New Living Translation
Joshua 23:12
12“But if you turn away from him and cling to the customs of the survivors of these nations remaining among you, and if you intermarry with them,
Joshua 23:12 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Else if ye do in any wise go back, and cleave unto the remnant of these nations, even these that remain among you, and shall make marriages with them, and go in unto them, and they to you:
- New International Version (NIV)“But if you turn away and ally yourselves with the survivors of these nations that remain among you and if you intermarry with them and associate with them,
- English Standard Version (ESV)For if you turn back and cling to the remnant of these nations remaining among you and make marriages with them, so that you associate with them and they with you,
- New King James Version (NKJV)Or else, if indeed you do go back, and cling to the remnant of these nations—these that remain among you—and make marriages with them, and go in to them and they to you,
Context of Joshua 23:12
10Each one of you will put to flight a thousand of the enemy, for the Lord your God fights for you, just as he has promised. 11So be very careful to love the Lord your God. “But if you turn away from him and cling to the customs of the survivors of these nations remaining among you, and if you intermarry with them, 13then know for certain that the Lord your God will no longer drive them out of your land. Instead, they will be a snare and a trap to you, a whip for your backs and thorny brambles in your eyes, and you will vanish from this good land the Lord your God has given you. 14“Soon I will die, going the way of everything on earth. Deep in your hearts you know that every promise of the Lord your God has come true. Not a single one has failed!
Read all of Joshua 23Joshua 23:12 word by word
כִּ֣י׀ אִם־שׁ֣וֹב תָּשׁ֗וּבוּ וּדְבַקְתֶּם֙ בְּיֶ֙תֶר֙ הַגּוֹיִ֣ם הָאֵ֔לֶּה הַנִּשְׁאָרִ֥ים הָאֵ֖לֶּה אִתְּכֶ֑ם וְהִֽתְחַתַּנְתֶּ֥ם בָּהֶ֛ם וּבָאתֶ֥ם בָּהֶ֖ם וְהֵ֥ם בָּכֶֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Else if ye do in any wiseשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
- and cleaveדָּבַקdâbaq · to cleaveH1692
- unto the remnantיֶ֫תֶרyether · remainderH3499
- of these nationsגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
- these that remainשָׁאַרshâ'ar · to remainH7604
- among you, and shall make marriagesחָתַןchâthan · make oneself a daughter’s husbandH2859
- with them, and go inבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): marryH935
Cross-references for Joshua 23:12
- Psalms 36:3Everything they say is crooked and deceitful. They refuse to act wisely or do good.
- Psalms 125:5But banish those who turn to crooked ways, O Lord. Take them away with those who do evil. May Israel have peace!
- Isaiah 1:4Oh, what a sinful nation they are— loaded down with a burden of guilt. They are evil people, corrupt children who have rejected the Lord. They have despised the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on him.
- Ezekiel 18:24However, if righteous people turn from their righteous behavior and start doing sinful things and act like other sinners, should they be allowed to live? No, of course not! All their righteous acts will be forgotten, and they will die for their sins.
- Zephaniah 1:6And I will destroy those who used to worship me but now no longer do. They no longer ask for the Lord’s guidance or seek my blessings.”
- Matthew 12:45Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before. That will be the experience of this evil generation.”
- John 6:66At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him.
- Hebrews 10:38And my righteous ones will live by faith. But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away.”
- 2 Peter 2:18They brag about themselves with empty, foolish boasting. With an appeal to twisted sexual desires, they lure back into sin those who have barely escaped from a lifestyle of deception.
- 1 John 2:9If anyone claims, “I am living in the light,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is still living in darkness.
- Genesis 2:24This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.
- Genesis 34:3But then he fell in love with her, and he tried to win her affection with tender words.
- 1 Samuel 18:1After David had finished talking with Saul, he met Jonathan, the king’s son. There was an immediate bond between them, for Jonathan loved David.
- 1 Kings 11:2The Lord had clearly instructed the people of Israel, “You must not marry them, because they will turn your hearts to their gods.” Yet Solomon insisted on loving them anyway.
- Romans 12:9Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.
- Exodus 34:12“Be very careful never to make a treaty with the people who live in the land where you are going. If you do, you will follow their evil ways and be trapped.
Commentaries on Joshua 23:12
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12Else if ye do - go back - The soldier who draws back when going to meet the enemy, forfeits his life. These were the Lord's soldiers, and if they drew back they drew back unto perdition, their lives being forfeited by their infidelity.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 11-16Verses 11-16 Would we cleave to the Lord, we must always stand upon our guard, for many a soul is lost through carelessness. Love the Lord your God, and you will not leave him. Has God been thus true to you? Be not you false to him. He is faithful that has promised, He 10:23. The experience of every Christian witnesses the same truth. Conflicts may have been severe and long, trials great and many; but at the last he will acknowledge that goodness and…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12Joshua warned God's people not to marry their neighbors who worshiped many gods. Such close relationships could lead the Israelites to be unfaithful to God (Deuteronomy 7:3–4). However, people from Canaan who wanted to worship the Lord and join God's people were welcome (Joshua 6:25; Ruth 4:10). Race, language, and ethnic group did not affect God's rule against marrying non-Israelites. It was a matter of remaining loyal to the Lord (see 2 Corinthians…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1212-13. Else if ye do in any wise go back, and cleave unto the remnant of these nations--As marriage connections with the idolatrous Canaanites would present many and strong temptations to transgress it, these were strictly prohibited (Ex 34:12-16; De 7:3). With his eye, as it were, upon those prohibitions, Joshua threatens them with the certain withdrawal of the divine aid in the further expulsion of the Canaanites (a threat founded Ex 23:33; Nu 33:55; De…Read the comment
Topics related to Joshua 23:12
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Joshua 23
- 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
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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