16 All of the Lord's people have gathered together and have sent us to find out why you are unfaithful to our God. You have turned your backs on the Lord by building that altar. Why are you rebelling against him?
17 Wasn't our people's sin at Peor terrible enough for you? The Lord punished us by sending a horrible sickness that killed many of us, and we still suffer because of that sin.
18 Now you are turning your backs on the Lord again.If you don't stop rebelling against the Lord at once, he will be angry with the whole nation.
19 If you don't think your land is a fit place to serve God, then move across the Jordan and live with us in the Lord's own land, where his sacred tent is located. But don't rebel against the Lord our God or against us by building another altar besides the Lord's own altar.
20 Don't you remember what happened when Achan was unfaithful and took some of the things that belonged to God? This made God angry with the entire nation. Achan died because he sinned, but he also caused the death of many others.
21 The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and East Manasseh answered:
22 The Lord is the greatest God! We ask him to be our witness, because he knows whether or not we were rebellious or unfaithful when we built that altar. If we were unfaithful, then we pray that God won't rescue us today. Let us tell you why we built that altar,