Joshua24

Joshua gathers all Israel at Shechem, recounting the LORD's faithful acts from Abraham to their settlement in Canaan. He challenges them to choose whom they will serve, declaring his own house will serve the LORD. The people affirm their commitment, leading Joshua to establish a covenant and erect a stone as a witness. The chapter concludes with the deaths of Joshua and Eleazar, and the burial of Joseph's bones.
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The Assembly at Shechem

1
Then Joshua assembled all the tribes of Israel at Shechem. He summoned the elders, leaders, judges, and officers of Israel, and they presented themselves before God. ​

God Recounts His Deeds

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And Joshua said to all the people, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Long ago your fathers, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the Euphrates and worshiped other gods. ​
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But I took your father Abraham from beyond the Euphrates and led him through all the land of Canaan, and I multiplied his descendants. I gave him Isaac,
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and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. I gave Esau Mount Seir to possess, but Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt.
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Then I sent Moses and Aaron, and I afflicted the Egyptians by what I did there, and afterward I brought you out.
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When I brought your fathers out of Egypt and you reached the Red Sea, the Egyptians pursued them with chariots and horsemen as far as the Red Sea.
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So your fathers cried out to the LORD, and He put darkness between you and the Egyptians, over whom He brought the sea and engulfed them. Your very eyes saw what I did to the Egyptians. Then you lived in the wilderness for a long time. ​
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Later, I brought you to the land of the Amorites who lived beyond the Jordan. They fought against you, but I delivered them into your hand, that you should possess their land when I destroyed them before you.
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Then Balak son of Zippor, the king of Moab, set out to fight against Israel. He sent for Balaam son of Beor to curse you,
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but I would not listen to Balaam. So he blessed you again and again, and I delivered you from his hand. ​
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After this, you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The people of Jericho fought against you, as did the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and Jebusites, and I delivered them into your hand.
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I sent the hornet ahead of you, and it drove out the two Amorite kings before you, but not by your own sword or bow. ​
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So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities that you did not build, and now you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.’ ​

Joshua's Challenge: Choose Whom You Will Serve

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Now, therefore, fear the LORD and serve Him in sincerity and truth; cast aside the gods your fathers served beyond the Euphrates and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. ​
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But if it is unpleasing in your sight to serve the LORD, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD!” ​
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The people replied, “Far be it from us to forsake the LORD to serve other gods!
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For the LORD our God brought us and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and performed these great signs before our eyes. He also protected us throughout our journey and among all the nations through which we traveled.
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And the LORD drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites who lived in the land. We too will serve the LORD, because He is our God!”

The People's Vow and Joshua's Warning

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But 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 rebellion or your sins. ​
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If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, He will turn and bring disaster on you and consume you, even after He has been good to you.”
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“No!” replied the people. “We will serve the LORD!”
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Then Joshua told them, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to serve the LORD.” “We are witnesses!” they said. ​
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“Now, therefore,” he said, “get rid of the foreign gods among you and incline your hearts to the LORD, the God of Israel.”
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So the people said to Joshua, “We will serve the LORD our God and obey His voice.”

The Covenant Is Ratified

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On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people, and there at Shechem he established for them a statute and ordinance. ​
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Joshua recorded these things in the Book of the Law of God. Then he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak that was near the sanctuary of the LORD. ​
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And Joshua said to all the people, “You see this stone. It will be a witness against us, for it has heard all the words the LORD has spoken to us, and it will be a witness against you if you ever deny your God.”
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Then Joshua sent the people away, each to his own inheritance.

The Deaths of Joshua and Eleazar

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Some time later, Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died at the age of 110. ​
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And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.
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Israel had served the LORD throughout the days of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had experienced all the works that the LORD had done for Israel. ​
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And the bones of Joseph, which the Israelites had brought up out of Egypt, were buried at Shechem in the plot of land that Jacob had purchased from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred pieces of silver. So it became an inheritance for Joseph’s descendants. ​
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Eleazar son of Aaron also died, and they buried him at Gibeah, which had been given to his son Phinehas in the hill country of Ephraim. ​

Study Notes for Joshua 24

Verse 1

Shechem was a historically significant location (where Abraham first built an altar and Jacob settled) and was geographically central, making it an ideal site for the nation's final gathering and covenant renewal. They 'presented themselves before God,' indicating a solemn religious ceremony.

Verse 2

Joshua, speaking for God, begins the historical review (Heilsgeschichte) by reminding Israel that their ancestors, including Abraham’s father Terah, were idolaters 'on the other side of the flood' (the Euphrates River). This stresses God's initiative and grace in choosing Israel.

Verse 7

Joshua reminds the people that they are eyewitnesses to God's greatest saving acts, particularly the deliverance at the Red Sea, establishing the basis for their required exclusive obedience.

Verse 10

The reference to Balaam (Num 22-24) highlights that God protects Israel not only from military threats but also from spiritual and magical curses, reinforcing His total sovereignty over all powers.

Verse 12

The 'hornet' is likely a metaphor for the panic, fear, or divine confusion God instilled in the hearts of the enemy (cf. Exod 23:28), emphasizing that the victory was achieved supernaturally, 'not with thy sword, nor with thy bow.'

Verse 13

This verse summarizes the theological point of the conquest: Israel inherited immense blessings (land, cities, produce) that they did not earn, underscoring God's provision and faithfulness to the Abrahamic covenant.

Verse 14

Joshua demands exclusive devotion. The need to 'put away the gods' indicates that idolatry, both ancestral (Mesopotamian) and Egyptian, was still a pervasive temptation among the tribes.

Verse 15

This is the theological climax, presenting a non-negotiable choice between Yahweh and other deities. Joshua provides his own unambiguous example: 'as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD,' setting the standard for faithful leadership.

Verse 19

Joshua’s statement 'Ye cannot serve the LORD' is not a prohibition but a severe warning and a test of resolve. He emphasizes that Yahweh is a 'holy God' and 'jealous God' who demands exclusive, sincere obedience and will punish covenant disloyalty.

Verse 22

By declaring themselves witnesses, the people acknowledge the seriousness of the covenant commitment and accept the legal consequences if they break it, binding them to their solemn vow.

Verse 25

Joshua formally establishes the covenant, setting forth defined 'statute and an ordinance.' This act concludes the period of conquest and formally establishes Israel’s relationship with Yahweh as a sovereign nation.

Verse 26

Writing these words into the 'book of the law of God' links this renewal directly to the foundational Mosaic covenant. The stone served as a durable, physical witness (a stele) to the treaty, a common practice in the ancient Near East.

Verse 29

This section serves as an appendix, concluding the book of Joshua. Joshua died at 110 years old, the same age as Joseph (Gen 50:26), symbolizing a life fully dedicated to fulfilling God's promise.

Verse 31

This verse provides a positive summary statement, affirming that the generation that witnessed the conquest remained faithful. This sets the stage for the dramatic decline in faithfulness chronicled in the book of Judges.

Verse 32

The burial of Joseph’s bones (fulfilling the oath from Exod 13:19) marks the final fulfillment of the promise of the land to the patriarchs, symbolically bringing closure to the Exodus generation's journey.

Verse 33

The death of Eleazar, the high priest and son of Aaron, signifies the passing of the last major leader of the Exodus generation, officially transitioning leadership to the next era represented by his son, Phinehas.

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