Joshua 24:20 (DBY)

Passage

If ye forsake Jehovah, and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you, after that he hath done you good.

Nearby Context

Joshua 24:18 And Jehovah drove out from before us all the peoples, and the Amorites the inhabitants of the land: so therefore we will serve Jehovah, for he is our God.

Joshua 24:19 And Joshua said to the people, Ye cannot serve Jehovah, for he is a holy God; he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins.

Joshua 24:20 If ye forsake Jehovah, and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you, after that he hath done you good.

Joshua 24:21 And the people said to Joshua, No; but we will serve Jehovah.

Joshua 24:22 And Joshua said unto the people, Ye are witnesses against yourselves that ye have chosen you Jehovah, to serve him. And they said, [We are] witnesses.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "forsake", "jehovah", "serve", "strange", "gods", "turn", "hurt", and "consume". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "forsake" and "jehovah", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 19's "And Joshua said to the people Ye..." into verse 21's "And the people said to Joshua No...", so "forsake" and "jehovah" belong inside that flow. In Joshua context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "forsake" and "jehovah" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.