Joshua 24:1
in Joshua 24Then Joshua assembled all the tribes of Israel at Shechem. He summoned the elders, leaders, judges, and officers of Israel, and they presented themselves before God.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
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.
KJV
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.
⋯
This verse in Joshua 24
Commentary
7 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Shechem, situated between those mountains, Ebal and Gerizim, which had already been the scene of a solemn rehearsal of the covenant soon after the first entry of the people into the promised land Jos 8:30-35, was a fitting scene for the solemn renewal on the part of the people of that covenant with God which had been on His part so signally and so fully kept. The spot itself suggested the allusions to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, etc., in Joshua’s address; and its associations could not but give special force and moving effect to his appeals.
This site's exposition
Joshua assembled all the tribes of Israel at Shechem
on Joshua 24:1-2
Shechem carries its history into this scene: Abram built his first altar in the land there at Genesis 12:6-7, and Jacob bought ground there at Genesis 33:19. At Genesis 35:4 Jacob buried his household's foreign gods under the oak near Shechem, as Joshua deals with foreign gods and an oak here. Verse 2 says Terah worshiped other gods, so the chosen line begins among idolaters.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
All Israel - Namely, their representatives. Shechem - To the city of Shechem, a place convenient for the purpose, not only because it was a Levitical city, and a city of refuge, and a place near Joshua's city, but especially for the two main ends for which he summoned them thither.
The place appointed for their meeting is Shechem, not only because that lay nearer to Joshua than Shiloh, and therefore more convenient now that he was infirm and unfit for travelling, but because it was the place where Abraham, the first trustee of God's covenant with this people, settled at his coming to Canaan, and where God appeared to him ( Gen. xii.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
35:2-4). they presented themselves before God--It is generally assumed that the ark of the covenant had been transferred on this occasion to Shechem; as on extraordinary emergencies it was for a time removed (Jud 20:1-18;
Joshua gathered all the tribes - This must have been a different assembly from that mentioned in the preceding chapter, though probably held not long after the former. To Shechem - As it is immediately added that they presented themselves before God, this must mean the tabernacle; but at this time the tabernacle was not at Shechem but at Shiloh. The Septuagint appear to have been struck with this difficulty, and therefore read Σηλω. Shiloh, both here and in Jos 24:25, though the Aldine and Complutensian editions have Συχεμ, Shechem, in both places. Many suppose that this is the original reading, and that Shechem has crept into the text instead of Shiloh. Perhaps there is more of imaginary than real difficulty in the text. As Joshua was now old and incapable of travelling, he certainly had a right to assemble the representatives of the tribes wherever he found most convenient, and to bring the ark of the covenant to the place of assembling: and this was probably done on this occasion. Shechem is a place famous in the patriarchal history. Here Abraham settled on his first coming into the land of Canaan, Gen 12:6, Gen 12:7; and here the patriarchs were buried, Act 7:16. And as Shechem lay between Ebal and Gerizim, where Joshua had before made a covenant with the people, Jos 8:30, etc., the very circumstance of the place would be undoubtedly friendly to the solemnity of the present occasion. Shuckford supposes that the covenant was made at Shechem, and that the people went to Shiloh to confirm it before the Lord. Mr. Mede thinks the Ephraimites had a proseucha, or temporary oratory or house of prayer, at Shechem, whither the people resorted for Divine worship when they could not get to the tabernacle; and that this is what is called before the Lord; but this conjecture seems not at all likely, God having forbidden this kind of worship.
The words behind it
16 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֶּאֶסֹ֧ף | vaiyeesof | and he gathered | H622 → | 200 times |
| יְהוֹשֻׁ֛עַ | yehoshua' | Joshua | H3091 → | 218 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| כָּל־ | kol- | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| שִׁבְטֵ֥י | shivtei | [the] tribes of | H7626 → | 190 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| שְׁכֶ֑מָה | shekhemah | Shechem towards | H7927 → | 63 times |
| וַיִּקְרָא֩ | vaiyikra' | and he summoned | H7121 → | 733 times |
| לְזִקְנֵ֨י | leziknei | <to> [the] elders of | H2205 → | 178 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֜ל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| וּלְרָאשָׁ֗יו | ulerashav | and <to> leaders its | H7218 → | 599 times |
| וּלְשֹֽׁפְטָיו֙ | uleshofetav | and <to> judges its | H8199 → | 202 times |
| וּלְשֹׁ֣טְרָ֔יו | uleshoterav | and <to> officials its | H7860 → | 25 times |
| וַיִּֽתְיַצְּב֖וּ | vaiyityatzevu | and they presented themselves | H3320 → | |
| לִפְנֵ֥י | lifnei | <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| הָאֱלֹהִֽים׃ | haelohim | <the> God | H430 → | 2601 times |
וַיֶּאֶסֹ֧ףand he gathered
vaiyeesofH622 →200 times
יְהוֹשֻׁ֛עַJoshua
yehoshua'H3091 →218 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
כָּל־all
kol-H3605 →5413 times
שִׁבְטֵ֥י[the] tribes of
shivteiH7626 →190 times
יִשְׂרָאֵ֖לIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
שְׁכֶ֑מָהShechem towards
shekhemahH7927 →63 times
וַיִּקְרָא֩and he summoned
vaiyikra'H7121 →733 times
לְזִקְנֵ֨י<to> [the] elders of
lezikneiH2205 →178 times
יִשְׂרָאֵ֜לIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
וּלְרָאשָׁ֗יוand <to> leaders its
ulerashavH7218 →599 times
וּלְשֹֽׁפְטָיו֙and <to> judges its
uleshofetavH8199 →202 times
וּלְשֹׁ֣טְרָ֔יוand <to> officials its
uleshoteravH7860 →25 times
וַיִּֽתְיַצְּב֖וּand they presented themselves
vaiyityatzevuH3320 →
לִפְנֵ֥י<to> before
lifneiH6440 →2123 times
הָאֱלֹהִֽים׃<the> God
haelohimH430 →2601 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Samuel 10:19But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your troubles and afflictions, and you have said to Him, ‘No, set a king over us.’ Now therefore present yourselves before the…
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 12:12
But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we must have a king to rule over us’—even though the LORD your God was…
- 1 Samuel 8:19
Nevertheless, the people refused to listen to Samuel. “No!” they said. “We must have a king over us.
- 1 Samuel 12:12
Through
Acts 10:33So I sent for you immediately, and you were kind enough to come. Now then, we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has instructed you to…
it leads to
- James 1:19
My beloved brothers, understand this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger,
- Galatians 4:14
And although my illness was a trial to you, you did not despise or reject me. Instead, you welcomed me as if I were an angel of God, as if I were Christ Jesus…
- Matthew 18:4
Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
- Proverbs 25:12
Like an earring of gold or an ornament of fine gold is a wise man’s rebuke to a listening ear.
- Acts 17:11–12
Now the Bereans were more noble-minded than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if these teachings were true.
- James 1:19
Through
Joshua 23:2he summoned all Israel, including its elders, leaders, judges, and officers. “I am old and well along in years,” he said,
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 28:1
Now David summoned all the leaders of Israel to Jerusalem: the leaders of the tribes, the leaders of the divisions in the king’s service, the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and the officials…
- 1 Chronicles 28:1
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Joshua
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonConquestJoshuaMoses' minister and successor, one of the two faithful spies; he led Israel across Jordan, around Jericho, and through the conques…
- PlaceCentral hill countryShechemThe city between Ebal and Gerizim where Abram built his first altar in the land, where Joshua set the people to choose whom they w…
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.