Joshua 4
1 And whanne thei weren passid ouer, the Lord seide to Josue,
After all the people of the Israeli nation had finished crossing the Jordan [River], Yahweh said to Joshua,
2 Chese thou twelue men,
“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.
3 by ech lynage o man, and comaunde thou to hem, that thei take fro the myddis of the trow of Jordan, where the `feet of preestis stoden, twelue hardiste stoonys; whiche thou schalt sette in the place of castels, where ye schulen sette tentis in this nyyt.
Tell them to carry the stones with you and put them down at the place where you will stay tonight.”
4 And Josue clepide twelue men, whiche he hadde chose of the sones of Israel, of ech lynage o man;
So Joshua chose twelve men, one from each tribe. He called them together, and said to them,
5 and he seide to hem, Go ye bifore the arke of youre Lord God to the myddis of Jordan, and bere ye fro thennus in youre schuldris ech man o stoon, bi the noumbre of the sones of Israel,
“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].
6 that it be a signe bitwixe you. And whanne youre sones schulen axe you to morewe, that is, in tyme `to comynge, and schulen seie, What wolen these stonus `to hem silf?
[Then pile them up] to be a memorial for you. In the future, when your children ask, ‘What do these stones mean?’,
7 ye schulen answere to hem, The watris of Jordan failiden bifor the arke of boond of pees of the Lord, whanne the arke passide Jordan; therfor these stoonus ben set in to mynde of the sones of Israel, til in to withouten ende.
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.”
8 Therfor the sones of Israel diden as Josue comaundide to hem, and baren fro the myddis of the trow of Jordan twelue stoonys, as the Lord comaundide to hem, bi the noumbre of the sones of Israel, `til to the place in which thei settiden tentis; and there thei puttiden tho stonys.
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.
9 Also Josue puttide othire twelue stoonys in the myddis of the trow of Jordan, where the preestis stoden, that baren the arke of boond of pees of the Lord; and tho stoonys ben there `til in to present dai.
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.
10 Forsothe the preestis, that baren the arke, stoden in the myddis of Jordan, til alle thingis weren fillid, whiche the Lord comaundide, that Josue schulde speke to the puple, as Moises hadde seide to hym. And the puple hastide, and passide.
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.
11 And whanne alle men hadden passid, also the arke of the Lord passide, and the preestis yeden bifor the puple.
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].
12 Also the sones of Ruben, and of Gad, and half the lynage of Manasse, yeden armed bifor the sones of Israel, as Moyses comaundide to hem.
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.
13 And fourti thousynde of fiyters yeden bi her cumpanyes and gaderyngis on the pleyn and feeldi places of the citee of Jerico.
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.
14 In that day the Lord magnyfiede Josue bifor al Israel, that thei schulden drede hym, as thei dreden Moises, while he lyuede yit.
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.
15 And the Lord seide to Josue,
Yahweh said to Joshua,
16 Comaunde thou to the preestis that beren the arke of boond of pees, that thei stie fro Jordan.
“[Now] tell the priests who are carrying the chest containing the Ten Commandments to come up from the Jordan [riverbed].”
17 And Josue comaundide to hem, and seide, Stie ye fro Jordan.
So Joshua commanded the priests to do that.
18 And whanne thei hadden stied, berynge the arke of boond of pees of the Lord, and hadde bigunne to trede on the drie erthe, the watris turneden ayen in to her trowe, and flowiden, as tho weren wont before.
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.
19 Forsothe the puple stiede fro Jordan in the tenthe dai of the firste monethe, and thei settiden tentis in Galgalis, ayens the eest coost of the citee of Jerico.
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].
20 Also Josue puttide in Galgalis the twelue stonys, whiche thei hadden take fro the trow of Jordan.
The men [who were carrying] the twelve [large] stones from the Jordan [riverbed brought them to] Joshua, [and he] set them up at Gilgal
21 And he seide to the sones of Israel, Whanne youre sones schulen axe to morewe her fadris, and schulen seie to hem, What wolen these stoonys `to hem silf?
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)]?’,
22 ye schulen teche hem, and ye schulen seie, We passiden this Jordan bi the drie botme,
tell them, ‘We Israeli people crossed the Jordan [River as though we were crossing] on dry ground.
23 for oure Lord God driede the watris therof in oure siyt, til we passiden, as he dide bifore in the Reed See, which he driede while we passiden,
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.
24 that alle the puplis of londis lurne the strongeste hond of the Lord, that also ye drede youre Lord God in al tyme.
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.’”
