Joshua 5

1 When all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings of the Mediterranean coast heard how the Lord had dried up the waters of the River Jordan so that the Israelites could cross over, their courage melted and they no longer had any fighting spirit to face the Israelites.

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.

2 At that time the Lord told Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise the new generation of Israelites.”

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

3 Joshua had flint knives made and all male Israelites were circumcised at the place that became known as “the hill of foreskins.”

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

4 This is the reason why Joshua had them all circumcised: all those who left Egypt—the men of fighting age—had died on the journey through the wilderness after the Exodus.

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;

5 They had all been circumcised when they left Egypt, but those born on the journey since then had not.

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

6 For forty years the Israelites traveled through the wilderness until all the men of fighting age when they left Egypt had died, because they had not done what the Lord had told them to do. So the Lord had vowed that he would not let them see the land he had promised their forefathers to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey.

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.

7 The Lord replaced them with their children, and these were the ones that Joshua circumcised. They were uncircumcised since they hadn't been circumcised on the way.

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.

8 Once they had all been circumcised, they stayed in the camp until they recovered.

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

9 The Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have removed from all of you the disgrace of Egypt.” So that place has been called Gilgal to this day.

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.

10 The Israelites camped at Gilgal and celebrated Passover there on the evening of the fourteenth day of the first month.

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.

11 From the very next day they began to eat produce from the land: unleavened bread and roasted grain.

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

12 On the same day when they began eating produce from the land there was no more manna. No longer did the Israelites have manna; after that they ate the produce of the land of Canaan.

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.

13 One day when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or against us?” “Neither,” said the man. “I am the commander of the Lord's army. Now I'm here!”

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?”

14 Joshua fell down with his face to the ground in awe. Then he said, “What orders does my lord have for his servant?”

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?”

15 The commander of the Lord's army told Joshua, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you're standing is holy ground.” Joshua did so.

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.