Joshua 23

Chapter 23

Joshua’s Final Words to Israel

1 The years passed, and the LORD had given the people of Israel rest from all their enemies. Joshua, who was now very old,2 called together all the elders, leaders, judges, and officers of Israel. He said to them, “I am now a very old man.3 You have seen everything the LORD your God has done for you during my lifetime. The LORD your God has fought for you against your enemies.4 I have allotted to you as your homeland all the land of the nations yet unconquered, as well as the land of those we have already conquered—from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Seat in the west.

5 This land will be yours, for the LORD your God will himself drive out all the people living there now. You will take possession of their land, just as the LORD your God promised you.
6 “So be very careful to follow everything Moses wrote in the Book of Instruction. Do not deviate from it, turning either to the right or to the left.7 Make sure you do not associate with the other people still remaining in the land. Do not even mention the names of their gods, much less swear by them or serve them or worship them.

8 Rather, cling tightly to the LORD your God as you have done until now.
9 “For the LORD has driven out great and powerful nations for you, and no one has yet been able to defeat you.10 Each one of you will put to flight a thousand of the enemy, for the LORD your God fights for you, just as he has promised.

11 So be very careful to love the LORD your God.
12 “But if you turn away from him and cling to the customs of the survivors of these nations remaining among you, and if you intermarry with them,

13 then know for certain that the LORD your God will no longer drive them out of your land. Instead, they will be a snare and a trap to you, a whip for your backs and thorny brambles in your eyes, and you will vanish from this good land the LORD your God has given you.
14 “Soon I will die, going the way of everything on earth. Deep in your hearts you know that every promise of the LORD your God has come true. Not a single one has failed!15 But as surely as the LORD your God has given you the good things he promised, he will also bring disaster on you if you disobey him. He will completely destroy you from this good land he has given you.

16 If you break the covenant of the LORD your God by worshiping and serving other gods, his anger will burn against you, and you will quickly vanish from the good land he has given you.”

JOSHUA 23

Joshua's Farewell Speech

1 The [Lord] let Israel live in peace with its neighbors for a long time, and Joshua lived to a ripe old age.

2 One day he called a meeting of the leaders of the tribes of Israel, including the old men, the judges, and the officials. Then he told them:
I am now very old. 3 You have seen how the [Lord] your God fought for you and helped you defeat the nations who lived in this land.

4-5 There are still some nations left, but the [Lord] has promised you their land. So when you attack them, he will make them run away. I have already divided their land among your tribes, as I did with the land of the nations I defeated between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.

6 Be sure that you carefully obey everything written in The Book of the Lawt of Moses and do exactly what it says.
7 Don't have anything to do with the nations that live around you. Don't worship their gods or pray to their idols or make promises in the names of their gods.

8 Be as faithful to the [Lord] as you have always been.
9 When you attacked powerful nations, the [Lord] made them run away, and no one has ever been able to stand up to you. 10 t Any one of you can defeat a thousand enemy soldiers, because the [Lord] God fights for you, just as he promised. 11 Be sure to always love the [Lord] your God.

12-13 Don't ever turn your backs on him by marrying people from the nations that are left in the land. Don't even make friends with them. I tell you that if you are friendly with those nations, the [Lord] won't chase them away when you attack. Instead, they'll be like a trap for your feet, a whip on your back, and thorns in your eyes. And finally, none of you will be left in this good land that the [Lord] has given you.
14 I will soon die, as everyone must. But deep in your hearts you know that the [Lord] has kept every promise he ever made to you. Not one of them has been broken. 15-16 Yes, when the [Lord] makes a promise, he does what he has promised. But when he makes a threat, he will also do what he has threatened. The [Lord] is our God. He gave us this wonderful land and made an agreement with us that we would worship only him. But if you worship other gods, it will make the [Lord] furious. He will start getting rid of you, and soon not one of you will be left in this good land that he has given you.