Joshua 4:5
Verse 5 of 24. The 4th of 24 chapters in Joshua, in History.
1And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over Jordan, that the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying,
2Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man,
3And command ye them, saying, Take you hence out of the midst of Jordan, out of the place where the priests’ feet stood firm, twelve stones, and ye shall carry them over with you, and leave them in the lodging place, where ye shall lodge this night.
4Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had prepared of the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man:
5And Joshua said unto them, Pass over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of Jordan, and take ye up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel:
6That this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean ye by these stones?
7Then ye shall answer them, That the waters of Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it passed over Jordan, the waters of Jordan were cut off: and these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever.
8And the children of Israel did so as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the midst of Jordan, as the Lord spake unto Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and carried them over with them unto the place where they lodged, and laid them down there.
9And Joshua set up 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 they are there unto this day.
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Joshua 4:5 in the World English Bible
Joshua said to them, “Cross before the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you pick up a stone and put it on your shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel;Read Joshua 4:5 in the WEB
Matthew Henry on Joshua 4:5
These twelve men, after they got over Jordan, must be sent back to the place where the ark stood, being permitted to come near it (which others might not) for this service: "Pass over before the ark (v. 5), that is, into the presence of the ark, which now stands in the midst of Jordan, and thence fetch these stones." 4. The use of these stones is here appointed for a sign (v. 6), a memorial, v. 7.
Read Matthew Henry on Joshua 4:1–9: The Passage over the Jordan. (b. c. 1451.)
Pray Joshua 4:5 with someone reading it aloud.
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King James Version. Public domain. Set as prose throughout, including the poetry, because the text is published to us without its lines.