Joshua 4
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New International VersionNew American Standard Bible 1995
1When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD said to Joshua,1Now when all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD spoke to Joshua, saying,
2"Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe,2"Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe,
3and tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from right where the priests are standing, and carry them over with you and put them down at the place where you stay tonight."3and command them, saying, 'Take up for yourselves twelve stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan, from the place where the priests' feet are standing firm, and carry them over with you and lay them down in the lodging place where you will lodge tonight.'"
4So Joshua called together the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe,4So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe;
5and said to them, "Go over before the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites,5and Joshua said to them, "Cross again to the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel.
6to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, 'What do these stones mean?'6"Let this be a sign among you, so that when your children ask later, saying, 'What do these stones mean to you?'
7tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever."7then you shall say to them, 'Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD; when it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off.' So these stones shall become a memorial to the sons of Israel forever."
8So the Israelites did as Joshua commanded them. They took twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, as the LORD had told Joshua; and they carried them over with them to their camp, where they put them down.8Thus the sons of Israel did as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, just as the LORD spoke 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 put them down there.
9Joshua set up the twelve stones that had been in the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant had stood. And they are there to this day.9Then Joshua set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan at the place where the feet of the priests who carried the ark of the covenant were standing, and they are there to this day.
10Now the priests who carried the ark remained standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything the LORD had commanded Joshua was done by the people, just as Moses had directed Joshua. The people hurried over,10For the priests who carried the ark were standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything was completed that the LORD had commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua. And the people hurried and crossed;
11and as soon as all of them had crossed, the ark of the LORD and the priests came to the other side while the people watched.11and when all the people had finished crossing, the ark of the LORD and the priests crossed before the people.
12The men of Reuben, Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over, ready for battle, in front of the Israelites, as Moses had directed them.12The sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over in battle array before the sons of Israel, just as Moses had spoken to them;
13About forty thousand armed for battle crossed over before the LORD to the plains of Jericho for war.13about 40,000 equipped for war, crossed for battle before the LORD to the desert plains of Jericho.
14That day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they stood in awe of him all the days of his life, just as they had stood in awe of Moses.14On that day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel; so that they revered him, just as they had revered Moses all the days of his life.
15Then the LORD said to Joshua,15Now the LORD said to Joshua,
16"Command the priests carrying the ark of the covenant law to come up out of the Jordan."16"Command the priests who carry the ark of the testimony that they come up from the Jordan."
17So Joshua commanded the priests, "Come up out of the Jordan."17So Joshua commanded the priests, saying, "Come up from the Jordan."
18And the priests came up out of the river carrying the ark of the covenant of the LORD. No sooner had they set their feet on the dry ground than the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and ran at flood stage as before.18It came about when the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD had come up from the middle of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests' feet were lifted up to the dry ground, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place, and went over all its banks as before.
19On the tenth day of the first month the people went up from the Jordan and camped at Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho.19Now the people came up from the Jordan on the tenth of the first month and camped at Gilgal on the eastern edge of Jericho.
20And Joshua set up at Gilgal the twelve stones they had taken out of the Jordan.20Those twelve stones which they had taken from the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal.
21He said to the Israelites, "In the future when your descendants ask their parents, 'What do these stones mean?'21He said to the sons of Israel, "When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, 'What are these stones?'
22tell them, 'Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.'22then you shall inform your children, saying, 'Israel crossed this Jordan on dry ground.'
23For the LORD your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The LORD your God did to the Jordan what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over.23"For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed, just as the LORD your God had done to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed;
24He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the LORD is powerful and so that you might always fear the LORD your God."24that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, so that you may fear the LORD your God forever."
New International Version (NIV)

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Joshua 3
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