Joshua 4 - 6
Memorial Stones from the Jordan
4Now it happened when all the nation had completed crossing the aJordan, that Yahweh spoke to Joshua, saying, 2“aTake for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe, 3and command them, saying, ‘Carry for yourselves twelve stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet are standing firm, and carry them over with you and lay them down in athe lodging place where you will lodge tonight.’” 4So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe; 5and Joshua said to them, “1Cross again before the ark of Yahweh your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you carry a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel, 6in order that this would be a sign among you, so that awhen your children ask 1later, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ 7then you shall say to them, ‘Because the awaters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of Yahweh; when it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off.’ So these stones shall become a bmemorial to the sons of Israel forever.”
8Thus the sons of Israel did as Joshua commanded and carried twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, just as Yahweh spoke to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel; and they carried them over with them to athe lodging place and laid them down there. 9But Joshua set up twelve astones 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. 10Now the priests who carried the ark were standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything was completed that Yahweh had commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua. And the people hurried and crossed. 11And it happened when all the people had completed crossing, that the ark of Yahweh and the priests crossed before the people. 12aAnd the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over in battle array before the sons of Israel, just as Moses had spoken to them; 13about 40,000 equipped for war crossed for battle before Yahweh to the desert plains of Jericho.
14aOn that day, Yahweh magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel, so that they 1feared him, just as they had 2feared Moses all the days of his life.
15Then Yahweh said to 1Joshua, 16“Command the priests who carry athe ark of the testimony that they come up from the Jordan.” 17So Joshua commanded the priests, saying, “Come up from the Jordan.” 18So it happened when the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of Yahweh had come up from the middle of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were 1lifted up to the dry ground, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and went over all its banks as before.
19Now the people came up from the Jordan on the atenth of the first month and camped at Gilgal on the eastern edge of Jericho. 201,aAnd those twelve stones which they had taken from the Jordan, Joshua set up bat Gilgal. 21Then he said to the sons of 1Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 22then you shall make your children know, saying, ‘Israel crossed this Jordan on adry land.’ 23“For Yahweh your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed, just as Yahweh your God had done to the 1Red Sea, awhich He dried up before us until we had crossed, 24that aall the peoples of the earth may know that the bhand of Yahweh is strong, so that you may 1,cfear Yahweh your God 2forever.”
The Men of Israel Circumcised
5Now it happened when all the kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the aCanaanites who were by the sea, bheard how Yahweh had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the sons of Israel until 1they had crossed, that their hearts melted, and there was no spirit in them any longer because of the sons of Israel.
2At that time Yahweh said to Joshua, “Make for yourself aflint knives and circumcise again the sons of Israel the second time.” 3So Joshua made himself flint knives and circumcised the sons of Israel at 1Gibeath-haaraloth. 4Now this is the reason why Joshua circumcised them: aall the people who came out of Egypt who were males, all the men of war, died in the wilderness along the way when they came out of Egypt. 5For 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. 6For the sons of Israel had walked aforty years in the wilderness, until all the nation, that is, the men of war who came out of Egypt, were completely destroyed because they did not listen to the voice of Yahweh, bto whom Yahweh had sworn that He would not let them see the land which Yahweh had sworn to their fathers to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey. 7And their sons whom He raised up in their place, Joshua 1circumcised; for they were uncircumcised because they had not circumcised them along the way.
8Now it happened that when they had completed circumcising all the nation, they remained in their places in the camp until they were 1healed. 9Then Yahweh said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away athe reproach of Egypt from you.” So the name of that place is called 1Gilgal to this day.
10Then the sons of Israel camped at Gilgal and acelebrated the Passover on the evening of the bfourteenth day of the month on the desert plains of Jericho. 11And on the 1day after the Passover, on 2that very day, they ate some of the yield of the land, unleavened cakes and roasted grain. 12aThen the manna ceased on the 1day 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 produce of the land of Canaan during that year.
Commander of Yahweh’s Host
13Now it happened when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, aa 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 adversaries?” 14He said, “No! Rather I indeed come now as commander of the host of Yahweh.” And Joshua afell on his face to the earth and bowed down and said to him, “What has my lord to say to his slave?” 15The commander of the host of Yahweh said to Joshua, “aRemove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.
The Destruction of Jericho
6Now Jericho was tightly shut because of the sons of Israel; no one went out, and no one came in. 2And Yahweh said to Joshua, “See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with aits king and the valiant warriors. 3“And you shall march around the city, all the men of war circling the city once. You shall do so for six days. 4“Also seven priests shall carry seven atrumpets of rams’ horns before the ark; then on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. 5“And it will be that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city will fall down 1beneath itself, and the people will go up every man 2straight ahead.”
6So Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, “Carry the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests carry seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of Yahweh.” 7Then 1he said to the people, “Go forward, and march around the city, and let the armed men go on before the ark of Yahweh.” 8And so it happened that, when Joshua had spoken to the people, the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before Yahweh passed on forward and blew the trumpets; and the ark of the covenant of Yahweh came after them. 9And the armed men went before the priests who blew the trumpets, and athe rear guard came after the ark, while they continued to blow the trumpets. 10But Joshua commanded the people, saying, “You shall not shout nor let your voice be heard nor let a word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I tell you, ‘Shout!’ Then you shall shout!” 11So he had the ark of Yahweh 1taken around the city, circling it once; then they came into the camp and spent the night in the camp.
12Then Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests carried the ark of Yahweh. 13aAnd the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of Yahweh went on continually and blew the trumpets; and the armed men went before them, and bthe rear guard came after the ark of Yahweh, and they continued to blow the trumpets. 14Thus the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp; they did so for six days.
15Then it happened that on the seventh day they rose early at the 1breaking of dawn and marched around the city in the same manner seven times; only on that day they marched around the city seven times. 16Now it happened that on the seventh time, the priests blew the trumpets, and Joshua said to the people, “aShout! For Yahweh has given you the city. 17“And the city shall be adevoted to destruction, it and all that is in it belongs to Yahweh; only Rahab the harlot 1and all who are with her in the house shall live because she hid the messengers whom we sent. 18“But as for you, only keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, lest as you are devoting them to destruction, you also atake some of the things devoted to destruction and make the camp of Israel devoted to destruction and bring trouble on it. 19“aBut all the silver and gold and articles of bronze and iron are holy to Yahweh; they shall go into the treasury of Yahweh.” 20So the people shouted, and 1the priests blew the trumpets; and when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted with a great shout, and the awall fell down 2beneath itself, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight 3ahead, and they took the city. 21aAnd they devoted to destruction everything in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword.
22Now to the two men who had spied out the land, Joshua said, “aGo into the harlot’s house and bring the woman and all she has out of there, as you have sworn to her.” 23So the young men who were spies went in and abrought out Rahab and her father and her mother and her brothers and all she had; they also brought out all her relatives and placed them outside the camp of Israel. 24aBut they burned the city with fire, and all that was in it. Only the silver and gold, and articles of bronze and iron, they put into the treasury of the 1house of Yahweh. 25However, aRahab the harlot and her father’s household and all she had, Joshua preserved alive; and she has lived in the midst of Israel to this day, for bshe hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.
26Then Joshua made them swear an oath at that time, saying, “aCursed before Yahweh is the man who rises up and builds this city Jericho; with the loss of his firstborn he shall lay its foundation, and with the loss of his youngest son he shall set up its gates.” 27So aYahweh was with Joshua, and the breport about him was in all the land.