Our Father Recounts His Faithfulness
24 1 Joshua gathered all Israel's tribes to Shechem, summoned its elders, heads, judges, and officers, and they stood before our Father.
2 Joshua told all the people, "This is what our Father, the God of Israel, says: Long ago your ancestors lived beyond the Euphrates River—Terah, father of Abraham and Nahor—and served other gods." 3 I took your father Abraham from beyond the River, led him through all the land of Canaan, multiplied his children, and gave him Isaac. 4 I gave Isaac Jacob and Esau, gave Esau Mount Seir to possess, but Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt.
5 'I sent Moses and Aaron, I struck Egypt with what I did among them, then I brought you out.' 6 I brought your ancestors out of Egypt; you reached the sea. Egyptians chased your ancestors with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. 7 When they cried to me, I put darkness between you and the Egyptians, brought the sea over them, and covered them. Your eyes saw what I did in Egypt. Then you lived in the wilderness a long time.
8 'I brought you to the Amorites' land beyond the Jordan. They fought you; I gave them into your hand, and you took their land. I destroyed them ahead of you.' 9 Then Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, rose and fought Israel. He sent and called Balaam son of Beor to curse you, 10 But I wouldn't listen to Balaam, so he blessed you again and again, and I rescued you from his hand.
11 You crossed the Jordan to Jericho. Its citizens fought you — Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, Jebusites — but I gave them into your hand. 12 I sent the hornet ahead of you; it drove out the two Amorite kings before you—not by your sword or your bow. 13 I gave you land you did not work for, cities you did not build—and you live in them; you eat from vineyards and olive groves you did not plant.
14 Now, fear our Father, serve him with integrity and faithfulness. Remove the gods your ancestors served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve our Father. 15 But if serving our Father seems wrong to you, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve—the gods your ancestors served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you live. As for me and my household, we will serve our Father.
16 The people answered, "We could never abandon our Father to serve other gods." 17 For our Father brought us and our ancestors up out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and did these great signs before our eyes. He kept us safe the whole way we traveled, and among all the peoples we passed through. 18 "And our Father drove out before us all the peoples, including the Amorites living in the land. We too will serve him, for he is our Father."
19 Joshua told the people, "You cannot serve our Father—he is a holy God, a jealous God. He won't forgive your rebellion and sins." 20 "If you abandon our Father and serve foreign gods, he will turn, harm you, and consume you, after he has done you good."
21 But the people said to Joshua, "No! We will serve our Father." 22 Then Joshua said to the people, "You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen our Father, to serve him." "We are witnesses," they said.
23 Now put away the foreign gods among you, and turn your hearts to our Father, the God of Israel.
24 And the people said to Joshua, "We will serve our Father, and we will obey his voice."
25 Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and set them a statute and ordinance at Shechem. 26 Joshua wrote these words in the Book of the Law of our Father, then took a large stone and set it up there under the oak by our Father's sanctuary. 27 Joshua told all the people, "Look, this stone will be a witness against us, because it heard every word our Father spoke to us. It will be a witness against you, so you don't deny your Father." 28 Then Joshua sent the people away, each to his own inheritance.
Joshua, the Father's Servant, Rests
29 After this, Joshua son of Nun, the servant of our Father, died at a hundred ten years old. 30 They buried him in his inheritance at Timnath-serah, in Ephraim's hill country, north of Mount Gaash. 31 Israel served our Father all Joshua's days, and all the days of the elders who outlived him and knew all the work our Father had done for Israel. 32 Joseph's bones, which the Israelites had carried up from Egypt, they buried at Shechem, in the plot Jacob bought from Hamor's sons, Shechem's father, for a hundred pieces of silver—it became Joseph's descendants' inheritance. 33 Eleazar son of Aaron died, and they buried him at Gibeah, given to his son Phinehas in the hill country of Ephraim.
