At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise the Israelite men again.”(A) So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the Israelite men at Gibeath-haaraloth.[a] This is the reason Joshua circumcised them: All the people who came out of Egypt who were males—all the men of war—had died in the wilderness along the way after they had come out of Egypt. Though all the people who came out were circumcised, none of the people born in the wilderness along the way were circumcised after they had come out of Egypt. For the Israelites wandered in the wilderness forty years until all the nation’s men of war who came out of Egypt had died off because they did not obey the Lord.(B) So the Lord vowed never to let them see the land he had sworn to their ancestors to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey.(C) He raised up their sons in their place; it was these Joshua circumcised. They were still uncircumcised, since they had not been circumcised along the way. After the entire nation had been circumcised, they stayed where they were in the camp until they recovered.(D) The Lord then said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the disgrace of Egypt from you.” Therefore, that place is still called Gilgal[b] today.(E)

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Footnotes

  1. 5:3 Or The Hill of Foreskins
  2. 5:9 = to roll

At that time Yahweh said to Joshua, “Make for yourself knives of flint, and circumcise the Israelites[a] a second time.” So Joshua made knives of flint, and he circumcised the Israelites[b] at the hill of the foreskins.[c] This is the reason why Joshua circumcised all the people: all the males who went out from Egypt, all the warriors, died in the wilderness as they went out from Egypt on the journey.[d] For all the people who left were circumcised, but all the people born in the wilderness on the journey[e] after they left from Egypt were not circumcised. For forty years the Israelites[f] traveled in the wilderness until all the nation, the warriors that left Egypt, perished, because they did not listen to the voice of Yahweh. To them Yahweh swore that they would not see the land that he[g] swore to their ancestors[h] to give to us, a land flowing with milk and honey. And it was their children whom he raised in their place that Joshua circumcised, for they were uncircumcised, because they had not been circumcised on the journey.[i]

The Israelites Celebrate Passover in Canaan

And it happened, when all the nation had finished circumcising, they remained where they were in the camp until they recovered. And Yahweh said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the disgrace of Egypt from you.” Therefore, the name of that place is called Gilgal[j] to this day.

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Footnotes

  1. Joshua 5:2 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  2. Joshua 5:3 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  3. Joshua 5:3 Hebrew “Gibeath-haaraloth”
  4. Joshua 5:4 Literally “on the road”
  5. Joshua 5:5 Literally “on the road”
  6. Joshua 5:6 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  7. Joshua 5:6 Hebrew “Yahweh”
  8. Joshua 5:6 Or “fathers”
  9. Joshua 5:7 Literally “on the road”
  10. Joshua 5:9 Hebrew “rolling”