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God’s Orders to Joshua
Now it came about after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, that the Lord spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ servant, saying,
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Joshua Assumes Command
Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying,
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But to the Reubenites, to the Gadites, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh, Joshua said,
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They answered Joshua, saying, “All that you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go.
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Rahab Shelters Spies
Then Joshua the son of Nun sent two men as spies secretly from Shittim, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab, and rested there.
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Then the two men returned and came down from the hill country, and they crossed over and came to Joshua the son of Nun. Then they reported to him all that had happened to them.
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And they said to Joshua, “The Lord has indeed handed over to us all the land; furthermore, all the inhabitants of the land have despaired because of us.”
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Israel Crosses the Jordan
Then Joshua got up early in the morning; and he and all the sons of Israel set out from Shittim and came to the Jordan, and they spent the night there before they crossed.
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Then Joshua said to the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do miracles among you.”
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And Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, “Take up the ark of the covenant and cross over ahead of the people.” So they took up the ark of the covenant and went ahead of the people.
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Now the Lord said to Joshua, “This day I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, so that they will know that just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you.
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Then Joshua said to the sons of Israel, “Come here, and hear the words of the Lord your God.”
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And Joshua said, “By this you will know that the living God is among you, and that He will assuredly drive out from you the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Hivite, the Perizzite, the Girgashite, the Amorite, and the Jebusite.
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Memorial Stones from the Jordan
Now when the entire nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying,
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So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe;
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and Joshua said to them, “Cross again to the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel.
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So the sons of Israel did exactly as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, just as the Lord spoke to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel; and they carried them over with them to the encampment and put them down there.
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Then Joshua set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan at the place where the feet of the priests who carried the ark of the covenant were standing, and they are there to this day.
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For the priests who carried the ark were standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything was completed that the Lord had commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua. And the people hurried and crossed;
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On that day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, so that they revered him, just as they had revered Moses all the days of his life.
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Now the Lord said to Joshua,
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So Joshua commanded the priests, saying, “Come up from the Jordan.”
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As for those twelve stones which they had taken from the Jordan, Joshua set them up at Gilgal.
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At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make for yourself flint knives and circumcise again the sons of Israel the second time.”
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So Joshua made himself flint knives and circumcised the sons of Israel at Gibeath-haaraloth.
