Beginning
The Book of Joshua
1 2 The Lord encourageth Joshua to invade the land. 4 The borders and limits of the land of the Israelites. 5 The Lord promiseth to assist Joshua, if he obey his word. 11 Joshua commandeth the people to prepare themselves to pass over Jordan, 12 and exhorteth the Reubenites to execute their charge.
1 Now after the [a]death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying,
2 Moses my servant is dead: now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I give them, that is, to the children of Israel.
3 (A)Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, have I given you, as I said unto Moses.
4 (B)From the [b]wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river [c]Perath: all the land of the [d]Hittites, even unto the great [e]Sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast.
5 There shall not a man be able to withstand thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so will I be with thee: (C)I will not leave thee, nor forsake thee.
6 (D)Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide the land for an inheritance, which I swore unto their fathers to give them.
7 Only be thou strong, and [f]of a most valiant courage, that thou mayest observe and do according to all the Law which Moses my servant hath commanded thee: (E)thou shalt not turn away from it to the right hand, nor to the left, that thou mayest [g]prosper whithersoever thou goest.
8 Let not this book of the Law depart out of thy mouth, but meditate therein day and [h]night, that thou mayest observe and do according to all that is written therein: for then shalt thou make thy way prosperous, and then shalt thou [i]have good success.
9 Have not I commanded thee, saying, Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be discouraged? for I the Lord thy God will be with thee whithersoever thou goest.
10 ¶ Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying,
11 Pass through the host, and command the people, saying, Prepare you victuals: for [j]after three days ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the Lord your God giveth you to possess it.
12 And unto the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to half the tribe of Manasseh spake Joshua, saying,
13 (F)Remember the word, which Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, saying, The Lord your God hath given you rest, and hath given you this [k]land.
14 ¶ Your wives, your children, and your cattle shall remain in the land which Moses gave you [l]on this side Jordan: but ye shall go over before your brethren armed, all that be men of war, and shall help them,
15 Until the Lord have given your brethren rest as well as to you, and until they also shall possess the land, which the Lord your God giveth them: then shall ye return unto the land of your possession, and shall possess it, which land Moses the Lord’s [m]servant gave you on this side Jordan toward the sun rising.
16 Then they answered Joshua, saying, All that thou hast commanded us, we will do, and whithersoever thou sendest us, we will go.
17 As we obeyed Moses in all things, [n]so will we obey thee: only the Lord thy God be with thee, as he was with Moses.
18 Whosoever shall rebel against thy commandment, and will not obey thy words in all that thou commandest him, let him be put to death: only be strong and of good courage.
2 1 Joshua sendeth men to spy Jericho, whom Rahab hideth. 11 She confesseth the God of Israel. 12 She requireth a sign for her deliverance. 21 The spies return to Joshua with comfortable tidings.
1 Then Joshua the son of Nun sent out of [o]Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, and also Jericho, and they went, and (G)came into an [p]harlot’s house, named Rahab, and lodged there.
2 Then report was made to the King of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men hither tonight, of the children of Israel, to spy out the country.
3 And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab saying, [q]Bring forth the men that are come to thee, and which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the land.
4 (But the woman had taken the two men, and hid them.) Therefore said she thus, There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were.
5 And when they shut the gate in the dark, the men went out, whither the men went, I wot not: follow ye after them quickly, for ye shall overtake them.
6 (But she had brought them up to the [r]roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had spread abroad upon the roof.)
7 And certain men pursued after them, the way to Jordan, unto the fords, and as soon as they which pursued after them, were gone out, they shut the gate.
8 ¶ And before they were asleep, she came up unto them upon the roof,
9 And said unto the men, I know that the Lord hath given you the land, and that the [s]fear of you is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you.
10 For we have heard how the Lord (H)dried up the water of the red Sea (I)before you when ye came out of Egypt, and what you did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, unto (J)Sihon and to Og, whom ye utterly destroyed:
11 And when we heard it, our hearts [t]did faint, and there remained no more [u]courage in any because of you: for [v]the Lord your God, he is the God in heaven above, and in earth beneath.
12 Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the Lord, that as I have showed you mercy, ye will also show mercy unto my father’s house, and give me a true token,
13 And that ye will save alive my father and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have: and that ye will deliver our [w]souls from death.
14 And the men answered her, [x]Our life for you to die, if ye utter not this our business: and when the Lord hath given us the land, we will deal mercifully and truly with thee.
15 Then she let them down by a cord through the window: for her house was upon the town wall, and she dwelt upon the wall.
16 And she said unto them, Go you into the [y]mountain, lest the pursuers meet with you, and hide yourselves there three days, until the pursuers be returned: then afterward may ye go your way.
17 And the men said unto her, [z]We will be blameless of this thine oath which thou hast made us swear.
18 Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this cord of red thread in the window, whereby thou lettest us down, and thou shalt bring thy father and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father’s household home to thee.
19 And whosoever then doth go out at the doors of thine house into the street, [aa]his blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guiltless: but whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand touch him:
20 And if thou utter this our [ab]matter, we will be quit of thine oath, which thou hast made us swear.
21 And she answered, According unto your words, so be it: then she sent them away, and they departed, and she bound the [ac]red cord in the window.
22 ¶ And they departed, and came into the mountain, and there abode three days, until the pursuers were returned: and the pursuers sought them throughout all the way, but found them not.
23 So the two men returned, and descended from the mountain, and passed [ad]over, and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and told him all things that came unto them.
24 Also they said unto Joshua, Surely the Lord hath delivered into our hands all the land: for even all the inhabitants of the country faint because of us.
3 3 Joshua commandeth them to depart when the Ark removeth. 7 The Lord promiseth to exalt Joshua before the people. 9 Joshua’s exhortation to the people. 16 The waters part asunder while the people pass.
1 Then Joshua rose very early, and they removed from Shittim, and came to [ae]Jordan, he, and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they went over.
2 And after [af]three days, the officers went throughout the host,
3 And commanded the people, saying, When ye see the Ark of the covenant of the Lord your God and the Priests of the Levites bearing it, ye shall depart from your place, and go after it.
4 Yet shall there be a space between you and it, about [ag]two thousand cubits by measure: ye shall not come near unto it, that ye may know the way, by the which ye shall go: for ye have not gone this way in times past.
5 (Now Joshua had said unto the people, (K)Sanctify yourselves: for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.)
6 Also Joshua spake unto the Priests, saying, Take up the Ark of the covenant, and go over before the people: so they took up the Ark of the covenant, and went before the people.
7 ¶ Then the Lord said unto Joshua, This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel, which shall know, that (L)as I was with Moses, so will I be with thee.
8 Thou shalt therefore command the Priests that bear the Ark of the covenant, saying, When ye are come to the brink of the waters of Jordan, ye shall stand still [ah]in Jordan.
9 ¶ Then Joshua said unto the children of Israel, Come hither, and hear the words of the Lord your God.
10 And Joshua said, [ai]Hereby ye shall know that the living God is among you, and that he will certainly cast out before you the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Hivites, and the Perizzites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Jebusites.
11 Behold, the Ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the world passeth before you into Jordan.
12 Now therefore take from among you [aj]twelve men out of the tribes of Israel, out of every tribe a man.
13 And as soon as the soles of the feet of the Priests (that bear the Ark of the Lord God the Lord of all the world) shall stay in the waters of Jordan, the waters of Jordan shall be cut off: for the waters that come from above, (M)shall stand still upon an heap.
14 ¶ Then when the people were departed from their tents to go over Jordan, the Priests bearing the (N)Ark of the covenant, went before the people.
15 And as they that bare the Ark, came unto Jordan, and the feet of the Priests that bare the Ark were dipped in the brink of the water, ((O)for Jordan useth to fill all his [ak]banks all the time of harvest)
16 Then the waters that came down from above, stayed and rose upon an heap, and departed far from the city of Adam that was beside Zaretan: but the waters that came down toward the Sea of the wilderness, even the salt Sea, failed and were cut off: so the people went right over against Jericho.
17 But the Priests that bare the Ark of the covenant of the Lord, stood dry within Jordan [al]ready prepared, and all the Israelites went over dry, until all the people were clean gone over through Jordan.
4 2 God commandeth Joshua to set up twelve stones in Jordan. 18 The waters return to their old course. 20 Other twelve stones are set upon Gilgal. 21 This miracle must be declared to posterity.
1 And when all the people were wholly gone (P)over Jordan (after the Lord had spoken unto Joshua, saying,
2 Take you twelve men out of the people out of every tribe a man,
3 And command you them, saying, Take you hence out of the midst of Jordan, out of the place where the Priests stood in a [am]readiness, twelve stones, which ye shall take away with you, and leave them in the [an]lodging, where you shall lodge this night)
4 Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had prepared of the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man,
5 And Joshua said unto them, Go over before the Ark of the Lord your God, even through the midst of Jordan, and take up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel,
6 That this may be a sign among you, that when your [ao]children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What meant you by these stones?
7 Then ye may answer them, That the waters of Jordan were cut off before the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord: for when it passed through Jordan, the waters of Jordan were cut off: therefore these stones are a memorial unto the children of Israel forever.
8 Then the children of Israel did even so as Joshua had commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the midst of Jordan as the Lord had said unto Joshua, according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and carried them away with them unto the lodging, and laid them down there.
9 And Joshua set up [ap]twelve stones in the midst of Jordan, in the place where the feet of the Priests, which bare the Ark of the Covenant stood, and there have they continued unto this day.
10 ¶ So the Priests, which bare the Ark, stood in the midst of Jordan, until everything was finished that the Lord had commanded Joshua to say unto the people, according to all that Moses charged Joshua: then the people hasted and went over.
11 When all the people were clean passed over, the Ark of the Lord went over also, and the Priests [aq]before the people.
12 (Q)And the sons of Reuben, and the sons of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh went over before the children of Israel armed, as Moses had charged them.
13 Even forty thousand prepared for war, went before the [ar]Lord unto battle, into the plain of Jericho.
14 That day the Lord magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they [as]feared him, as they feared Moses all the days of his life.
15 And the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying,
16 Command the Priests that bear the [at]Ark of the testimony, to come up out of Jordan.
17 Joshua therefore commanded the Priests, saying, Come ye up out of Jordan.
18 And when the Priests that bare the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord, were come up out of the midst of Jordan, and as soon as the soles of the Priests’ feet were set on the dry land, the waters of Jordan returned unto their place, and flowed over all the banks thereof, as they did before.
19 ¶ So the people came up out of Jordan the tenth day of the [au]first month, and pitched in Gilgal, in the East side of Jericho.
20 Also the twelve stones, which they took out of Jordan, did Joshua pitch in Gilgal.
21 And he spake unto the children of Israel, saying, When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, and say, What mean these stones?
22 Then ye shall show your children, and say, Israel came over this Jordan on dry land:
23 For the Lord your God dried up the waters of Jordan before you, until ye were gone over as the Lord your God did the red Sea, (R)which he dried up before us, till we were gone over,
24 That all the people of the [av]world may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, that ye might fear the Lord your God continually.
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