Joshua 4

1 After all the people of the Israeli nation had finished crossing the Jordan [River], Yahweh said to Joshua,

When all the nation had completely crossed over the Jordan, the LORD spoke to Joshua, saying,

2 “When you choose the twelve men, one from each tribe, whom I mentioned previously, tell them to pick up [large] stones from the middle of the Jordan riverbed, where the priests are [still] standing.

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

3 Tell them to carry the stones with you and put them down at the place where you will stay tonight.”

and command them, saying, ‘Take from out of the middle of the Jordan, out of the place where the priests’ feet stood firm, twelve stones, carry them over with you, and lay them down in the place where you’ll camp tonight.’”

4 So Joshua chose twelve men, one from each tribe. He called them together, and said to them,

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

5 “Go into the middle of the Jordan riverbed, to [where the priests are standing, holding] the chest that Yahweh, your God, gave you. Each of you must pick up a [large] stone, one for each tribe, [and carry it] on your shoulder [to our camp].

Joshua said to them, “Cross before the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you pick up a stone and put it on your shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel;

6 [Then pile them up] to be a memorial for you. In the future, when your children ask, ‘What do these stones mean?’,

that this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask in the future, saying, ‘What do you mean by these stones?’

7 tell them that the water in the Jordan River was blocked off when the priests were carrying the chest [that contained] the Ten Commandments that Yahweh [gave us]. When the chest was carried into the Jordan [River], the water was blocked off [so that we could cross the riverbed]. These stones will be a memorial for the descendants of us Israeli people forever.”

then you shall tell them, ‘Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the LORD’s covenant. When it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever.’”

8 So those Israeli men did what Joshua told them to do. They went and picked up twelve [large] stones from the middle of the Jordan [riverbed], one stone for each of the tribes, just as Yahweh had told Joshua. They carried the stones to their camp and put them down.

The children of Israel did as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the middle of the Jordan, as the LORD spoke to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel. They carried them over with them to the place where they camped, and laid them down there.

9 Then Joshua set up twelve [other large] stones [in a pile], in the middle of the Jordan [riverbed], where the priests who carried the chest containing the Ten Commandments were standing. And those stones are still there.

Joshua set up twelve stones in the middle 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 The priests who carried the chest remained standing in the middle of the Jordan [riverbed] until the people had finished doing everything that Yahweh had commanded Joshua to tell them to do. Those were the same instructions that Moses had given to Joshua. The Israeli people crossed [the riverbed] quickly.

For the priests who bore the ark stood in the middle of the Jordan until everything was finished that the LORD commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua; and the people hurried and passed over.

11 As soon as all of them had crossed, as the people watched, the priests carried the chest [the rest of the way across the river].

When all the people had completely crossed over, the LORD’s ark crossed over with the priests in the presence of the people.

12 The soldiers of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and of half of the soldiers of the tribe of Manasseh, crossed over ahead of the rest of the Israeli people, carrying their weapons, as Moses had commanded.

The children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over armed before the children of Israel, as Moses spoke to them.

13 As Yahweh was watching, there were about 40,000 of those soldiers, carrying weapons ready for battle, who crossed the riverbed to the plains near Jericho, [ready] to fight.

About forty thousand men, ready and armed for war, passed over before the LORD to battle, to the plains of Jericho.

14 On that day, all the people of Israel saw that Yahweh had caused Joshua to be a great leader. And they honored Joshua for the rest of his life, just as they had honored Moses.

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 Yahweh said to Joshua,

The LORD spoke to Joshua, saying,

16 “[Now] tell the priests who are carrying the chest containing the Ten Commandments to come up from the Jordan [riverbed].”

“Command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, that they come up out of the Jordan.”

17 So Joshua commanded the priests to do that.

Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying, “Come up out of the Jordan!”

18 Then the priests, carrying the chest containing the Ten Commandments that Yahweh [had given to Moses], came up out of the riverbed. And as soon as they walked up out of the riverbed onto the riverbank, the water of the Jordan [River] flowed again, and flooded [over the river banks] as it had done before.

When the priests who bore the ark of the LORD’s covenant had come up out of the middle of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet had been lifted up to the dry ground, the waters of the Jordan returned to their place, and went over all its banks, as before.

19 It was on the tenth day of the first month [of that year] that the people crossed over the Jordan [River] and camped at [a place called] Gilgal, on the east side of [the land near] Jericho [city].

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

20 The men [who were carrying] the twelve [large] stones from the Jordan [riverbed brought them to] Joshua, [and he] set them up at Gilgal

Joshua set up those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, in Gilgal.

21 Joshua said to the Israeli people, “In the future, when your children and grandchildren ask, ‘(What do these stones [mean/Why are these stones here)]?’,

He spoke to the children of Israel, saying, “When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What do these stones mean?’

22 tell them, ‘We Israeli people crossed the Jordan [River as though we were crossing] on dry ground.

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

23 As we were watching, Yahweh, your God, dried up the river until we had all crossed over. Yahweh, the God whom we worship, did to the Jordan [River] just like he did to the Red Sea, when he caused it to become dry as [our parents] were watching, until they all crossed over it.

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

24 Yahweh did that in order that all the people-groups of the earth may know that he [MTY] is very powerful, and in order that you may always (be in awe of/revere) Yahweh, your God.’”

that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD’s hand is mighty, and that you may fear the LORD your God forever.’”