Semantic Analysis — Joshua (Full Book) — English → French

Methodological Note (Required Disclosure)

Joshua was composed in Biblical Hebrew, not Koine Greek. Per the Phase 1 mandate to analyze the book “in the original Koine Greek,” this document treats the Septuagint (LXX) as the authoritative Koine Greek witness to the book — the translation tradition the earliest Greek-speaking Church, and the New Testament authors themselves (e.g., Hebrews 3–4 citing Joshua’s “rest”; Hebrews 11:31 and James 2:25 citing Rahab), actually read and cited. Every term below therefore gives both the Hebrew (original composition language) and the LXX Greek (Koine Greek translation), since destination-language risk analysis benefits from seeing how the concept already crossed one major linguistic-cultural boundary (Hebrew → Hellenistic Greek) before facing the Hebrew/Greek → French crossing this project performs. Where the baseline Romans translation_memory.json already fixes a French rendering (e.g., alliance, saint, Dieu, Seigneur, loi, péché, Israël), that rendering is reused exactly and marked [TM].

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PART 1 — CORE PASSAGE: Joshua 24:14-15 (Verse-by-Verse)

Joshua 24:14

Hebrew: וְעַתָּה֙ יְר֣אוּ אֶת־יְהוָ֔ה וְעִבְד֥וּ אֹת֖וֹ בְּתָמִ֣ים וּבֶאֱמֶ֑ת וְהָסִ֣ירוּ אֶת־אֱלֹהִ֗ים אֲשֶׁר֩ עָבְד֨וּ אֲבוֹתֵיכֶ֜ם בְּעֵ֤בֶר הַנָּהָר֙ וּבְמִצְרַ֔יִם וְעִבְד֖וּ אֶת־יְהוָֽה׃ LXX: καὶ νῦν φοβήθητε Κύριον καὶ λατρεύσατε αὐτῷ ἐν εὐθύτητι καὶ ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ καὶ περιέλεσθε τοὺς θεοὺς τοὺς ἀλλοτρίους, οἷς ἐλάτρευσαν οἱ πατέρες ὑμῶν ἐν τῷ πέραν τοῦ ποταμοῦ καὶ ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ, καὶ λατρεύετε Κυρίῳ.

Load-bearing term	Hebrew (translit.)	LXX Greek (translit.)	Literal meaning	Semantic range	English variants	Contextual theological meaning	French rendering risk
fear	יְראוּ yir’u (root ירא, yare’)	φοβήθητε phobēthēte	”revere, be in awe of”	ranges from terror before danger to reverent awe before a sovereign/holy God; never mere emotion, always covenant posture	”fear,” “revere,” “stand in awe of”	Not servile dread but covenant reverence that produces exclusive allegiance — the same verb used of Israel’s response to YHWH’s holiness throughout the OT	Medium. French craindre naturally splits into “être effrayé” (terror) vs. “révérer” (reverence); secular French readers default to the terror sense. Render “craignez donc l’Éternel/le Seigneur” with catechetical gloss distinguishing reverent trust from servile fear, paralleling the baseline’s treatment of foi needing an explicit object.
the LORD	יְהוָה YHWH	Κύριον Kyrion (acc.)	the covenant/personal name of God	the Tetragrammaton, revealed at the burning bush (Ex 3:14), rendered Kyrios (“Lord”) by the LXX translators to avoid pronouncing the divine name	”the LORD” (small caps in English tradition), “Yahweh,” “Jehovah”	The specific covenant-keeping God who brought Israel out of Egypt and gave the land — not a generic deity among the “gods” (elohim) named later in the verse	High. Baseline TM fixes Seigneur [TM] for κύριος (Romans 10:9, Christ’s Lordship). Using the same French word for YHWH throughout Joshua is doctrinally correct (it identifies the LORD of the conquest with the Lord Jesus confessed in Romans) but risks readers missing that a proper name, not a generic title, stands behind it. Follow ecumenical convention (TOB/BJ): render as “le SEIGNEUR” in small capitals in Scripture citations to visually distinguish the Tetragrammaton from generic “seigneur,” while keeping doctrinal continuity with the baseline’s Seigneur.
serve	עִבְדוּ ʿivdu (root עבד, ʿavad)	λατρεύσατε latreusate	”work for, be a servant/slave of,” extended to “worship, render cultic service to”	spans manual labor/slavery to formal cultic worship; the same root describes both Israel’s slavery in Egypt and Israel’s worship of YHWH	”serve,” “worship,” “be a servant of”	The chapter’s structuring verb (appears 8x in vv. 14-24): total, exclusive life-allegiance, not a compartmentalized “religious” activity	High. French servir can sound like menial task-service (servir à table) rather than worship. Distinguish from adorer (worship emotion/attitude) — Joshua’s ʿavad is closer to consecrated total-life service. Render servir consistently [new term — recommend TM addition] but reinforce with surrounding catechesis that this is exclusive covenantal allegiance, not one activity among others.
sincerity and truth	בְּתָמִים וּבֶאֱמֶת betamim uve’emet	ἐν εὐθύτητι καὶ ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ en euthytēti kai en dikaiosynē	”in completeness/integrity and in faithfulness”	tamim = wholeness, blamelessness, undivided integrity; emet = firmness, reliability, truth (note: LXX here renders the second term with δικαιοσύνη, “righteousness,” not ἀλήθεια, “truth” — a translation choice worth flagging)	“in sincerity and in truth,” “in integrity and faithfulness,” “wholeheartedly and truly”	Undivided, whole-hearted covenant loyalty as opposed to syncretistic or partial devotion (cf. v.15’s other “gods”)	Medium. French “en toute sincérité et vérité” is serviceable; the risk is flattening tamim into a purely emotional-sincerity concept (“être sincère” = subjective authenticity in modern French) rather than covenantal wholeness/integrity. Add gloss: “sans partage, en toute intégrité.”
put away	הָסִירוּ hasiru (root סור)	περιέλεσθε perielesthe	”remove, turn aside, take away”	decisive, active removal — not passive neglect	”put away,” “get rid of,” “remove”	A concrete demanded action: idols in the household must be physically removed, not merely mentally disavowed	Low. French ôtez / débarrassez-vous conveys the active sense well.
gods	אֱלֹהִים elohim	θεοὺς τοὺς ἀλλοτρίους theous tous allotrious (“foreign/strange gods” — note the LXX adds the qualifier explicitly)	“gods, deities”	grammatically plural form used of the true God (singular referent) elsewhere, but here plural referent: household/ancestral idols	”gods,” “idols,” “foreign gods”	The rival objects of ʿavad; concrete idols carried from Mesopotamia and Egypt, not abstract “false belief systems”	Low-Medium. French dieux is unambiguous; ensure it is not capitalized (reserve capital “Dieu” for [TM] the true God only).
fathers	אֲבוֹתֵיכֶם avoteikhem	οἱ πατέρες ὑμῶν hoi pateres hymōn	”your fathers/ancestors”	patriarchal ancestors (Terah, and implicitly pre-Abrahamic lineage per v.2)	“fathers,” “ancestors,” “forefathers”	Establishes that idolatry is Israel’s own ancestral inheritance, not merely a Canaanite temptation — heightens the exclusivity demand	Low. French pères/ancêtres both work; ancêtres is clearer to a secular French reader with low OT literacy.
beyond the flood (the Euphrates)	בְּעֵבֶר הַנָּהָר be’ever hannahar	ἐν τῷ πέραν τοῦ ποταμοῦ en tō peran tou potamou	”on the other side of the River”	idiom for Mesopotamia, referring to the Euphrates; echoes Abraham’s origin in Ur/Haran (Gen 11:31)	“beyond the River,” “beyond the Euphrates,” “beyond the flood” (archaic)	Locates the ancestral idolatry geographically prior to the Exodus — Terah’s household worshipped other gods even before Egypt	Low. Render “au-delà du fleuve [l’Euphrate]” with a bracketed clarifying gloss for readers unfamiliar with the geography; avoid the archaic “au-delà du déluge” (flood/deluge), a false-friend risk since nahar is “river,” not “flood.”
Egypt	מִצְרַיִם Mitsrayim	Αἰγύπτῳ Aigyptō	proper noun	the nation of Egypt, site of slavery and also (per some traditions) residual idol worship	”Egypt”	Second historical site of ancestral idol-service, bracketing Israel’s whole pre-conquest history under this temptation	Low. Standard proper name, no French rendering risk.

Joshua 24:15

Hebrew: וְאִם֩ רַ֨ע בְּֽעֵינֵיכֶ֜ם לַעֲבֹ֣ד אֶת־יְהוָ֗ה בַּחֲר֨וּ לָכֶ֣ם הַיּוֹם֮ אֶת־מִ֣י תַעֲבֹדוּן֒ אִ֣ם אֶת־אֱלֹהִ֞ים אֲשֶׁר־עָבְד֣וּ אֲבוֹתֵיכֶ֗ם אֲשֶׁר֙ בְּעֵ֣בֶר הַנָּהָ֔ר וְאִם֙ אֶת־אֱלֹהֵ֣י הָאֱמֹרִ֔י אֲשֶׁ֥ר אַתֶּ֥ם יֹשְׁבִ֖ים בְּאַרְצָ֑ם וְאָנֹכִ֣י וּבֵיתִ֔י נַעֲבֹ֖ד אֶת־יְהוָֽה׃ LXX: εἰ δὲ μὴ ἀρέσκει ὑμῖν λατρεύειν Κυρίῳ, ἕλεσθε ὑμῖν ἑαυτοῖς σήμερον τίνι λατρεύσητε, εἴτε τοῖς θεοῖς τῶν πατέρων ὑμῶν τοῖς ἐν τῷ πέραν τοῦ ποταμοῦ, εἴτε τοῖς θεοῖς τῶν Ἀμορραίων, ἐν οἷς ὑμεῖς κατοικεῖτε ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς αὐτῶν· ἐγὼ δὲ καὶ ὁ οἶκός μου λατρεύσομεν Κυρίῳ.

Load-bearing term	Hebrew (translit.)	LXX Greek (translit.)	Literal meaning	Semantic range	English variants	Contextual theological meaning	French rendering risk
evil/displeasing in your eyes	רַע בְּעֵינֵיכֶם ra beʿeineikhem	μὴ ἀρέσκει ὑμῖν mē areskei hymin	”bad/displeasing in your sight/judgment”	ra ranges from moral evil to simple disagreeableness; “in your eyes” = “in your judgment/opinion"	"if it seems evil to you,” “if it is disagreeable to you,” “if you are unwilling”	Joshua names apostasy honestly as a live option, not a hypothetical — the offer of choice is real, heightening the force of the subsequent challenge	Medium. French “si cela vous déplaît de servir” is accurate; guard against softening ra into mere aesthetic preference (“si vous n’aimez pas”) — the choice is moral/covenantal, not a matter of taste.
choose	בַּחֲרוּ bacharu (root בחר)	ἕλεσθε helesthe	”select, choose, decide for”	deliberate, decisive election between real alternatives — the same root underlies bechirah (election/choice)	“choose,” “decide,” “select”	Covenant renewal genre requires a decisive, public, personal response — not passive inherited religion	High. Baseline TM already flags élection/choisir family as High risk (Romans “election” — political/democratic overtone in French). Here the direction is reversed (humans choosing whom to serve, not God choosing his elect), so the collision is different but real: modern secular French readers may read “choisissez” through a consumer-choice/relativist lens (“choose your own truth”), flattening Joshua’s binary, no-third-option confrontation into a menu of equally valid spiritual options. Reinforce with context that only two real objects of service exist (YHWH or idols) — there is no neutral third choice.
this day	הַיּוֹם hayyom	σήμερον sēmeron	”today, this very day”	marks the urgency and finality of covenant-renewal decision-making (cf. Deut 30:19)	“this day,” “today,” “now”	Echoes Deuteronomy’s covenant-renewal “today” language; the decision is not deferrable	Low. French aujourd’hui is direct and adequate.
the gods your fathers served beyond the River	אֱלֹהִים … בְּעֵבֶר הַנָּהָר	τοῖς θεοῖς τῶν πατέρων … πέραν τοῦ ποταμοῦ	(see v.14 above)	repeated for rhetorical force	—	Reiterates the ancestral-Mesopotamian idolatry option as still-live even after the Exodus and conquest	Low (see v.14 notes; repetition, not new risk).
the gods of the Amorites	אֱלֹהֵי הָאֱמֹרִי elohei ha’Emori	τοῖς θεοῖς τῶν Ἀμορραίων tois theois tōn Amorraiōn	”gods of the Amorites”	the local Canaanite pantheon (Baal, Asherah, etc.) native to the land now occupied	”gods of the Amorites”	The immediate, contemporary temptation — syncretism with the conquered peoples’ religion, not just ancestral memory	Low-Medium. “Amorréens” is the standard French Bible proper-name form; note for teaching that “Amorite” functions in Joshua as a synecdoche for “Canaanite peoples generally.”
dwell	יֹשְׁבִים yoshvim	κατοικεῖτε katoikeite	”sit, dwell, inhabit, settle”	settled residence in territory, implying rootedness and cultural exposure	”dwell,” “live,” “reside”	The temptation is proximity-driven: living in the land of a people means daily exposure to their worship	Low. French habiter/demeurer both work; no theological risk.
house	בֵּיתִי beiti	ὁ οἶκός μου ho oikos mou	”my house/household”	nuclear and extended family/household unit, including dependents and servants	”house,” “household,” “family”	Joshua’s declaration is a household-covenant commitment, modeling patriarchal spiritual leadership — the individual decision has corporate/familial scope	Medium. French maison can sound merely architectural; maisonnée/ma famille better conveys the household-unit sense. Recommend “moi et ma maison” (traditional, Segond-aligned, widely recognized idiom) with gloss ”= moi et toute ma famille.”
we will serve	נַעֲבֹד na’avod	λατρεύσομεν latreusomen	future/cohortative “we will serve”	resolute personal commitment, first-person plural	”we will serve”	Joshua’s personal, public, binding resolution — the rhetorical climax and model response to the whole chapter’s covenant-renewal challenge	High (same term as serve above; the climactic repetition is the theological center of the whole book’s final appeal and must retain full force — not weakened to “we will try to serve” or similarly hedged).

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PART 2 — CHAPTER-BY-CHAPTER SEMANTIC ANALYSIS (Joshua 1–24)

Chapter 1 — Commission and Courage

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
be strong and courageous חֲזַק וֶאֱמָץ chazaq ve’ematz ἴσχυε καὶ ἀνδρίζου ischye kai andrizou ”be strong/firm” + “be manly/courageous”	chazaq = physical/resolve firmness; ematz = boldness of will; LXX’s ἀνδρίζου literally “act like a man" "be strong and of good courage,” “be strong and courageous,” “be bold”	Threefold repetition (1:6,7,9) grounds courage not in Joshua’s temperament but in God’s presence (“for the LORD your God is with you,” v.9) — courage is a theological, not psychological, category	Medium. French “sois fort et courageux” is natural but risks a purely secular self-help/motivational reading (a poster-slogan feel) unless tied explicitly, every occurrence, to the grounding clause “car le Seigneur ton Dieu est avec toi.” Doctrine: Courage through God’s Presence.
meditate וְהָגִיתָ vehagita (root הגה) οὐκ ἀποστήσεται … ἀλλὰ μελετήσεις meletēseis ”murmur, mutter, ponder aloud”	ranges from a lion’s growl to low-voiced recitation/rumination; ancient reading was typically vocalized ”meditate,” “murmur,” “ponder”	Continuous, verbalized internalization of the Torah as the true source of “success” (v.8) — contrasts modern silent, cognitive-only “meditation”	Low-Medium. French méditer trends toward silent contemplative practice (yoga/mindfulness associations in contemporary secular French usage); a brief gloss (“réciter à voix basse, ruminer”) preserves the original embodied practice.
law / Book of the Law סֵפֶר הַתּוֹרָה sefer hattorah τὸ βιβλίον τοῦ νόμου to biblion tou nomou ”instruction, teaching”	Mosaic Torah — instruction, not merely legal statute ”Book of the Law,” “the Law”	[TM] loi reused from baseline; capitalize “la Loi” for the Mosaic corpus per baseline convention	High [TM — reuse baseline note]: keep referent narrowly Mosaic, not natural-law/cosmic-order.
prosper / success תַצְלִיחַ tatzliach εὐοδωθήσῃ euodōthēsē ”to push forward, succeed”	practical effectiveness resulting from covenant obedience, not autonomous achievement ”prosper,” “have good success,” “succeed”	Success is contingent on Torah-obedience, not military strategy or self-reliance alone	Medium. French prospérer/réussir risks a “prosperity gospel” (santé-richesse) misreading in some charismatic French-speaking circles; frame explicitly as covenantal blessing tied to obedience, not a wealth guarantee.
cross over עֹבֵר over διαβήσῃ diabēsē ”pass over, cross”	the Jordan crossing, structurally parallel to the Red Sea crossing ”cross over,” “pass over”	Inaugurates the conquest; later NT/typological readings (not in Joshua itself) associate crossing water with new-covenant initiation	Low. French traverser is direct; a teaching footnote may note (without asserting it as Joshua’s own claim) the traditional typological resonance with baptism, to be handled with care as typology, not text-meaning.

Chapter 2 — Rahab

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
harlot / prostitute אִשָּׁה זוֹנָה ishah zonah γυναικὸς πόρνης gynaikos pornēs ”woman who is a prostitute”	plain socio-economic/moral designation, not euphemistic ”harlot,” “prostitute”	Deliberately retained, unsoftened, by the narrator and later by Hebrews 11:31/James 2:25 — Rahab’s moral status before her act of faith is not erased, which magnifies grace	Medium. French prostituée is the accurate, unsoftened term; avoid euphemisms (“hôtelière,” “aubergiste”) sometimes found in older harmonizing paraphrases, since the moral candor is doctrinally significant (grace reaching the least likely). Doctrine: Rahab and the Inclusion of the Nations by Faith.
kindness / covenant loyalty חֶסֶד chesed ἔλεος / δικαίως καὶ ἀληθῶς (LXX periphrasis) “loyal love, covenant faithfulness, mercy”	one of the richest OT theological terms: steadfast love within a relationship/covenant bond, not mere sentiment ”kindness,” “steadfast love,” “faithful love,” “mercy”	Rahab requests chesed (2:12) — treaty-loyalty language, showing she understands covenant categories even as a Canaanite outsider; a striking anticipation of the Gentile inclusion this doctrine unit names	High. No single French word captures chesed’s full range. Bonté is too weak (mere kindness); fidélité captures loyalty but loses the affective warmth; miséricorde over-imports NT/Christian devotional resonance. Recommend “bonté fidèle” or “fidélité bienveillante” as a compound gloss, flagged for theologian review whenever chesed recurs.
fear (of the inhabitants) נָמֹגוּ / פחד namogu / pachad κατέπτηκεν / φόβος ”melt (with fear), dread”	visceral terror before divine judgment, distinct from the reverent “fear the LORD” of 24:14 ”fear,” “dread,” “terror,” “melt in fear”	Rahab’s confession (2:9-11) shows this dread has become theological recognition (“the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above and on earth beneath”) — proto-confession of faith from a Gentile	Medium. Ensure French distinguishes this peur/terreur (dread) from crainte de l’Éternel (reverent fear) used at 24:14 — same underlying reverence-continuum but different register; do not use identical vocabulary for both without contextual signal.
scarlet cord תִּקְוַת חוּט הַשָּׁנִי tiqvat chut hashani τὸ σημεῖον, τὸ σπαρτίον τὸ κόκκινον ”cord/thread of scarlet” (note: tiqvah here means “cord,” a homograph of the more common tiqvah = “hope”)	a physical sign of the prior oath/covenant, marking Rahab’s house for deliverance ”scarlet cord,” “scarlet thread,” “the line of scarlet thread”	Functions as a Passover-like sign of deliverance from judgment for the household; the Hebrew wordplay with “hope” (tiqvah) is not literally “hope” here but has invited longstanding devotional (not lexical) typology	Low-Medium. Render “cordon écarlate” plainly; a teaching footnote may note the tiqvah wordplay as devotional tradition, explicitly labeled as such rather than as the verse’s lexical meaning, to avoid overclaiming etymological argument.

Chapters 3–4 — Crossing the Jordan

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
Ark of the Covenant אֲרוֹן הַבְּרִית aron habberit κιβωτὸς τῆς διαθήκης kibōtos tēs diathēkēs ”chest/box of the covenant”	the sacred chest containing the tablets of the Law, locus of YHWH’s enthroned presence ”Ark of the Covenant,” “Ark of the LORD”	God’s covenant presence physically leads Israel into the land — the crossing is God’s act, priests/Ark merely precede	Medium. [TM] alliance reused for covenant. Render “l’arche de l’alliance” (established ecumenical French form); no live confusion with Noah’s ark (l’arche de Noé) since context disambiguates, but flag for footnote on first occurrence to preempt confusion for biblically unchurched readers.
sanctify yourselves הִתְקַדָּשׁוּ hitqaddeshu ἁγνίσασθε hagnisasthe (note: root ἁγν-, “purify,” distinct from ἁγιάζω, “sanctify,” used elsewhere) “consecrate/purify yourselves”	ritual and moral preparation for encountering God’s holy presence ”sanctify yourselves,” “consecrate yourselves,” “purify yourselves”	Preparatory holiness required before witnessing a decisive act of God — links to [TM] saint/sanctification baseline entries	Medium. [TM] baseline sanctification reused; note the LXX’s distinct purification-root here to alert reviewers that “purifiez-vous” may in this specific verse be more accurate than “sanctifiez-vous,” though either is defensible; flag for native-speaker review.
memorial stones אֲבָנִים / גַּלְגָּל avanim / Gilgal λίθους lithous ”stones” set up as a monument	a deliberate mnemonic/pedagogical monument (“when your children ask…”) “memorial stones,” “twelve stones”	Physical, communal, intergenerational catechesis — the conquest generation must teach the next	Low. French pierres commémoratives/pierres de mémorial is clear; no theological risk.

Chapter 5 — Circumcision, Passover, and the Commander of the LORD’s Army

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
circumcision מוּלֹת mulot (root מול) περιτομή peritomē ”cutting around”	covenant sign given to Abraham (Gen 17), here renewed for the wilderness-born generation ”circumcision"	"The reproach of Egypt” is rolled away (Gilgal, wordplay on גלל galal, “to roll”) — covenant identity restored before conquest begins	Medium. French circoncision is standard; the Gilgal wordplay (rolling away reproach) is untranslatable and should be explained in a footnote rather than attempted in the rendering itself.
commander of the army of the LORD שַׂר־צְבָא־יְהוָה sar-tzeva-YHWH ἀρχιστράτηγος δυνάμεως Κυρίου archistratēgos dynameōs Kyriou ”chief/prince of the army of the LORD”	a divine/angelic military figure who receives worship (5:14-15) and commands Joshua to remove his sandals — language echoing Moses at the burning bush (Ex 3:5) “captain of the LORD’s host,” “commander of the army of the LORD,” “commander of the LORD’s army”	Long-debated candidate for a Christophany (pre-incarnate appearance of Christ) given that he accepts worship, which no created angel does elsewhere in Scripture (cf. Rev 19:10); the text itself does not name him further	High. Render literally, “le chef de l’armée du Seigneur,” without resolving the christophany question in the translation itself — that is an interpretive/theological judgment for teaching notes, not the text. Flag for human theologian review: any curriculum commentary asserting this is “Christ” must be clearly marked as traditional interpretation, not certain exegesis, to avoid overclaiming in a text used across both Catholic and Protestant French readerships.
holy ground אַדְמַת־קֹדֶשׁ admat qodesh γῆ ἁγία gē hagia ”ground of holiness”	space rendered holy by God’s manifest presence, not intrinsically ”holy ground”	[TM] saint reused; direct echo of Exodus 3:5, reinforcing that the conquest is a continuation of the Exodus-Sinai revelation of God’s holy presence	Low (reuses established [TM] saint term; no new risk).

Chapter 6 — Jericho and the Ban (Ḥerem)

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
devoted to destruction / the ban חֵרֶם cherem ἀνάθεμα anathema ”that which is set apart, devoted, irrevocably given over” (to God, either for destruction or for the sanctuary treasury)	ranges from consecrated temple gifts to total, irrevocable destruction as an act of judgment; always signifies removal from ordinary human use/ownership ”devoted to destruction,” “the ban,” “utterly destroy,” “under the ban,” “accursed”	The conquest is framed as an act of divine judicial judgment on entrenched Canaanite wickedness (cf. Gen 15:16, “the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete”), executed at God’s specific command, not Israelite nationalist conquest or ethnic animus; violating cherem (Achan, ch.7) is itself a capital covenant offense	CRITICAL. This is the single highest-risk term in the book for French. Two collision risks converge: (1) “anathème” in French/Catholic usage today means a formal ecclesiastical curse of excommunication (prononcer l’anathème), an entirely different institutional-canonical concept that would badly mislead readers; (2) “guerre sainte” (“holy war”) is heavily loaded in contemporary French public discourse via Crusades history and, especially since the 2010s, near-universal media association with jihadist terrorism (guerre sainte = a stock phrase in French reporting on extremism). Recommend the more technical, less emotionally loaded “voué(s) à l’extermination” / “voué(s) à l’anathème (interdit)” with mandatory theologian-reviewed footnote every occurrence explaining: (a) this is a unique, temporally bounded, divinely commanded judicial act tied to specific Canaanite practices (child sacrifice, ch. Deut 9; 12:31) — not a repeatable model for religious violence; (b) it must never be rendered with a phrase that could be read as endorsing contemporary “holy war” ideology. This doctrine (Holy War and Divine Judgment) requires human theologian review at every occurrence without exception.
shout / trumpets תְּרוּעָה / שׁוֹפָר teru’ah / shofar σημασία / σάλπιγξ sēmasia / salpinx ”war-cry/signal blast” / “ram’s horn trumpet”	cultic-military signal, not mere noise — associated elsewhere with theophany (Sinai) and eschatological judgment ”shout,” “trumpet,” “ram’s horns”	God’s power, not Israelite military technique, brings down the walls — obedience to a bizarre-seeming command precedes the miracle	Low. French cri de guerre / trompettes (cornes de bélier) is adequate; minor note that shofar is often left transliterated in modern ecumenical French translations as “shofar” with a gloss.

Chapter 7 — Achan’s Sin

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
unfaithfulness / trespass מַעַל ma’al παρέβησαν parebēsan ”act treacherously, breach of trust”	covenant treachery, specifically misappropriating what belongs to God alone ”trespass,” “unfaithfulness,” “acted unfaithfully,” “broke faith”	Achan’s private theft of cherem goods is treated as corporate covenant treason — “Israel has sinned” (7:11), not merely “Achan has sinned,” showing corporate covenant solidarity	Medium. French transgression/infidélité both work; ma’al specifically implies breach of a trust relationship rather than generic wrongdoing — prefer “infidélité (envers l’alliance)” over bare “péché” [TM] in this specific verse to preserve the covenant-breach nuance, while [TM] péché remains correct for the general accountability doctrine elsewhere.
sin חָטָא chata ἥμαρτεν hēmarten ”miss the mark, offend”	[TM] general moral transgression before God — reused from baseline ”sin”	[TM] reused	Medium [TM — reuse baseline note on péché trivialization risk in colloquial French].
Valley of Achor (“Trouble”) עֵמֶק עָכוֹר Emeq Akhor Κοιλὰς Ἄχωρ Koilas Achōr ”Valley of Trouble” (wordplay on עָכַר, “to bring trouble on”)	place-name etiology memorializing judgment ”Valley of Achor,” “Valley of Trouble”	Later reused by Hosea (2:15) as a place of future hope — judgment is not God’s last word for Israel corporately	Low. Proper name; retain “vallée d’Akor” with gloss ”(= vallée du Trouble).”

Chapter 8 — Ai and Covenant Renewal at Ebal

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
altar מִזְבֵּחַ mizbeach θυσιαστήριον thysiastērion ”place of slaughter/sacrifice”	any sanctioned site of sacrificial worship ”altar”	Joshua builds an altar and inscribes the Law at Mt. Ebal (8:30-35) per Deut 27 — covenant renewal bracketing the conquest narrative, prefiguring ch. 24	Low. French autel is standard and unambiguous.
burnt offerings and peace offerings עֹלוֹת וּשְׁלָמִים olot ushlamim ὁλοκαυτώσεις καὶ θυσίας σωτηρίου holokautōseis kai thysias sōtēriou ”offerings wholly burnt” / “offerings of well-being/peace”	olah = entirely consumed on the altar (nothing retained); shelamim = shared communal meal offering ”burnt offerings,” “peace offerings,” “fellowship offerings”	Worship response accompanying covenant renewal, not appeasement of an angry deity but covenant fellowship restoration	CRITICAL — a distinct risk from cherem but equally severe. The standard older French rendering holocauste for olah (used by Segond 1910 and still found in liturgical French) now collides catastrophically with “l’Holocauste” — the standard French designation for the Shoah/genocide of European Jews. Using “holocauste” for a burnt offering in a modern teaching context risks deep offense and category confusion, especially given the chapter’s proximity to cherem/judgment themes and this curriculum’s engagement with Israel. Mandatory recommendation: use “offrande consumée par le feu” or “holocauste” ONLY with an explicit disambiguating footnote on first use, per TOB/BJ modern practice, which increasingly prefer “holocauste” only with clarifying context — flag every occurrence for human theologian review regardless of frequency; do not silently default to Segond’s bare “holocauste.”

Chapter 9 — The Gibeonite Deception

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
covenant / treaty בְּרִית berit διαθήκη / συνθήκη diathēkē ”covenant, binding agreement”	[TM] alliance reused; here a political non-aggression treaty, not the redemptive covenant, but the same lexical stock ”covenant,” “treaty,” “league”	Israel binds itself by oath even though deceived — the sanctity of a sworn oath outweighs the disadvantage of having been tricked (9:19-20), illustrating covenant integrity as a value that transcends circumstance	Medium. [TM] alliance reused; add clarifying note distinguishing this political/treaty use from the theological covenant sense used of God’s promises elsewhere in the book, so readers do not conflate Israel’s treaty with the Gibeonites with God’s covenant with Israel.
oath שְׁבוּעָה shevu’ah ὅρκος horkos ”sworn oath”	binding, invoking divine witness, irrevocable once made ”oath,” “sworn agreement”	Grounds the doctrine that God’s own people must honor commitments made in his name, even to their disadvantage — anticipates the reliability-of-promise theme culminating in 21:43-45 and 23:14	Medium. French serment is direct; ensure it is distinguished from casual “promesse” to retain the sacral, binding weight.

Chapter 10 — The Sun Stands Still; Five Kings

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
the LORD fought for Israel יְהוָה נִלְחָם לְיִשְׂרָאֵל YHWH nilcham l’Yisra’el Κύριος ἐπολέμει … τῷ Ἰσραήλ Kyrios epolemei … tō Israēl ”the LORD waged war on behalf of Israel”	recurring conquest-narrative refrain crediting victory to divine, not human, agency ”the LORD fought for Israel,” “the LORD fought on Israel’s behalf”	Reinforces that the conquest is fundamentally God’s action; Israel’s obedience (not military superiority) is the operative condition — supports the Obedience and the Conquest doctrine	Medium. French “le Seigneur combattait pour Israël” [TM Seigneur/Israël reused] is clear; ensure the doctrine note accompanies this refrain each time to prevent a triumphalist, human-glory misreading.
the sun stood still וַיִּדֹּם הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ vayiddom hashemesh ἔστη ὁ ἥλιος estē ho hēlios ”the sun was still/silent”	a singular, unrepeated miraculous sign confirming God’s direct intervention (10:12-14) “the sun stood still”	Narrated as historical event (“there has been no day like it before or since,” 10:14) — resist allegorizing away as mere poetic hyperbole in translator’s notes	Low-Medium. Render literally; a brief historical-genre footnote is appropriate for a secular readership inclined to read this as legend, but the translation itself should not hedge the historical claim (per the baseline’s general rule against softening doctrinal/historical claims).

Chapter 11 — Northern Campaign

Reuses cherem (ch. 6), “as the LORD commanded Moses” formula, and “the LORD hardened their hearts” (11:20) — a predestination-adjacent statement paralleling Exodus’s Pharaoh language.

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
hardened their hearts חִזַּק אֶת־לִבָּם chizzeq et libbam κατίσχυσεν τὴν καρδίαν αὐτῶν katischysen ”strengthened/toughened their heart”	God’s active judicial hardening of already-hostile hearts, not creating hostility from neutrality ”hardened their hearts,” “stiffened their resolve”	Parallels Pharaoh’s hardening (Ex.) — divine judgment operating through, not against, human resistance; a sober companion note to the cherem doctrine	High. Flag for theologian review alongside election/predestination-adjacent baseline terms (cf. baseline’s election Critical-risk note); French readers may import Jansenist-controversy-era debates on grace/predestination (per baseline’s own note on French Catholic history) into this text if unglossed.

Chapter 12 — Summary List of Defeated Kings

No new theological vocabulary beyond terms already introduced (ch. 6, 10, 11). One verb worth flagging for the land-inheritance doctrine cluster:

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
possess / dispossess יָרַשׁ yarash κατεκληρονόμησαν kateklēronomēsan ”take possession of, inherit, dispossess”	double-edged: Israel’s taking possession = the prior inhabitants’ being dispossessed; same root produces nachalah (inheritance, ch.13ff) “possess,” “dispossess,” “took possession of,” “drove out”	Establishes theological vocabulary connecting conquest to inheritance — land is received as gift/heritage, not simply conquered as spoil	Medium-High. Foreshadows the nachalah (“inheritance”) term-family below; French posséder/déposséder is accurate but should be introduced here with a forward-note flagging its reappearance as “héritage” from ch. 13 onward, so the conceptual unity (conquest = reception of promised inheritance, not mere land-grab) is not lost across the two different French verb families.

Chapter 13 — Beginning of the Land Allotment

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
inheritance / portion נַחֲלָה nachalah κληρονομία klēronomia ”hereditary possession, allotted portion”	land given by God as a permanent family/tribal possession, not earned by conquest merit alone; the same Greek root (klēronomia) underlies the NT’s “inheritance” of salvation (e.g., Eph 1:14, 1 Pet 1:4) “inheritance,” “portion,” “possession”	Grounds the doctrine God’s Faithfulness to the Land Promise: the land is fundamentally a gift fulfilling covenant promise (to Abraham, Gen 15) — the conquest narrative’s theological center of gravity from ch.13 onward	High. French héritage is correct but in secular modern usage trends toward inert legal/financial inheritance (wills, estates) divorced from covenant-promise dynamics. This term is also the direct conceptual and lexical ancestor of NT salvation-inheritance language, so consistency with any future NT curriculum (per the baseline’s cross-curriculum consistency mandate) matters — flag for theologian review to ensure “héritage” here is glossed as covenant-promise gift, priming readers for its NT theological reuse.
lot גּוֹרָל goral κλῆρος klēros ”lot” (a marked object cast for decision)	mechanism of divinely-guided, not chance-based, allocation ”lot,” “by lot”	Land is allotted “by lot” (13:6, and throughout 14-19) as an act trusting divine sovereignty in distribution, avoiding human favoritism/negotiation	Medium. French sort strongly connotes chance/gambling in ordinary usage (“tirer au sort,” “le sort en est jeté”), risking a fatalistic or random-chance reading where the text intends divinely governed, purposeful allocation. Recommend “au sort” with a clarifying gloss (“un moyen par lequel on remettait la décision entre les mains de Dieu”) on first occurrence. Note: κλῆρος is also the etymological root of French/English “clergy” — an interesting but non-essential etymological aside, not to be imported as meaning.

Chapter 14 — Caleb’s Inheritance

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
wholly followed the LORD מִלֵּא אַחֲרֵי יְהוָה mille’ahare YHWH ἐπηκολούθησεν … τῷ Κυρίῳ epēkolouthēsen ”fulfilled/filled up after the LORD”	undivided, complete loyalty over a lifetime (repeated of Caleb three times in ch.14, cf. Num 14:24) “wholly followed the LORD,” “followed the LORD fully”	Caleb models the tamim/undivided-service ideal that 24:14 will later demand of the whole nation — an individual exemplar bracketing the book’s closing appeal	Medium. French “a pleinement suivi le Seigneur” is adequate; connect explicitly in teaching notes to 24:14’s “en sincérité” for thematic unity across the book.

Chapters 15–19 — Tribal Boundary Lists

These chapters are dominated by geographic boundary and town-list material. No new theological vocabulary is introduced beyond nachalah (inheritance) and goral (lot), already treated in chapter 13. Chapter 19:49-51 reiterates that the land was given “according to the word of the LORD by the hand of Joshua” — reinforcing, not adding to, the God’s Faithfulness to the Land Promise doctrine already established.

Chapter 20 — Cities of Refuge

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
cities of refuge עָרֵי הַמִּקְלָט arei hammiqlat πόλεις φυγαδευτήρια poleis phygadeutēria ”cities of asylum/shelter”	designated sanctuary cities protecting an unintentional manslayer from private blood-vengeance pending fair trial ”cities of refuge”	Provides for due process and mercy within a justice system that otherwise permits kin-based blood vengeance — long read typologically (in Christian tradition, not the text itself) as a picture of refuge found in Christ	Medium. French “villes de refuge” is standard and clear; typological Christ-connections should be flagged in teaching notes as traditional homiletical application, not asserted as the Hebrew text’s own meaning.
avenger of blood גֹּאֵל הַדָּם go’el haddam ὁ ἀγχιστεύων τὸ αἷμα ho anchisteuōn to haima ”kinsman-redeemer of blood”	go’el is the same root elsewhere translated “redeemer” (e.g., Ruth 4; Job 19:25) — here specifically the near-kinsman obligated to avenge a slain relative’s blood ”avenger of blood,” “blood avenger,” “kinsman avenger”	Important wordplay risk: the same Hebrew root that produces rich redemption theology elsewhere (go’el = redeemer/kinsman-protector) here names the blood-vengeance role — the concept is judicial-familial obligation, not redemptive salvation	High. French must NOT render this with any term suggestive of “rédempteur” (redeemer), which would wrongly import salvation-theology vocabulary into a judicial-execution context. Recommend “le vengeur du sang” — clear, non-soteriological. Flag for theologian review specifically to prevent confusion with future NT/OT curricula using go’el/“redeemer” language (e.g., Ruth, Job, Isaiah), since the same root is at play; a cross-reference note explaining the shared root without collapsing the two senses is recommended.
manslayer, unintentionally רוֹצֵחַ … בִּשְׁגָגָה rotseach … bishgagah φονευτὴς … ἀκουσίως phoneutēs … akousiōs ”killer… by error/without intent”	distinguishes accidental killing from premeditated murder — a legal category, not a moral excuse for the act itself ”manslayer,” “one who kills unintentionally,” “unwittingly”	Grounds a due-process, mercy-tempered justice system distinct from surrounding cultures’ lex talionis-only frameworks	Low. French “meurtrier involontaire / sans intention” is clear and standard legal French vocabulary.

Chapter 21 — Levitical Cities and the Fulfillment Summary

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
rest וַיָּנַח / מְנוּחָה vayanach / menuchah κατέπαυσεν katepausen ”to rest, settle, cease from labor/conflict”	cessation from war/enemies and secure dwelling in the promised land — the LXX’s κατάπαυσις is the very term Hebrews 3-4 later takes up to typologically develop “God’s rest” as a picture of eschatological salvation-rest ”rest,” “gave them rest,” “rest on every side”	Joshua 21:44, “the LORD gave them rest on every side,” is the book’s theological high-water mark for the doctrine Rest in the Promised Land as a Type of Salvation Rest — land-rest here functions in the canon as a real, historical down payment anticipating a fuller eschatological rest (explicitly developed by Hebrews, not Joshua itself)	High. French repos is correct at the lexical level but is a common, low-weight word in everyday French (rest from work, a nap); it does not automatically carry covenantal-eschatological freight. Flag for theologian review: teaching material must explicitly connect “repos” here to the fuller biblical-theological trajectory (Heb 3-4) without over-reading that developed NT typology back into Joshua’s own historical claim, which is a real, this-worldly territorial rest first and a type only in canonical retrospect.
not one word failed לֹא־נָפַל דָּבָר lo nafal davar οὐ διέπεσεν ῥῆμα ou diepesen rhēma ”not a word/thing fell (failed)“	absolute, comprehensive fulfillment of every specific promise made ”not one word failed,” “not a single one of all the LORD’s good promises failed,” “all came to pass”	The summary theological verdict on the entire conquest narrative (21:45) — grounds the doctrine of God’s Faithfulness to the Land Promise in the strongest possible terms	Medium. French “pas une seule de toutes les bonnes paroles … ne resta sans effet” (Segond-style) is strong and accurate; ensure the totalizing language (“toutes,” “aucune”) is not softened, per the baseline’s general rule against qualifying universality claims.

Chapter 22 — The Altar of Witness and Averted Civil War

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
altar [of witness] מִזְבֵּחַ (עֵד) mizbeach (ed) βωμὸν … μαρτύριον bōmon … martyrion ”altar (of testimony/witness)“	a memorial, non-sacrificial altar built explicitly as a witness-sign, not for offerings — a distinction the text itself labors to clarify (22:26-29) “altar of witness,” “witness altar”	Demonstrates covenant-community concern for unity and correct worship across geographic separation (the Transjordan tribes) — internal doctrinal vigilance rather than external conquest is now the concern	Medium. French must distinguish “autel” (the sacrificial altar, ch.8) from this memorial “autel-témoin/autel de témoignage,” since the whole chapter’s resolution hinges on this distinction — clarify with a footnote that this altar was never intended for sacrifice.
rebellion / unfaithfulness מֶרֶד / מַעַל mered / ma’al ἀποστασία / ἀσέβεια ”revolt, treachery, breach of trust”	covenant treason — the accusation the western tribes initially level against the Transjordan tribes ”rebellion,” “treachery,” “unfaithfulness,” “trespass”	Echoes ch.7’s ma’al (Achan) vocabulary — the whole community’s vigilance against covenant treason is a recurring structural concern in Joshua	Medium (reuses ch.7 term-family; no new risk beyond what’s already flagged).

Chapter 23 — Joshua’s Farewell Charge

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
cling to the LORD דָּבְקוּ בַּיהוָה davku ba-YHWH προσκολλήθητε Κυρίῳ proskollēthēte ”cling, cleave, adhere firmly to”	the same root used of marital union (Gen 2:24, “a man shall cleave to his wife”) — intimate, exclusive, adhesive loyalty ”cling to the LORD,” “hold fast to the LORD,” “cleave to the LORD”	Intensifies the “serve wholeheartedly” theme approaching ch.24’s climax — covenant loyalty pictured in marital-bond terms	Medium. French “s’attacher au Seigneur” is adequate; the marital-bond resonance (cf. Gen 2:24, Eph 5) is a valuable teaching cross-reference worth flagging even though not lexically recoverable in French without a footnote.
love the LORD לְאַהֲבָה אֶת־יְהוָה le’ahavah et YHWH ἀγαπᾶν Κύριον agapan Kyrion ”to love the LORD”	covenant love, both affective and volitional — the same verb underlying the Shema’s love command (Deut 6:5) “love the LORD your God”	Grounds obedience/service in relational love, not bare legal duty — anticipates 24:14’s demand for sincere, not merely compliant, service	Low-Medium. French aimer le Seigneur is standard; ensure teaching material avoids a purely sentimental reading, tying love explicitly to obedience (23:6, “be very courageous to keep and do all that is written”).

Chapter 24 — Covenant Renewal at Shechem (Core Passage Chapter)

Introduces, beyond the core passage terms already treated in Part 1:

Terms	Variants	Theological meaning	French risk
stone as witness הָאֶבֶן … לְעֵדָה ha’even … le’edah ὁ λίθος … εἰς μαρτύριον ho lithos … eis martyrion ”the stone… as a witness”	inanimate object personified as legal witness against future covenant unfaithfulness (“it has heard all the words of the LORD,” 24:27) “stone of witness,” “witness stone”	Formal, treaty-form covenant-renewal ceremony (historical prologue vv.2-13 + stipulation vv.14-15 + witness vv.26-27) — Joshua 24 follows recognizable Ancient Near Eastern suzerain-vassal treaty structure	Medium. French “pierre de témoignage / pierre-témoin” is clear; a structural/genre footnote on the ANE treaty-form (historical prologue, obligations, witnesses, blessings/curses) helps a biblically unchurched reader see why the chapter recounts Israel’s entire history (vv.2-13) before demanding the decision of vv.14-15.
historical recital / “I took your father Abraham” וָאֶקַּח אֶת־אֲבִיכֶם אֶת־אַבְרָהָם va’eqach ἔλαβον τὸν πατέρα ὑμῶν τὸν Ἀβραάμ ”and I took your father Abraham”	God as narrative first-person actor recounting salvation-history — the historical-prologue section grounding the covenant demand in prior divine grace, not merely obligation ”I took your father Abraham”	The demand of vv.14-15 is grounded entirely in what God has already, graciously done (vv.2-13) — obedience/choice follows grace, does not earn it; directly relevant to preventing a legalistic misreading of “choose this day”	Medium. No lexical risk; flag structurally in teaching notes so that “choisissez” (v.15) is never taught in isolation from the preceding grace-narrative — grace precedes and grounds the demand, echoing (in an OT idiom) the same grace-then-obedience order the baseline documents for Romans’ “obedience of faith.”

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Summary of Doctrine-to-Chapter Mapping

Doctrine	Primary chapters	Key terms
God’s Faithfulness to the Land Promise	1, 21, 23, 24	nachalah (héritage), oath/shava (serment), “not one word failed”
Holy War and Divine Judgment	6, 7, 8, 10, 11	cherem (voué à l’extermination), hardened hearts
Courage through God’s Presence	1, 10	chazaq ve’ematz (fort et courageux)
Rahab and the Inclusion of the Nations by Faith	2	zonah, chesed, confession of 2:9-11
Covenant Renewal at Shechem	24	bachar (choisir), abad (servir), stone as witness
Obedience and the Conquest	1, 6, 8, 10, 11	”as the LORD commanded,” yarash
Rest in the Promised Land as a Type of Salvation Rest	1, 11, 21, 22, 23	nuach/menuchah (repos)

End of 07 Semantic Analysis. See 08_core_glossary.md for the consolidated glossary table.