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And it came to pass that after יהוה (YHVH) had given rest unto Israel from all their enemies round about, that Joshua did wax old and was stricken in age.
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And so it was that Joshua did call for all Israel, and for their Elders, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers and Joshua did say unto them:
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Behold, I am old and stricken in age; and ye have seen all that יהוה (YHVH), our Elohim, hath done unto all these nations because of you;
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For יהוה (YHVH), our Elohim, is the One that hath fought these wars against the old elohim that did abandon this land, and this יהוה (YHVH) did for each one of you.
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¶ And behold, I have divided unto you by lot these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from Jordan, with all the nations that יהוה (YHVH) did cut off, even unto the great sea westward.
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And if ye shall honor the covenant that ye did make with יהוה (YHVH), our Elohim, He shall keep watch over you, and drive them from out of your sight;
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Yea, and it shall come to pass that ye shall possess their lands even as יהוה (YHVH), our Elohim, hath promised.
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¶ Be ye, therefore, very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the Torah of Moses, that ye turn not aside therefrom to the right hand nor to the left,
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And this that ye come not among these nations, these who do remain among you;
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Neither shall you make mention of the name of their elohim, nor cause to swear by them, neither serve them, nor bow yourselves unto them;
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But ye shall cleave unto יהוה (YHVH), our Elohim, even as ye have done unto this day:
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For יהוה (YHVH) hath driven them out from before you; but as for you, no one hath been able to stand before Israel unto this day.
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For if ye should keep the covenant יהוה (YHVH), our Elohim, shall fight for you, even as He hath promised,
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But even as Moses did teach us, if ye keep not your oath unto יהוה (YHVH), you have no promise.
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¶ And it is the will of יהוה (YHVH), our Elohim, that ye should have no kings over you, but that ye shall appoint judges,
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Yet Moses did see that the day should come that you should desire a king over you, and this shall be as both a blessing and a curse over you.
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Therefore remember in that day the sayings of Moses: And when the king sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom and ruleth, he shall write for him a copy of the Book of HaTorah, according to that which is before YHVH continually, out of that which is before the Priests and the Priestesses, the Levites;
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And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life that he may learn to reverence YHVH, his Elohim,
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And to keep all the words of that Torah and these ordinances before him continually, to do them, and forget not to administer justice and judgment throughout the land;
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That his heart be not lifted up above his people and that he turn not aside from his mitzvoth, to the right hand nor to the left;
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And this that he might prolong his days in the land YHVH, our Elohim, shall give thee, and of his children among the faithful, and that he may prolong his days, he and his children, in the midst of Israel.
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¶ And the king shall execute judgment among the people, and over the rulers, and over all they that doth sit in judgment:
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Yea, he shall deliver the poor, and the needy, and the oppressed; and if their cry be faint, yet shall he hear them and harken unto their cries;
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And he shall be a father to the fatherless, and a husband to the widow, and a guardian to they who hath no protector.
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¶ And your kings, should they turn the works of their administration of this kingdom to another;
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Or should they appoint another to rule a portion in their name, they may take them a sar (governor or captain) and confer upon them command over the judgment seat.
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And the sar shall keep the Torah of יהוה (YHVH), our Elohim, and the law of the kings, and shall not depart from it;
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And the sars shall not exalt themselves against the kings of Israel, nor shall they keep their doings secret from the kings, but they shall be faithful unto the kings and unto יהוה (YHVH), our Elohim, and to his house (tribe) of Israel in all things.
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¶ And the sar shall make no laws, but shall govern according to the laws of Israel, and the Torah of יהוה (YHVH), our Elohim,
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And should the sar devise up a new law, then he shall proclaim it not unto Israel except it be by the word of the king;
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For the sars shall do nothing that is forbidden to the king, but shall exercise all things by the commission of the king and only in the dominion they shall be appointed unto them.
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And should any sar despise the Torah of יהוה (YHVH), our Elohim, or the law of the kings, to do that which is set against their mitzvoth, then they be a usurper, and must be removed from their place.