Joshua 3
Legacy Standard Bible
Israel Crosses the Jordan
3 Then Joshua rose early in the morning; and he and all the sons of Israel set out from (A)Shittim and came to the Jordan, and they lodged there before they crossed. 2 (B)Now it happened that at the end of three days the officers went through the midst of the camp; 3 and they commanded the people, saying, “When you see the (C)ark of the covenant of Yahweh your God with the Levitical priests carrying it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it. 4 However, there shall be between you and it a distance of about [a]2,000 cubits by measure. Do not come near it, that you may know the way by which you shall go, for you have not passed this way before.”
5 Then Joshua said to the people, “(D)Set yourselves apart as holy, for tomorrow Yahweh will do wondrous deeds among you.” 6 And Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, “Carry the ark of the covenant and cross over ahead of the people.” So they carried the ark of the covenant and went ahead of the people.
7 Then Yahweh said to Joshua, “This day I will begin to (E)magnify you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you. 8 Moreover, you shall command the priests who are carrying the ark of the covenant, saying, ‘When you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.’” 9 Then Joshua said to the sons of Israel, “Come near, and hear the words of Yahweh your God.” 10 And Joshua said, “By this you shall know that (F)the living God is among you, and that He will assuredly (G)dispossess from before you the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Hivite, the Perizzite, the Girgashite, the Amorite, and the Jebusite. 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of (H)the Lord of all the earth is crossing over ahead of you into the Jordan. 12 So now, (I)take for yourselves twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one man for each tribe. 13 And it will be that when the soles of the feet of the priests who carry the ark of Yahweh, the Lord of all the earth, rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan will be cut off, and the waters which are [b]flowing down from above [c]will (J)stand in one heap.”
14 So it happened that when the people set out from their tents to cross the Jordan with the priests carrying (K)the ark of the covenant before the people, 15 and when those who carried the ark came into the Jordan, and the feet of the priests carrying the ark were dipped in the edge of the water (for the (L)Jordan overflows all its banks all the days of harvest), 16 (M)the waters which were [d]flowing down from above stood and rose up in (N)one heap, a great distance away at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan; and those which were [e]flowing down toward the sea of the (O)Arabah, the Salt Sea, were completely cut off. So the people crossed opposite Jericho. 17 And the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of Yahweh stood firm (P)on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan while all Israel crossed on dry ground until all the nation had completed crossing the Jordan.
Footnotes
- Joshua 3:4 Approx. 3,000 ft. or 914 m, a cubit was approx. 18 in. or 45 cm
- Joshua 3:13 Lit going
- Joshua 3:13 Lit and they will
- Joshua 3:16 Lit going
- Joshua 3:16 Lit going
Joshua 3
Christian Standard Bible
Crossing the Jordan
3 Joshua started early the next morning and left the Acacia Grove[a] with all the Israelites. They went as far as the Jordan and stayed there before crossing. 2 After three days the officers went through the camp(A) 3 and commanded the people, “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God carried by the Levitical priests,(B) you are to break camp and follow it. 4 But keep a distance of about a thousand yards[b] between yourselves and the ark. Don’t go near it, so that you can see the way to go, for you haven’t traveled this way before.”
5 Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves,(C) because the Lord will do wonders(D) among you tomorrow.” 6 Then he said to the priests, “Carry the ark of the covenant and go on ahead of the people.” So they carried the ark of the covenant and went ahead of them.
7 The Lord spoke to Joshua: “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel,(E) so they will know that I will be with you just as I was with Moses.(F) 8 Command the priests carrying the ark of the covenant: When you reach the edge of the water,[c] stand in the Jordan.”
9 Then Joshua told the Israelites, “Come closer and listen to the words of the Lord your God.” 10 He said, “You will know that the living God is among you(G) and that he will certainly dispossess before you the Canaanites, Hethites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites(H) 11 when the ark of the covenant of the Lord of the whole earth(I) goes ahead of you into the Jordan. 12 Now choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one man for each tribe.(J) 13 When the feet[d] of the priests who carry the ark of the Lord, the Lord of the whole earth, come to rest in the Jordan’s water, its water will be cut off. The water flowing downstream will stand up in a mass.”(K)
14 When the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carried the ark of the covenant(L) ahead of the people. 15 Now the Jordan overflows its banks throughout the harvest season.(M) But as soon as the priests carrying the ark reached the Jordan, their feet touched the water at its edge 16 and the water flowing downstream stood still, rising up in a mass that extended as far as[e] Adam, a city next to Zarethan. The water flowing downstream into the Sea of the Arabah(N)—the Dead Sea—was completely cut off, and the people crossed opposite Jericho. 17 The priests carrying the ark of the Lord’s covenant stood firmly on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan,(O) while all Israel crossed on dry ground until the entire nation had finished crossing the Jordan.
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