Joshua 24

Joshua’s Final Speech at Shechem

1 Joshua called all the tribes of Israel together at Shechem - the leaders, elders, judges, and officers.

2 He said to the people, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Long ago your ancestors - Terah, father of Abraham and Nahor - lived beyond the Euphrates River and worshiped other gods.”

3 “But I took your father Abraham from beyond the river and led him through the land of Canaan. I gave him many kids. I gave him Isaac.”

4 “Isaac had two sons: Jacob and Esau. I gave Esau the mountains of Seir to live in, but Jacob and his kids went down to Egypt.”

5 “Then I sent Moses and Aaron to take care of business in Egypt. I hit Egypt with plagues, and brought you out.”

6 “After I brought your ancestors out, they came to the Red Sea. The Egyptians chased them, with chariots and horsemen, all the way to the sea.”

7 “Then they cried to the Lord. And the Lord made the sea drown their enemies. He took care of business.”

8 “You all walked through the wilderness for a minute. Then I brought you into the land of the Amorites, who lived east of the Jordan. They tried to start drama, but I helped you knock them out. You took their land.”

9 “Balak (son of Zippor), the king of Moab, tried to get Balaam to curse you all, but I did not let him. I turned his curse into a blessing.”

10 “I did not listen to Balaam, and I protected you all the whole way.”

11 “You all crossed the Jordan River, came to Jericho, and the people of Jericho fought you all. But I gave you all the victory. And you all took the city.”

12 “I sent hornets to drive out the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, and Hivites - just like I promised.”

13 “I gave you a land you did not work for, cities you did not build, vineyards and olive groves you did not plant. And you are eating from it all.”

Joshua’s Challenge: Choose Who You Will Serve

14 “Now, fear the Lord and serve Him with all your heart and soul. Put away the fake gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.”

15 “But if serving the Lord seems like a chore to you, then choose today who you are going to serve. Either the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the river, or the gods of the Amorites, whose land you live in now.”

16 “But for me and my house, we are going to serve the Lord.”

17 The people answered, “God has been real with us. He is the One who brought us out of Egypt, from slavery. He did all those great signs before our eyes. He kept us safe the whole way, and He protected us from our enemies.”

18 “And we also heard what He did to the two kings of the Amorites - Sihon and Og - who lived east of the Jordan. He gave them to us.”

19 Joshua said, “You all cannot handle serving the Lord. He is too holy and powerful. He will not forgive your sins if you turn on Him and worship fake gods.”

20 “If you turn and start worshipping other gods, He will flip on you and bring disaster. He will destroy you, even though He was good to you at first.”

21 The people said, “No! We will serve the Lord.”

22 Joshua said, “You all are witnesses against yourselves, that you have chosen to serve the Lord.”

23 “Now throw away the foreign gods that are among you, and make your hearts right with the Lord, the God of Israel.”

24 The people said to Joshua, “We will serve the Lord our God and obey Him.”

Joshua Makes a Covenant

25 That day Joshua made a covenant with the people and set up rules and laws for them at Shechem.

26 Joshua wrote all this down in the Book of the Law of God. Then he took a large stone and set it up under the oak tree near the Lord’s sanctuary.

27 Joshua said, “This stone will be a witness against us. It has heard all the words the Lord said to us.”

28 Then Joshua sent the people home - back to their land.

Joshua’s Death and Burial

29 After these things, Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of 110.

30 They buried him in the land of his inheritance, in Timnath-serah, in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.

31 Israel served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and the leaders who outlived him - those who had seen all the great things the Lord had done for Israel.

The Burial of Joseph’s Bones

32 Joseph’s bones, which the Israelites had brought up from Egypt, were buried at Shechem in the parcel of ground Jacob had bought from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem. It became the inheritance of Joseph’s descendants.

33 Eleazar son of Aaron died, and they buried him at Gibeah, which had been allotted to his son Phinehas in the hill country of Ephraim.