Joshua 24: A Covenant Renewal and a Farewell
And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God.
And Joshua said unto all the people, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor: and they served other gods.
And I took your father Abraham from the other side of the flood, and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac.
And I gave unto Isaac Jacob and Esau: and I gave unto Esau mount Seir, to possess it; but Jacob and his children went down into Egypt.
I sent Moses also and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt, according to that which I did among them: and afterward I brought you out.
And I brought your fathers out of Egypt: and ye came unto the sea; and the Egyptians pursued after your fathers with chariots and horsemen unto the Red sea.
And when they cried unto the Lord, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them, and covered them; and your eyes have seen what I have done in Egypt: and ye dwelt in the wilderness a long season.
And I brought you into the land of the Amorites, which dwelt on the other side Jordan; and they fought with you: and I gave them into your hand, that ye might possess their land; and I destroyed them from before you.
Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and warred against Israel, and sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you:
But I would not hearken unto Balaam; therefore he blessed you still: so I delivered you out of his hand.
And ye went over Jordan, and came unto Jericho: and the men of Jericho fought against you, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; and I delivered them into your hand.
And I sent the hornet before you, which drave them out from before you, even the two kings of the Amorites; but not with thy sword, nor with thy bow.
And I have given you a land for which ye did not labour, and cities which ye built not, and ye dwell in them; of the vineyards and oliveyards which ye planted not do ye eat.
Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the Lord.
And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the Lord, to serve other gods;
For the Lord our God, he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and which did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the people through whom we passed:
And the Lord drave out from before us all the people, even the Amorites which dwelt in the land: therefore will we also serve the Lord; for he is our God.
And Joshua said unto the people, Ye cannot serve the Lord: for he is an holy God; he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins.
If ye forsake the Lord, and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you, after that he hath done you good.
And the people said unto Joshua, Nay; but we will serve the Lord.
And Joshua said unto the people, Ye are witnesses against yourselves that ye have chosen you the Lord, to serve him. And they said, We are witnesses.
Now therefore put away, said he, the strange gods which are among you, and incline your heart unto the Lord God of Israel.
And the people said unto Joshua, The Lord our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey.
So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and set them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem.
And Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God, and took a great stone, and set it up there under an oak, that was by the sanctuary of the Lord.
And Joshua said unto all the people, Behold, this stone shall be a witness unto us; for it hath heard all the words of the Lord which he spake unto us: it shall be therefore a witness unto you, lest ye deny your God.
So Joshua let the people depart, every man unto his inheritance.
And it came to pass after these things, that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being an hundred and ten years old.
And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnath–serah, which is in mount Ephraim, on the north side of the hill of Gaash.
And Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that overlived Joshua, and which had known all the works of the Lord, that he had done for Israel.
And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for an hundred pieces of silver: and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph.
And Eleazar the son of Aaron died; and they buried him in a hill that pertained to Phinehas his son, which was given him in mount Ephraim.
Joshua 24 marks the culmination of Joshua's leadership, weaving together a historical reflection, a solemn covenant renewal, and a glimpse into the future of Israel. This chapter serves as a powerful reminder of God's faithfulness and the people's responsibility to remain true to their commitment. It's a chapter rich in lessons for us today, urging us to examine our own hearts and ensure that we are truly serving the Lord with sincerity and truth. This chapter continues Joshua’s farewell address to Israel, which began in Joshua_23.
A History Lesson: God's Faithfulness Remembered (Joshua 24:1-13)
Joshua gathers all the tribes of Israel at Shechem, a location laden with historical significance, and recounts God's dealings with their ancestors. This isn't just a history lesson; it's a powerful declaration of God's unwavering faithfulness. It's a message from God. Beginning with Abraham (Genesis_12), Joshua meticulously traces God's hand in leading, protecting, and providing for His people. He emphasizes God’s initiative and power: "I took," "I gave," "I sent," "I defeated," "I brought," "I did," "I handed," "I annihilated," "I would not listen," "I rescued." The constant repetition of "I" underscores that God was the prime actor in Israel's story.
This historical survey reminds the Israelites, and us, that their presence in the Promised Land was not due to their own strength or merit, but solely to God's grace. As Joshua states, "I gave you a land you did not labor for, towns you did not build, and you live in them; you eat the fruit of vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant" (Joshua_24:13). They were living in homes they hadn’t built, eating food they hadn’t grown, and sitting under shade trees they hadn’t planted. This emphasizes the unearned nature of God's blessings. Even the unrighteous Canaanites were, in a sense, instruments in God's hand, preparing the land for His chosen people. This reminds us that even the ungodly are God’s ungodly—not by relationship but by sovereignty. Similarly, even the devil is God’s devil, because he can only do what God permits. Israel needed to remember that they were like turtles on fence posts, which hadn’t gotten to their safe place by their own power.
This section calls us to recognize and appreciate the blessings we have received, acknowledging that they are gifts from God. Whatever blessings we have received, we should give him all the thanks and praise.
A Call to Commitment: Choosing Whom You Will Serve (Joshua 24:14-15)
Having reminded the people of God's faithfulness, Joshua presents them with a crucial choice: "Now fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord" (Joshua_24:14-15).
Joshua calls them to fear the Lord, meaning to take Him seriously, rather than having a mere casual relationship with Him. He challenges them to eliminate any idols that may have crept into their lives. An idol isn’t merely a statue before which someone bows. An idol is any unauthorized person, place, or thing that a person looks to as a source of purpose, promise, or provision. Therefore, an idol can be money, power, popularity, sex, influence, or a person, and the list goes on. You have only one ultimate source to meet your needs—God.
Joshua's declaration, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord," is a powerful statement of personal commitment and leadership. He couldn't control the hearts of the people of Israel, but he knew whose agenda he himself would follow and who would lead his home. He was determined to serve the Lord. He calls the Israelites to make the same crucial decision. It echoes through the ages, challenging each of us to examine our own allegiances and declare our unwavering devotion to God.
A Covenant Renewed: A Solemn Promise (Joshua 24:16-28)
The people respond enthusiastically, declaring, "Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods" (Joshua_24:16). However, Joshua, knowing the human heart, challenges their sincerity: "You are not able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins. If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you harm and consume you, after having done you good" (Joshua_24:19-20).
Now that response may seem a little odd. Why challenge them to follow the Lord and then call them liars when they promise to do it? Joshua said this because he recognized the danger of not putting your money where your mouth is. Talk is cheap, but actions prove our words. Frankly, Joshua didn’t believe they were serious, so he doubled down. He warned, He is a jealous God. Indeed, God is jealous—righteously jealous—for his people, just as an honorable husband would be righteously jealous if he saw his wife acting inappropriately with another man. It isn’t enough to agree with truth; you must act on that truth.
Their insistence leads to a covenant renewal. Joshua admonishes them to "Put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your heart to the Lord, the God of Israel" (Joshua_24:23). He sets up a large stone as a witness (Joshua_24:26-27). Previously, Joshua had set up memorial stones to remind Israel of what God had done for them (see Joshua_4:1-9) and to remind them of the seriousness of sinning against God (Joshua_7:26). This time, however, the memorial stone was to point them to their agreement to worship God. Every time they passed by it, the stone would silently whisper, “Do not deny your God; practice what you preach” (Joshua_24:27).
This covenant is a divinely sanctioned bond. It’s a declaration of legal relationship in the spiritual realm. Through a covenant, God provides a “covering” for individuals, families, and nations. For example, when a husband honors his marriage covenant with his wife, God provides a covering—an umbrella—of blessing.
This section emphasizes the importance of aligning our actions with our words. God will not tolerate idols. If you have an idol in your life that you are unwilling to renounce (see commentary on Joshua_24:14), then you have, in effect, rejected God’s help and blessings in your situation. Many people ask God why he’s not working in their circumstances, while they’re hugging their idol of choice at the same time. They don’t stop to consider that God’s inactivity may be a result of the fact that like many in Israel, they aren’t willing to lay down the competition.
A Leader's Legacy: Faithfulness Remembered (Joshua 24:29-33)
The chapter concludes with the death of Joshua at the age of 110. He is remembered as "the servant of the Lord" (Joshua_24:29). The text notes that "Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had known all the work that the Lord did for Israel" (Joshua_24:31).
This period of faithfulness, however, is short-lived, as the book of Judges will reveal. The chapter also mentions the burial of Joseph's bones, fulfilling a promise made centuries earlier (Genesis_50:24-26; Exodus_13:19). Though he would not live to see the outcome of the promise, Joseph believed that God would keep his word to his family. And if you think about it, Christians are essentially called to do the same thing. We wait for entry into the divine promised land where God will dwell among his people forever. So with that truth ever in view, walk with God and trust him for what he has planned for your life. Because none of his promises fail.
Joshua 24 serves as a poignant reminder of the importance of remembering God's faithfulness, choosing to serve Him wholeheartedly, and aligning our actions with our words. It's a call to examine our own lives, identify any idols that may be competing for our devotion, and renew our commitment to the Lord. The chapter ends with a sense of both hope and warning, urging us to learn from the past and strive for lasting faithfulness.
And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God.
And Joshua said unto all the people, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor: and they served other gods.
And I took your father Abraham from the other side of the flood, and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac.
And I gave unto Isaac Jacob and Esau: and I gave unto Esau mount Seir, to possess it; but Jacob and his children went down into Egypt.
I sent Moses also and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt, according to that which I did among them: and afterward I brought you out.
And I brought your fathers out of Egypt: and ye came unto the sea; and the Egyptians pursued after your fathers with chariots and horsemen unto the Red sea.
And when they cried unto the Lord, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them, and covered them; and your eyes have seen what I have done in Egypt: and ye dwelt in the wilderness a long season.
And I brought you into the land of the Amorites, which dwelt on the other side Jordan; and they fought with you: and I gave them into your hand, that ye might possess their land; and I destroyed them from before you.
Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and warred against Israel, and sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you:
But I would not hearken unto Balaam; therefore he blessed you still: so I delivered you out of his hand.
And ye went over Jordan, and came unto Jericho: and the men of Jericho fought against you, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; and I delivered them into your hand.
And I sent the hornet before you, which drave them out from before you, even the two kings of the Amorites; but not with thy sword, nor with thy bow.
And I have given you a land for which ye did not labour, and cities which ye built not, and ye dwell in them; of the vineyards and oliveyards which ye planted not do ye eat.
Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the Lord.
And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the Lord, to serve other gods;
For the Lord our God, he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and which did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the people through whom we passed:
And the Lord drave out from before us all the people, even the Amorites which dwelt in the land: therefore will we also serve the Lord; for he is our God.
And Joshua said unto the people, Ye cannot serve the Lord: for he is an holy God; he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins.
If ye forsake the Lord, and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you, after that he hath done you good.
And the people said unto Joshua, Nay; but we will serve the Lord.
And Joshua said unto the people, Ye are witnesses against yourselves that ye have chosen you the Lord, to serve him. And they said, We are witnesses.
Now therefore put away, said he, the strange gods which are among you, and incline your heart unto the Lord God of Israel.
And the people said unto Joshua, The Lord our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey.
So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and set them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem.
And Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God, and took a great stone, and set it up there under an oak, that was by the sanctuary of the Lord.
And Joshua said unto all the people, Behold, this stone shall be a witness unto us; for it hath heard all the words of the Lord which he spake unto us: it shall be therefore a witness unto you, lest ye deny your God.
So Joshua let the people depart, every man unto his inheritance.
And it came to pass after these things, that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being an hundred and ten years old.
And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnath–serah, which is in mount Ephraim, on the north side of the hill of Gaash.
And Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that overlived Joshua, and which had known all the works of the Lord, that he had done for Israel.
And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for an hundred pieces of silver: and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph.
And Eleazar the son of Aaron died; and they buried him in a hill that pertained to Phinehas his son, which was given him in mount Ephraim.
Joshua 24 marks the culmination of Joshua's leadership, weaving together a historical reflection, a solemn covenant renewal, and a glimpse into the future of Israel. This chapter serves as a powerful reminder of God's faithfulness and the people's responsibility to remain true to their commitment. It's a chapter rich in lessons for us today, urging us to examine our own hearts and ensure that we are truly serving the Lord with sincerity and truth. This chapter continues Joshua’s farewell address to Israel, which began in Joshua_23.
A History Lesson: God's Faithfulness Remembered (Joshua 24:1-13)
Joshua gathers all the tribes of Israel at Shechem, a location laden with historical significance, and recounts God's dealings with their ancestors. This isn't just a history lesson; it's a powerful declaration of God's unwavering faithfulness. It's a message from God. Beginning with Abraham (Genesis_12), Joshua meticulously traces God's hand in leading, protecting, and providing for His people. He emphasizes God’s initiative and power: "I took," "I gave," "I sent," "I defeated," "I brought," "I did," "I handed," "I annihilated," "I would not listen," "I rescued." The constant repetition of "I" underscores that God was the prime actor in Israel's story.
This historical survey reminds the Israelites, and us, that their presence in the Promised Land was not due to their own strength or merit, but solely to God's grace. As Joshua states, "I gave you a land you did not labor for, towns you did not build, and you live in them; you eat the fruit of vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant" (Joshua_24:13). They were living in homes they hadn’t built, eating food they hadn’t grown, and sitting under shade trees they hadn’t planted. This emphasizes the unearned nature of God's blessings. Even the unrighteous Canaanites were, in a sense, instruments in God's hand, preparing the land for His chosen people. This reminds us that even the ungodly are God’s ungodly—not by relationship but by sovereignty. Similarly, even the devil is God’s devil, because he can only do what God permits. Israel needed to remember that they were like turtles on fence posts, which hadn’t gotten to their safe place by their own power.
This section calls us to recognize and appreciate the blessings we have received, acknowledging that they are gifts from God. Whatever blessings we have received, we should give him all the thanks and praise.
A Call to Commitment: Choosing Whom You Will Serve (Joshua 24:14-15)
Having reminded the people of God's faithfulness, Joshua presents them with a crucial choice: "Now fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord" (Joshua_24:14-15).
Joshua calls them to fear the Lord, meaning to take Him seriously, rather than having a mere casual relationship with Him. He challenges them to eliminate any idols that may have crept into their lives. An idol isn’t merely a statue before which someone bows. An idol is any unauthorized person, place, or thing that a person looks to as a source of purpose, promise, or provision. Therefore, an idol can be money, power, popularity, sex, influence, or a person, and the list goes on. You have only one ultimate source to meet your needs—God.
Joshua's declaration, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord," is a powerful statement of personal commitment and leadership. He couldn't control the hearts of the people of Israel, but he knew whose agenda he himself would follow and who would lead his home. He was determined to serve the Lord. He calls the Israelites to make the same crucial decision. It echoes through the ages, challenging each of us to examine our own allegiances and declare our unwavering devotion to God.
A Covenant Renewed: A Solemn Promise (Joshua 24:16-28)
The people respond enthusiastically, declaring, "Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods" (Joshua_24:16). However, Joshua, knowing the human heart, challenges their sincerity: "You are not able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins. If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you harm and consume you, after having done you good" (Joshua_24:19-20).
Now that response may seem a little odd. Why challenge them to follow the Lord and then call them liars when they promise to do it? Joshua said this because he recognized the danger of not putting your money where your mouth is. Talk is cheap, but actions prove our words. Frankly, Joshua didn’t believe they were serious, so he doubled down. He warned, He is a jealous God. Indeed, God is jealous—righteously jealous—for his people, just as an honorable husband would be righteously jealous if he saw his wife acting inappropriately with another man. It isn’t enough to agree with truth; you must act on that truth.
Their insistence leads to a covenant renewal. Joshua admonishes them to "Put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your heart to the Lord, the God of Israel" (Joshua_24:23). He sets up a large stone as a witness (Joshua_24:26-27). Previously, Joshua had set up memorial stones to remind Israel of what God had done for them (see Joshua_4:1-9) and to remind them of the seriousness of sinning against God (Joshua_7:26). This time, however, the memorial stone was to point them to their agreement to worship God. Every time they passed by it, the stone would silently whisper, “Do not deny your God; practice what you preach” (Joshua_24:27).
This covenant is a divinely sanctioned bond. It’s a declaration of legal relationship in the spiritual realm. Through a covenant, God provides a “covering” for individuals, families, and nations. For example, when a husband honors his marriage covenant with his wife, God provides a covering—an umbrella—of blessing.
This section emphasizes the importance of aligning our actions with our words. God will not tolerate idols. If you have an idol in your life that you are unwilling to renounce (see commentary on Joshua_24:14), then you have, in effect, rejected God’s help and blessings in your situation. Many people ask God why he’s not working in their circumstances, while they’re hugging their idol of choice at the same time. They don’t stop to consider that God’s inactivity may be a result of the fact that like many in Israel, they aren’t willing to lay down the competition.
A Leader's Legacy: Faithfulness Remembered (Joshua 24:29-33)
The chapter concludes with the death of Joshua at the age of 110. He is remembered as "the servant of the Lord" (Joshua_24:29). The text notes that "Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had known all the work that the Lord did for Israel" (Joshua_24:31).
This period of faithfulness, however, is short-lived, as the book of Judges will reveal. The chapter also mentions the burial of Joseph's bones, fulfilling a promise made centuries earlier (Genesis_50:24-26; Exodus_13:19). Though he would not live to see the outcome of the promise, Joseph believed that God would keep his word to his family. And if you think about it, Christians are essentially called to do the same thing. We wait for entry into the divine promised land where God will dwell among his people forever. So with that truth ever in view, walk with God and trust him for what he has planned for your life. Because none of his promises fail.
Joshua 24 serves as a poignant reminder of the importance of remembering God's faithfulness, choosing to serve Him wholeheartedly, and aligning our actions with our words. It's a call to examine our own lives, identify any idols that may be competing for our devotion, and renew our commitment to the Lord. The chapter ends with a sense of both hope and warning, urging us to learn from the past and strive for lasting faithfulness.