Be still, and know that I am God: The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. Th.-Joshua xx; Psalms xlvi. Joshua's Farewell Address. And it came to pass after many days, when the Lord had given rest unto Israel from all their enemies round about, and Joshua was old and well stricken in years; that Joshua called for all Israel, for their elders and for their heads, and for their judges and for their officers, and said unto them, I am old and well stricken in years: and ye have seen all that the Lord your God hath done unto all these nations because of you; for the Lord your God, he it is that hath fought for you. Behold, I have allotted unto you these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, even unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun. And the Lord your God, he shall thrust them out from before you, and drive them from out of your sight; and ye shall possess their land, as the Lord your God spake unto you. Therefore be ye very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, that ye turn not aside therefrom to the right hand or to the left; that ye come not among these nations, these that remain among you; neither make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause to swear by them, neither serve them, nor bow down yourselves unto them: but cleave unto the Lord your God, as ye have done unto this day. For the Lord hath driven out from before you great nations and strong: but as for you, no man hath stood before you unto this day. One man of you shall chase a thousand for the Lord your God, he it is that fighteth for you, as he spake unto you. Take good heed therefore unto yourselves, that ye love the Lord your God. Else if ye do in any wisc go back, and cleave unto the remnant of these nations, even these that remain among you, and make marriages with them, and go in unto them, and they to you: know for a certainty that the Lord your God will no more drive these nations from out of your sight, but they shall be a snare and a trap unto you, and a scourge in your sides, and horns in your eyes, until ye perish from off this good land which the Lord your God hath given you. And, behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth: and ye know in all your hearts and in all your souls, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spake concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, not one thing hath failed thereof. And it shall come to pass, that as all the good things are come upon you of which the Lord your God spake unto you, so shall the Lord bring upon you all the evil things, until he have destroyed you from off this good land which the Lord your God hath given you. When ye transgress the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods, and bow down yourselves to them; then shall the anger of the Lord be kindled against you, and ye shall perish quickly from off the good land which he hath given unto you. BALAAM PROPHESIES THE GLORY OF ISRAEL. Num. xxiv. 2. by de Brunoff, 1904. "And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel abiding in his tents according to their tribes; and the spirit of God came upon him." As the cold of snow in the time of harvest, So is a faithful messenger to them that send him; For he refresheth the soul of his masters. As clouds and wind without rain, Israel's Covenant and 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, the God of Israel, Your fathers dwelt of old time beyond the River, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nahor: and they served other gods. And I took your father Abraham from beyond the River, 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; and Jacob and his children went down into Egypt. And I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt, according to that which I did in the midst thereof 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 with horsemen unto the Red Sea. And when they cried out unto the Lord, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them, and covered them; and your eyes saw what I did in Egypt: and ye dwelt in the wilderness many days. And I brought you into the land of the Amorites, which dwelt beyond Jordan; and they fought with you: and I gave them into your hand, and ye possessed their land; and I destroyed them from before you. Then Balak the son of Zip 117 So is he that boasteth himself of his gifts falsely. By long forbearing is a ruler persuaded, And a soft tongue breaketh the bone. F.-Joshua xxiii; Proverbs xxv, 11-15. Balaam's Blessing. por, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel; and he 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 the Lord put a word in Balaam's mouth, and said, Return unto Balak, and thus thou shalt speak. And he returned unto him, and, lo, he stood by his burnt offering, he, and all the princes of Moab. And he took up his parable, and said, From Aram hath Balak brought me, Come, curse me Jacob, How shall I curse, whom God hath And how shall I defy, whom the Lord hath not defied? For from the top of the rocks I see And from the hills I behold him: Who can count the dust of Jacob, And he hath blessed, and I cannot re- The Lord his God is with him, Now shall it be said of Jacob and of Israel, What hath God wrought! How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, As valleys are they spread forth, As lign-aloes which the Lord hath planted, As cedar trees beside the waters. I see him, but not now: I behold him, but not nigh: There shall come forth a star out of Jacob, And a sceptre shall rise out of Israel. And shall smite through the corners of Moab, And break down all the sons of tumult. And Edom shall be a possession, Seir also shall be a possession, which were his enemies; While Israel doeth valiantly. And out of Jacob shall one have dominion, And shall destroy the remnant from the city. Sa.-Joshua xxiv, 1-10; Numbers xxiii, 5-10, 20, 21b, 23b; xxiv, 5, 6, 17-19. Israel's Covenant Concluded. And ye went over Jordan, and came unto Jericho and the men of Jericho fought against you, the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Girgashite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite; and I delivered them into your hand, fathers served beyond the River, 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 beyond the River, 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 and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and that did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the peoples through the midst of whom we passed: and the Lord drave out from before us all the peoples, even the Amorites which dwelt in the land: therefore we also will 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 transgression nor your sins. If ye forsake the Lord, and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you evil, 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, the God of Israel. And the people said unto Joshua, The Lord our God will we serve, and unto his voice will we hearken. 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 he took a great stone, and set it up there under the oak that was by the sanctuary of the Lord. And Joshua said unto all the people, Behold, this stone shall be a witness against us; for it hath heard all the words of the Lord which he spake unto us: it shall be therefore a witness against you, lest |