Joshua 5

1 Therefore, after all the kings of the Amorites, who were living across the Jordan toward the western region, and all the kings of Canaan, who possessed the places beside the great sea, had heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the sons of Israel, until they crossed over it, their heart was broken, and there remained in them no spirit, out of fear at the entrance of the sons of Israel.

All the kings of the people-groups to the west of the Jordan River and all the kings of the groups who were descendants of Canaan and who lived close to the [Mediterranean] Sea heard about how Yahweh had dried up the water of the Jordan [River] until all we Israeli people had crossed over. So they became very dismayed. They no longer were courageous enough to fight us.

2 So at that time, the Lord said to Joshua: “Make for yourself knives of stone, and circumcise the sons of Israel a second time.”

While [they were camped at Gilgal], Yahweh said to Joshua, “[The Israeli males who lived in Egypt were circumcised before they left there. Now] make knives from flint stones and circumcise all the Israeli males [who have been born since then].”

3 He did what the Lord had commanded, and he circumcised the sons of Israel at the hill of the foreskins.

So Joshua [made knives and] circumcised the Israeli males at a place that is now called ‘Circumcision Hill’.

4 Now this is the reason for the second circumcision: All the people who departed from Egypt of the male gender, all the men fit for war, died in the desert during the very long wandering way;

[The reason they did that is that all the men who left Egypt], those who were old enough to be soldiers, died in the desert after they left Egypt.

5 all these had been circumcised. But the people who were born in the desert,

They had been circumcised in Egypt, but the baby boys who had been born while their parents were camping in the desert after they left Egypt had not been circumcised.

6 throughout the forty years of the journey in the very broad wilderness, were uncircumcised, until the ones who had not listened to the voice of the Lord were consumed. For he had sworn to them before, that he would not reveal to them the land flowing with milk and honey.

Our Israeli ancestors traveled around in the desert for 40 years, and all the men who were old enough to be soldiers had died. [The women had also died]. They had not obeyed Yahweh, so Yahweh said that they would not arrive at the land that he had promised to our ancestors that he would give to us, a land that was very fertile [MTY].

7 The sons of these ones succeeded to the place of their fathers, and they were circumcised by Joshua. For they were uncircumcised, just as they had been born, and no one had circumcised them along the way.

The sons of those who had disobeyed Yahweh were the ones whom Joshua circumcised at Gilgal. They were circumcised because they had not been circumcised [while they were traveling in the desert].

8 Then, after they were all circumcised, they remained in the same place of the camp until they were healed.

After all the Israeli males had been circumcised, they remained in the camp and rested until their wounds were healed.

9 And the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have taken away from you the disgrace of Egypt.” And the name of that place was called Gilgal, even to the present day.

Then Yahweh said to Joshua, “[Because your forefathers were slaves in Egypt], the Egyptians felt a revulsion toward you. But today I have removed the revulsion the Egyptians have had toward you.” Because of that, the people called the place ‘Gilgal’, [which sounds like the Hebrew word ‘removed’, ] and it still has that name.

10 And the sons of Israel stayed at Gilgal, and they kept the Passover, on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, in the plains of Jericho.

In the evening of the fourteenth day of that month, while the Israeli people were camped at Gilgal, on the plain near Jericho [city], they celebrated the Passover [Festival].

11 And on the following day, they ate unleavened bread from the grain of the land, and cooked grain, of the same year.

The next day, they found some barley grain in the fields in that area. So they took that and roasted it and ate it with bread that was made without yeast.

12 And the manna ceased after they ate from the grain of the land. And the sons of Israel no longer made use of that food. Instead, they ate from the grain of the present year, from the land of Canaan.

The next day, [God] stopped [sending] manna for the Israeli people to eat. After that, they ate food that was grown in Canaan.

13 And when Joshua was in the field of the city of Jericho, he lifted up his eyes, and he saw a man standing opposite him, holding a drawn sword. And he went to him and said, “Are you one of ours, or one of our adversaries?”

One day when Joshua came near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him. The man was holding a sword in his hand. Joshua approached him and asked him, “Are you [going to fight] for us or against us?”

14 And he responded: “Not at all. Instead, I am a prince of the host of the Lord, and now I have arrived.” Joshua fell prone on the ground. And reverencing, he said, “What does my lord say to his servant?”

The man replied, “I am not [planning to fight with you] or [against you]. Instead, I am the commander of Yahweh’s army [in heaven], and I have come [down from there to assure you that Yahweh will help you].” Then Joshua bowed down with his face on the ground (to show his respect for/to worship) the man, and said to him, “Tell me what [you want me to do].”

15 He said: “Remove your shoes from your feet. For the place on which you stand is holy.” And Joshua did just as he had been commanded.

The commander of Yahweh’s army replied, “Take off your sandals! [I am Yahweh, and] the ground on which you are standing is holy because I am here.” So Joshua took off his sandals.