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Joshua 4

KJV · Chapter 4/24

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.

10For the priests which bare the ark stood in the midst of Jordan, until every thing was finished that the Lord commanded Joshua to speak unto the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua: and the people hasted and passed over.

11And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over, that the ark of the Lord passed over, and the priests, in the presence of the people.

12And the children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh, passed over armed before the children of Israel, as Moses spake unto them:

13About forty thousand prepared for war passed over before the Lord unto battle, to the plains of Jericho.

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

15And the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying,

16Command the priests that bear the ark of the testimony, that they come up out of Jordan.

17Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying, Come ye up out of Jordan.

18And it came to pass, when the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord were come up out of the midst of Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan returned unto their place, and flowed over all his banks, as they did before.

19And the people came up out of Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, in the east border of Jericho.

20And those twelve stones, which they took out of Jordan, did Joshua pitch in Gilgal.

21And he spake unto the children of Israel, saying, When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean these stones?

22Then ye shall let your children know, saying, Israel came over this Jordan on dry land.

23For the Lord your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over:

24That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Twelve men, one from each tribe, take twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan and set them up at Gilgal as a memorial. Joshua also places twelve stones in the riverbed.

Explanation

Stone monuments were the ancient way of preserving collective memory before writing was common among ordinary people. The twelve stones, one for each tribe, ensured that future generations would ask, 'What do these stones mean?' and hear the story of the Jordan miracle. This teaching device - physical objects that spark questions and instruction - appears several times in the Bible (such as the Passover and the Lord's Supper). Today's application is the importance of creating tangible memories and markers of God's work in family life, so that faith passes on from generation to generation.

Fun facts

  • Gilgal, where the stones were set up, later became a central place of Israelite worship in the following centuries, mentioned repeatedly in Judges and 1 Samuel.
  • The practice of raising stone memorials to remember God's acts is repeated with Samuel in 1 Samuel 7:12, when he sets up the stone called Ebenezer.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Joshua 4:1As soon as all the people finish crossing the Jordan, God gives Joshua the next instruction: create a memorial of the crossing before the miracle is forgotten.
  2. Joshua 4:2God calls for twelve men, one representative from each tribe, to take part in a symbolic act that will mark this day forever.
  3. Joshua 4:3The task is to take twelve stones from the exact spot where the priests stood in the river, and carry them to the camp on the other side.
  4. Joshua 4:4Joshua summons the twelve men already chosen, one from each tribe, to carry out the mission of the stones.
  5. Joshua 4:5Each of them is instructed to go into the middle of the dry riverbed and carry a stone on his shoulder, representing his own tribe.
  6. Joshua 4:6The twelve stones taken from the middle of the Jordan become a memorial marker, not an altar for sacrifice: their purpose is that, generations later, the children will ask what they mean and the parents will explain the crossing on dry ground. It is the same pattern used with other memorials from the Exodus.
  7. Joshua 4:7The explanation to be given to future generations is straightforward: these stones recall the day the Jordan stopped flowing before the ark of God.
  8. Joshua 4:8The twelve men obey to the letter: they take the stones from the middle of the river and carry them to the camp, just as God had commanded.
  9. Joshua 4:9Joshua also sets up twelve stones inside the riverbed itself, a second memorial that no one would see once the waters started flowing again. It stayed there, underwater, as a testimony that only someone who knew the story could recall.
  10. Joshua 4:10The priests remain standing in the river, holding the ark, until every instruction is carried out and all the people finish hurrying across.
  11. Joshua 4:11Only after all the people have crossed do the ark and the priests cross last, in full view of everyone.
  12. Joshua 4:12The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh keep what they had promised Moses: they cross over armed, ahead of the others, ready to fight.
  13. Joshua 4:13About forty thousand armed men cross the river toward the plains of Jericho, ready for the confrontation to come.
  14. Joshua 4:14This day publicly cements Joshua’s authority: the people come to respect him just as they respected Moses.
  15. Joshua 4:15God keeps giving Joshua instructions even after the crossing is complete.
  16. Joshua 4:16The order now is for the priests, still standing in the middle of the river with the ark, to finally come up out of the water.
  17. Joshua 4:17Joshua passes God’s order directly to the priests: it is time to come up out of the Jordan.
  18. Joshua 4:18The instant the priests set foot on dry ground, the river returns to its normal flow, as if nothing had happened.
  19. Joshua 4:19The date is recorded precisely — the tenth day of the first month — and the people camp at Gilgal, already within sight of Jericho.
  20. Joshua 4:20It is at Gilgal that Joshua sets up the twelve stones taken from the river, creating the monument that will commemorate the crossing.
  21. Joshua 4:21Joshua anticipates that in the future the children will ask about the meaning of those stones — and he already teaches the right answer.
  22. Joshua 4:22The answer the parents are to give is simple and direct: tell them that Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.
  23. Joshua 4:23The comparison is deliberate: the same God who opened the Red Sea on the way out of Egypt has now opened the Jordan on the way into the promised land.
  24. Joshua 4:24The purpose of the monument reaches beyond Israel: it is so that all peoples may know the power of God, and so that the people themselves may learn to fear Him always.

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