So, just as the Lord had said, the Israelis set aside cities for the descendants of Levi from a portion of their own inheritances, along with their grazing lands.

And these cities had each their suburbs round about her throughout all the said cities.

And the Lord gave them peace on every side, as he had said to their fathers: all those who were against them gave way before them, for the Lord gave them all up into their hands.

The Lord kept faith with the house of Israel about all the good which he said he would do for them, and all his words came true.

and said to them, “You have kept all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, and have listened to and obeyed my voice in everything that I commanded you.

And now Jehovah your God hath given rest to your brethren, as he said unto them; and now return, and get you unto your tents, unto the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of Jehovah gave you beyond the Jordan.

and he said to them, “Return to your tents with great riches and with very much livestock, with silver, gold, bronze, iron, and with very many clothes; divide the spoil of your enemies with your brothers (fellow tribesmen).”

And the [other] sons of Israel heard it said, “Look, the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh have built an altar at the edge of the land of Canaan, in the region [west] of the Jordan, on the side belonging to the sons of Israel.”

They went to the land of Gilead to the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, and said to them:

Thus said all the assembly of Jehovah, What transgression this which ye transgressed against the God of Israel to turn back this day from after Jehovah, in your building to you an altar for your rebellion this day against Jehovah?

Then the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh answered and said to the heads of the families of Israel,

“So we said, ‘Let us prepare and build an altar, not for burnt offering or for sacrifice,

We said, 'If in the future they say such a thing to us or to our descendants, we will reply, "See the model of the Lord's altar that our ancestors made, not for burnt offerings or sacrifices, but as a reminder to us and you."'

Never let it be said that we were false to the Lord, turning back this day from him and building an altar for burned offerings and meal offerings and offerings of beasts, in addition to the altar of the Lord our God which is before his House.

Then Phinehas the priest and the chiefs of the meeting and the heads of the families of Israel who were with him, hearing what the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the children of Manasseh said, were pleased.

Phinehas, son of Eleazar, the priest, said to the Reubenites, Gadites, and the Manassehites, "Today we know that the Lord is among us, because you have not disobeyed the Lord in this. Now you have rescued the Israelites from the Lord's judgment."

The Israelites were satisfied with their report and gave thanks to God. They said nothing more about launching an attack to destroy the land in which the Reubenites and Gadites lived.

The sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad called the altar Witness; “For,” they said, “it is a witness between us that the Lord is God.”

that Joshua called all Israel, their elders and their heads and their judges and their officers, and said to them, “I am old and advanced in years.

And Jehovah your God, he will expel them from before you, and dispossess them from out of your sight; and ye shall take possession of their land, as Jehovah your God hath said unto you.

One man of you chaseth a thousand; for Jehovah your God, he it is that fighteth for you, as he hath said unto you.

Now I am about to go the way of all the earth: and you have seen and are certain, all of you, in your hearts and souls, that in all the good things which the Lord said about you, he has kept faith with you; everything has come true for you

Joshua said to all the people, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘Your fathers, including Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, lived beyond the [Euphrates] River in ancient times; and they served other gods.

And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;

Then Joshua said to the people, “You will not be able to serve the Lord [if you serve any other gods], for He is a holy God; He is a jealous God [demanding what is rightfully and uniquely His]. He will not forgive your transgression [of His law] or your sins.

The people said to Joshua, "No! We really will worship the Lord!"

Joshua said to the people, "Do you agree to be witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to worship the Lord?" They replied, "We are witnesses!"

Joshua said, "Now put aside the foreign gods that are among you and submit to the Lord God of Israel."

The people said to Joshua, "We will worship the Lord our God and obey him."

And Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God, and took a great stone and pitched it on end in the said place, even under an oak that stood in the sanctuary of the LORD.

Joshua said to all the people, "Look, this stone will be a witness against you, for it has heard everything the Lord said to us. It will be a witness against you if you deny your God."