The eastern tribes promise to obey Joshua as they had obeyed Moses, and they also express the wish that the Lord will be with Joshua as he was with Moses. But this is more than a pious wish; it is also a way of saying that any man who aspires to lead and command the people of God must demonstrate that he has the Lord’s approval. Moses had many proofs of God’s authority, and Joshua must have them also. So Bright: “The tribesmen thus promise to obey Joshua, but only if he shows himself to the man designated of God.”

For the first two clauses of this verse it may be better to follow the order of the Hebrew, since it is arranged in proper chronological sequence. For example, “We always obeyed Moses, and we will always obey you.” Or, “We always did what Moses told us to do, and we will always do what you tell us to do.” Or, “Moses told us what to do, and we always obeyed him; when you tell us what to do, we will always obey you.”

The last half of the verse may be rendered, “and we ask the LORD our God to be with you” or “… to stand beside you….”

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 .