, the foothills, and the foothills, and all its kings; he left nothing alive; he killed everything that breathed, as the Lord, the God of Israel, had commanded him.
41And Joshua defeated them from Kadesh-barnea to Gaza, and all the land of Goshen as far as Gibeon.
42 Joshua took all these kings and their lands at one time, for the Lord, the God of Israel, fought for Israel.
43 Then Joshua and all Israel with him returned to the camp at Gilgal.
Joshua Chapter 11
Defeat of Jabin
1 When Jabin king of Hazor heard this, he sent word to Jobab king of Madon, to the king of Shimron, to the king of Achshaph,
2 and to the kings who were in the northern hill country, and in the Arabah south of Chinnereth, in the foothills, and in the region of Dor to the west;
3 and to the Canaanites who were to the east and to the west, to the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Jebusites in the hill country, and Hivites at the foot of Hermon in the land of Mizpah.
4 These came out, and with them all their armies, a great multitude, as numerous as the sand on the seashore, with very many horses and chariots.
5 All these kings joined forces and came and encamped together at the waters of Merom to fight against Israel.
6 But the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, for about this time tomorrow I will deliver them all up slain before Israel; You shall hamstring their horses and burn their chariots with fire.
7 So Joshua and all the fighting men with him came suddenly against them at the waters of Merom.
8 The Lord delivered them into the hands of Israel, and they struck them down and pursued them as far as Greater Sidon, Misrephoth-maim, and the plain of Mizpah to the east, striking them down until they left none of them.
9 Joshua did to them as the Lord had commanded him: he hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots with fire.
10 At that time Joshua turned back and captured Hazor and killed its king with the sword, for Hazor had formerly been the head of all these kingdoms.
11 They killed with the sword everything in it that breathed, destroying it completely; there was nothing left that breathed. And they set Hazor on fire.
12 Joshua also captured all the cities of those kings and all their kings, and he struck them down with the edge of the sword and destroyed them, just as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded.
13 But Israel did not burn all the cities that were on hills; only Hazor did Joshua burn.
14 The Israelites took all the plunder and livestock from those cities, but they struck down all the people with the edge of the sword until they had destroyed them completely; not one was left alive.
15 Just as the Lord had commanded his servant Moses, so Moses commanded Joshua, and Joshua did so, without detracting from anything the Lord had commanded Moses.
Joshua takes possession of all the land
16 So Joshua took all that land, the mountains, all the Negev, all the land of Goshen, the plains, the Arabah, the mountains of Israel and its valleys.
16 So Joshua took all that land: the hill country, all the Negev, all the land of Goshen, the foothills, the Arabah, the mountains of Israel, and its valleys.
17 From Mount Halak, which goes up to Seir, as far as Baal-gad in the plain of Lebanon, at the foot of Mount Hermon. He also took all their kings, and struck them down and killed them.
18 Joshua waged war against these kings for a long time.
19 There was not a city that made peace with the Israelites, except the Hivites who lived in Gibeon; they took everything by force.
20 For this came from the Lord, who hardened their hearts so that they would wage war against Israel, to destroy them, and that no mercy would be shown to them, but that they would be uprooted, as the Lord had commanded Moses.
21 At that time Joshua came and destroyed the Anakim from the hill country of Hebron, Debir, and Anab, from all the hill country of Judah and all the hill country of Israel. Joshua destroyed them and their cities.
22 Not a single Anakim remained in the land of the Israelites; only in Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod did they survive.
23 So Joshua took possession of all the land, just as the Lord had told Moses, and he divided it among the Israelites according to their tribal allotments. And the land had rest from war.
Joshua Chapter 12
Kings defeated by Moses
1 These are the kings of the land whom the children of Israel defeated and whose land they possessed beyond the Jordan toward the rising of the sun, from the Arnon Valley to Mount Hermon, and all the Arabah to the east:
2 Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and ruled from Aroer, which is on the bank of the Arnon Valley, and from the middle of the valley, and half of Gilead, as far as the Jabbok Valley, the border of the children of Ammon;
3 and the Arabah as far as the Sea of Chinnereth, to the east; and as far as the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, to the east, by way of Beth-jeshimoth, and from the south to the foot of the slopes of Pisgah.
4 And the territory of Og king of Bashan, who was left of the Rephaim, who lived in Ashtaroth and Edrei,
5 and ruled in Mount Hermon, in Salcah, throughout Bashan as far as the border of Geshur and Maacah, and half of Gilead, the territory of Sihon king of Heshbon.
6 Moses the servant of the Lord and the children of Israel defeated these; and Moses the servant of the Lord gave that land as a possession to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.
Kings defeated by Joshua
7 These are the kings of the land whom Joshua and the Israelites defeated west of the Jordan, from Baal-gad in the Valley of Lebanon to Mount Halak, which rises toward Seir. Joshua gave the land as a possession to the tribes of Israel according to their allotment:
8 in the mountains, in the valleys, in the Arabah, on the slopes, in the wilderness, and in the Negev: the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
9 One was the king of Jericho; another the king of Ai, which is near Bethel;
10 the king of Jerusalem, another; the king of Hebron, another;
11 the king of Jarmuth, another; the king of Lachish, another;
12 the king of Eglon, another; the king of Gezer, another;
13 the king of Debir, another; the king of Geder, another;
14 the king of Hormah, another; the king of Arad, another;
15 the king of Libnah, another; the king of Adullam, another;
16 the king of Makkedah, another; the king of Bethel, another;
17 the king of Tappuah, another; the king of Hepher, another;
18 the king of Aphek, another; the king of Sharon, another;
19 the king of Madon, another; the king of Hazor, another;
20 the king of Shimron-meron, another; the king of Achshaph, another;
21 the king of Taanach, another; the king of Megiddo, another;
22 the king of Kedesh, another; the king of Jokneam of Carmel, another;
23 the king of Dor, of the province of Dor, another; the king of Goiim in Gilgal, another;
24 the king of Tirzah, another; thirty-one kings in all.
Joshua Chapter 13
Land yet to be conquered
1 Now Joshua was old and well advanced in years, and the Lord said to him, “You are old and well advanced in years, and there remains a great deal of land to possess.
2 This is the land that remains: all the territories of the Philistines and all the territories of the Geshurites,
3 from Shihor, which is east of Egypt, to the border of Ekron on the north, which belongs to the Canaanites; the five rulers of the Philistines: the Gazite, the Ashdodite, the Ashkelonite, the Gittite, and the Ekronite; also the Avvites;
4 to the south all the land of the Canaanites, and Mehara, which belongs to the Sidonians, as far as Aphek, to the border of the Amorites;
5 the land of the Gibelites, and all Lebanon toward the east, from Baal-gad at the foot of Mount Hermon, to the entrance of Hamath;
6 all the inhabitants of the hill country from Lebanon to Misrephoth-maim, all the Sidonians; I will destroy them before the Israelites; you alone shall divide the land by lot as an inheritance for the Israelites, as I have commanded you.
7 Therefore divide this land as an inheritance for the nine tribes and the half-tribe of Manasseh.
8 For the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the other half of Manasseh have already received their inheritance, which Moses gave them on the other side of the Jordan to the east, as Moses the servant of the Lord gave it to them:
9 from Aroer, which is on the bank of the Arnon Valley, and the city that is in the middle of the valley, and all the plain of Medeba, as far as Dibon;
10 all the cities of Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, as far as the border of the Ammonites;
11 and Gilead, and the territories of the Geshurites and the Maacathites, and all Mount Hermon, and all the land of Bashan as far as Salcah;
12 All the kingdom of Og in Bashan, who reigned in Ashtaroth and Edrei, who was left of the remnant of the Rephaim; for Moses defeated them and drove them out.
13 But the children of Israel did not drive out the Geshurites or the Maacathites, but Geshur and Maacah dwelt among the Israelites to this day.
The territory that Moses
14 But to the tribe of Levi he gave no inheritance; the sacrifices to the Lord, the God of Israel, are their inheritance, as he had told them.
15 So Moses gave to the tribe of the children of Reuben according to their clans.
16 Their territory extended from Aroer, which is on the bank of the Arnon Valley, and the city that is in the middle of the valley, and all the plain as far as Medeba;
17 Heshbon, with all its cities that are in the plain; Dibon, Bamoth-baal, Beth-baal-meon,
18 Jahaz, Kedemoth, Mephaath,
19 Kiriathaim, Sibmah, Zareth-sahar on the mountain of the valley,
20 Beth-peor, the slopes of Pisgah, Beth-jeshimoth,
21 all the cities of the plain, and all the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, whom Moses defeated, and the princes of Midian, Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba, princes of Sihon who lived in that land.
22 The Israelites also killed Balaam the diviner, son of Beor, with the sword, among the others they killed.
23 The Jordan River was the boundary of the territory of the Reubenites. This was the inheritance of the Reubenites according to their clans, these cities with their villages.
24 Moses also gave to the tribe of Gad, to the Gadites, according to their clans.
25 Their territory was Jazer, all the cities of Gilead, and half the land of the Ammonites as far as Aroer, which is opposite Rabbah.
26 From Heshbon to Ramath-mizpah and Bethonim, and from Mahanaim to the border of Debir.
27 In the valley were Beth-aram, Beth-nimrah, Succoth, and Zaphon, the remnant of the kingdom of Sihon king of Heshbon; the Jordan and its border as far as the end of the Sea of Chinnereth on the other side of the Jordan, to the east.
28 This was the inheritance of the Gadites according to their clans, these cities with their villages.
29 Moses also gave an inheritance to the half-tribe of Manasseh, according to their clans.
30 Their territory extended from Mahanaim, all of Bashan, the entire kingdom of Og king of Bashan, and all the towns of Jair in Bashan, sixty towns,
31 and half of Gilead, and Ashtaroth and Edrei, cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan, for the descendants of Machir son of Manasseh, for half of the descendants of Machir according to their clans.
32 This is what Moses allotted as an inheritance in the plains of Moab, beyond the Jordan River east of Jericho.
33 But to the tribe of Levi, Moses gave no inheritance; the Lord, the God of Israel, is their inheritance, as he had told them.
Joshua Chapter 14
Canaan distributed by lot
1 This, then, is what the Israelites received as their inheritance in the land of Canaan, which Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the ancestral houses of the Israelite tribes allotted to them.
2 Their inheritance was given to them by lot, just as the Lord had commanded Moses to give to the nine tribes and the half-tribe.
3 For Moses had given the two tribes and the half-tribe an inheritance on the other side of the Jordan, but he gave the Levites no inheritance among them.
4 For the descendants of Joseph were two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim; and they gave the Levites no portion of the land except cities in which to live, with their pasturelands for their flocks and herds.
5 The Israelites divided the land just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
Caleb receives Hebron
6 The people of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh-barnea concerning you and me.
7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought him back a report as it was in my heart.
8 My brothers who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt with fear, but I wholeheartedly followed the Lord my God.
9 Then Moses swore, saying, ‘Surely the land on which your foot has trod shall be yours and your children’s inheritance forever, because you have wholeheartedly followed the Lord my God.’
10 Now the Lord has kept me alive, as he promised, these forty-five years since the Lord spoke these words to Moses, while Israel wandered in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am eighty-five years old today.”
11 I am still as strong as the day Moses sent me; my strength then is now, for war, and for going out and coming in.
12 Now therefore, give me this hill country of which the Lord spoke that day, for you heard on that day that the Anakim were there, and that there were large, fortified cities. Perhaps the Lord will be with me, and I will drive them out, as the Lord has said.
13 So Joshua blessed him and gave Hebron to Caleb son of Jephunneh as his inheritance.
14 Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he wholly followed the Lord, the God of Israel.
15 But the name of Hebron was formerly Kiriath-arba, for Arba was a great man among the Anakim. And the land had rest from war
Joshua Chapter 15
The territory of Judah
1 The portion allotted to the tribe of Judah, according to their clans, extended to the border of Edom, with the Desert of Zin to the south as its southern boundary.
2 Their southern boundary began at the shore of the Dead Sea, at the bay facing south;
3 it went south along the ascent of Akrabbim, passing to Zin; then it went south to Kadesh-barnea, passed to Hezron, and went up to Adar, turning around at Carkah.
4 From there it passed to Azmon, and went out to the Brook of Egypt, ending at the sea. This, then, shall be your southern boundary.
5 Your eastern boundary is the Dead Sea as far as the mouth of the Jordan. And your northern boundary begins at the bay of the sea at the mouth of the Jordan;
6 This boundary goes up by way of Beth-hogla, and passes north of Beth-arabah, and from there goes up to the stone of Bohan son of Reuben.
7 Then it goes up to Debir from the Valley of Achor; and to the north it faces Gilgal, which is opposite the ascent of Adummim, which is south of the brook; and it passes to the waters of En-shemesh, and goes out to the spring of Rogel.
8 This boundary then goes up through the Valley of Ben Hinnom on the south side of the Jebusite territory, which is Jerusalem. Then it goes up to the top of the mountain that is west of the Valley of Hinnom, which is at the end of the Valley of Rephaim on the north side.
9 This boundary goes around from the top of the mountain to the spring of the waters of Nephtoah, and goes out to the cities of Mount Ephron, then around Baalah, which is Kiriath-jearim.
10 Then this boundary turns west from Baalah to Mount Seir; it passes by Mount Jearim to the north, which is Chesalon, and goes down to Beth-shemesh, and passes on to Timnah.
11 It then goes north by the side of Ekron; it goes around Shikron, passes by Mount Baalah, and comes out to Jabneel and ends at the sea.
12 The western boundary is the Great Sea. This was the boundary of the people of Judah all around, according to their clans.
Caleb conquers Hebron and Debir
13 But to Caleb son of Jephunneh he gave his allotment among the people of Judah, according to the commandment of the Lord to Joshua: the city of Kiriath-arba, the father of Anak, which is Hebron.
14 And Caleb drove out from there the three sons of Anak: Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai, the sons of Anak.
15 From there he went up against those who dwelt in Debir (the name of Debir was formerly Kiriath-sepher).
16 And Caleb said, “Whoever attacks Kiriath-sepher and captures it, I will give him my daughter Achsah as a wife.”
17 And Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s brother, captured it, and he gave him his daughter Achsah as a wife.
18 And it happened, as he was leading her away, that he persuaded her to ask her father for a field to cultivate. So she got down from her donkey, and Caleb said to her, “What is the matter?”
19 And she answered, “Grant me a gift; since you have given me land in the Negev, give me also springs of water.” So he gave her the upper springs and the lower springs.
The cities of Judah
20 This, then, is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Judah according to their families.
21 And these were the cities of the tribe of the children of Judah in the far south, toward the border of Edom: Kabzeel, Edar, Jagur,
22 Cinna, Dimona, Adada,
23 Kedesh, Hazor, Itnan,
24 Ziph, Telem, Bealot,
25 Hazor-hadata, Kerioth, Hezron (that is, Hazor),
26 Amam, Shema, Moladah,
27 Hazar-gadah, Heshmon, Beth-pelet,
28 Hazar-shual, Beersheba, Bizotia,
29 Baalah, Iim, Esem,
30 Eltolad, Chesil, Horma,
31 Ziklag, Madmanah, Sansana,
32 Lebaoth, Shilhim, Ain and Rimmon; throughout twenty-nine cities with their villages.
33 In the plains, Eshtaol, Zora, Asena,
34 Zanoah, En-ganim, Tapua, Enam,
35 Jarmuth, Adullam, Soco, Azekah,
36 Saaraim, Aditaim, Gedera and Gederotaim; fourteen cities with their villages.
37 Zenan, Hadasa, Migdal-gad,
38 Dileam, Mizpah, Jokteel,
39 Lachish, Boshkath, Eglon,
40 Cabon, Lahmam, Chitlis,
41 Gederoth, Beth-dagon, Naama and Maceda; sixteen cities with their villages.
42 Libnah, Ether, Ashan,
43 Jiphtah, Asenah, Nezib,
44 Keilah, Achzib, and Mareshah; nine cities with their villages.
45 Ekron with its towns and villages.
46 From Ekron to the sea, all the cities near Ashdod with their villages.
47 Ashdod with its towns and villages; Gaza with its towns and villages as far as the River of Egypt, and the Great Sea with its shores.
48 And in the hill country, Shamir, Jattir, Socoh,
49 Danah, Kiriath-shanah (which is Debir);
50 Anab, Eshtemoa, Anim,
51 Goshen, Holon, and Gilo; eleven cities with their villages.
52 Arab, Dumah, Eshan,
53 Hanum, Beth-tapuah, Aphekah,
54 Humtah, Kiriath-arba (which is Hebron), and Zior; Nine cities with their villages:
55 Maon, Carmel, Ziph, Juttah,
56 Jezreel, Jokdeam, Zanoah,
57 Cain, Gibeah, and Timnah; ten cities with their villages:
58 Halhul, Beth-zur, Gedor,
59 Maarath, Beth-anoth, and Eltecon; six cities with their villages:
60 Kiriath-baal (that is, Kiriath-jearim) and Rabbah; two cities with their villages:
61 In the wilderness, Beth-arabah, Middin, Secacah,
62 Nibsan, the City of Salt, and En-gedi; six cities with their villages.
63 But the people of Judah could not drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem; so the Jebusites remain in Jerusalem with the people of Judah to this day.
Joshua Chapter 16
Territory of Ephraim and Manasseh
1 The allotment to the sons of Joseph extended from the Jordan at Jericho to the waters of Jericho eastward, to the wilderness that goes up from Jericho through the hills of Bethel.
2 From Bethel it went out to Luz, and passed along the territory of the Archites to Ataroth,
3 and went down westward to the territory of the Japhlethites, to the border of Lower Beth-horon, and to Gezer; and it went out to the sea.
4 So the sons of Joseph, Manasseh and Ephraim, received their inheritance.
5 As for the territory of the sons of Ephraim according to their families, the border of their inheritance on the east side was from Ataroth-adar to Upper Beth-horon.
6 The border continued to the sea, and to Michmethath on the north, and turned eastward to Taanath-shiloh, and from there it passed to Janoah.
7 From Janoah it goes down to Ataroth and Naarath, touches Jericho, and goes out to the Jordan.
8 From Tappuah it turns toward the sea, to the Brook Kanah, and goes out to the sea. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Ephraim according to their families.
9 There were also cities set apart for the children of Ephraim in the midst of the inheritance of the children of Manasseh, all cities with their villages.
10 But they did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer; the Canaanites remained among Ephraim to this day, and they were subject to forced labor.
Joshua Chapter 17
1 Lots were also cast for the tribe of Manasseh, for he was the firstborn of Joseph. Machir, the firstborn of Manasseh and the father of Gilead, who was a man of war, possessed Gilead and Bashan.
2 Lots were also cast for the other sons of Manasseh according to their families: the sons of Abiezer, the sons of Helek, the sons of Asriel, the sons of Shechem, the sons of Hepher, and the sons of Shemida; these were the male children of Manasseh, the son of Joseph, according to their families.
3 But Zelophehad the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, had no sons, only daughters, whose names are these: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.
4 These came before Eleazar the priest, Joshua the son of Nun, and the princes, and said, “The Lord commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our brothers.” And he gave them an inheritance among their father’s brothers, according to the word of the Lord.
5 And Manasseh received ten portions, besides the land of Gilead and Bashan, which is beyond the Jordan,
6 for the daughters of Manasseh had an inheritance among their sons; and the land of Gilead belonged to the other sons of Manasseh.
7 The territory of Manasseh extended from Asher to Michmethath, which is opposite Shechem, and went south to those who live in Tappuah.
8 The land of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh, but Tappuah itself, which is by the border of Manasseh, belongs to the sons of Ephraim.
9 This border goes down to the Brook Kanah, south of the brook. These cities of Ephraim are among the cities of Manasseh; and the border of Manasseh is north of the brook, and its outlets are to the sea.
10 Ephraim is on the south side, and Manasseh is on the north, with the sea as their border. It borders Asher to the north and Issachar to the east.
11 Manasseh also had in Issachar and Asher Beth-shean and its villages, Ibleam and its villages, the inhabitants of Dor and its villages, the inhabitants of Endor and its villages, the inhabitants of Taanach and its villages, and the inhabitants of Megiddo and its villages—three provinces.
12 But the people of Manasseh could not drive out the inhabitants of those cities, and the Canaanites continued to live in that land.
13 When the Israelites were strong enough, they made the Canaanites subject to forced labor, but they did not drive them out.
14 The sons of Joseph spoke to Joshua, saying, “Why have you given us only one portion and one lot as our inheritance, since we are a great people, and the Lord has blessed us thus far?”
15 Joshua answered them, “If you are such a great people, go up to the forest and clear land there in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim, for the hill country of Ephraim is too small for you.”
16 The sons of Joseph said, “This hill country is not enough for us, and all the Canaanites who live in the plain have iron chariots, both those in Beth-shean and its villages, and those in the Valley of Jezreel.”
17 Then Joshua answered the house of Joseph, Ephraim and Manasseh, saying, “You are a great people and have great power; you will not have only one portion,
18 but the hill country will be yours; For though it is a forest, you will clear it and possess it to its farthest limits; for you will drive out the Canaanite, though he has iron chariots, and though he is strong.
Joshua Chapter 18
Territories of the other tribes
1 The whole congregation of the Israelites assembled at Shiloh and set up the tent of meeting there, after the land had been subdued for them.
2 But seven tribes of Israel remained to whom no inheritance had yet been allotted.
3 Joshua said to the Israelites, “How long will you delay going in to possess the land the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has given you?
4 Choose three men from each tribe, and I will send them out to survey the land and map it out according to their inheritances, and then bring them back to me.
5 They are to divide it into seven parts, with Judah remaining in its territory in the south and the descendants of Joseph in theirs in the north.
6 You are to map out the land into seven parts and bring the map out here for me, and I will cast lots for you here before the Lord our God.”
7 But the Levites have no portion among you, for the priesthood of the Lord is their inheritance. Gad also, Reuben, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have already received their inheritance on the other side of the Jordan to the east, which Moses the servant of the Lord gave them.
8 So the men arose and went. Joshua commanded those who were going to survey the land, saying, “Go, walk through the land and survey it, and return to me, so that I may cast lots for you here before the Lord at Shiloh.”
9 So the men went and walked through the land, surveying it by cities in seven parts in a book, and returned to Joshua at the camp in Shiloh.
10 And Joshua cast lots for them before the Lord at Shiloh; and there Joshua allotted the land to the children of Israel according to their portions.
11 And the lot was cast for the tribe of the children of Benjamin according to their clans; And the territory allotted to it lay between the sons of Judah and the sons of Joseph.
12 Their northern border was from the Jordan, and it went up north towards Jericho; then it went up the mountain westward, and came out at the Desert of Beth-aven.
13 From there it passed toward Luz, to the south side of Luz (which is Bethel), and went down from Ataroth-adar to the mountain south of Lower Beth-horon.
14 Then it turned west along the south side of the mountain south of Beth-horon, and came out at Kiriath-baal (which is Kiriath-jearim), a city of the sons of Judah. This was the western border.
15 The southern border began at the edge of Kiriath-jearim, and went west to the spring of the waters of Nephtoah;
16and this boundary descends to the extreme of the mountain that is in front of the valley of the son of Hinnom, which is north in the valley of Rephaim; then it descends to the valley of Hinnom, on the south side of the Jebusite, and from there it descends to the spring of Rogel.
17 Then it turns north and goes out to En-shemesh, and from there to Geliloth, which is before the ascent of Adummim, and goes down to the stone of Bohan son of Reuben,
18 and passes along the side opposite the Arabah, and goes down to the Arabah.
19 And the boundary passes along the north side of Beth-hoglah, and ends at the northern bay of the Dead Sea, at the southern end of the Jordan; this is the southern boundary.
20 And the Jordan was the boundary on the east side. This is the inheritance of the children of Benjamin according to their boundaries all around, according to their families.
21 The cities of the tribe of the children of Benjamin, according to their families, were Jericho, Beth-hoglah, the Valley of Kaszi,
22 Beth-arabah, Zemaraim, Bethel,
23 Abim, Para, Ophrah,
24 Kephar-ha’amoni, Hophni, and Geba; twelve cities with their villages;
25 Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth,
26 Mizpah, Chephirah, Mozah,
27 Rekem, Irpeel, Taralah,
28 Zela, Eleph, Jebus (that is, Jerusalem), Gibeah, and Kiriath; fourteen cities with their villages. This is the inheritance of the children of Benjamin according to their families.
Joshua Chapter 19
1 The second lot fell to Simeon, for the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families; and their inheritance was in the midst of the inheritance of the children of Judah.
2 And they had in their inheritance Beersheba, Sheba, Moladah,
3 Hazar-shual, Balah, Ezem,
4 Eltolad, Bethul, Hormah,
5 Ziklag, Beth-marcaboth, Hazar-susah,
6 Beth-lebaoth, and Sharuhen; thirteen cities with their villages;
7 Ain, Rimmon, Ether, and Ashan; four cities with their villages;
8 and all the villages that were around these cities as far as Baalath-beer, which is Ramath of the Negev. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families.
9 From the lot of the children of Judah the inheritance of the children of Simeon was taken, because the portion of the children of Judah was too large for them; So the sons of Simeon had their inheritance in the midst of that of Judah.
10 The third lot fell to the sons of Zebulun according to their families; and the territory of their inheritance extended as far as Sarid.
11 Its border went west to Maralah, and reached Dabesheth, and from there to the brook that is before Jokneam;
12 and it turned east from Sarid toward the sunrise, to the border of Kislot-tabor, went out to Daberath, and went up to Japhia.
13 From there it passed eastward to Gath-hepher and Ithazzin, went out to Rimmon, skirting around Nea.
14 Then, to the north, the border turned toward Hanaton, coming out at the valley of Jephthah-el;
15 and it included Kathat, Nahalal, Shimron, Idalah, and Bethlehem; twelve cities with their villages.
16 This is the inheritance of the sons of Zebulun according to their clans; these cities with their villages.
17 The fourth lot fell to Issachar, to the sons of Issachar according to their clans.
18 Their territory was Jezreel, Chesulot, Shunem,
19 Hapharaim, Sihon, Anaharath,
20 Rabbit, Kishion, Abez,
21 Remeth, En-gannim, En-hadah, and Beth-pashes.
22 This boundary extends to Tabor, Shahazima, and Beth-shemesh, and ends at the Jordan; sixteen cities with their villages.
23 This is the inheritance of the tribe of the sons of Issachar according to their clans; these cities with their villages.
24 The fifth lot fell to the tribe of the sons of Asher according to their clans.
25 Their territory included Helkath, Hali, Bethen, Achshaph,
26 Alamelech, Amad, and Mishlei; and reaches as far west as Carmel, already Sihorlibnath.
27Then it turns east to Beth-dagon and reaches Zebulun, the Valley of Jephthah to the north, Beth-emek and Neiel, and goes out to Cabul to the north.
28 It includes Hebron, Rehob, Hammon, and Kanah, as far as Great Sidon.
29 From there, this boundary turns toward Ramah, as far as the fortified city of Tyre, and turns toward Hosah, and goes out to the sea from the territory of Achzib.
30 It also includes Ummah, Aphek, and Rehob; twenty-two cities with their villages.
31 This is the inheritance of the tribe of the sons of Asher according to their clans; these cities with their villages.
32 The sixth lot fell to the sons of Naphtali according to their clans.
33 Their territory extended from Helep, Allon-zaanannim, Adaminekeb, and Jabneel, as far as Lakum, and goes out to the Jordan.
34 And the boundary turned westward to Aznoth-tabor, and from there it passed to Hukok, and reached Zebulun to the south, and to the west it bordered Asher, and Judah along the Jordan toward the rising of the sun .
35 The fortified cities are Siddim, Zer, Hamath, Rakath, Chinnereth,
36 Admah, Ramah, Hazor,
37 Kedesh, Edrei, En-hazor,
38 Iron, Migdal-el, Horem, Beth-anath, and Beth-shemesh; nineteen cities with their villages.
39 This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Naphtali according to their families; these cities with their villages.
40 The seventh lot fell to the tribe of the children of Dan according to their families.
41 The territory of their inheritance was Zorah, Eshtaol, Ir-shemesh,
42 Shaalabbin, Aijalon, Jethlah,
43 Elon, Timnah, Ekron,
44 Eltekeh, Gibbethon, Baalath,
45 Jehud, Bene-berak, Gath-rimmon,
46 Me-harkon, and Rakon, with the territory that is before Joppa.
47 But the territory of the Danites was too small for them; so the Danites went up and fought against Leshem, and they captured it and struck it with the edge of the sword, and took possession of it and settled in it; and they called Leshem Dan, after the name of Dan their father.
48 This is the inheritance of the tribe of the Danites according to their clans; these cities with their villages.
49 After they had finished dividing the land as an inheritance according to their territories, the Israelites gave an inheritance to Joshua son of Nun among them;
50 According to the word of the Lord, they gave him the city he had asked for, Timnath-serah, in the hill country of Ephraim; and he rebuilt the city and lived in it.
51 These are the inheritances that Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the ancestral houses allotted by lot to the tribes of the Israelites at Shiloh, before the Lord, at the entrance to the tent of meeting; and they finished dividing the land.
Joshua Chapter 20
Joshua designates cities of refuge
1 The Lord spoke to Joshua, saying,
2 “ Speak to the Israelites and tell them: ‘Designate for yourselves the cities of refuge I told you about through Moses,
3 so that anyone who kills another person unintentionally may flee there. These cities will be a refuge for you from the avenger of blood.
4 Anyone who flees to one of these cities must stand at the gate of that city and present their case before the elders of that city. They will take them into the city and give them a place to live among them.
5 If the avenger of blood pursues them, they must not hand the manslayer over to him, because the manslayer killed their neighbor unintentionally and had no prior enmity with them.
6 The manslayer must remain in that city until they stand trial before the assembly and until the death of the high priest at that time. Then the manslayer may return to his city, his home, or the city from which he fled.
7 So they designated Kedesh in Galilee, in the hill country of Naphtali, Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the hill country of Judah.
8 And beyond the Jordan, east of Jericho, they designated Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain of the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan of the tribe of Manasseh.
9 These were the cities designated for all the children of Israel, and for the stranger who sojourned among them, so that whoever struck a person accidentally could flee to them, so that he would not be put to death by the avenger of blood until he stood before the congregation.
Joshua Chapter 21
Cities of the Levites
1 The heads of the Levite families came to Eleazar the priest, to Joshua son of Nun, and to the heads of the families of the Israelite tribes,
2 and spoke to them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying, “The Lord commanded through Moses that we be given cities to live in, with their pasturelands for our livestock.”
3 So the Israelites gave the Levites these cities with their pasturelands from their own inheritance, as the Lord had commanded.
4 The lot fell to the Kohathites; the sons of Aaron the priest, who were Levites, received thirteen cities by lot from the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin.
5 The other Kohathites received ten cities by lot from the families of the tribes of Ephraim, Dan, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.
6 The Gershonites received by lot from the clans of the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and the half-tribe of Manasseh in Bashan, thirteen cities.
7 The Merarites received by lot from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun, according to their clans.
8 So the Israelites gave these cities and their pasturelands to the Levites by lot, as the Lord had commanded through Moses.
9 From the tribes of Judah and Simeon, they gave these cities that were named,
10 which the descendants of Aaron received from the clans of Kohath, the Levites, for they were the first to be allotted.
11 They gave them Kiriath-arba (Hebron), in the hill country of Judah, belonging to the father of Anak, with its surrounding pasturelands.
12 But the city and its surrounding countryside they gave to Caleb son of Jephunneh as his possession.
13 To the sons of Aaron the priest they gave Hebron with its pasturelands as a city of refuge for manslayers; also Libnah with its pasturelands,
14 Jattir with its pasturelands, Eshtemoa with its pasturelands,
15 Holon with its pasturelands, Debir with its pasturelands,
16 Ain with its pasturelands, Jutta with its pasturelands, and Beth-shemesh with its pasturelands; nine cities from these two tribes;
17 and from the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon with its pasturelands, Geba with its pasturelands,
18 Anathoth with its pasturelands, and Almon with its pasturelands; four cities.
19 All the cities of the priests, the sons of Aaron, are thirteen with their pasturelands.
20 But the families of the sons of Kohath, the Levites, those who remained of the sons of Kohath, received by lot cities of the tribe of Ephraim.
21They gave them Shechem with its pasturelands in the hill country of Ephraim as a city of refuge for manslayers; also, Gezer with its pasturelands,
22 Kibsaim with its pasturelands, and Beth-horon with its pasturelands; four cities.
23 From the tribe of Dan, Elteke with its pasturelands, Gibbethon with its pasturelands,
24 Aijalon with its pasturelands, and Gath-rimmon with its pasturelands; four cities.
25 And from the half-tribe of Manasseh, Taanach with its pasturelands and Gath-rimmon with its pasturelands; two cities.
26 All the cities for the rest of the families of the sons of Kohath were ten with their pasturelands.
27 To the sons of Gershon, from the families of the Levites, they gave from the half-tribe of Manasseh Golan in Bashan with its pasturelands as a city of refuge for manslayers, and also Beesthera with its pasturelands; two cities.
28 From the tribe of Issachar, Kishon with its pasturelands, Daberath with its pasturelands,
29 Jarmuth with its pasturelands and En-gannim with its pasturelands; four cities.
30 From the tribe of Asher, Mishlei with its pasturelands, Abdon with its pasturelands,
31 Helkath with its pasturelands, and Rehob with its pasturelands; four cities.
32 And from the tribe of Naphtali, Kedesh in Galilee with its pasturelands as a city of refuge for manslayers, and also Hamoth-dor with its pasturelands and Kartan with its pasturelands; three cities.
33 All the cities of the Gershonites according to their families were thirteen cities with their pasturelands.
34 To the families of the sons of Merari, the remaining Levites, were given from the tribe of Zebulun: Jokneam with its pasturelands, Karta with its pasturelands,
35 Dimna with its pasturelands, and Nahalal with its pasturelands; four cities.
36 From the tribe of Reuben: Bezer with its pasturelands, Jahaz with its pasturelands,
37 Kedemoth with its pasturelands, and Mephaath with its pasturelands; four cities.
38 From the tribe of Gad: Ramoth-gilead with its pasturelands as a city of refuge for manslayers; also Mahanaim with its pasturelands,
39 Heshbon with its pasturelands, and Jazer with its pasturelands; four cities.
40 All the cities of the sons of Merari, according to their families, who remained of the families of the Levites, were allotted twelve cities by their lots.
41 All the cities of the Levites within the territory of the Israelites numbered forty-eight, with their pasturelands.
42 These cities were separated from one another, each with its pasturelands surrounding it; this was the case with all these cities.
Israel occupies the land
43 So the Lord gave Israel all the land he had sworn to give their ancestors, and they took possession of it and settled there.
44 The Lord gave them rest on every side, just as he had sworn to their ancestors. None of their enemies could stand against them, for the Lord delivered all their enemies into their hands.
45 Not one of all the good promises the Lord had made to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.
Joshua Chapter 22
The altar by the Jordan
1 Then Joshua summoned the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh,
2 and said to them, “You have kept everything that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, and you have obeyed my voice in all that I have commanded you.
3 You have not forsaken your brothers these long days until this day, but have been careful to keep the commandments of the Lord your God.
4 Now therefore, since the Lord your God has given rest to your brothers, as he promised, return to your tents, to the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of the Lord gave you beyond the Jordan.
5 Only be careful to observe the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you: to love the Lord your God and to walk in all his ways; that you keep his commandments, and follow him, and serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.
6 And blessing them, Joshua sent them away, and they went to their tents.
7 Moses had also given the half-tribe of Manasseh a possession in Bashan; but Joshua gave the other half an inheritance among their brothers on this side of the Jordan, to the west; and Joshua also sent these away to their tents, after he had blessed them.
8 And he spoke to them, saying, “Return to your tents with great riches, with much livestock, with silver, with gold, and bronze, and many garments; share with your brothers the plunder of your enemies.”
9 So the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh turned back from Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go to the land of Gilead, to the land of their possession, which they had taken possession of according to the Lord’s command through Moses.
10 When they came to the border of the Jordan, which is in the land of Canaan, the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh built an altar there by the Jordan, a magnificent altar.
11 The Israelites heard that the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh had built an altar opposite the land of Canaan, on the border of the Jordan, on the side of the Israelites.
12 When the Israelites heard this, the whole Israelite community gathered at Shiloh to go up to battle against them.
13 And the children of Israel sent to the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh in the land of Gilead, Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest,
14 and ten princes with him: one prince from each father’s house of all the tribes of Israel, each of whom was the head of his father’s house among the thousands of Israel.
15 These men went to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh in the land of Gilead and spoke to them, saying,
16 “ Thus says the whole congregation of the Lord: ‘What transgression is this, that you are being unfaithful to the God of Israel, turning away today from following the Lord, building yourselves an altar to rebel against the Lord?
17 Was not the sin of Peor, from which we have not yet cleansed to this day, and through which a plague struck the congregation of the Lord, sufficient
for you to turn away today from following the Lord? You are rebelling against the Lord today, and tomorrow he will be angry with the whole congregation of Israel.
19 If you think the land you possess is unclean, then cross over to the land the Lord possesses, where the Lord’s dwelling place is, and take possession among us.’” But do not rebel against the Lord, nor rebel against us, by building yourselves an altar besides the altar of the Lord our God.
20 Did not Achan son of Zerah commit a trespass in the devoted things, and did not wrath come upon all the congregation of Israel? And that man did not perish alone in his iniquity.
21 Then the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh answered and said to the leaders of the thousands of Israel,
22 “The Lord God of gods, the Lord God of gods, he knows, and he declares to Israel: if it was in rebellion or in transgression against the Lord, do not save us this day.
23 If we have built an altar to turn away from following the Lord, or to offer burnt offerings or grain offerings, or to offer peace offerings on it, may the Lord himself require it of us.
24 Rather, we did it out of fear that in time to come your children might say to our children, ‘What do you have against the Lord, the God of Israel?’
25 The Lord has made the Jordan a boundary between us and you, Reubenites and Gadites; you have no share in the Lord. And so your children would cause our children to stop fearing the Lord.”
26 Therefore we said, “Let us now build an altar, not for burnt offerings or sacrifices,
27 but as a witness between us and you and between you and your descendants after us, that we may worship the Lord before him with our burnt offerings, our sacrifices, and our peace offerings. Then your children will not say to our children in time to come, ‘You have no share in the Lord.’”
28 We said, “If they say such a thing to us or to our generations to come, then we will answer, ‘See the likeness of the altar of the Lord, which our ancestors made, not for burnt offerings or sacrifices, but as a witness between us and you.’
29 Never again should we rebel against the Lord or turn aside this day from following the Lord by building an altar for burnt offerings, grain offerings, or sacrifices, in addition to the altar of the Lord our God that is before his tabernacle.”
30 When Phinehas the priest, the leaders of the congregation, and the heads of the thousands of Israel who were with him heard the words spoken by the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the Manasseh, they were pleased.
31 Then Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest said to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the Manasseh, “Today we know that the Lord is among us, because you did not attempt this treachery against the Lord. You have now delivered the Israelites from the hand of the Lord.”
32 So Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest and the leaders left the Reubenites and the Gadites and returned from the land of Gilead to the land of Canaan, to the Israelites, and gave them their answer.
33The plan pleased the Israelites, and they blessed God. They no longer spoke of going up against them to destroy the land where the Reubenites and Gadites lived.
34 The Reubenites and Gadites named the altar Ed, for it is a witness between us that the Lord is God.
Joshua Chapter 23
Joshua's exhortation to the people
1 Many days after the Lord had given rest to Israel from all their enemies around them, Joshua, now old and well advanced in years,
2 summoned all Israel—their elders, their leaders, their judges, and their officers—and said to them, “I am now old and well advanced in years.
3 You yourselves have seen all that the Lord your God has done to all these nations for your sake, for it is the Lord your God who has fought for you.
4 See, I have allotted to you as an inheritance for your tribes these nations, both those that I have destroyed and those that remain, from the Jordan to the Great Sea in the west.
5 The Lord your God will drive them out before you and expel them from your presence, and you shall possess their lands, as the Lord your God has promised you.
6 Be very careful, therefore, to observe all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, without turning aside from it to the right or to the left.
7 Do not associate with the nations that remain among you, nor invoke or swear by the names of their gods, nor serve or bow down to them.
8 But you shall follow the Lord your God, as you have done to this day.
9 For the Lord has driven out before you great and powerful nations, and to this day none has been able to withstand you.
10 One of you will chase a thousand, for the Lord your God is the one who fights for you, as he promised you.
11 Therefore, be careful to love the Lord your God.
12 If you turn away and join with the remnant of these nations that remain among you, and if you intermarry with them and they with you,
13 know for certain that the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you. They will become a snare and a trap for you, a scourge for your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from this good land the Lord your God has given you.
14 And behold, I am about to go the way of all the earth today. Know therefore with all your heart and with all your soul that not one word has failed of all the good promises the Lord your God made concerning you; every one has come to pass for you, not one of them has failed.
15 But just as every good promise the Lord your God made to you has come to pass, so the Lord will bring upon you every evil promise, until he has destroyed you from the good land the Lord your God has given you,
16 if you transgress the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you, by going and serving other gods and bowing down to them. Then the anger of the Lord will be kindled against you, and you will quickly perish from this good land he has given you.
Joshua Chapter 24
Joshua 's farewell speech
1 Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel at Shechem, and summoned the elders of Israel, their leaders, their judges, and their officers; and they presented themselves before God.
2 And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Long ago your ancestors lived beyond the Euphrates River, including Terah, the father of Abraham and Nahor, and they served other gods.
3 But I took your father Abraham from beyond the Euphrates River and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and I made his descendants numerous, and gave him Isaac.
4 To Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. And to Esau I gave Mount Seir to possess; but Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt.
5 Then I sent Moses and Aaron, and I struck down Egypt, just as I had done in its midst, and afterward I brought you out.
6 I brought your ancestors out of Egypt; And when they came to the sea, the Egyptians pursued your ancestors as far as the Red Sea with chariots and horsemen.
7 And when they cried out to the Lord, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them, and it covered them; and your eyes saw what I did in Egypt. After that you were in the wilderness for many days.
8 I brought you into the land of the Amorites, who lived on the other side of the Jordan, and they fought against you; but I gave them into your hand, and you possessed their land, and I destroyed them before you.
9 Then Balak son of Zippor, king of the Moabites, arose and fought against Israel; and he sent for Balaam son of Beor to curse you.
10 But I would not listen to Balaam, so he blessed you again and again, and I delivered you from his hand.
11 You crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho, and the inhabitants of Jericho fought against you: the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and Jebusites, and I delivered them into your hands.
12 I sent swarms of flies ahead of you, which drove out the two Amorite kings before you, not by your sword or your bow.
13 I gave you a land for which you did not labor and cities you did not build, and you live in them; you eat of the vineyards and olive groves you did not plant.
14 Now therefore, fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in truth. Put away the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.
15 And if serving the Lord seems evil to you, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.
16Then the people answered and said, “Far be it from us to forsake the Lord to serve other gods!
17 For the Lord our God is the one who brought us and our ancestors up out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, who performed these great signs, and who protected us all the way we went and among all the peoples through whom we passed.
18 And the Lord drove out before us all the other peoples, including the Amorites who lived in the land. We too will serve the Lord, for he is our God.”
19 Then Joshua said to 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 transgressions and your sins.
20 If you forsake the Lord and serve other gods, he will turn against you and bring disaster on you and destroy you, after he has been good to you.”
21 The people said to Joshua, “No! We will serve the Lord.”
22 Joshua answered the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the Lord to serve him.” And they answered, “We are witnesses.”
23 Put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your heart to the Lord, the God of Israel.
24 And the people answered Joshua, “We will serve the Lord our God, and we will obey his voice.”
25 So Joshua made a covenant with the people that same day and gave them statutes and laws at Shechem.
26 And Joshua wrote these words in the Book of the Law of God; and he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak tree that was by the sanctuary of the Lord.
27 And Joshua said to all the people, “Behold, this stone shall be a witness for us, for it has heard all the words that the Lord has spoken to us; it shall be a witness against you, that you may not lie against your God.”
28 Then Joshua sent the people away, each to his own possession.
Death of Joshua
29 After these things Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of 110.
30 They buried him in his inheritance at Timnath-serah, which is in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.
31 Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua and who had known all the works that the Lord had done for Israel.
Burial of Joseph's bones in Shechem
32 And they buried in Shechem the bones of Joseph, which the sons of Israel had brought up out of Egypt, in the portion of the field which Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem, for one hundred pieces of silver; and it was the possession of the sons of Joseph.
Death of Eleazar
33 Eleazar son of Aaron also died, and they buried him on the hill of Phinehas his son, which was given to him in the hill country of Ephraim.