What does Josue warn will happen if Israel follows the errors of the nations still among them?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

The Lord will no longer destroy those nations before them. They will become a pit, a snare, a stumbling-block and stakes in Israel’s eyes until Israel is taken away and destroyed from the good land. Josue links this warning to his call to keep Moses’s law and love the Lord.

Chapter breakdown

A long time has passed since the Lord gave Israel peace and subdued the surrounding nations. Josue is old and far advanced in years. He calls all Israel, its elders, princes, judges and masters, and states his age. He reminds them that they have seen what the Lord their God did to the surrounding nations and how he himself fought for them. The land has been divided to them by lot from the east of the Jordan to the great sea, but many nations remain. Josue says the Lord will destroy and remove these nations before them and they will possess the land as promised.

Josue tells them to take courage and carefully observe everything written in the book of Moses’s law, turning aside neither right nor left. They must avoid coming among the remaining Gentiles and swearing by their gods’ names, serving them or adoring them. Instead they must hold fast to the Lord their God as they have until this day. Then the Lord will remove great and very strong nations before their eyes, and no man will be able to resist them. One of them will chase a thousand enemies because the Lord himself will fight for them as promised. They must take diligent care to love the Lord their God.

If they embrace the errors of the nations dwelling among them, marry them and form friendships, they must know for certain that the Lord will not destroy those nations before them. Those nations will be a pit and a snare in their way, a stumbling-block at their side and stakes in their eyes, until the Lord takes them away and destroys them from the excellent land he has given them.

Josue says he is going the way of all the earth. They must know with all their mind that not one word the Lord promised to perform for them has failed. As he has fulfilled his promises and all prosperous things have come, he will also bring every threatened evil until he takes them away and destroys them from the excellent land he gave them. When they transgress the covenant he made with them and serve and adore strange gods, his anger will rise quickly and speedily against them, and they will be taken away from the excellent land he delivered to them.

The story inside

Josue’s address begins with what Israel has seen: the Lord fought for them, brought peace and divided the land, while many nations still remain. He calls for courage, full obedience to Moses’s written law and diligent love of the Lord. He gives the promise of continued help, including one person chasing a thousand because the Lord fights for them. He then states the contrary condition: embracing the remaining nations’ errors, marriages and friendships will leave those nations as dangers until Israel is removed and destroyed from the land. As he speaks of going the way of all the earth, he places the fulfilled promises beside the threatened evils. The chapter gives a warning and its conditions, not a report that the threatened removal has already occurred.

Lessons worth keeping

1
The address keeps both accomplished and remaining work in view. Israel has peace and allotted land, yet many nations remain. Josue’s promise about their removal should be read alongside those stated facts rather than turn the chapter into a claim that every nation is already gone.
2
Courage is joined to particular commands. Josue requires the whole written law without turning right or left, forbids swearing by, serving and adoring other gods, and calls for diligent love of the Lord. His one-against-a-thousand statement gives the Lord’s fighting as its reason.
3
The warning is conditional and specific. Embracing the nations’ errors, marriages and friendships leads to the Lord no longer removing them and to the named dangers and destruction from the land. Josue also warns of swift anger upon covenant violation and strange-god worship; the chapter does not narrate that future outcome as already completed.

Test your recall

Why does Josue say one Israelite can chase a thousand enemies, and what changes in the Lord’s treatment of the remaining nations if Israel embraces their errors?

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 24783–24805
Josue Chapter 23 Josue being old admonisheth the people to keep God’s commandments: and to avoid marriages and all society with the Gentiles for fear of being brought to idolatry. 23:1. And when a long time was passed, after that the Lord had given peace to Israel, all the nations round about being subdued, and Josue being now old, and far advanced in years: 23:2. Josue called for all Israel, and for the elders, and for the princes, and for the judges, and for the masters, and said to them: I am old, and far advanced in years, 23:3. And you see all that the Lord your God hath done to all the nations round about, how he himself hath fought for you: 23:4. And now since he hath divided to you by lot all the land, from the east of the Jordan unto the great sea, and many nations yet remain: 23:5. The Lord your God will destroy them, and take them away from before your face, and you shall possess the land as he hath promised you.
Lines 24807–24825
23:6. Only take courage, and be careful to observe all things that are written in the book of the law of Moses: and turn not aside from them neither to the right hand nor to the left: 23:7. Lest after that you are come in among the Gentiles, who will remain among you, you should swear by the name of their gods, and serve them, and adore them: 23:8. But cleave ye unto the Lord your God, as you have done until this day. 23:9. And then the Lord God will take away before your eyes nations that are great and very strong, and no man shall be able to resist you. 23:10. One of you shall chase a thousand men of the enemies: because the Lord your God himself will fight for you, as he hath promised. 23:11. This only take care of with all diligence, that you love the Lord your God.
Lines 24827–24834
23:12. But if you will embrace the errors of these nations that dwell among you, and make marriages with them, and join friendships: 23:13. Know ye for a certainty that the Lord your God will not destroy them before your face, but they shall be a pit and a snare in your way, and a stumbling-block at your side, and stakes in your eyes, till he take you away and destroy you from off this excellent land, which he hath given you.
Lines 24836–24851
23:14. Behold this day I am going into the way of all the earth, and you shall know with all your mind that of all the words which the Lord promised to perform for you, not one hath failed, 23:15. Therefore as he hath fulfilled in deed, what he promised, and all things prosperous have come: so will he bring upon you all the evils he hath threatened, till he take you away and destroy you from off this excellent land, which he hath given you, 23:16. When you shall have transgressed the covenant of the Lord your God, which he hath made with you, and shall have served strange gods, and adored them: then shall the indignation of the Lord rise up quickly and speedily against you, and you shall be taken away from this excellent land, which he hath delivered to you.