Kept every promise that he made to you may be translated “did every good thing for you that he said he would.” Carry out every threat may be rendered “do every evil thing to you that he said he would.” Or, so as not to assume that the Lord said he would do evil things without reason, “… that he said he would do, if you did not obey him.”

The end of verse 15 in Hebrew is practically the same as the end of verse 16 and of verse 13 (see Revised Standard Version). Good News Translation has not represented it, taking it to be redundant here. Using Good News Translation language, the end of verse 15 could be translated, “… so he will carry out every threat and will remove you completely from this good land which he has given you.” This “removal” is not exile but destruction, death.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Newman, Barclay M. A Handbook on Joshua. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .