Crossing the Jordan

3 Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim^(A) and went to the Jordan,^(B) where they camped before crossing over. ² After three days^(C) the officers^(D) went throughout the camp,^{(E) 3} giving orders to the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant^(F) of the Lord your God, and the Levitical^(G) priests^(H) carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. ⁴ Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before. But keep a distance of about two thousand cubits^[a](I) between you and the ark; do not go near it.”

⁵ Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves,^(J) for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things^(K) among you.”

⁶ Joshua said to the priests, “Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people.” So they took it up and went ahead of them.

⁷ And the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you^(L) in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses.^{(M) 8} Tell the priests^(N) who carry the ark of the covenant: ‘When you reach the edge of the Jordan’s waters, go and stand in the river.’”

⁹ Joshua said to the Israelites, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God. ¹⁰ This is how you will know that the living God^(O) is among you^(P) and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites,^(Q) Hivites, Perizzites,^(R) Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites.^{(S) 11} See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth^(T) will go into the Jordan ahead of you.^{(U) 12} Now then, choose twelve men^(V) from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. ¹³ And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth^(W)—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream^(X) will be cut off^(Y) and stand up in a heap.^(Z)”

¹⁴ So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant^(AA) went ahead^(AB) of them. ¹⁵ Now the Jordan^(AC) is at flood stage^(AD) all during harvest.^(AE) Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, ¹⁶ the water from upstream stopped flowing.^(AF) It piled up in a heap^(AG) a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan,^(AH) while the water flowing down^(AI) to the Sea of the Arabah^(AJ) (that is, the Dead Sea^(AK)) was completely cut off.^(AL) So the people crossed over opposite Jericho.^{(AM) 17} The priests^(AN) who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground,^(AO) while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.^(AP)

4 When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan,^(AQ) the Lord said to Joshua, ² “Choose twelve men^(AR) from among the people, one from each tribe, ³ and tell them to take up twelve stones^(AS) from the middle of the Jordan,^(AT) from right where the priests are standing, and carry them over with you and put them down at the place where you stay tonight.^(AU)”

⁴ So Joshua called together the twelve men^(AV) he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe, ⁵ and said to them, “Go over before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan.^(AW) Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, ⁶ to serve as a sign^(AX) among you. In the future, when your children^(AY) ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’^{(AZ) 7} tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off^(BA) before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial^(BB) to the people of Israel forever.”

⁸ So the Israelites did as Joshua commanded them. They took twelve stones^(BC) from the middle of the Jordan,^(BD) according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, as the Lord had told Joshua;^(BE) and they carried them over with them to their camp, where they put them down. ⁹ Joshua set up the twelve stones^(BF) that had been^[b] in the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant had stood. And they are there to this day.^(BG)

¹⁰ Now the priests who carried the ark remained standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything the Lord had commanded Joshua was done by the people, just as Moses had directed Joshua. The people hurried over, ¹¹ and as soon as all of them had crossed, the ark of the Lord and the priests came to the other side while the people watched. ¹² The men of Reuben,^(BH) Gad^(BI) and the half-tribe of Manasseh^(BJ) crossed over, ready for battle, in front of the Israelites,^(BK) as Moses had directed them.^{(BL) 13} About forty thousand armed for battle^(BM) crossed over^(BN) before the Lord to the plains of Jericho for war.

¹⁴ That day the Lord exalted^(BO) Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they stood in awe of him all the days of his life, just as they had stood in awe of Moses.

¹⁵ Then the Lord said to Joshua, ¹⁶ “Command the priests carrying the ark of the covenant law^(BP) to come up out of the Jordan.”

¹⁷ So Joshua commanded the priests, “Come up out of the Jordan.”

¹⁸ And the priests came up out of the river carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord. No sooner had they set their feet on the dry ground than the waters of the Jordan returned to their place^(BQ) and ran at flood stage^(BR) as before.

¹⁹ On the tenth day of the first month the people went up from the Jordan and camped at Gilgal^(BS) on the eastern border of Jericho. ²⁰ And Joshua set up at Gilgal the twelve stones^(BT) they had taken out of the Jordan. ²¹ He said to the Israelites, “In the future when your descendants ask their parents, ‘What do these stones mean?’^{(BU) 22} tell them, ‘Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.’^{(BV) 23} For the Lord your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The Lord your God did to the Jordan what he had done to the Red Sea^[c] when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over.^{(BW) 24} He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know^(BX) that the hand of the Lord is powerful^(BY) and so that you might always fear the Lord your God.^(BZ)”

5 Now when all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the coast^(CA) heard how the Lord had dried up the Jordan before the Israelites until they^[d] had crossed over, their hearts melted in fear^(CB) and they no longer had the courage to face the Israelites.

Circumcision and Passover at Gilgal

² At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make flint knives^(CC) and circumcise^(CD) the Israelites again.” ³ So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the Israelites at Gibeath Haaraloth.^[e]

⁴ Now this is why he did so: All those who came out of Egypt—all the men of military age^(CE)—died in the wilderness on the way after leaving Egypt.^{(CF) 5} All the people that came out had been circumcised, but all the people born in the wilderness during the journey from Egypt had not. ⁶ The Israelites had moved about in the wilderness^(CG) forty years^(CH) until all the men who were of military age when they left Egypt had died, since they had not obeyed the Lord. For the Lord had sworn to them that they would not see the land he had solemnly promised their ancestors to give us,^(CI) a land flowing with milk and honey.^{(CJ) 7} So he raised up their sons in their place, and these were the ones Joshua circumcised. They were still uncircumcised because they had not been circumcised on the way. ⁸ And after the whole nation had been circumcised, they remained where they were in camp until they were healed.^(CK)

⁹ Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.” So the place has been called Gilgal^[f](CL) to this day.

¹⁰ On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month,^(CM) while camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the Passover.^{(CN) 11} The day after the Passover, that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land:^(CO) unleavened bread^(CP) and roasted grain.^{(CQ) 12} The manna stopped the day after^[g] they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate the produce of Canaan.^(CR)

The Fall of Jericho

¹³ Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man^(CS) standing in front of him with a drawn sword^(CT) in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”

¹⁴ “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown^(CU) to the ground^(CV) in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord^[h] have for his servant?”

¹⁵ The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.”^(CW) And Joshua did so.

The Parable of the Persistent Widow

18 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.^{(A) 2} He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. ³ And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice^(B) against my adversary.’

⁴ “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, ⁵ yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”^(C)

⁶ And the Lord^(D) said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. ⁷ And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out^(E) to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? ⁸ I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man^(F) comes,^(G) will he find faith on the earth?”

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector

⁹ To some who were confident of their own righteousness^(H) and looked down on everyone else,^(I) Jesus told this parable: ¹⁰ “Two men went up to the temple to pray,^(J) one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee stood by himself^(K) and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. ¹² I fast^(L) twice a week and give a tenth^(M) of all I get.’

¹³ “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast^(N) and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’^(O)

¹⁴ “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”^(P)

The Little Children and Jesus^(Q)

¹⁵ People were also bringing babies to Jesus for him to place his hands on them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. ¹⁶ But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. ¹⁷ Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child^(R) will never enter it.”

The Rich and the Kingdom of God^(S)

¹⁸ A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”^(T)

¹⁹ “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. ²⁰ You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’^[a]”^(U)

²¹ “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.

²² When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor,^(V) and you will have treasure in heaven.^(W) Then come, follow me.”

²³ When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. ²⁴ Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!^{(X) 25} Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

²⁶ Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?”

²⁷ Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”^(Y)

²⁸ Peter said to him, “We have left all we had to follow you!”^(Z)

²⁹ “Truly I tell you,” Jesus said to them, “no one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God ³⁰ will fail to receive many times as much in this age, and in the age to come^(AA) eternal life.”^(AB)

Jesus Predicts His Death a Third Time^(AC)

³¹ Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem,^(AD) and everything that is written by the prophets^(AE) about the Son of Man^(AF) will be fulfilled. ³² He will be delivered over to the Gentiles.^(AG) They will mock him, insult him and spit on him; ³³ they will flog him^(AH) and kill him.^(AI) On the third day^(AJ) he will rise again.”^(AK)

³⁴ The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about.^(AL)

A Blind Beggar Receives His Sight^(AM)

³⁵ As Jesus approached Jericho,^(AN) a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. ³⁶ When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. ³⁷ They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”^(AO)

³⁸ He called out, “Jesus, Son of David,^(AP) have mercy^(AQ) on me!”

³⁹ Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”^(AR)

⁴⁰ Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, ⁴¹ “What do you want me to do for you?”

“Lord, I want to see,” he replied.

⁴² Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.”^{(AS) 43} Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.^(AT)