1And when all the people had completely crossed over the Jordan, the LORD spoke to Joshua, saying,
2“Take twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man,
3And tell them, “Take here out of the middle of the Jordan, out of the place where the priests' feet stood firm, twelve stones, and you carry them over with you, and leave them in the place where you shall camp this night.”
4Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had chosen out of every tribe a man:
5And Joshua said to them, “Pass over before the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan, and take you up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel;
6That this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, “What mean you by these stones?”
7Then you shall answer them, “That the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD; when it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off”. And these stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever.”
8And 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, and carried them over with them to the place where they lodged, and laid them down there.
9And 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 unto this day.
10For 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 had commanded Joshua; and the people hurried and crossed over.
11And when all the people had completely crossed over, that the ark of the LORD crossed over, and the priests, in the presence of the people.
12And the children of Reuben, the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh, crossed over armed before the children of Israel, as Moses spoke to them:
13About forty thousand prepared for war crossed over before the LORD to battle, to the plains of Jericho.
14On that day the LORD magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared (respected) him, as they respected Moses, all the days of his life.
15And the LORD spoke to Joshua, saying,
16“Command the priests who carry the ark of the testimony, that they come up out of the Jordan.”
17Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying, “Come up out of the Jordan”.
18And when the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD had come up out of the middle of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests' feet were again out of the riverbed onto the dry land, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place, and flowed over all its banks, as they did before.
19And the people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, in the east border of Jericho.
20And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal.
21And he spoke to the children of Israel, saying, “When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, “What mean these stones?”
22Then you shall tell your children, “Israel came over this Jordan on dry land.
23For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan from before them, until they had crossed over, as the LORD your God did at the Red Sea, which He dried up from before us, until we had gone over”:
24That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the LORD, that it is mighty, that you might fear the LORD your God forever”. Easy Reader Bible: Purple Letter Edition © 2023 by Jim Musser. Used by Permission. All rights Reserved. Bible Hub |
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