Joshua 23
23
Joshua Says Goodbye to the Leaders
1A long time had passed. The Lord had given Israel peace and rest from all their enemies around them. By that time Joshua was very old. 2So he sent for all the elders, leaders, judges and officials of Israel. He said to them, “I’m very old. 3You yourselves have seen everything the Lord your God has done. You have seen what he’s done to all these nations because of you. The Lord your God fought for you. 4Remember how I’ve given you all the land of the nations that remain here. I’ve given each of your tribes a share of it. It’s the land of the nations I conquered. It’s between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea in the west. 5The Lord your God himself will drive those nations out of your way. He will push them out to make room for you. You will take over their land, just as the Lord your God promised you.
6“Be very strong. Be careful to obey everything written in the Book of the Law of Moses. Don’t turn away from it to the right or the left. 7Don’t have anything to do with the nations that remain among you. Don’t use the names of their gods for any reason at all. Don’t give your word and make promises in their names. You must not serve them. You must not bow down to them. 8You must remain true to the Lord your God, just as you have done until now.
9“The Lord has driven out great and powerful nations to make room for you. To this day no one has been able to fight against you and win. 10One of you can chase a thousand away. That’s because the Lord your God fights for you, just as he promised he would. 11So be very careful to love the Lord your God.
12“But suppose you turn away from him. You mix with the people who are left alive in the nations that remain among you. Later, you and they get married to each other. And you do other kinds of things with them. 13Then you can be sure of what the Lord your God will do. He won’t drive out those nations to make room for you anymore. Instead, they will become traps and snares for you. They will be like whips on your backs. They will be like thorns in your eyes. All that will continue until you are destroyed. It will continue until you are removed from this good land. It’s the land the Lord your God has given you.
14“Now I’m about to die, just as everyone else on earth does. The Lord your God has kept all the good promises he gave you. Every one of them has come true. Not one has failed to come true. And you know that with all your heart and soul. 15Every good thing has come to pass that the Lord your God has promised you. So you know that he can also bring against you all the evil things he has warned you about. He’ll do it until he has destroyed you. He’ll do it until he has removed you from this good land. It’s the land he has given you. 16Suppose you break the covenant the Lord your God made with you. He commanded you to obey it. But suppose you go and serve other gods. And you bow down to them. Then the Lord will be very angry with you. You will quickly be destroyed. You will be removed from the good land he has given you.”
Currently Selected:
Joshua 23: NIrV
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Joshua 23
23
The Last Words of Joshua
1The Lord gave Israel peace from their enemies around them. Many years passed, and Joshua grew very old. 2He called a meeting of all the elders, heads of families, judges, and officers of Israel. He said, “I am now very old. 3You have seen what the Lord has done to our enemies to help us. The Lord your God fought for you. 4Remember that your people have been given their land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea in the west, the land I promised to give you. 5The Lord your God will force out the people living there. The Lord will push them out ahead of you. And you will own the land, as he has promised you.
6“Be strong. You must be careful to obey everything commanded in the Book of the Teachings of Moses. Do not stray from it either from the left or the right. 7Don’t become friends with the people living among us who are not Israelites. Don’t say the names of their gods or make anyone swear by them. Don’t serve or worship them. 8You must continue to follow the Lord your God, as you have done in the past.
9“The Lord has forced many great and powerful nations to leave ahead of you. No nation has been able to defeat you. 10With his help, one Israelite could defeat a thousand, because the Lord your God fights for you, as he promised to do. 11So you must be careful to love the Lord your God.
12“If you turn away from the way of the Lord and become friends with these people who are not part of Israel and marry them, 13the Lord your God will not help you defeat your enemies. They will be like traps for you, like whips on your back and thorns in your eyes, and none of you will be left in this good land the Lord your God has given you.
14“It’s almost time for me to die. You know and fully believe that the Lord has done great things for you. You know that he has not failed to keep any of his promises. 15Every good promise that the Lord your God made has come true, and in the same way, his other promises will come true. He promised that evil will come to you and that he will destroy you from this good land that he gave you. 16This will happen if you don’t keep your agreement with the Lord your God. If you go and serve other gods and worship them, the Lord will become very angry with you. Then none of you will be left in this good land he has given you.”
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.