¹⁸ I gave you a command at that time: “The Lord your God gave you this land as a possession. All of your soldiers, armed for battle, are to cross over before your brother Israelites. ¹⁹ Only your wives and your children and your livestock (I know that you have a lot of livestock) may stay in your cities that I have given you, ²⁰ until the Lord gives rest to your brothers as he has to you, and they also have taken possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving them on the other side of the Jordan. After that you may return, each man to his possession that I have given you.”

²¹ I also gave a command to Joshua at that time: “With your own eyes you have been observing everything that the Lord your God has done to these two kings. The Lord will do the same to all the kingdoms to which you are crossing. ²² Do not be afraid of them, because the Lord your God himself is fighting for you.”