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Joshua 3-5
New International Version

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.

Footnotes

  1. Joshua 3:4 That is, about 3,000 feet or about 900 meters
  2. Joshua 4:9 Or Joshua also set up twelve stones
  3. Joshua 4:23 Or the Sea of Reeds
  4. Joshua 5:1 Another textual tradition we
  5. Joshua 5:3 Gibeath Haaraloth means the hill of foreskins.
  6. Joshua 5:9 Gilgal sounds like the Hebrew for roll.
  7. Joshua 5:12 Or the day
  8. Joshua 5:14 Or lord
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Joshua 3-5
King James Version

3 And Joshua rose early in the morning; and they removed from Shittim, and came to Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over.

2 And it came to pass after three days, that the officers went through the host;

3 And they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it.

4 Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure: come not near unto it, that ye may know the way by which ye must go: for ye have not passed this way heretofore.

5 And Joshua said unto the people, Sanctify yourselves: for to morrow the Lord will do wonders among you.

6 And Joshua spake unto the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

7 And the Lord said unto Joshua, This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee.

8 And thou shalt command the priests that bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When ye are come to the brink of the water of Jordan, ye shall stand still in Jordan.

9 And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, Come hither, and hear the words of the Lord your God.

10 And Joshua said, Hereby ye shall know that the living God is among you, and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Hivites, and the Perizzites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Jebusites.

11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth passeth over before you into Jordan.

12 Now therefore take you twelve men out of the tribes of Israel, out of every tribe a man.

13 And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests that bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of Jordan, that the waters of Jordan shall be cut off from the waters that come down from above; and they shall stand upon an heap.

14 And it came to pass, when the people removed from their tents, to pass over Jordan, and the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people;

15 And as they that bare the ark were come unto Jordan, and the feet of the priests that bare the ark were dipped in the brim of the water, (for Jordan overfloweth all his banks all the time of harvest,)

16 That the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon an heap very far from the city Adam, that is beside Zaretan: and those that came down toward the sea of the plain, even the salt sea, failed, and were cut off: and the people passed over right against Jericho.

17 And the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of Jordan, and all the Israelites passed over on dry ground, until all the people were passed clean over Jordan.

4 And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over Jordan, that the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying,

2 Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man,

3 And command ye them, saying, Take you hence out of the midst of Jordan, out of the place where the priests' feet stood firm, twelve stones, and ye shall carry them over with you, and leave them in the lodging place, where ye shall lodge this night.

4 Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had prepared of the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man:

5 And Joshua said unto them, Pass over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of Jordan, and take you up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel:

6 That this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean ye by these stones?

7 Then ye shall answer them, That the waters of Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it passed over Jordan, the waters of Jordan were cut off: and these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever.

8 And the children of Israel did so as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the midst of Jordan, as the Lord spake unto Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and carried them over with them unto the place where they lodged, and laid them down there.

9 And Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests which bare the ark of the covenant stood: and they are there unto this day.

10 For the priests which bare the ark stood in the midst of Jordan, until everything was finished that the Lord commanded Joshua to speak unto the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua: and the people hasted and passed over.

11 And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over, that the ark of the Lord passed over, and the priests, in the presence of the people.

12 And the children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh, passed over armed before the children of Israel, as Moses spake unto them:

13 About forty thousand prepared for war passed over before the Lord unto battle, to the plains of Jericho.

14 On that day the Lord magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared him, as they feared Moses, all the days of his life.

15 And the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying,

16 Command the priests that bear the ark of the testimony, that they come up out of Jordan.

17 Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying, Come ye up out of Jordan.

18 And it came to pass, when the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord were come up out of the midst of Jordan, and the soles of the priests' feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan returned unto their place, and flowed over all his banks, as they did before.

19 And the people came up out of Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, in the east border of Jericho.

20 And those twelve stones, which they took out of Jordan, did Joshua pitch in Gilgal.

21 And he spake unto the children of Israel, saying, When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean these stones?

22 Then ye shall let your children know, saying, Israel came over this Jordan on dry land.

23 For the Lord your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over:

24 That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever.

5 And it came to pass, when all the kings of the Amorites, which were on the side of Jordan westward, and all the kings of the Canaanites, which were by the sea, heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of Jordan from before the children of Israel, until we were passed over, that their heart melted, neither was there spirit in them any more, because of the children of Israel.

2 At that time the Lord said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time.

3 And Joshua made him sharp knives, and circumcised the children of Israel at the hill of the foreskins.

4 And this is the cause why Joshua did circumcise: All the people that came out of Egypt, that were males, even all the men of war, died in the wilderness by the way, after they came out of Egypt.

5 Now all the people that came out were circumcised: but all the people that were born in the wilderness by the way as they came forth out of Egypt, them they had not circumcised.

6 For the children of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, till all the people that were men of war, which came out of Egypt, were consumed, because they obeyed not the voice of the Lord: unto whom the Lord sware that he would not shew them the land, which the Lord sware unto their fathers that he would give us, a land that floweth with milk and honey.

7 And their children, whom he raised up in their stead, them Joshua circumcised: for they were uncircumcised, because they had not circumcised them by the way.

8 And it came to pass, when they had done circumcising all the people, that they abode in their places in the camp, till they were whole.

9 And the Lord said unto Joshua, This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Wherefore the name of the place is called Gilgal unto this day.

10 And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal, and kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even in the plains of Jericho.

11 And they did eat of the old corn of the land on the morrow after the passover, unleavened cakes, and parched corn in the selfsame day.

12 And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year.

13 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries?

14 And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my Lord unto his servant?

15 And the captain of the Lord's host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so.

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Joshua 3-5
New King James Version

Israel Crosses the Jordan

3 Then Joshua rose early in the morning; and they set out (A)from [a]Acacia Grove and came to the Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they crossed over. 2 So it was, (B)after three days, that the officers went through the camp; 3 and they commanded the people, saying, (C)“When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, (D)and the priests, the Levites, [b]bearing it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it. 4 (E)Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure. Do not come near it, that you may know the way by which you must go, for you have not passed this way before.”

5 And Joshua said to the people, (F)“Sanctify[c] yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.” 6 Then Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, (G)“Take up the ark of the covenant and cross over before the people.”

So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people.

7 And the Lord said to Joshua, “This day I will begin to (H)exalt[d] you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, (I)as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 8 You shall command (J)the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, saying, ‘When you have come to the edge of the water of the Jordan, (K)you shall stand in the Jordan.’ ”

9 So Joshua said to the children of Israel, “Come here, and hear the words of the Lord your God.” 10 And Joshua said, “By this you shall know that (L)the living God is among you, and that He will without fail (M)drive out from before you the (N)Canaanites and the Hittites and the Hivites and the Perizzites and the Girgashites and the Amorites and the Jebusites: 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of (O)the Lord of all the earth is crossing over before you into the Jordan. 12 Now therefore, (P)take for yourselves twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one man from every tribe. 13 And it shall come to pass, (Q)as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the Lord, (R)the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, the waters that come down from upstream, and they (S)shall stand as a heap.”

14 So it was, when the people set out from their camp to cross over the Jordan, with the priests bearing the (T)ark of the covenant before the people, 15 and as those who bore the ark came to the Jordan, and (U)the feet of the priests who bore the ark dipped in the edge of the water (for the (V)Jordan overflows all its banks (W)during the whole time of harvest), 16 that the waters which came down from upstream stood still, and rose in a heap very far away [e]at Adam, the city that is beside (X)Zaretan. So the waters that went down (Y)into the Sea of the Arabah, (Z)the Salt Sea, failed, and were cut off; and the people crossed over opposite Jericho. 17 Then the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan; (AA)and all Israel crossed over on dry ground, until all the people had crossed completely over the Jordan.

The Memorial Stones

4 And it came to pass, when all the people had completely crossed (AB)over the Jordan, that the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying: 2 (AC)“Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from every tribe, 3 and command them, saying, ‘Take for yourselves twelve stones from here, out of the midst of the Jordan, from the place where (AD)the priests’ feet stood firm. You shall carry them over with you and leave them in (AE)the lodging place where you lodge tonight.’ ”

4 Then Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the children of Israel, one man from every tribe; 5 and Joshua said to them: “Cross over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the Jordan, and each one of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, 6 that this may be (AF)a sign among you (AG)when your children ask in time to come, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ 7 Then you shall answer them that (AH)the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. And these stones shall be for (AI)a memorial to the children of Israel forever.”

8 And the children of Israel did so, just as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones from the midst of the Jordan, as the Lord had spoken to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and carried them over with them to the place where they lodged, and laid them down there. 9 Then Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests who bore the ark of the covenant stood; and they are there to this day.

10 So the priests who bore the ark stood in the midst of the Jordan until everything was finished that the Lord had commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua; and the people hurried and crossed over. 11 Then it came to pass, when all the people had completely crossed over, that the (AJ)ark of the Lord and the priests crossed over in the presence of the people. 12 And (AK)the men of Reuben, the men of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh crossed over armed before the children of Israel, as Moses had spoken to them. 13 About forty thousand [f]prepared for war crossed over before the Lord for battle, to the plains of Jericho. 14 On that day the Lord (AL)exalted[g] Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared him, as they had feared Moses, all the days of his life.

15 Then the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying, 16 “Command the priests who bear (AM)the ark of the Testimony to come up from the Jordan.” 17 Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying, “Come up from the Jordan.” 18 And it came to pass, when the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord had come from the midst of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet touched the dry land, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place (AN)and overflowed all its banks as before.

19 Now the people came up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they camped (AO)in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. 20 And (AP)those twelve stones which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal. 21 Then he spoke to the children of Israel, saying: (AQ)“When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What are these stones?’ 22 then you shall let your children know, saying, (AR)‘Israel crossed over this Jordan on (AS)dry land’; 23 for the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, (AT)which He dried up before us until we had crossed over, 24 (AU)that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the Lord, that it is (AV)mighty, that you may (AW)fear the Lord your God [h]forever.”

The Second Generation Circumcised

5 So it was, when all the kings of the Amorites who were on the west side of the Jordan, and all the kings of the Canaanites (AX)who were by the sea, (AY)heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan from before the children of Israel until [i]we had crossed over, that [j]their heart melted; (AZ)and there was no spirit in them any longer because of the children of Israel.

2 At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make (BA)flint knives for yourself, and circumcise the sons of Israel again the second time.” 3 So Joshua made flint knives for himself, and circumcised the sons of Israel at [k]the hill of the foreskins. 4 And this is the reason why Joshua circumcised them: (BB)All the people who came out of Egypt who were males, all the men of war, had died in the wilderness on the way, after they had come out of Egypt. 5 For all the people who came out had been circumcised, but all the people born in the wilderness, on the way as they came out of Egypt, had not been circumcised. 6 For the children of Israel walked (BC)forty years in the wilderness, till all the people who were men of war, who came out of Egypt, were [l]consumed, because they did not obey the voice of the Lord—to whom the Lord swore that (BD)He would not show them the land which the Lord had sworn to their fathers that He would give us, (BE)“a land flowing with milk and honey.” 7 Then Joshua circumcised (BF)their sons whom He raised up in their place; for they were uncircumcised, because they had not been circumcised on the way.

8 So it was, when they had finished circumcising all the people, that they stayed in their places in the camp (BG)till they were healed. 9 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “This day I have rolled away (BH)the reproach of Egypt from you.” Therefore the name of the place is called (BI)Gilgal[m] to this day.

10 Now the children of Israel camped in Gilgal, and kept the Passover (BJ)on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight on the plains of Jericho. 11 And they ate of the produce of the land on the day after the Passover, unleavened bread and [n]parched grain, on the very same day. 12 Then (BK)the manna ceased on the day after they had eaten the produce of the land; and the children of Israel no longer had manna, but they ate the food of the land of Canaan that year.

The Commander of the Army of the Lord

13 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, (BL)a Man stood opposite him (BM)with His sword drawn in His hand. And Joshua went to Him and said to Him, “Are You for us or for our adversaries?”

14 So He said, “No, but as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.”

And Joshua (BN)fell on his face to the earth and (BO)worshiped, and said to Him, “What does my Lord say to His servant?”

15 Then the Commander of the Lord’s army said to Joshua, (BP)“Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy.” And Joshua did so.

Footnotes

  1. Joshua 3:1 Heb. Shittim
  2. Joshua 3:3 carrying
  3. Joshua 3:5 Consecrate
  4. Joshua 3:7 make you great
  5. Joshua 3:16 Qr., many mss. and vss. from Adam
  6. Joshua 4:13 equipped
  7. Joshua 4:14 made Joshua great
  8. Joshua 4:24 Lit. all days
  9. Joshua 5:1 So with Kt.; Qr., some Heb. mss. and editions, LXX, Syr., Tg., Vg. they
  10. Joshua 5:1 their courage failed
  11. Joshua 5:3 Heb. Gibeath Haaraloth
  12. Joshua 5:6 destroyed
  13. Joshua 5:9 Lit. Rolling
  14. Joshua 5:11 roasted
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Joshua 3-5
English Standard Version

Israel Crosses the Jordan

3 Then Joshua rose early in the morning and they set out (A)from Shittim. And they came to the Jordan, he and all the people of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over. 2 (B)At the end of three days the officers went through the camp 3 and commanded the people, “As soon as you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by (C)the Levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place and follow it. 4 (D)Yet there shall be a distance between you and it, about 2,000 cubits[a] in length. Do not come near it, in order that you may know the way you shall go, for you have not passed this way before.” 5 Then Joshua said to the people, (E)“Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.” 6 And Joshua said to the priests, (F)“Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on before the people.” So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people.

7 The Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to (G)exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, (H)as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 8 And as for you, command (I)the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, (J)you shall stand still in the Jordan.’” 9 And Joshua said to the people of Israel, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God.” 10 And Joshua said, “Here is how you shall know that (K)the living God is among you and that he will without fail (L)drive out from before you the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites. 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of (M)the Lord of all the earth[b] (N)is passing over before you into the Jordan. 12 Now therefore (O)take twelve men from the tribes of Israel, (P)from each tribe a man. 13 And (Q)when the soles of the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the Lord, (R)the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off from flowing, and the waters coming down from above shall (S)stand in one heap.”

14 So when the people set out from their tents to pass over the Jordan with the priests bearing (T)the ark of the covenant before the people, 15 and as soon as those bearing the ark had come as far as the Jordan, and (U)the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the brink of the water (now (V)the Jordan overflows all its banks (W)throughout the time of harvest), 16 the waters coming down from above stood and rose up in a heap very far away, at Adam, the city that is beside (X)Zarethan, and those flowing down toward the Sea of (Y)the Arabah, (Z)the Salt Sea, were completely cut off. And the people passed over opposite Jericho. 17 Now the priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firmly on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan, (AA)and all Israel was passing over on dry ground until all the nation finished passing over the Jordan.

Twelve Memorial Stones from the Jordan

4 When all the nation had finished passing (AB)over the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, 2 (AC)“Take twelve men from the people, from each tribe a man, 3 and command them, saying, ‘Take (AD)twelve stones from here out of the midst of the Jordan, from the very place (AE)where the priests' feet stood firmly, and bring them over with you and lay them down in (AF)the place where you lodge tonight.’” 4 Then Joshua called the twelve men from the people of Israel, whom he had appointed, a man from each tribe. 5 And Joshua said to them, “Pass on before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the Jordan, and take up each of you a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel, 6 that this may be a sign among you. (AG)When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ 7 then you shall tell them that (AH)the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel (AI)a memorial forever.”

8 And the people of Israel did just as Joshua commanded and took up twelve stones out of the midst of the Jordan, according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel, just as the Lord told Joshua. And they carried them over with them to the place where they lodged and laid them down[c] there. 9 And Joshua set up[d] twelve stones in the midst of the Jordan, (AJ)in the place where the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the covenant had stood; and they are there to this day. 10 For the priests bearing the ark stood in the midst of the Jordan until everything was finished that the Lord commanded Joshua to tell the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua.

The people passed over in haste. 11 And when all the people had finished passing over, the ark of the Lord and the priests passed over before the people. 12 The sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh (AK)passed over armed before the people of Israel, as Moses had told them. 13 About 40,000 ready for war passed over before the Lord for battle, to the plains of Jericho. 14 On that day the Lord (AL)exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they stood in awe of him just as they had stood in awe of Moses, all the days of his life.

15 And the Lord said to Joshua, 16 “Command the priests bearing (AM)the ark of the testimony to come up out of the Jordan.” 17 So Joshua commanded the priests, “Come up out of the Jordan.” 18 And when the priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the Lord came up from the midst of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests' feet were lifted up on dry ground, the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and overflowed all its banks, (AN)as before.

19 The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they encamped at (AO)Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. 20 And (AP)those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal. 21 And he said to the people of Israel, (AQ)“When your children ask their fathers in times to come, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 22 then you shall let your children know, (AR)‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’ 23 For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, (AS)which he dried up for us until we passed over, 24 (AT)so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is (AU)mighty, that you may (AV)fear the Lord your God forever.”[e]

The New Generation Circumcised

5 As soon as all the kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the Canaanites (AW)who were by the sea, (AX)heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan for the people of Israel until they had crossed over, their hearts (AY)melted and (AZ)there was no longer any spirit in them because of the people of Israel.

2 At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make (BA)flint knives and circumcise the sons of Israel a second time.” 3 So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the sons of Israel at Gibeath-haaraloth.[f] 4 And this is the reason why Joshua circumcised them: (BB)all the males of the people who came out of Egypt, all the men of war, had died in the wilderness on the way after they had come out of Egypt. 5 Though all the people who came out had been circumcised, yet all the people who were born on the way in the wilderness after they had come out of Egypt had not been circumcised. 6 For the people of Israel walked (BC)forty years in the wilderness, until all the nation, the men of war who came out of Egypt, perished, because they did not obey the voice of the Lord; the Lord (BD)swore to them that he would not let them see the land that the Lord had sworn to their fathers to give to us, (BE)a land flowing with milk and honey. 7 So it was (BF)their children, whom he raised up in their place, that Joshua circumcised. For they were uncircumcised, because they had not been circumcised on the way.

8 When the circumcising of the whole nation was finished, they remained in their places in the camp until they were healed. 9 And the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the (BG)reproach of Egypt from you.” And so the name of that place is called (BH)Gilgal[g] to this day.

First Passover in Canaan

10 While the people of Israel were encamped at Gilgal, they kept the Passover (BI)on the fourteenth day of the month in the evening on the plains of Jericho. 11 And the day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate of the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain. 12 And (BJ)the manna ceased the day after they ate of the produce of the land. And there was no longer manna for the people of Israel, but they ate of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year.

The Commander of the Lord's Army

13 When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, (BK)a man was standing before him (BL)with his drawn sword in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our adversaries?” 14 And he said, “No; but I am the commander of the army of the Lord. Now I have come.” And Joshua (BM)fell on his face to the earth and worshiped[h] and said to him, “What does my lord say to his servant?” 15 And the commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua, (BN)“Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.

Footnotes

  1. Joshua 3:4 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
  2. Joshua 3:11 Hebrew the ark of the covenant, the Lord of all the earth
  3. Joshua 4:8 Or to rest
  4. Joshua 4:9 Or Joshua had set up
  5. Joshua 4:24 Or all the days
  6. Joshua 5:3 Gibeath-haaraloth means the hill of the foreskins
  7. Joshua 5:9 Gilgal sounds like the Hebrew for to roll
  8. Joshua 5:14 Or and paid homage
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Joshua 3-5
New American Standard Bible

Israel Crosses the Jordan

3 Then Joshua got up early in the morning; and he and all the sons of Israel set out from (A)Shittim and came to the Jordan, and they spent the night there before they crossed. 2 Then (B)at the end of three days the officers went through the midst of the camp; 3 and they commanded the people, saying, “When you see the (C)ark of the covenant of the Lord your God with the Levitical priests carrying it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it. 4 However, there shall be a distance between you and it of about [a]two thousand cubits by measurement. Do not come near it, so that you may know the way by which you shall go, for you have not passed this way before.”

5 Then Joshua said to the people, “(D)Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do miracles among you.” 6 And Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, “Take up the ark of the covenant and cross over ahead of the people.” So they took up the ark of the covenant and went ahead of the people.

7 Now the Lord said to Joshua, “This day I will begin to (E)exalt you in the sight of all Israel, so that they will know that just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you. 8 So you shall command the priests who are carrying the ark of the covenant, saying, ‘When you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.’” 9 Then Joshua said to the sons of Israel, “Come here, and hear the words of the Lord your God.” 10 And Joshua said, “By this you will know that (F)the living God is among you, and that He will assuredly (G)drive out from you the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Hivite, the Perizzite, the Girgashite, the Amorite, and the Jebusite. 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of (H)the Lord of all the earth is crossing over ahead of you into the Jordan. 12 Now then, (I)take for yourselves twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one man for each tribe. 13 And it will come about when the soles of the feet of the priests who carry the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan will be cut off, that is, the waters which are [b]flowing down from above; and they will (J)stand in one heap.”

14 So when the people set out from their tents to cross the Jordan, with the priests carrying (K)the ark of the covenant before the people, 15 and when those who were carrying the ark came up to the Jordan and the feet of the priests carrying the ark [c]stepped down into the edge of the water (for the (L)Jordan overflows all its banks all the days of harvest), 16 then (M)the waters which were [d]flowing down from above stood and rose up in (N)one heap, a great distance away at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan; and those which were [e]flowing down toward the sea of the (O)Arabah, the Salt Sea, were completely cut off. So the people crossed opposite Jericho. 17 And the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm (P)on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan while all Israel crossed on dry ground, until all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan.

Memorial Stones from the Jordan

4 Now when the entire nation had finished crossing the (Q)Jordan, the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying, 2 “(R)Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe, 3 and command them, saying, ‘Take up for yourselves twelve stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet are standing firmly, and carry them over with you and lay them down in (S)the encampment where you will spend the night.’” 4 So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe; 5 and Joshua said to them, “[f]Cross again to the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel. 6 [g]This shall be a sign among you; (T)when your children ask [h]later, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ 7 then you shall say to them, ‘That the (U)waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off.’ So these stones shall become a (V)memorial to the sons of Israel forever.”

8 So the sons of Israel did exactly as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, just as the Lord spoke to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel; and they carried them over with them to (W)the encampment and put them down there. 9 Then Joshua set up twelve (X)stones in the middle of the Jordan at the place where the feet of the priests who carried the ark of the covenant were standing, and they are there to this day. 10 For the priests who carried the ark were standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything was completed that the Lord had commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua. And the people hurried and crossed; 11 and when all the people had finished crossing, then the ark of the Lord and the priests crossed in front of the people. 12 (Y)The sons of Reuben, the sons of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over in battle formation before the sons of Israel, just as Moses had spoken to them; 13 about forty thousand equipped for war, crossed for battle before the Lord to the desert plains of Jericho.

14 (Z)On that day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, so that they [i]revered him, just as they had [j]revered Moses all the days of his life.

15 Now the Lord said to [k]Joshua, 16 “Command the priests who carry (AA)the ark of the testimony that they come up from the Jordan.” 17 So Joshua commanded the priests, saying, “Come up from the Jordan.” 18 It came about when the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord had come up from the middle of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were [l]lifted up to the dry ground, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place, and went over all its banks as before.

19 Now the people came up from the Jordan on the (AB)tenth of the first month and camped at Gilgal, on the eastern edge of Jericho. 20 As for [m](AC)those twelve stones which they had taken from the Jordan, Joshua set them up (AD)at Gilgal. 21 And he said to the sons of [n]Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What are these stones?’ 22 then you shall inform your children, saying, ‘Israel crossed this Jordan on (AE)dry ground.’ 23 For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed, just as the Lord your God had done to the [o]Red Sea, (AF)which He dried up before us until we had crossed; 24 so that (AG)all the peoples of the earth may know that the (AH)hand of the Lord is mighty, so that you may [p](AI)fear the Lord your God [q]forever.”

Israel Is Circumcised

5 Now it came about when all the kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the (AJ)Canaanites who were by the sea, (AK)heard how the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the sons of Israel until [r]they had crossed, that their hearts melted, and there was no spirit in them any longer because of the sons of Israel.

2 At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make for yourself (AL)flint knives and circumcise again the sons of Israel the second time.” 3 So Joshua made himself flint knives and circumcised the sons of Israel at [s]Gibeath-haaraloth. 4 This is the reason why Joshua circumcised them: (AM)all the people who came out of Egypt who were males, all the men of war, died in the wilderness along the way after they came out of Egypt. 5 For all the people who came out were circumcised, but all the people who were born in the wilderness along the way as they came out of Egypt had not been circumcised. 6 For the sons of Israel walked (AN)forty years in the wilderness, until all the nation, that is, the men of war who came out of Egypt, [t]perished because they did not listen to the voice of the Lord, (AO)to whom the Lord had sworn that He would not let them see the land which the Lord had sworn to their fathers to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey. 7 So their children whom He raised up in their place, Joshua [u]circumcised; for they were uncircumcised, because they had not circumcised them along the way.

8 Now when they had finished circumcising all the nation, they remained in their places in the camp until they recovered. 9 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away (AP)the shame of Egypt from you.” So the name of that place is called [v]Gilgal to this day.

10 While the sons of Israel camped at Gilgal (AQ)they celebrated the Passover on the evening of the (AR)fourteenth day of the month on the desert plains of Jericho. 11 Then on the day after the Passover, on [w]that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and roasted grain. 12 And (AS)the manna ceased on the day after they had eaten some of the produce of the land, so that the sons of Israel no longer had manna, but they ate some of the yield of the land of Canaan during that year.

13 Now it came about when Joshua was by Jericho, he raised his eyes and looked, and behold, (AT)a man was standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” 14 He said, “No; rather I have come now as captain of the army of the Lord.” And Joshua (AU)fell on his face to the ground, and bowed down, and said to him, “What has my lord to say to his servant?” 15 And the captain of the Lord’s army said to Joshua, “(AV)Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.

Footnotes

  1. Joshua 3:4 About 3,000 ft. or 914 m
  2. Joshua 3:13 Lit going
  3. Joshua 3:15 Lit were dipped in
  4. Joshua 3:16 Lit going
  5. Joshua 3:16 Lit going
  6. Joshua 4:5 Lit Cross before the ark
  7. Joshua 4:6 Lit So that this may be
  8. Joshua 4:6 Lit tomorrow
  9. Joshua 4:14 Or feared
  10. Joshua 4:14 Or feared
  11. Joshua 4:15 Lit Joshua, saying
  12. Joshua 4:18 Lit drawn out
  13. Joshua 4:20 Lit these
  14. Joshua 4:21 Lit Israel, saying,
  15. Joshua 4:23 Lit Sea of Reeds
  16. Joshua 4:24 Or revere
  17. Joshua 4:24 Lit all the days
  18. Joshua 5:1 Other mss we
  19. Joshua 5:3 I.e., the hill of the foreskins
  20. Joshua 5:6 Lit were finished
  21. Joshua 5:7 Lit circumcised them
  22. Joshua 5:9 I.e., wheel, or stone circle
  23. Joshua 5:11 Lit this
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