[Joshua said] “So fear the Lord and serve Him wholeheartedly. Put away forever your idols you ancestors worshipped when they lived beyond the Euphrates River and. in Egypt. Serve the Lord alone. But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then you choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer gods you ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.” (vv14-15, NLT)
Then Joshua warned the people, “You are not able to serve the Lord, for He is a holy and jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins. If you abandon the Lord and serve other gods, He will turn against you and destroy you, even though He has been so good to you.” (vv. 19-20, NLT)
So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day ad Shechem, committing them to follow the decrees and regulations of the Lord. Joshua recorded all these things in the Book of God’s Instructions. As a reminder of their agreement, Joshua took a huge stone and rolled it beneath the terebinth tree beside the Tabernacle of the Lord.
Joshua said to all the people, “This stone has heard everything the Lord said to us. It will be a witness to testify against you if you go back on your word to God.” (vv. 25-28,NLT)