Apocryphon of Joshua

Joshua's farewell discourse — the rehearsal of the Lord's mighty acts, the warning against forgetting the covenant, and the curse upon the man that should rebuild the accursed city of Jericho.

1And it came to pass after these things, when Joshua the son of Nun was old and stricken in years, that he gathered all the elders of Israel — the heads of their fathers, the judges, and the officers — and he said unto them: I am old; behold, I am at the gate of death.

2And ye know in all your hearts and in all your souls, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the Lord your God hath spoken concerning you. All have come to pass; not one thing hath failed.

3Therefore take good heed unto your souls, that ye love the Lord your God; that ye walk in His ways; that ye keep His commandments. Cleave unto Him; serve Him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind. For the Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts.

4If ye seek Him, He shall be found of you. But if ye forsake Him, He shall cast you off for ever. Take heed; for ye know the things which the Lord did unto your fathers in the wilderness, when they murmured against Him; and ye know the judgments which He executed upon them.

5And the Lord hath given you this land — that ye should keep His statutes. He hath given you cities which ye builded not; vineyards and oliveyards which ye planted not. Take heed, lest ye forget the Lord your God; lest ye go after other gods; lest ye serve them, and worship them — for the anger of the Lord shall be kindled against you, and ye shall perish quickly from off the good land which He hath given you.

6And concerning the city of Jericho — even the city which I cursed in the day when the Lord delivered it into our hands — let no man rebuild it. Cursed be the man before the Lord that riseth up and rebuildeth this city Jericho. He shall lay the foundation thereof in his firstborn; and in his youngest son shall he set up the gates of it. The man of Belial shall arise that doeth this thing in the latter days; and his evil shall be a snare in Israel.

7Therefore, my brethren, watch ye and pray ye. Hearken not unto the voice of the deceiver. Walk ye in the way which I have shown you. The Lord shall be with you; the Lord shall keep you; the Lord shall bring you safely into His everlasting kingdom.

The blessing upon the righteous, the prayer of Joshua before his death, and the gathering of the elders to receive the priestly succession from Eleazar and Phinehas.

1Then Joshua lifted up his voice unto the Lord, and prayed: O Lord God of hosts — the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob — Thou knowest that Thy servant hath walked before Thee with integrity. Thou hast brought Thy people out of Egypt; Thou hast brought them through the wilderness; Thou hast given them this land. Now, O Lord, keep them in the way.

2Forsake them not; for they are weak. Their hearts are easily turned aside. Behold, even in the days of my life, when I have led them, they have grumbled and turned. How shall it be, O Lord, when I am gone? How shall it be when other shepherds shall arise — them which seek their own gain, and not the welfare of the flock?

3O Lord, raise up faithful shepherds. Raise up wise teachers. Raise up righteous priests. Raise up, in the latter days, the Prophet whom Moses spake of — even Him whose word shall be as the word of God. Raise up the Star and the Sceptre that Balaam beheld. Raise up the Levi who beareth the Urim and the Thummim. Raise up the King that shall sit upon the throne of David in righteousness for ever.

4And keep, O Lord, Thy people, until the day of His coming. Cleanse them from all their iniquities. Bring them home unto Thee. Let them be Thy people, and let Thee be their God, throughout all the generations of the earth.

5Then Joshua blessed the elders; and he laid his hands upon Eleazar the high priest, and upon Phinehas his son, that the priesthood might pass on in righteousness. And he said: Hold fast unto the law of Moses; turn not aside from it, neither to the right hand nor to the left.

6And after this, Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died — being an hundred and ten years old. And they buried him in the border of his inheritance, in Timnath-serah, which is in the hill country of Ephraim. And Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that overlived Joshua, that had known all the works of the Lord.

7Glory be unto the Lord, the God of Joshua, the God of Israel, the God of every faithful generation. Forever and ever. Amen.