Joshua 24:1-28

C. Israel’s second renewal of the covenant 24:1-28

"Joshua did not merely settle for a series of public admonitions in order to guide Israel after his death. The twenty-fourth chapter describes a formal covenant renewal enacted at the site of Shechem for the purpose of getting a binding commitment on the part of the people of Israel to the written Word of God." [Note: Davis and Whitcomb, pp. 87-88.]

The structure of this covenant renewal speech is similar to the typical Hittite suzerainty treaty. It includes a preamble (Joshua 24:1-2 a), historical prologue (Joshua 24:2-13), stipulations for the vassals with the consequences of disobedience (Joshua 24:14-24), and the writing of the agreement (Joshua 24:25-28).

"Joshua 24 completes the book by giving the theological definition of the people of God. Here we suddenly find highly loaded theological language, defining God and the God-man relationship. This makes the chapter one of the most important chapters in the OT for biblical theologians." [Note: Butler, p. 278.]