Joshua 4

1 And it comes to pass, when all the nation has completed to pass over the Jordan, that YHWH speaks to Joshua, saying,

When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD said to Joshua,

2 “Take for yourselves twelve men out of the people, one man—one man out of a tribe;

“Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe,

3 and command them, saying, Take up for yourselves from this [place], from the midst of the Jordan, from the established standing-place of the feet of the priests, twelve stones, and you have removed them over with you, and placed them in the lodging-place in which you lodge tonight.”

and command them: ‘Take up for yourselves twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan where the priests were standing, carry them with you, and set them down in the place where you spend the night.’”

4 And Joshua calls to the twelve men whom he prepared out of the sons of Israel, one man—one man out of a tribe;

So Joshua summoned the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe,

5 and Joshua says to them, “Pass over before the Ark of your God YHWH into the midst of the Jordan, and each of you lift up one stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel,

and said to them, “Cross over before the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of Israel,

6 so that this is a sign in your midst when your children ask hereafter, saying, What [are] these stones to you?

to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’

7 That you have said to them, Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off, at the presence of the Ark of the Covenant of YHWH; in its passing over into the Jordan the waters of the Jordan were cut off; and these stones have been for a memorial to the sons of Israel for all time.”

you are to tell them, ‘The waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters were cut off.’ Therefore these stones will be a memorial to the Israelites forever.”

8 And the sons of Israel do so as Joshua commanded, and take up twelve stones out of the midst of the Jordan, as YHWH has spoken to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel, and remove them over with them to the lodging-place, and place them there,

Thus the Israelites did as Joshua had commanded them. They took up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, one for each tribe of Israel, just as the LORD had told Joshua; and they carried them to the camp, where they set them down.

9 even the twelve stones Joshua has raised up out of the midst of the Jordan, the place of the standing of the feet of the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant, and they are there to this day.

Joshua also set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan, in the place where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant stood. And the stones are there to this day.

10 And the priests carrying the Ark are standing in the midst of the Jordan until the completion of the whole thing which YHWH commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua, and the people hurry and pass over.

Now the priests who carried the ark remained standing in the middle of the Jordan until the people had completed everything the LORD had commanded Joshua to tell them, just as Moses had directed Joshua. The people hurried across,

11 And it comes to pass, when all the people have completed to pass over, that the Ark of YHWH passes over, and the priests, in the presence of the people;

and after everyone had finished crossing, the priests with the ark of the LORD crossed in the sight of the people.

12 and the sons of Reuben, and the sons of Gad, and the half of the tribe of Manasseh, pass over, by fifties, before the sons of Israel, as Moses had spoken to them;

The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over before the Israelites, armed for battle as Moses had instructed them.

13 about forty thousand, armed ones of the host, passed over before YHWH for battle, to the plains of Jericho.

About 40,000 troops armed for battle crossed over before the LORD into the plains of Jericho.

14 On that day YHWH has made Joshua great in the eyes of all Israel, and they fear him, as they feared Moses, all [the] days of his life.

On that day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they revered him all the days of his life, just as they had revered Moses.

15 And YHWH speaks to Joshua, saying,

Then the LORD said to Joshua,

16 “Command the priests carrying the Ark of the Testimony, and they come up out of the Jordan.”

“Command the priests who carry the ark of the Testimony to come up from the Jordan.”

17 And Joshua commands the priests, saying, “Come up out of the Jordan.”

So Joshua commanded the priests, “Come up from the Jordan.”

18 And it comes to pass, in the coming up of the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant of YHWH out of the midst of the Jordan—the soles of the feet of the priests have been drawn up into the dry ground—and the waters of the Jordan return to their place, and go over all its banks as before.

When the priests carrying the ark of the covenant of the LORD came up out of the Jordan and their feet touched the dry land, the waters of the Jordan returned to their course and overflowed all the banks as before.

19 And the people have come up out of the Jordan on the tenth of the first month, and encamp in Gilgal, in the extremity east of Jericho;

On the tenth day of the first month the people went up from the Jordan and camped at Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho.

20 and these twelve stones, which they have taken out of the Jordan, Joshua has raised up in Gilgal.

And there at Gilgal Joshua set up the twelve stones they had taken from the Jordan.

21 And he speaks to the sons of Israel, saying, “When your sons ask their fathers hereafter, saying, What [are] these stones?

Then Joshua said to the Israelites, “In the future, when your children ask their fathers, ‘What is the meaning of these stones?’

22 Then you have caused your sons to know, saying, Israel passed over this Jordan on dry land;

you are to tell them, ‘Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.’

23 because your God YHWH dried up the waters of the Jordan at your presence, until your passing over, as your God YHWH did to the Red Sea which He dried up at our presence until our passing over;

For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, just as He did to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed over.

24 so that all the people of the land know the hand of YHWH—that it [is] strong, so that you have feared your God YHWH [for] all the days.”

He did this so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, and so that you may always fear the LORD your God.”