1When all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan, Yahweh said to Joshua,
2“Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe,
3and command them: ‘Lift up for yourselves from here, from the middle of the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet stood firm, twelve stones, and carry them across with you and set them down at the lodging place where you will spend the night.’”
4So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe,
5and Joshua said to them, “Cross over before the ark of Yahweh your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you lift up one stone onto his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel,
6so that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask tomorrow, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’
7then you shall say to them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of Yahweh; when it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. And these stones shall be a memorial to the sons of Israel forever.”
8So the sons of Israel did just as Joshua commanded, and they lifted up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, as Yahweh had spoken to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel; and they carried them over with them to the lodging place and set them down there.
9And Joshua set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests carrying the ark of the covenant had stood; and they are there to this day.
10Now the priests carrying the ark stood in the middle of the Jordan until everything was finished that Yahweh had commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua. And the people hurried and crossed over.
11And when all the people had finished crossing over, the ark of Yahweh and the priests crossed over before the people.
12And the sons of Reuben, the sons of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over armed for battle before the sons of Israel, as Moses had spoken to them.
13About forty thousand equipped for war crossed over before Yahweh for battle, to the plains of Jericho.
14On that day Yahweh made Joshua great in the eyes of all Israel, and they feared him as they had feared Moses all the days of his life.
15Then Yahweh said to Joshua,
16“Command the priests carrying the ark of the testimony that they come up out of the Jordan.”
17So Joshua commanded the priests, saying, “Come up out of the Jordan.”
18And when the priests carrying the ark of the covenant of Yahweh came up out of the middle of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were pulled up onto the dry ground, the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and went over all its banks as before.
19The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth of the first month, and they camped at Gilgal, on the eastern edge of Jericho.
20And those twelve stones which they had taken from the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal.
21And he said to the sons of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers tomorrow, saying, ‘What are these stones?’
22then you shall make it known to your children, saying, ‘Israel crossed this Jordan on dry ground,’
23for Yahweh your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, just as Yahweh your God did to the Sea of Reeds, which he dried up before us until we had crossed over,
24so that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of Yahweh, that it is mighty, so that you may fear Yahweh your God all the days.”
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