18:25

Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth: The towns listed in verses 25–28 were in the western part of Benjamin’s territory. Here is another way to translate these words:

⌊In the western part of their territory⌋ there were the towns of Gibeon, Ramah, Be-eroth,

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Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

19:29a

The border then turned back toward Ramah: The clause The border then turned back toward Ramah indicates that the border turned in another direction, south toward the town of Ramah. The location of this town is not certain. It was somewhere between Sidon and Tyre.

as far as the fortified city of Tyre: The phrase the fortified city of Tyre indicates a town with strong walls to protect it from enemies. The town of Tyre was on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, south of Sidon.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

Then the border turned southward towards Ramah town and continued to the walled town of Tyre
-or-
The boundary turned back south to Ramah town and went as far as Tyre, a town with high walls

19:29b

turned toward Hosah: The location of the town of Hosah is not known.

and came out at the Sea: After reaching the town of Hosah, the border went west and ended at the Mediterranean Sea.

in the region of Achzib: There is an interpretation issue with these two Hebrew words as they are not easy to understand. There are four ways to understand them.

(1) It is two towns called “Mahalab” and Achzib. This is based on the Septuagint and also the parallel passage in Judges 1:31.

(Revised Standard Version, English Standard Version, God’s Word, Revised English Bible, Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures, New Jerusalem Bible, New American Bible, Revised Edition, New Living Translation (2004), Good News Translation)

(2) It is two towns called “Hebel” and Achzib.

(NET Bible)

(3) The words mean “near Achzib.” For example:

in the region of Achzib (New International Version)

(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, New American Standard Bible)

(4) The words mean “from the coast to Achzib.” For example:

from the coast to Achzib (King James Version)

(King James Version)

It is recommended that you follow option (1) and translate it as “Mahalab, Achzib” the names of two towns. This is supported by many English versions, and by Bible commentaries.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

Then the border turned ⌊west⌋ to Hosah town and ended at the Mediterranean Sea. Their land included the towns of Mahalab and Achzib.
-or-
The boundary turned to the town of Hosah and went on to the Mediterranean Sea, to Mahalab and Achzib.

© 2001, 2011, 2020, 2022, 2023 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

21:33

In all, thirteen cities, together with their pasturelands, were given to the Gershonite clans: This verse is like verses 21:19 and 21:26. It is a concluding statement for this paragraph.

Here are some other ways to translate this verse:

The Gershon families received a total of thirteen towns and the grazing lands around them.
-or-
The family groups of the Gershon people were given thirteen towns and their grasslands.

Paragraph: 21:34–40

© 2001, 2011, 2020, 2022, 2023 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

22:20a

Was not Achan son of Zerah unfaithful regarding what was set apart for destruction: This is a rhetorical question. It functions as a warning. There are two ways to translate this question:

• As a question. For example:

Achan son of Zerah acted unfaithfully concerning the things that belonged to Yahweh, didn’t he?

• As a statement. For example:

Remember how Achan son of Zerah refused to obey the command about things that must be destroyed. (English Easy-to-Read Version)

Achan son of Zerah: This person was first mentioned in 7:1.

unfaithful: The Hebrew words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as unfaithful are the same words that occurred in verse 22:16 that the Berean Standard Bible translated as “breach of faith.” It means to act disloyally or unfaithfully. Achan did not keep the promise he made to Yahweh to obey his commands.

regarding what was set apart for destruction: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as what was set apart was first used in 6:17-18. Yahweh said that these things belonged to him. The Israelites must not keep them. In 7:1 Achan stole some of these things and hid them. He and his family died because of that sin. It is recommended that you translate this Hebrew word in a similar way to how it was translated in 6:17 and 7:1.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

Did not Achan the son of Zerah disobey the command concerning the things that belonged to Yahweh?
-or-
Achan the son of Zerah acted disloyally toward Yahweh regarding the things that must be destroyed

22:20b

bringing wrath upon the whole congregation of Israel: The clause bringing wrath upon the whole congregation of Israel indicates that Yahweh was angry with all the Israelite people.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

Yahweh was angry with all the people of Israel ⌊because of what Achan did⌋
-or-
Yahweh became angry with the entire community of Israel

22:20c

Yet it was not only Achan who perished because of his sin: The clause not only Achan who perished because of his sin indicates that Achan was not the only person who died because of what he had done. His whole family also died. The Israel people were concerned that they would die because of the sin of the eastern clans.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

He was not the only person who died because of his sin.
-or-
Other people also died because he had sinned.

© 2001, 2011, 2020, 2022, 2023 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

24:2a

And: The Hebrew conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as And introduces the next event in the storyline. Introduce this next event in a way that is natural in your language.

Joshua said to all the people: Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

Then Joshua told all the people
-or-
Then Joshua said to everyone

24:2b

This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: This part of the verse indicates that what Joshua was going to tell them was a message that had God’s authority.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

This is what Yahweh, the God of Israel says:
-or-
Yahweh, the God of Israel, says this:

24:2c

your fathers: The phrase your fathers refers to the ancestors of the Israelite people.

Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor: Terah was an important ancestor of the Israelite people. He was the father of Abraham, whom God called to leave his country and form a new nation.

lived beyond the Euphrates: The word lived indicates that these people lived a long time ago.

beyond the Euphrates: Their ancestors lived on the east side of the Euphrates River. Joshua and the people were now far away from the Euphrates River on its west side.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

Long ago your ancestors lived on the east side of the Euphrates River.
-or-
A long time ago your ancestors lived ⌊way over there⌋ on the other side of the Euphrates River.

and worshiped other gods: The clause and worshiped other gods indicates that Terah as well as other ancestors of the Israelites did not worship Yahweh. They worshiped other, different, gods.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

This included Terah, who was the father of Abraham and Nahor. They worshiped other gods.
-or-
including Terah who was the father of Abraham and Nahor. They worshiped foreign gods.

General Comment on 24:2

In some languages it may be more natural to reorder the parts of this verse. For example:

Then Joshua told everyone to listen to this message from the Lord, the God of Israel: Long ago your ancestors lived on the other side of the Euphrates River, and they worshiped other gods. This continued until the time of your ancestor Terah and his two sons, Abraham and Nahor. (Contemporary English Version)

© 2001, 2011, 2020, 2022, 2023 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.