Joshua:3-4

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* And Joshua rose early in the morning ; and they broke up from Shittim , and came close to the Jordan , he and all the children of Israel ; and they lodged there before they passed over . * And it came to pass at the end of three days , that the officers passed through the midst of the camp . * And they commanded the people , saying , When ye see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God , and the priests the Levites bearing it , then shall ye break up from your place , and go after it . * Nevertheless there shall be a space between you and it , of about two thousand cubits by measure : come not near unto it , in order that ye may know the way by which ye must go ; for ye have not passed this way heretofore . * And Joshua said unto the people , Sanctify yourselves ; for tomorrow will the Lord do wonders in the midst of you . * And Joshua said unto the priests , as followeth , Take up the ark of the covenant , and pass over before the people . And they took up the ark of the covenant , and went before the people . * And the Lord said unto Joshua , This day will I begin to make thee great in the eyes of all Israel , that they may know that , as I was with Moses , so will I be with thee . * And thou shalt command the priests that bear the ark of the covenant , saying , When ye are come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan , ye shall stand still in the Jordan . * And Joshua said unto the children of Israel , Approach hither , and hear the words of the Lord your God . * And Joshua said , Hereby shall ye know that the living God is in the midst of you , and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites , and the Hittites , and the Hivites , and the Perizzites , and the Girgashites , and the Emorites , and the Jebusites . * Behold , the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth passeth over before you into the Jordan . * And now take yourselves twelve men out of the tribes of Israel , one man each out of every tribe . * And it shall come to pass , that as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests that bear the ark of the Lord , the Lord of all the earth , shall rest in the waters of the Jordan , the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off , namely , the waters that come down from above ; and they shall stand up as a wall . * And it came to pass , when the people broke up from their tents , to pass over the Jordan , and the priests the bearers of the ark of the covenant were before the people ; * And as they that bore the ark were come up to the Jordan , and the feet of the priests that bore the ark were dipped in the edge of the water , * That the waters which came down from above stood still and rose up as a wall , very far from the city Adam , which is beside Zarethan ; and those that ran down toward the sea of the plain , the salt sea , failed , were cut off ; and the people passed over opposite to Jericho . * And the priests that bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan , and all the Israelites passed over on dry ground , until all the people had finished passing over the Jordan . * And it came to pass , when all the people had finished passing over the Jordan , That the Lord said unto Joshua , as followeth , * Take yourselves twelve men out of the people , one man each out of every tribe , * And command ye them , saying , Take yourselves hence out of the midst of the Jordan , out of the place where the priests ’ feet stood firmly , twelve stones , and ye shall carry them over with you , and leave them in the lodging –place , where ye will lodge this night . * Then did Joshua call the twelve men , whom he had appointed out of the children of Israel , one man each out of every tribe : * And Joshua said unto them , Pass over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the Jordan , and take yourselves up every man one stone upon his shoulder , according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel ; * In order that this may be a sign among you , when your children ask in time to come , saying , What mean ye by these stones ? * That ye shall answer them , That the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord ; when it passed over the Jordan , the waters of the Jordan were cut off ; and these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever . * And the children of Israel did so as Joshua had commanded ; and they took up twelve stones out of the midst of the Jordan , as the Lord had spoken unto Joshua , according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel ; and they carried them over with them unto the place where they lodged , and laid them down there . * Twelve stones also did Joshua set up in the midst of the Jordan , on the spot where the feet of the priests who bore the ark of the covenant had stood : and they have remained there unto this day . * But the priests who bore the ark stood in the midst of the Jordan , until every thing was finished that the Lord had commanded Joshua to speak unto the people , according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua ; and the people hastened and passed over . * And it came to pass , when all the people had finished passing over , that the ark of the Lord passed over with the priests in the presence of the people . * And the children of Reuben , and the children of Gad , and the half tribe of Menasseh , passed over armed before the children of Israel , as Moses had spoken unto them : * About forty thousand ready armed for war , did they pass over before the Lord unto battle , to the plains of Jericho . * On that day the Lord made Joshua great in the eyes of all Israel ; and they feared him , as they had feared Moses , all the days of his life . * And the Lord said unto Joshua , as followeth , * Command the priests that bear the ark of the testimony , that they come up out of the Jordan . * And Joshua commanded the priests , saying , Come ye up out of the Jordan . * And it came to pass , when the priests that bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord were come up out of the midst of the Jordan , the soles of the feet of the priests were lifted up unto the dry land , that the waters of the Jordan returned unto their place , and flowed over all its banks , as on the preceding days . * And the people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month , and encamped in Gilgal , on the extreme eastern border of Jericho . * And those twelve stones , which they had taken out of the Jordan , did Joshua set up in Gilgal . * And he said unto the children of Israel , thus , When your children shall ask in time to come their fathers , saying , What mean these stones ? * Then shall ye let your children know , saying , On dry land did Israel pass over this Jordan ; * That the Lord your God dried up the waters of the 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 ; * In order that all the nations of the earth may know the hand of the Lord , that it is mighty ; in order that ye may fear the Lord your God all the days . * And it came to pass , when all the kings of the Emorites , who were on the side of the Jordan westward , and all the kings of the Canaanites , who were by the sea , heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan from before the children of Israel , until they were passed over , that their heart melted , and there remained no more any courage in them , because of the children of Israel .

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