Joshua 24:14-25: Edit history

Context

This scene appears in the final chapter of the book of Joshua. After the conquest and division of Canaan, the aged Joshua gathers the tribes of Israel at Shechem (Joshua 24:1). In verses 2–13 he reviews their history in the form of a message from God, recounting how God led Israel from the days of Terah, the father of Abraham, through the Exodus and the wilderness to the conquest of Canaan. The word "therefore" in verse 14 draws a conclusion from this retrospective. "The other side of the flood" refers to Mesopotamia, beyond the Euphrates River.

The passage proceeds in the following order:

• Joshua's demand
• The people's response
• Joshua's stern warning
• The people's renewed pledge
• The people become witnesses against themselves
• The making of the covenant (v. 25)

In the verses that follow (vv. 26–27), Joshua records these words and sets up a great stone as a witness.

Interpretation

• As a covenant renewal: Many commentators regard this passage as a covenant renewal ceremony that reaffirms in the new land the covenant made at Sinai. It is also widely noted in scholarship that the passage's structure—historical review, demands, witnesses, and a written record—resembles the form of ancient Near Eastern suzerainty treaties (treaties made between a great king and a vassal state).
• As a demand for exclusive loyalty: "Choose" in verse 15 is a call to decide whether to serve the LORD or other gods. Interpreters generally agree that it is not an invitation to choose freely among religions in general. The expression "a jealous God" in verse 19 is read in the same context as the opening commandments of the Ten Commandments.
• On the warning in verse 19: The statement "Ye cannot serve the LORD" is read in two ways. One reading takes it as a rhetorical warning that tests the seriousness of a people who pledge themselves too readily. The other holds that it reveals the inability of human beings to keep the covenant fully in their own strength. The verse is often read alongside the account in Judges, where Israel soon turns to serve other gods.

Questions of Application

• Choice and predestination: The Arminian and Wesleyan traditions frequently cite this passage as showing the human responsibility to respond and decide before God. Calvinists read it as a call to responsibility addressed to the covenant people, while explaining that it does not contradict God's sovereign election. For further discussion, see Predestination and Free Will.
• Quoting verse 15 in isolation: The latter half of verse 15 is often quoted on its own. Some observe that doing so omits the demand to "put away" other gods (vv. 14, 23) and the warning of verses 19–20.

In the Korean Church

The words of verse 15, "as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD," are commonly used as a family motto or as a framed inscription in Christian homes. The passage is also frequently used as a sermon text for family worship and wedding services.

Related Passages

• Deuteronomy 30:15-20: Moses' exhortation to choose life rather than death
• 1 Kings 18:21: Elijah urges the people, who are halting between the LORD and Baal, to decide
• Deuteronomy 5:6-10: The commandment to have no other gods, and "a jealous God"
• 1 John 5:21: The exhortation to keep oneself from idols