'People' in the Bible

For you [are] a holy people for Yahweh your God; Yahweh your God has chosen you to be for him a people, a treasured possession from [among] all the peoples that [are] on the face of the earth.

a great and tall people, the sons of [the] Anakites, whom you know and [of whom you] have heard [it said], 'Who could stand before the sons of Anak?'

"So you should understand that [it is] not because of your righteousness [that] Yahweh your God [is] giving you this good land to take possession of it, because {you are a stubborn people}.

And Yahweh said to me, 'Come [now], go down quickly from this mountain because your people behave corruptly whom you brought out from Egypt, [for] they turned quickly from the way that I commanded them [to follow]; they have made for themselves a cast image.'

And Yahweh spoke to me, {saying}, 'I have seen this people, and look! {They are a stubborn people}.

And I prayed to Yahweh, and I said, 'Lord Yahweh, you must not destroy your people and your inheritance whom you redeemed in your greatness, whom you brought out from Egypt with a strong hand.

Remember your servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; you must not {pay attention to} the stubbornness of this people, to their wickedness and to their sin,

lest [the people of] the land from which you brought us out from there say, "Because Yahweh was not able to bring them to the land that he {promised} to them and because of his hatred [toward] them, he has brought them out to kill them in the desert."

For they [are] your people and your inheritance whom you brought with your great power and with your outstretched arm.'

At that time Yahweh set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of Yahweh to stand {before} Yahweh, to serve him and to bless [the people] in his name until this day.

And Yahweh said to me, '{Come, continue} your journey {before the people}, so that you may go and take possession of the land that I swore to their ancestors to give to them.'

from [among] the gods of the people who are around you, {those near you or those far from you}, from [one] end of the earth and up to the [other] end of the earth,

But you shall certainly kill him; your hand shall be first against him to kill him and next the hand of all [of] the people.

For you [are] a people holy to Yahweh your God, and you Yahweh has chosen to be a treasured possession from [among] all [of] the peoples that are on the surface of the earth.

"You shall not eat any carcass; you may give it to the alien who [is] in your {towns}, and he may eat it, or you may sell [it] to a foreigner, for you [are] a holy people for Yahweh your God; you may not boil a kid in its mother's milk.

"You shall appoint judges and officials for you in all your {towns} that Yahweh your God [is] giving to you throughout your tribes, and you shall render [for] the people {righteous judgments}.

The hand of the witnesses shall be first against the person to kill the person, and afterward the hands [of] all the people, and [so] you shall purge the evil from your midst.

And all the people will hear and will be afraid, and they will not behave presumptuously again.

Except, he may {not make numerous} for himself horses, and he may not allow the people to [to go] to Egypt {in order to increase horses}, for Yahweh has said to you that {you may never return}.

Now this shall be the share of the priest from the people, from {those who sacrifice the sacrifice}, [whether it is] an ox, sheep, or goat, and they shall give the priest the shoulder and the jawbones and the stomach.

{And then} if {they accept your terms of peace} and {they surrender to you}, {and then} all the people {inhabiting it} shall be forced labor for you, and they shall serve you.

Forgive your people, Israel, whom you redeemed, Yahweh, and [do] not {allow} the guilt of innocent blood in the midst of your people Israel, and let them be forgiven [with regard to] blood.'

Look down from the dwelling place of your holiness, from heaven, and bless your people Israel, and the land that you have given to us, as you swore to our ancestors, a land flowing with milk and honey.'

And Yahweh [has] declared you {today} to be for him as a people, a treasured possession, as he {promised} to you, and [that you are] to observe all his commandments,

{and that he then will set you} high above all the nations that he has made for his praise and {for fame} and for honor and {for you to be a holy people} to Yahweh your God, as he {promised}."

Then Moses and the elders of Israel charged the people, {saying}, "Keep all of the commandment that I [am] commanding you {today}.

Then Moses and the priests, the Levites, spoke to all Israel, saying, "Be silent and hear, Israel, [for] this day you have become {a people} for Yahweh your God.

And Moses charged the people on that day, {saying},

"These [tribes] shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people {when you cross} the Jordan: Simeon and Levi and Judah and Issachar and Joseph and Benjamin.

'Cursed be the man that makes a divine image or a cast image, [which is] a detestable thing for Yahweh, the work of the hand of a skilled craftsman, and [then] sets [it] in a hiding place.' And {all the people shall respond}, 'Amen.'

'Cursed be the one who dishonors his father or his mother.' And all of the people shall say, 'Amen.'

'Cursed be the one who moves the boundary [marker] of his neighbor.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'

'Cursed be the one who misleads a blind person on the road.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'

'Cursed be the one who deprives [the] alien, [the] orphan, and [the] widow of justice.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'

'Cursed be the one who lies with the wife of his father, because {he has dishonored his father's bed}.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'

'Cursed be the one who lies with any [kind] of animal.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'

'Cursed be the one who lies with his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'

'Cursed be the one who lies with his mother-in-law.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'

'Cursed be the one who strikes down his neighbor in secret.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'

'Cursed be the one who takes a bribe {to murder an innocent person}.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'

'Cursed be [the one] {who does not keep} the words of this law, to observe them.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'"

Yahweh will establish you for {himself} as a holy people as he has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of Yahweh your God and you walk in his ways.

Your sons and your daughters [shall be] given to other people, and {you will be looking on} {longingly} for them all day, {but you will be powerless to do anything}.

A people that you do not know shall consume the harvest of your land and all your labor, and you will be only oppressed and crushed {for the rest of your lives}.

And you shall remain {only a few people} in place of [the fact] you were [formerly] as the stars of heaven as far as number [is concerned], because you did not listen to the voice of Yahweh your God.

in order to establish you {today} {to himself} as a people and [so that] he may be for you [as] God, [just] as he {promised} to you and {just as} he swore to your ancestors, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

Then Moses summoned Joshua, and he said to him {in the presence of all Israel}, "Be strong and be courageous, for you will go with this people into the land that Yahweh swore to their ancestors to give to them, and you will give it to them as an inheritance.

Assemble the people, the men and the women and the little children and your aliens that are in your {towns}, so that they may hear and so that they may learn and they may revere Yahweh your God, and {they shall diligently observe} all the words of this law.

And Yahweh said to Moses, "Look, you [are] about to lie [down] with your ancestors, and this people will arise and they will play the prostitute after {the foreign gods} of the land {to which they are going}.

[Like] this do you treat Yahweh, foolish and {unwise} people? [Has] he not, your father, created you? He made you, and he established you.

For Yahweh's portion [was] his people, Jacob the share of his inheritance.

They annoyed me with [what is] not a god; they provoked me with their idols. So I will make them jealous with [those] not a people, with a foolish nation I will provoke them.

I thought, "I will wipe them out; {I will make people forget they ever existed}."

For Yahweh will judge [on behalf of] his people, and concerning his servants; he will change his mind when he sees that [their] power has disappeared, and [there is] no one left, confined or free.

Call for songs of joy, O nations, [concerning] his people, for the blood of his servants he will avenge, {and he will take reprisals against his foes}, and he will make atonement [for] his land, his people."

And Moses came, and he spoke all the words of this song in the ears of the people; [that is], he and Joshua the son of Nun.

You shall die on that mountain that you [are] about to go up there, and [you will] be gathered to your people, [just] as your brother Aaron died on {Mount Hor} and he was gathered to his people,

Moreover, {he loves his people}, all the holy ones [were] in your hand, and they bowed down to your feet, {each one accepted directions from you}.

And [then] a king arose in Jeshurun, at the gathering of the leaders of [the] people, {united were the tribes of Israel}.

{And he said this of Judah}, "Hear, O Yahweh, the voice of Judah, and bring him to his people; his own hands strive for him, and may you be a help {against} his foes."

[As] the firstborn of his ox, majesty {belongs to him}, and his horns [are] [the] horns of a wild ox; with them he drives people together, and they [are] the myriads of Ephraim, and they [are] the thousands of Manasseh."

They summon people [to the] mountains; there they sacrifice the sacrifices of righteousness, because the affluence of [the] seas they suck [out], and {the most hidden treasures of the sand}."

And he selected [the] best [part] for himself, for there [the] portion of a ruler [is] included, and he came [with the] heads of [the] people; he did the righteousness of Yahweh, and his regulations for Israel."

Blessed [are] you, O Israel. Who is like you, a people who [is] saved by Yahweh, the shield of your help, and who [is] the sword of your triumph, and your enemies, they shall fawn before you, and you shall tread on their backs."

"My servant Moses [is] dead. Get up and cross the Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I [am] giving to them, to the {Israelites}.

Be strong and courageous, for you will give the people this land as an inheritance that I swore to their ancestors to give them.

Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying,

"Pass through the midst of the camp and command the people: 'Prepare your provisions; {in} three days you [are to] cross the Jordan to go possess the land that Yahweh your God [is] giving you to possess.'"

and they commanded the people: "When you see the Levitical priests carrying the ark of the covenant of Yahweh your God you must set out from your place and go after it.

And Joshua said to the people, "Sanctify yourselves, because tomorrow Yahweh will do wonders in your midst."

And Joshua said to the priests, "Take up the ark of the covenant and cross [over] {ahead of the people}." And they took up the ark of the covenant and went {ahead of the people}.

And it happened, when the people set out from their tents to cross [over] the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant were {ahead of the people}.

the waters flowing down from above stood [still]; they stood up [in] one heap very far from Adam, the city that [is] beside Zarethan, while [the waters] flowing down to the sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, {were completely cut off}; and the people crossed [over] opposite Jericho.

"Take twelve men from the people, {one man from each tribe},

The priests carrying the ark remained standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything that Yahweh commanded Joshua to tell the people was finished, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua. And the people hastily crossed [over].

And it happened, when all the people had finished crossing, the ark of Yahweh and the priests crossed [over] in front of the people.

And the people came up from the Jordan on the tenth [day] of the first month, and they camped in Gilgal on the eastern edge of Jericho.

This [is] the reason why Joshua circumcised all the people: all the males who went out from Egypt, all the warriors, died in the wilderness as they went out from Egypt {on the journey}.

For all the people who left were circumcised, but all the people born in the wilderness {on the journey} [after] they left from Egypt were not circumcised.

And when they blow long on the horn of the ram, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people will shout [with] a great war cry, and the wall of the city will fall flat, and {the people will charge, each one straight ahead}."

And he said to the people, "Go forward and march around the city, and let the armed [men] pass before the ark of Yahweh.

{And when Joshua spoke} to the people, the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets of rams' horns before the presence of Yahweh went forward and they blew the trumpets; and the ark of the covenant of Yahweh followed behind them.

But Joshua commanded the people, saying, "You will not shout, and you will not let your voice be heard; a word will not go out from your mouth until the day I say to you 'Shout!' Then you will shout."

And at the seventh time the priests blew on the trumpets, and Joshua said to the people, "Shout! For Yahweh has given you the city.

So the people shouted, and they blew on the trumpets. And when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, they raised a great shout, and the wall fell flat. {The people charged, each one straight ahead into the city}, and they captured it.

And they returned to Joshua and said to him, "Do not let all the people go up and attack Ai; [only] two or three thousand men should go up because they [are] few. Do not make all the people weary [up] there."

So about three thousand from the people went up there, and they fled before the men of Ai.

The men of Ai killed about thirty-six of them, and they chased them from the gate up to Shebarim and killed them on the slope. And the hearts of the people melted and became like water.

And Joshua said, "Ah, my Lord! Why did you bring this people across the Jordan to give us into the hand of the Amorites to destroy us? If only we had been content and stayed beyond the Jordan.

Get up, sanctify the people, and say, 'Sanctify yourselves for tomorrow. Thus says Yahweh the God of Israel: "[There are] devoted things in your midst, O Israel. You will be unable to stand before you enemies until you remove the devoted things from your midst."

Then I and all of the people who [are] with me will approach the city. And when they go out to meet us {as before}, we will flee from them.

So Joshua sent them out, and they went to the [place of the] ambush, and they sat between Bethel and Ai, to the west of Ai; but Joshua spent the night {with the people}.

Joshua rose early in the morning and mustered the people, and he went up [with] the elders of Israel before the people of Ai.

All of the people who [were] in the city were called to pursue after them. As they pursued after Joshua, they were drawn away from the city.

Then the men of Ai looked behind them, and they saw smoke from the city rising to the sky; {they had no power to flee this way or that}, and the people fleeing the wilderness turned around to the pursuers.

All the people that fell on that day, both men and women, [were] twelve thousand--all the inhabitants of Ai.

Then all Israel, {foreigner as well as native}, with the elders, officials, and judges stood {on either side} of the ark before the priests and the Levites, who carried the ark of the covenant of Yahweh. Half of them [stood] in front of Mount Gerizim, and the other half in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses Yahweh's servant had commanded before to bless the people of Israel.

and all the people returned to the camp safely to Joshua [at] Makkedah. {No one spoke} against the {Israelites}.

And Yahweh also gave it into the hand of Israel, and its king and all the people in it he struck with {the edge of the sword}. He left in it no survivor. He did to its king just as he did to the king of Jericho.

Then Horam king of Gezer came up to help Lachish, and Joshua struck him and his people until he left no survivor behind.