24:19,20
The people were deluded about themselves, but Joshua knew what they were really like. “You are not able to serve the Lord”. This is the state of every human being. Joshua then reminds them that God is a holy God, and a jealous God. When he says “He will not forgive ...” he means that God will not overlook the sins of idolatry. Sin matters. Israel would suffer for her disobedience. We are going way off line when we forget that the Lord is a holy God, or we think that sin does not matter.
24:21-23
The people still vehemently insist that they will indeed serve the Lord. In response Joshua declares that they will be witnesses against themselves. The very next book in the Bible proves beyond doubt that it was Joshua who knew what he was talking about. The people readily accept their words as a witness. Joshua then tells them to follow up their words with actions. It seems that the people still had “foreign gods” amongst them. They are also urged to “yield their hearts to the Lord”.
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