God’s Word Translation
Joshua 24:20
20If you abandon the Lord and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you. He will destroy you, although he has been so good to you.”
Joshua 24:20 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)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.
- New International Version (NIV)If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good to you.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)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."
- New King James Version (NKJV)If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, then He will turn and do you harm and consume you, after He has done you good.”
Context of Joshua 24:20
18The Lord forced out all the people ahead of us, including the Amorites who lived in this land. We, too, will serve the Lord, because he is our God.” 19But Joshua answered the people, “Since the Lord is a holy God, you can’t possibly serve him. He is a God who does not tolerate rivals. He will not forgive your rebellious acts and sins. If you abandon the Lord and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you. He will destroy you, although he has been so good to you.” 21The people answered Joshua, “No! We will ⌞only⌟ serve the Lord!” 22Joshua said to the people, “You have testified that you have chosen to serve the Lord.” They answered, “Yes, we have!”
Read all of Joshua 24Joshua 24:20 word by word
כִּ֤י תַֽעַזְבוּ֙ אֶת־יְהוָ֔ה וַעֲבַדְתֶּ֖ם אֱלֹהֵ֣י נֵכָ֑ר וְשָׁ֨ב וְהֵרַ֤ע לָכֶם֙ וְכִלָּ֣ה אֶתְכֶ֔ם אַחֲרֵ֖י אֲשֶׁר־הֵיטִ֥יב לָכֶֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- If ye forsakeעָזַב‛âzab · to leave: forsakeH5800
- the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- and serveעָבַד‛âbad · to serve: ministerH5647
- strangeנֵכָרnêkâr · foreignH5236
- godsאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- then he will turnשׁוּבshûb · to return: turn backH7725
- and do you hurtרָעַעrâ‛a‛ · be evilH7489
- and consumeכָּלָהkâlâh · to end: destroyH3615
- you, afterאַחַר'achar · afterH310
- that he hath done you goodיָטַבyâţab · be goodH3190
Cross-references for Joshua 24:20
- Joshua 23:12“But if you turn away and go along with the other nations within your ⌞borders⌟, if you intermarry with them or associate with them,
- 1 Chronicles 28:9“And you, my son Solomon, learn to know your father’s God. Serve the Lord wholeheartedly and willingly because he searches every heart and understands every thought ⌞we have⌟. If you dedicate your life to serving him, he will accept you. But if you abandon him, he will reject you from then on.
- 2 Chronicles 15:2Azariah went to Asa and said to him, “Listen to me, Asa and all you men from Judah and Benjamin. The Lord is with you when you are with him. If you will dedicate your lives to serving him, he will accept you. But if you abandon him, he will abandon you.
- Ezra 8:22I was ashamed to ask the king for an armed escort with cavalry to help us against an enemy attack on the way. We had already told the king, “Our God works things out for the good of everyone who dedicates his life to serving him, but his power and his anger oppose everyone who abandons him.”
- Isaiah 1:28Rebels and sinners will be crushed at the same time, and those who abandon the Lord will come to an end.
- Isaiah 63:10But they rebelled and offended his Holy Spirit. So he turned against them as their enemy; he fought against them.
- Isaiah 65:11You have abandoned the Lord and forgotten my holy mountain. You have prepared a table for the god of good fortune and offered cups full of spiced wine to the goddess of destiny.
- Jeremiah 17:13O Lord, the Hope of Israel, all who abandon you will be put to shame. Those who turn away from you will be written in dust, because they abandon the Lord, the fountain of life-giving water.
- Ezekiel 18:24“But suppose a righteous person turns away from doing right and he does evil things. He does all the disgusting things that the wicked person did. Will he live? All the right things that he has done will not be remembered because of his unfaithfulness and because of his sin. He will die because of them.
- Acts 7:42“So God turned away from them and let them worship the sun, moon, and stars. This is written in the book of the prophets: ‘Did you bring me sacrifices and grain offerings in the desert for 40 years, nation of Israel?
- Hebrews 10:26If we go on sinning after we have learned the truth, no sacrifice can take away our sins.
Commentaries on Joshua 24:20
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-28Verses 15-28 It is essential that the service of God's people be performed with a willing mind. For LOVE is the only genuine principle whence all acceptable service of God can spring. The Father seeks only such to worship him, as worship him in spirit and in truth. The carnal mind of man is enmity against God, therefore, is not capable of such spiritual worship. Hence the necessity of being born again. But numbers rest in mere forms, as tasks imposed upon…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 19-24Joshua challenged the Israelites from another perspective to show how serious their commitment needed to be. He wanted to make sure they were not responding only out of excitement in the moment.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 14-2814-28. Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in truth--After having enumerated so many grounds for national gratitude, Joshua calls on them to declare, in a public and solemn manner, whether they will be faithful and obedient to the God of Israel. He avowed this to be his own unalterable resolution, and urged them, if they were sincere in making a similar avowal, "to put away the strange gods that were among them"--a requirement…Read the comment
Topics related to Joshua 24:20
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Joshua 24
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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