Joshua 4

1 When all the people crossed over the Jordan, Yahweh said to Joshua,

Now when all the nation had come to the other side of Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua,

2 “Choose twelve men for yourselves from among the people, one man from each tribe.

Take twelve men from the people, a man for every tribe,

3 Give them this command: 'Take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan where the priests are standing on the dry ground, and bring them over with you and lay them down in the place where you will spend the night tonight.'”

And say to them, Take up from the middle of Jordan, from the place where the feet of the priests were resting, twelve stones, and take them over with you and put them down in the place where you take your rest tonight.

4 Then Joshua called the twelve men whom he had chosen from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe.

So Joshua sent for the twelve men, whom he had ready, one man out of every tribe of the children of Israel,

5 Joshua said to them, “Go over before the ark of Yahweh your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel.

And he said to them, Go over before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of Jordan, and let every one of you take up a stone on his back, one for every tribe of the children of Israel:

6 This will be a sign in your midst for you when your children ask in days to come, 'What do these stones mean to you?'

So that this may be a sign among you; when your children say to you in time to come, What is the reason for these stones?

7 Then you will say to them, 'The waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of Yahweh. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones will be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.'”

Then you will say to them, Because the waters of Jordan were cut off before the ark of the Lord's agreement; when it went over Jordan the waters of Jordan were cut off: and these stones will be a sign for the children of Israel, keeping it in their memory for ever.

8 The people of Israel did just as Joshua commanded, and they picked up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, as Yahweh said to Joshua. They set the stones up according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel. They carried the stones with them, over to the place where they camped and they set them down there.

So the children of Israel did as Joshua gave them orders, and took twelve stones from the middle of Jordan, as the Lord had said to Joshua, one for every tribe of the children of Israel; these they took across with them to their night's resting-place and put them down there.

9 Then Joshua set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan River, in the place where the feet of the priests that carried the ark of the covenant stood. The memorial is there to this day.

And Joshua put up twelve stones in the middle of Jordan, where the feet of the priests who took up the ark of the agreement had been placed: and there they are to this day.

10 The priests that carried the ark stood in the middle of the Jordan until everything that Yahweh commanded Joshua to tell the people was completed, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua. The people hurried and they crossed over.

For the priests who took up the ark kept there in the middle of Jordan till all the orders given to Joshua by Moses from the Lord had been done: then the people went over quickly.

11 When all the people had finished crossing over, the ark of Yahweh and the priests crossed over before the people.

And when all the people had come to the other side, the ark of the Lord went over, and the priests, before the eyes of the people.

12 The tribe of Reuben, the tribe of Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh passed before the people of Israel formed up as an army, just as Moses said to them.

And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh went over armed before the children of Israel as Moses had said to them:

13 About forty thousand men equipped for war passed before Yahweh, for battle on the plains of Jericho.

About forty thousand armed for war went over before the Lord to the fight, to the lowlands of Jericho.

14 On that day Yahweh made Joshua great in the eyes of all Israel. They honored him—just as they honored Moses— all his days.

That day the Lord made Joshua great in the eyes of all Israel; and all the days of his life they went in fear of him, as they had gone in fear of Moses.

15 Then Yahweh spoke to Joshua,

Then the Lord said to Joshua,

16 “Command the priests who carry the ark of the testimony to come up out of the Jordan.”

Give orders to the priests who take up the ark of witness, to come up out of Jordan.

17 So, Joshua commanded the priests, “Come up out of the Jordan.”

So Joshua gave orders to the priests, saying, Come up now out of Jordan.

18 When the priests carrying the ark of the covenant of Yahweh came up out of the middle of the Jordan, and the soles of their feet were lifted up out on dry ground, then the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and overflowed its banks, just as they were four days before.

And when the priests who took up the ark of the Lord's agreement came up out of Jordan and their feet came out on to dry land, the waters of Jordan went back to their place, overflowing its edges as before.

19 The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month. They stayed in Gilgal, east of Jericho.

So on the tenth day of the first month the people came up out of Jordan, and put up their tents in Gilgal, on the east side of Jericho.

20 The twelve stones that they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal.

And the twelve stones which they took out of Jordan, Joshua put up in Gilgal.

21 He said to the people of Israel, “When your descendants ask their fathers in times to come, 'What are these stones?'

And he said to the children of Israel, When your children say to their fathers in time to come, What is the reason for these stones?

22 Tell your children, 'This is where Israel crossed over the Jordan on dry ground.'

Then give your children the story, and say, Israel came over this river Jordan on dry land.

23 Yahweh your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you, until you had crossed over, just as Yahweh your God did to the Sea of Reeds, which he dried up for us until we passed over,

For the Lord your God made the waters of Jordan dry before you till you had gone across, as he did to the Red Sea, drying it up before us till we had gone across:

24 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of Yahweh is mighty, and that you will honor Yahweh your God forever.”

So that all the peoples of the earth may see that the hand of the Lord is strong; and that they may go in fear of the Lord your God for ever.