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¹ Then Joshua called the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh,² and said to them, You have kept all that Moses the slave of Yahweh commanded you, and have listened to my voice in all that I commanded you:³ you haven't left your brothers these many days to this day, but have kept the charge of the commandment of Yahweh your God.⁴ And now Yahweh your God has given rest to your brothers, as he spoke to them: therefore now turn, and you go to your tents, to the land of your possession, which Moses the slave of Yahweh gave you beyond the Jordan.⁵ Only take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law which Moses the slave of Yahweh commanded you, to love Yahweh your God, and to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave to him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.⁶ So Joshua blessed them, and sent them away; and they went to their tents.⁷ Now to the one half-tribe of Manasseh Moses had given [inheritance] in Bashan; but to the other half Joshua gave among their brothers beyond the Jordan westward; moreover when Joshua sent them away to their tents, he blessed them,⁸ and spoke to them, saying, Return with much wealth to your tents, and with very much cattle, with silver, and with gold, and with bronze, and with iron, and with very much raiment: divide the spoil of your enemies with your brothers.⁹ And the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh returned, and departed from the sons of Israel out of Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go to the land of Gilead, to the land of their possession, whereof they acquired possession, according to the commandment of Yahweh by Moses.

¹⁰ And when they came to the region about the Jordan, that is in the land of Canaan, the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh built an altar there by the Jordan, a great altar to look at.¹¹ And the sons of Israel heard it said, Look, the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh have built an altar in the forefront of the land of Canaan, in the region about the Jordan, on the side that pertains to the sons of Israel.¹² And when the sons of Israel heard of it, the whole congregation of the sons of Israel gathered themselves together at Shiloh, to go up against them to war.¹³ And the sons of Israel sent to the sons of Reuben, and to the sons of Gad, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh, into the land of Gilead, Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest,¹⁴ and with him ten princes, one prince of a fathers' house for each of the tribes of Israel; and they were every one of them head of their fathers' houses among the thousands of Israel.¹⁵ And they came to the sons of Reuben, and to the sons of Gad, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh, to the land of Gilead, and they spoke with them, saying,¹⁶ Thus says the whole congregation of Yahweh, What trespass is this that you have committed against the God of Israel, to turn away this day from following Yahweh, in that you have built yourselves an altar, to rebel this day against Yahweh?¹⁷ Is the iniquity of Peor too little for us, from which we haven't cleansed ourselves to this day, although there came a plague on the congregation of Yahweh,¹⁸ that you must turn away this day from following Yahweh? and it will be, seeing you rebel today against Yahweh, that tomorrow he will be angry with the whole congregation of Israel.¹⁹ Nevertheless, if the land of your possession is unclean, then you pass over to the land of the possession of Yahweh, wherein Yahweh's tabernacle dwells, and take possession among us: but don't rebel against Yahweh, nor rebel against us, in building yourselves an altar besides the altar of Yahweh our God.²⁰ Did not Achan the son of Zerah commit a trespass in the devoted thing, and wrath fell on all the congregation of Israel? and that man didn't perish alone in his iniquity.

²¹ Then the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh answered, and spoke to the heads of the thousands of Israel,²² The Mighty One, God, Yahweh, the Mighty One, God, Yahweh, he knows; and Israel he shall know: if it is in rebellion, or if in trespass against Yahweh, don't you save us this day.²³ If we have built ourselves an altar to turn away from following Yahweh; or if to offer thereon burnt-offering or meal-offering, or if to offer sacrifices of peace-offerings thereon, let Yahweh himself require it.²⁴ And if we have not [rather] out of carefulness done this, [and] of purpose, saying, In time to come your sons might speak to our sons, saying, What do you have to do with Yahweh, the God of Israel?²⁵ for Yahweh has made the Jordan a border between us and you, you sons of Reuben and sons of Gad; you have no portion in Yahweh: so might your sons make our sons cease from fearing Yahweh.²⁶ Therefore we said, Let us now prepare to build ourselves an altar, not for burnt-offering, nor for sacrifice:²⁷ but it shall be a witness between us and you, and between our generations after us, that we may do the service of Yahweh before him with our burnt-offerings, and with our sacrifices, and with our peace-offerings; that your sons may not say to our sons in time to come, You have no portion in Yahweh.²⁸ Therefore we said, It shall be, when they so say to us or to our generations in time to come, that we shall say, Look at the pattern of the altar of Yahweh, which our fathers made, not for burnt-offering, nor for sacrifice; but it is a witness between us and you.²⁹ Far be it from us that we should rebel against Yahweh, and turn away this day from following Yahweh, to build an altar for burnt-offering, for meal-offering, or for sacrifice, besides the altar of Yahweh our God that is before his tabernacle.

³⁰ And when Phinehas the priest, and the princes of the congregation, even the heads of the thousands of Israel that were with him, heard the words that the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the sons of Manasseh spoke, it pleased them well.³¹ And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest said to the sons of Reuben, and to the sons of Gad, and to the sons of Manasseh, This day we know that Yahweh is in the midst of us, because you haven't committed this trespass against Yahweh: now you have delivered the sons of Israel out of the hand of Yahweh.³² And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, and the princes, returned from the sons of Reuben, and from the sons of Gad, out of the land of Gilead, to the land of Canaan, to the sons of Israel, and brought word back to them.³³ And the thing pleased the sons of Israel; and the sons of Israel blessed God, and spoke no more of going up against them to war, to destroy the land wherein the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad dwelt.³⁴ And the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad gave the altar a name: It is a witness between us that Yahweh is God.