Joshua 24:31 (DRB)

Passage

And Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and of the ancients that lived a long time after Joshua, and that had known all the works of the Lord which he had done in Israel.

Nearby Context

Joshua 24:29 And after these things Joshua the son of Nun the servant of the Lord died, being a hundred and ten years old:

Joshua 24:30 And they buried him in the border of his possession in Thamnathsare, which is situate in mount Ephraim, on the north side of mount Gaas.

Joshua 24:31 And Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and of the ancients that lived a long time after Joshua, and that had known all the works of the Lord which he had done in Israel.

Joshua 24:32 And the bones of Joseph which the children of Israel had taken out of Egypt, they buried in Sichem, in that part of the field which Jacob had bought of the sons of Hemor the father of Sichem, for a hundred young ewes, and it was in the possession of the sons of Joseph.

Joshua 24:33 Eleazar also the son of Aaron died: and they buried him in Gabaath that belongeth to Phinees his son, which was given him in mount Ephraim.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "israel", "served", "lord", "days", "joshua", "ancients", "lived", and "long". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "israel" and "served", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 30's "And they buried him in the border..." into verse 32's "And the bones of Joseph which the...", so "israel" and "served" 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 "israel" and "served" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.