Old/New Testament
Israel Commemorates the Crossing
4 When the entire nation was on the other side,[a] the Lord told Joshua, 2 “Select for yourselves twelve men from the people, one per tribe. 3 Instruct them, ‘Pick up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests[b] stand firmly, and carry them over with you and put them in the place where you camp tonight.’”
4 Joshua summoned the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one per tribe. 5 Joshua told them, “Go in front of the ark of the Lord your God to the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to put a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the Israelite tribes. 6 The stones[c] will be a reminder to you.[d] When your children ask someday, ‘Why are these stones important to you?’ 7 tell them how the water of the Jordan stopped flowing[e] before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the water of the Jordan stopped flowing.[f] These stones will be a lasting memorial for the Israelites.”
8 The Israelites did just as Joshua commanded. They picked up twelve stones, according to the number of the Israelite tribes, from the middle of the Jordan as the Lord had instructed Joshua. They carried them over with them to the camp and put them there. 9 Joshua also set up twelve stones[g] in the middle of the Jordan in the very place where the priests carrying the ark of the covenant stood. They remain there to this very day.
10 Now the priests carrying the ark of the covenant were standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything the Lord had commanded Joshua to tell the people was accomplished, in accordance with all that Moses had commanded Joshua. The people went across quickly, 11 and when all the people had finished crossing, the ark of the Lord and the priests crossed as the people looked on.[h] 12 The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over armed for battle ahead of the Israelites, just as Moses had instructed them. 13 About 40,000 battle-ready troops[i] marched past the Lord to fight[j] on the rift valley plains[k] of Jericho. 14 That day the Lord brought honor to Joshua before all Israel. They respected[l] him all his life,[m] just as they had respected[n] Moses.
15 The Lord told Joshua, 16 “Instruct the priests carrying the ark of the covenantal laws[o] to come up from the Jordan.” 17 So Joshua instructed the priests, “Come up from the Jordan!” 18 The priests carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord came up from the middle of the Jordan, and as soon as they set foot on dry land,[p] the water of the Jordan flowed again and returned to flood stage.[q]
19 The people went up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month[r] and camped in Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho. 20 Now Joshua set up in Gilgal the[s] twelve stones they had taken from the Jordan. 21 He told the Israelites, “When your children someday ask their fathers, ‘What do these stones represent?’[t] 22 explain to[u] your children, ‘Israel crossed the Jordan River[v] on dry ground.’ 23 For the Lord your God dried up the water of the Jordan before you while you crossed over. It was just like when the Lord your God dried up the Red Sea before us while we crossed it.[w] 24 He has done this so[x] all the nations[y] of the earth might recognize the Lord’s power[z] and so you might always obey[aa] the Lord your God.”
5 When all the Amorite kings on the west side of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the seacoast heard how the Lord had dried up the water of the Jordan before the Israelites while they[ab] crossed, they lost their courage and could not even breathe for fear of the Israelites.[ac]
A New Generation is Circumcised
2 At that time the Lord told Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise the Israelites once again.”[ad] 3 So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the Israelites at the Hill of the Foreskins.[ae] 4 This is why Joshua had to circumcise them: All the men old enough to fight when they left Egypt died on the journey through the wilderness after they left Egypt.[af] 5 Now[ag] all the men[ah] who left were circumcised, but all the sons[ai] born on the journey through the wilderness after they left Egypt were uncircumcised. 6 Indeed, for forty years the Israelites traveled through the wilderness until all the men old enough to fight when they left Egypt, the ones who had disobeyed the Lord, died off.[aj] For the Lord had sworn a solemn oath to them that he would not let them see the land he had sworn by oath to their ancestors to give them,[ak] a land rich in[al] milk and honey. 7 He replaced them with their sons,[am] whom Joshua circumcised. They were uncircumcised; their fathers had not circumcised them along the way. 8 When all the men[an] had been circumcised, they stayed there in the camp until they had healed. 9 The Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have taken away[ao] the disgrace[ap] of Egypt from you.” So that place is called Gilgal[aq] even to this day.
10 So the Israelites camped in Gilgal and celebrated the Passover in the evening of the fourteenth day of the month in the rift valley plains of Jericho.[ar] 11 They ate some of the produce of the land the day after the Passover, including unleavened bread and roasted grain.[as] 12 The manna stopped appearing the day they ate[at] some of the produce of the land; the Israelites never ate manna again.[au] They ate from the produce of the land of Canaan that year.
Israel Conquers Jericho
13 When Joshua was near[av] Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him holding a drawn sword.[aw] Joshua approached him and asked him, “Are you on our side or allied with our enemies?”[ax] 14 He answered,[ay] “Truly I am the commander of the Lord’s army.[az] Now I have arrived!”[ba] Joshua bowed down with his face to the ground[bb] and asked, “What does my master want to say to his servant?” 15 The commander of the Lord’s army answered Joshua, “Remove your sandals from your feet, because the place where you stand is holy.” Joshua did so.
6 Now Jericho was shut tightly[bc] because of the Israelites. No one was allowed to leave or enter.[bd] 2 The Lord told Joshua, “See, I am about to defeat Jericho for you,[be] along with its king and its warriors. 3 Have all the warriors march around the city one time;[bf] do this for six days. 4 Have seven priests carry seven rams’ horns[bg] in front of the ark. On the seventh day march around the city seven times, while the priests blow the horns. 5 When you hear the signal from the ram’s horn,[bh] have the whole army give a loud battle cry.[bi] Then the city wall will collapse,[bj] and the warriors should charge straight ahead.”[bk]
6 So Joshua son of Nun summoned the priests and instructed them, “Pick up the ark of the covenant, and seven priests must carry seven rams’ horns in front of the ark of the Lord.” 7 And he told[bl] the army,[bm] “Move ahead[bn] and march around the city, with armed troops going ahead of the ark of the Lord.”
8 When Joshua gave the army its orders,[bo] the seven priests carrying the seven rams’ horns before the Lord moved ahead and blew the horns as the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed behind. 9 Armed troops marched ahead of the priests blowing the horns, while the rear guard followed along behind the ark blowing rams’ horns. 10 Now Joshua had instructed the army,[bp] “Do not give a battle cry[bq] or raise your voices; say nothing[br] until the day I tell you, ‘Give the battle cry.’[bs] Then give the battle cry!”[bt] 11 So Joshua made sure they marched the ark of the Lord around the city one time.[bu] Then they went back to the camp and spent the night there.[bv]
12 Bright and early the next morning Joshua had the priests pick up the ark of the Lord.[bw] 13 The seven priests carrying the seven rams’ horns before the ark of the Lord marched along blowing their horns. Armed troops marched ahead of them, while the rear guard followed along behind the ark of the Lord blowing rams’ horns. 14 They marched around the city one time on the second day, then returned to the camp. They did this six days in all.
15 On the seventh day they were up at the crack of dawn[bx] and marched around the city as before—only this time they marched around it seven times.[by] 16 The seventh time around, the priests blew the rams’ horns, and Joshua told the army,[bz] “Give the battle cry,[ca] for the Lord is handing the city over to you![cb] 17 The city and all that is in it must be set apart for the Lord;[cc] only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house will live, because she hid the spies[cd] we sent. 18 But be careful when you are setting apart the riches for God. If you take any of it, then you will make the Israelite camp subject to annihilation and cause a disaster.[ce] 19 All the silver and gold, as well as bronze and iron items, belong to the Lord.[cf] They must go into the Lord’s treasury.”
20 The rams’ horns sounded,[cg] and when the army[ch] heard the signal,[ci] they gave a loud battle cry.[cj] The wall collapsed,[ck] and the warriors charged straight ahead into the city and captured it.[cl] 21 They annihilated with the sword everything that breathed in the city,[cm] including men and women, young and old, as well as cattle, sheep, and donkeys. 22 Joshua told the two men who had spied on the land, “Enter the prostitute’s house[cn] and bring out the woman and all who belong to her as you promised her.”[co] 23 So the young spies went and brought out Rahab, her father, mother, brothers, and all who belonged to her. They brought out her whole family and took them to a place outside[cp] the Israelite camp. 24 But they burned[cq] the city and all that was in it, except for the silver, gold, and bronze and iron items they put in the treasury of the Lord’s house.[cr] 25 Yet Joshua spared[cs] Rahab the prostitute, her father’s family,[ct] and all who belonged to her. She lives in Israel[cu] to this very day because she hid the messengers Joshua sent to spy on Jericho. 26 At that time Joshua made this solemn declaration:[cv] “The man who attempts to rebuild[cw] this city of Jericho[cx] will stand condemned before the Lord.[cy] He will lose his firstborn son when he lays its foundations and his youngest son when he erects its gates!”[cz] 27 The Lord was with Joshua and he became famous throughout the land.[da]
Explanatory Preface
1 Now[a] many have undertaken to compile an account[b] of the things[c] that have been fulfilled[d] among us, 2 like the accounts[e] passed on[f] to us by those who were eyewitnesses and servants of the word[g] from the beginning.[h] 3 So[i] it seemed good to me as well,[j] because I have followed[k] all things carefully from the beginning, to write an orderly account[l] for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 so that you may know for certain[m] the things you were taught.[n]
Birth Announcement of John the Baptist
5 During the reign[o] of Herod[p] king of Judea, there lived a priest named Zechariah who belonged to[q] the priestly division of Abijah,[r] and he had a wife named Elizabeth,[s] who was a descendant of Aaron.[t] 6 They[u] were both righteous in the sight of God, following[v] all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly.[w] 7 But they did not have a child, because Elizabeth was barren,[x] and they were both very old.[y]
8 Now[z] while Zechariah[aa] was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty,[ab] 9 he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood,[ac] to enter[ad] the Holy Place[ae] of the Lord and burn incense. 10 Now[af] the whole crowd[ag] of people were praying[ah] outside at the hour of the incense offering.[ai] 11 An[aj] angel of the Lord,[ak] standing on the right side of the altar of incense, appeared[al] to him. 12 And Zechariah, visibly shaken when he saw the angel,[am] was seized with fear.[an] 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard,[ao] and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son; you[ap] will name him John.[aq] 14 Joy and gladness will come[ar] to you, and many will rejoice at[as] his birth,[at] 15 for he will be great in the sight of[au] the Lord. He[av] must never drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth.[aw] 16 He[ax] will turn[ay] many of the people[az] of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 And he will go as forerunner before the Lord[ba] in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just,[bb] to make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him.”
18 Zechariah[bc] said to the angel, “How can I be sure of this?[bd] For I am an old man, and my wife is old as well.”[be] 19 The[bf] angel answered him, “I am Gabriel, who stands[bg] in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring[bh] you this good news. 20 And now,[bi] because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time,[bj] you will be silent, unable to speak,[bk] until the day these things take place.”
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