Your wives, children and cattle may stay in the land that Moses assigned to you east of the Jordan River. But all you warriors must cross over armed for battle ahead of your brothers. You must help them

Just as we obeyed Moses, so we will obey you. But may the Lord your God be with you as he was with Moses!

Any man who rebels against what you say and does not obey all your commands will be executed. But be strong and brave!"

But the woman hid the two men and replied, "Yes, these men were clients of mine, but I didn't know where they came from.

Anyone who leaves your house will be responsible for his own death -- we are innocent in that case! But if anyone with you in the house is harmed, we will be responsible.

They went to the hill country and stayed there for three days, long enough for those chasing them to return. Their pursuers looked all along the way but did not find them.

But stay about three thousand feet behind it. Keep your distance so you can see which way you should go, for you have not traveled this way before."

Instruct them, 'Pick up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests stand firmly, and carry them over with you and put them in the place where you camp tonight.'"

Joshua told them, "Go in front of the ark of the Lord your God to the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to put a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the Israelite tribes.

The Israelites did just as Joshua commanded. They picked up twelve stones, according to the number of the Israelite tribes, from the middle of the Jordan as the Lord had instructed Joshua. They carried them over with them to the camp and put them there.

Now all the men who left were circumcised, but all the sons born on the journey through the desert after they left Egypt were uncircumcised.

But be careful when you are setting apart the riches for the Lord. If you take any of it, you will make the Israelite camp subject to annihilation and cause a disaster.

But they burned the city and all that was in it, except for the silver, gold, and bronze and iron items they put in the treasury of the Lord's house.

But the Israelites disobeyed the command about the city's riches. Achan son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, stole some of the riches. The Lord was furious with the Israelites.

So about three thousand men went up, but they fled from the men of Ai.

Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenantal commandment! They have taken some of the riches; they have stolen them and deceitfully put them among their own possessions.

When the king of Ai saw Israel, he and his whole army quickly got up the next day and went out to fight Israel at the meeting place near the Arabah. But he did not realize men were hiding behind the city.

But they captured the king of Ai alive and brought him to Joshua.

When Israel had finished killing all the men of Ai who had chased them toward the desert (they all fell by the sword), all Israel returned to Ai and put the sword to it.

But Israel did plunder the cattle and the goods of the city, in accordance with the Lord's orders to Joshua.

they did something clever. They collected some provisions and put worn-out sacks on their donkeys, along with worn-out wineskins that were ripped and patched.

But they said to Joshua, "We are willing to be your subjects." So Joshua said to them, "Who are you and where do you come from?"

This bread of ours was warm when we packed it in our homes the day we started out to meet you, but now it is dry and hard.

These wineskins we filled were brand new, but look how they have ripped. Our clothes and sandals have worn out because it has been a very long journey."

The men examined some of their provisions, but they failed to ask the Lord's advice.

but all the leaders told the whole community, "We swore an oath to them in the name of the Lord God of Israel. So now we can't hurt them!

But don't you delay! Chase your enemies and catch them! Don't allow them to retreat to their cities, for the Lord your God is handing them over to you."

Joshua and the Israelites almost totally wiped them out, but some survivors did escape to the fortified cities.

When they brought the kings out to Joshua, he summoned all the men of Israel and said to the commanders of the troops who accompanied him, "Come here and put your feet on the necks of these kings." So they came up and put their feet on their necks.

That day Joshua captured Makkedah and put the sword to it and its king. He annihilated everyone who lived in it; he left no survivors. He did to its king what he had done to the king of Jericho.

The Lord handed it and its king over to Israel, and Israel put the sword to all who lived there; they left no survivors. They did to its king what they had done to the king of Jericho.

The Lord handed Lachish over to Israel and they captured it on the second day. They put the sword to all who lived there, just as they had done to Libnah.

Then King Horam of Gezer came up to help Lachish, but Joshua struck down him and his army until no survivors remained.

That day they captured it and put the sword to all who lived there. That day they annihilated it just as they had done to Lachish.

They captured it and put the sword to its king, all its surrounding cities, and all who lived in it; they left no survivors. As they had done at Eglon, they annihilated it and all who lived there.

They captured it, its king, and all its surrounding cities and put the sword to them. They annihilated everyone who lived there; they left no survivors. They did to Debir and its king what they had done to Libnah and its king and to Hebron.

But Israel did not burn any of the cities located on mounds, except for Hazor; it was the only one Joshua burned.

The Israelites plundered all the goods of these cities and the cattle, but they totally destroyed all the people and allowed no one who breathed to live.

But the Israelites did not conquer the Geshurites and Maacathites; Geshur and Maacah live among Israel to this very day.

Now Moses had assigned land to the two-and-a-half tribes east of the Jordan, but he assigned no land to the Levites.

My countrymen who accompanied me frightened the people, but I remained loyal to the Lord my God.

Now, assign me this hill country which the Lord promised me at that time! No doubt you heard at that time that the Anakites live there in large, fortified cities. But, assuming the Lord is with me, I will conquer them, as the Lord promised."

(The land of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh, but Tappuah, located on the border of Manasseh, belonged to the tribe of Ephraim.)

The border then descended southward to the Valley of Kanah. Ephraim was assigned cities there among the cities of Manasseh, but the border of Manasseh was north of the valley and ended at the sea.

But the men of Manasseh were unable to conquer these cities; the Canaanites managed to remain in those areas.

Whenever the Israelites were strong militarily, they forced the Canaanites to do hard labor, but they never totally conquered them.

So Joshua said to the Israelites: "How long do you intend to put off occupying the land the Lord God of your ancestors has given you?

But as for you, map out the land into seven regions and bring it to me. I will draw lots for you here before the Lord our God.

But the Levites will not have an allotted portion among you, for their inheritance is to serve the Lord. Gad, Reuben, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have already received their allotted land east of the Jordan which Moses the Lord's servant assigned them."

(The Danites failed to conquer their territory, so they went up and fought with Leshem and captured it. They put the sword to it, took possession of it, and lived in it. They renamed it Dan after their ancestor.)

But carefully obey the commands and instructions Moses the Lord's servant gave you. Love the Lord your God, follow all his instructions, obey his commands, be loyal to him, and serve him with all your heart and being!"

The sin we committed at Peor was bad enough. To this very day we have not purified ourselves; it even brought a plague on the community of the Lord.

But if your own land is impure, cross over to the Lord's own land, where the Lord himself lives, and settle down among us. But don't rebel against the Lord or us by building for yourselves an altar aside from the altar of the Lord our God.

but as a reminder to us and you, and to our descendants who follow us, that we will honor the Lord in his very presence with burnt offerings, sacrifices, and tokens of peace. Then in the future your descendants will not be able to say to our descendants, 'You have no right to worship the Lord.'

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."'

But you must be loyal to the Lord your God, as you have been to this very day.

But if you ever turn away and make alliances with these nations that remain near you, and intermarry with them and establish friendly relations with them,

But in the same way every faithful promise the Lord your God made to you has been realized, it is just as certain, if you disobey, that the Lord will bring on you every judgment until he destroys you from this good land which the Lord your God gave you.

but I took your father Abraham from beyond the Euphrates and brought him into the entire land of Canaan. I made his descendants numerous; I gave him Isaac,

Then I brought you to the land of the Amorites who lived east of the Jordan. They fought with you, but I handed them over to you; you conquered their land and I destroyed them from before you.

You crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The leaders of Jericho, as well as the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and Jebusites, fought with you, but I handed them over to you.

Now obey the Lord and worship him with integrity and loyalty. Put aside the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates and in Egypt and worship the Lord.

If you have no desire to worship the Lord, choose today whom you will worship, whether it be the gods whom your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. But I and my family will worship the Lord!"

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

The bones of Joseph, which the Israelites had brought up from Egypt, were buried at Shechem in the part of the field that Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem, for one hundred pieces of money. So it became the inheritance of the tribe of Joseph.