Joshua 4

1 And it came to pass, when all the nation were clean passed over the Jordan, that the LORD spoke unto Joshua, saying:

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

2 'Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man,

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

3 and command ye them, saying: Take you hence out of the midst of the Jordan, out of the place where the priests' feet stood, twelve stones made ready, and carry them over with you, and lay them down in the lodging-place, where ye shall lodge this night.'

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

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

5 and Joshua said unto them: 'Pass on before the ark of the LORD your God into the midst of the Jordan, and take you up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the children 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 that this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask in time to come, saying: What mean ye by these stones?

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

7 then ye shall say unto them: Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD; when it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off; and these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever.'

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 children of Israel did so as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the midst of the Jordan, as the LORD spoke unto Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel; and they carried them over with them unto the place where they lodged, and laid them down 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 Joshua also set up twelve stones in the midst of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests that bore the ark of the covenant stood; and they are there unto 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 that bore the ark stood in the midst of the Jordan, until every thing was finished that the LORD commanded Joshua to speak unto the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua; and the people hastened and passed 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 came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over, that the ark of the LORD passed on, and the priests, before 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 children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, passed on armed before the children of Israel, as Moses spoke unto 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 ready armed for war passed on in the presence of the LORD unto 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 the LORD magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared 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 the LORD spoke unto Joshua, saying:

Then the LORD said to Joshua,

16 'Command the priests that bear the ark of the testimony, that they come up out of the Jordan.'

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

17 Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying: 'Come ye up out of the Jordan.'

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

18 And it came to pass, as the priests that bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD came up out of the midst of the Jordan, as soon as the soles of the priests' feet were drawn up unto the dry ground, that the waters of the Jordan returned unto their place, and went over all its banks, as aforetime.

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 came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, on the east border 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 those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, did Joshua set up in Gilgal.

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

21 And he spoke unto the children of Israel, saying: 'When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying: What mean 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 ye shall let your children know, saying: Israel came over this Jordan on dry land.

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

23 For the LORD your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up from before us, until we were passed 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 that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the LORD, that it is mighty; that ye may fear the LORD your God for ever.'

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.”