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Young's Literal Translation

Joshua 24:16

And the people answer and say, `Far be it from us to forsake Jehovah, to serve other gods;

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Shechem;   Zeal, Religious;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Forsaking God;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Shechem;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Pillars;   Shechem (1);   Holman Bible Dictionary - Confessions and Credos;   Covenant;   Ebal;   Joshua;   Joshua, the Book of;   Shechem;   Sign;   Temple of Jerusalem;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Shechem;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Conquest of Canaan;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Forbid;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Shechem;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The people replied, “We will certainly not abandon the Lord to worship other gods!
Hebrew Names Version
The people answered, Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;
King James Version
And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the Lord , to serve other gods;
Lexham English Bible
And the people answered and said, "Far be it from us that we would forsake Yahweh to serve other gods,
English Standard Version
Then the people answered, "Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods,
New Century Version
Then the people answered, "We will never stop following the Lord to serve other gods!
New English Translation
The people responded, "Far be it from us to abandon the Lord so we can worship other gods!
Amplified Bible
The people answered, "Far be it from us to abandon (reject) the LORD to serve other gods;
New American Standard Bible
The people answered and said, "Far be it from us that we would abandon the LORD to serve other gods;
Geneva Bible (1587)
Then the people answered and saide, God forbid, that we shoulde forsake the Lord, to serue other gods.
Legacy Standard Bible
And the people answered and said, "Far be it from us that we should forsake Yahweh to serve other gods;
Contemporary English Version
The people answered: We could never worship other gods or stop worshiping the Lord .
Complete Jewish Bible
The people answered, "Far be it from us that we would abandon Adonai to serve other gods;
Darby Translation
And the people answered and said, Far be it from us that we should forsake Jehovah, to serve other gods;
Easy-to-Read Version
Then the people answered, "We will never stop following the Lord . We will never serve other gods!
George Lamsa Translation
And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the LORD to serve other gods;
Good News Translation
The people replied, "We would never leave the Lord to serve other gods!
Literal Translation
And the people replied and said, Far be it from us to forsake Jehovah, to serve other gods.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Then answered the people, and saide: God forbidde, that we shulde forsake the LORDE, & serue other goddes.
American Standard Version
And the people answered and said, Far be it from us that we should forsake Jehovah, to serve other gods;
Bible in Basic English
Then the people in answer said, Never will we give up the Lord to be the servants of other gods;
Bishop's Bible (1568)
The people aunswered and sayd: God forbyd, that we should forsake the Lord, and serue straunge goddes.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the people answered and said: 'Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;
King James Version (1611)
And the people answered and said, God forbid that wee should forsake the Lord, to serue other gods.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And the people answered and said, Far be it from us to forsake the Lord, so as to serve other gods.
English Revised Version
And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;
Berean Standard Bible
The people replied, "Far be it from us to forsake the LORD to serve other gods!
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And al the puple answeride and seide, Fer be it fro vs that we forsake the Lord, and serue alien goddis.
Update Bible Version
And the people answered and said, Far be it from us that we should forsake Yahweh, to serve other gods;
Webster's Bible Translation
And the people answered, and said, Be it far from us that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;
World English Bible
The people answered, Far be it from us that we should forsake Yahweh, to serve other gods;
New King James Version
So the people answered and said: "Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD to serve other gods;
New Living Translation
The people replied, "We would never abandon the Lord and serve other gods.
New Life Bible
The people answered, "May it never be that we turn away from the Lord and serve other gods.
New Revised Standard
Then the people answered, "Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods;
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Then responded the people, and said, Far be it from us, that we should forsake Yahweh, - to serve other gods;
Douay-Rheims Bible
And the people answered, and said, God forbid we should leave the Lord, and serve strange gods.
Revised Standard Version
Then the people answered, "Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;
THE MESSAGE
The people answered, "We'd never forsake God ! Never! We'd never leave God to worship other gods.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
The people answered and said, "Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD to serve other gods;

Contextual Overview

15 and if wrong in your eyes to serve Jehovah -- choose for you to-day whom ye do serve; -- whether the gods whom your fathers served, which [are] beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorite in whose land ye are dwelling; and I and my house -- we serve Jehovah.' 16 And the people answer and say, `Far be it from us to forsake Jehovah, to serve other gods; 17 for Jehovah our God [is] He who is bringing us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, out of a house of servants, and who hath done before our eyes these great signs, and doth keep us in all the way in which we have gone, and among all the peoples through whose midst we passed; 18 and Jehovah casteth out the whole of the peoples, even the Amorite inhabiting the land, from our presence; we also do serve Jehovah, for He [is] our God.' 19 And Joshua saith unto the people, `Ye are not able to serve Jehovah, for a God most holy He [is]; a zealous God He [is]; He doth not bear with your transgression and with your sins. 20 When ye forsake Jehovah, and have served gods of a stranger, then He hath turned back and done evil to you, and consumed you, after that He hath done good to you.' 21 And the people saith unto Joshua, `No, but Jehovah we do serve.' 22 And Joshua saith unto the people, `Witnesses ye are against yourselves, that ye have chosen for you Jehovah to serve Him (and they say, `Witnesses!') 23 and, now, turn aside the gods of the stranger which [are] in your midst, and incline your heart unto Jehovah, God of Israel.' 24 And the people say unto Joshua, `Jehovah our God we serve, and to His voice we hearken.'

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

1 Samuel 12:23, Romans 3:6, Romans 6:2, Hebrews 10:38, Hebrews 10:39

Reciprocal: Joshua 22:29 - God forbid 1 Samuel 20:2 - God forbid 1 Kings 21:3 - The Lord Jeremiah 2:20 - and thou saidst

Cross-References

Genesis 4:1
And the man knew Eve his wife, and she conceiveth and beareth Cain, and saith, `I have gotten a man by Jehovah;'
Genesis 24:17
And the servant runneth to meet her, and saith, `Let me swallow, I pray thee, a little water from thy pitcher;'
Genesis 24:18
and she saith, `Drink, my lord;' and she hasteth, and letteth down her pitcher upon her hand, and giveth him drink.
Genesis 26:7
and men of the place ask him of his wife, and he saith, `She [is] my sister:' for he hath been afraid to say, `My wife -- lest the men of the place kill me for Rebekah, for she [is] of good appearance.'
Genesis 39:6
and he leaveth all that he hath in the hand of Joseph, and he hath not known anything that he hath, except the bread which he is eating. And Joseph is of a fair form, and of a fair appearance.
Song of Solomon 5:2
I am sleeping, but my heart waketh: The sound of my beloved knocking! `Open to me, my sister, my friend, My dove, my perfect one, For my head is filled [with] dew, My locks [with] drops of the night.'

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the people answered and said,.... To Joshua, upon his proposal to them, the option he gave them to serve the Lord or idols, and which was only done to try them:

God forbid that we should forsake the Lord, to serve other gods; they speak with the utmost abhorrence of idolatry, as a thing far from their hearts and thoughts, as the most abominable and execrable that could be thought or spoken of; to forsake the word, and worship, and ordinances of God, and serve the idols of the Gentiles, strange gods, whether more ancient or more recent, such as their fathers worshipped in former times, or the inhabitants of the land they now dwelt in, for which they were spewed out of it.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Joshua 24:16. God forbid that we should forsake the Lord — That they were now sincere cannot be reasonably doubted, for they served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and the elders that outlived him, Joshua 24:31; but afterwards they turned aside, and did serve other gods. "It is ordinary," says Mr. Trapp, "for the many-headed multitude to turn with the stream - to be of the same religion with their superiors: thus at Rome, in DIOCLETIAN'S time, they were pagans; in CONSTANTINE'S Christians; in CONSTANTIUS'S, Arians; in JULIAN'S apostates, and in JOVINIAN'S, Christians again! And all this within less than the age of a man. It is, therefore, a good thing that the heart be established with grace."


 
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