Joshua 4:15

13 About forty thousand¹ prepared for war crossed over before the Lord for battle, to the plains of Jericho.

14 On that day the Lord ^aexalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared him, as they had feared Moses, all the days of his life.

15 Then the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying,

16 “Command the priests who bear ^athe ark of the Testimony to come up from the Jordan.”

17 Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying, “Come up from the Jordan.”

18 And it came to pass, when the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord had come from the midst of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet touched the dry land, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place ^aand overflowed all its banks as before.

19 Now the people came up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they camped ^ain Gilgal on the east border of Jericho.

20 And ^athose twelve stones which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal.

21 Then he spoke to the children of Israel, saying: ^a“When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What are these stones?’

22 then you shall let your children know, saying, ^a‘Israel crossed over this Jordan on ^bdry land’;

23 for the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, ^awhich He dried up before us until we had crossed over,

24 ^athat all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the Lord, that it is ^bmighty, that you may ^cfear the Lord your God forever.”

Commentaries:

Barnes' Notes

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Joshua 4:15

The passage of the priests to the further bank had been already referred to, Joshua 4:11; but the writer, in observance of his general plan (compare introductory remarks to Josh. 3), re-introduces it here as the leading feature in the concluding section of his account, and (as before) with mention of God' s special direction about it. The statement that on the removal of the ark the waters of Jordan at once returned to their former level Joshua 4:18, heightens the impression which is especially inculcated throughout - that the whole transaction was extraordinary and miraculous. The details and incidents of the passage are no doubt open to manifold discussion: but all such discussion will be futile unless it proceed throughout on the admission that we have here before us the record of a distinctly supernatural interposition: compare the introduction to the Book of Joshua.

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