So Joshua said to the people of Israel, 'How long will you put off going in to take possession of the land, which the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you?' — Joshua rebukes the assembled tribes for passivity, using language ('how long...put off,' ad-mātay) that echoes the wilderness wanderings and implies lingering unfaithfulness. The phrase 'the LORD...has given you' (nātan lākem) is in the perfect tense: the gift is already accomplished covenantally, waiting only for human appropriation. Joshua's rebuke identifies the theological problem: covenant promise does not automatically transfer to human possession; faith and action are required to claim what God grants.

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