NET Bible
"We said,‘If in the future they say such a thing to us or to our descendants, we will reply,“See the model of the LORD’s altar that our ancestors made, not for burnt offerings or sacrifices, but as a reminder to us and you.”’"
— Joshua 22:28, NET Bible
“Therefore said we, that it shall be, when they should so say to us or to our generations in time to come, that we may say again, Behold the pattern of the altar of the Lord, which our fathers made, not for burnt offerings, nor for sacrifices; but it is a witness between us and you.”
“Therefore said we, It shall be, when they so say to us or to our generations in time to come, that we shall say, Behold the pattern of the altar of Jehovah, which our fathers made, not for burnt-offering, nor for sacrifice; but it is a witness between us and you. ”
“"Therefore we said, 'It shall be, when they tell us or our generations this in time to come, that we shall say, "Behold the pattern of the altar of Yahweh, which our fathers made, not for burnt offering, nor for sacrifice; but it is a witness between us and you."'”
“And if they will say so, they shall answer them: Behold the altar of the Lord, which our fathers made, not for holocausts, nor for sacrifice, but for a testimony between us and you.”
“For we said to ourselves, If they say this to us or to future generations, then we will say, See this copy of the Lord's altar which our fathers made, not for burned offerings or offerings of beasts, but for a witness between us and you.”
“Therefore said we, that it shall be, when they should so say to us or to our generations in time to come, that we may say again, Behold the pattern of the altar of the Lord, which our fathers made, not for burnt offerings, nor for sacrifices; but it is a witness between us and you.”
The LORD made the Jordan a boundary between us and you Reubenites and Gadites. You have no right to worship the LORD.’ In this way your descendants might cause our descendants to stop obeying the LORD.
So we decided to build this altar, not for burnt offerings and sacrifices,
but as a reminder to us and you, and to our descendants who follow us, that we will honor the LORD in his very presence with burnt offerings, sacrifices, and tokens of peace. Then in the future your descendants will not be able to say to our descendants,‘You have no right to worship the LORD.’
We said,‘If in the future they say such a thing to us or to our descendants, we will reply,“See the model of the LORD’s altar that our ancestors made, not for burnt offerings or sacrifices, but as a reminder to us and you.”’
Far be it from us to rebel against the LORD by turning back today from following after the LORD by building an altar for burnt offerings, sacrifices, and tokens of peace aside from the altar of the LORD our God located in front of his dwelling place!”
When Phinehas the priest and the community leaders and Israel’s clan leaders who accompanied him heard the defense of the Reubenites, Gadites, and the Manassehites, they were satisfied.
Phinehas, son of Eleazar, the priest, said to the Reubenites, Gadites, and the Manassehites,“Today we know that the LORD is among us, because you have not disobeyed the LORD in this. Now you have rescued the Israelites from the LORD’s judgment.”