וַיְהִי כַּאֲשֶׁר תַּמּוּ כָל הַגּוֹי לַעֲבוֹר אֶת הַיַּרְדֵּן וַיֹּאמֶר ה' אֶל יְהוֹשֻׁעַ לֵאמֹר

It was when the entire nation had completed crossing the Jordan that the Lord said to Joshua, saying:

קְחוּ לָכֶם מִן הָעָם שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר אֲנָשִׁים אִישׁ אֶחָד אִישׁ אֶחָד מִשָּׁבֶט

Earlier (3:12), the selection of twelve men was mentioned without defining their purpose. Now the verses mention their selection as well as the function for which they were chosen: Take twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe,

וְצַוּוּ אוֹתָם לֵאמֹר שְׂאוּ לָכֶם מִזֶּה מִתּוֹךְ הַיַּרְדֵּן מִמַּצַּב רַגְלֵי הַכֹּהֲנִים הָכִין שְׁתֵּים עֶשְׂרֵה אֲבָנִים וְהַעֲבַרְתֶּם אוֹתָם עִמָּכֶם וְהִנַּחְתֶּם אוֹתָם בַּמָּלוֹן אֲשֶׁר תָּלִינוּ בוֹ הַלָּיְלָה

and command them, saying: Pick up for yourselves from here, from the middle of the Jordan, from the place the feet of the priests stand firm, twelve stones, one stone for each man, and bring them across with you, and place them in the lodging place where you will stay the night, your first rest stop.

וַיִּקְרָא יְהוֹשֻׁעַ אֶל שְׁנֵים הֶעָשָׂר אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר הֵכִין מִבְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אִישׁ אֶחָד אִישׁ אֶחָד מִשָּׁבֶט

Joshua summoned the twelve men whom he had earlier prepared from the children of Israel, one man from a tribe,

וַיֹּאמֶר לָהֶם יְהוֹשֻׁעַ עִבְרוּ לִפְנֵי אֲרוֹן ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם אֶל תּוֹךְ הַיַּרְדֵּן וְהָרִימוּ לָכֶם אִישׁ אֶבֶן אַחַת עַל שִׁכְמוֹ לְמִסְפַּר שִׁבְטֵי בְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל

and Joshua said to them: Pass on until you are before the Ark of the Lord your God, into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you lift one stone onto his shoulder, so that the number of stones shall be corresponding to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel,

לְמַעַן תִּהְיֶה זֹאת אוֹת בְּקִרְבְּכֶם כִּי יִשְׁאָלוּן בְּנֵיכֶם מָחָר לֵאמֹר מָה הָאֲבָנִים הָאֵלֶּה לָכֶם

so that this raising of stones will be a sign in your midst, when your children ask tomorrow, when they see a pile of twelve large stones, saying: What are these stones to you? According to tradition, the twelve selected men were very strong and lifted the largest stones they could carry.

וַאֲמַרְתֶּם לָהֶם אֲשֶׁר נִכְרְתוּ מֵימֵי הַיַּרְדֵּן מִפְּנֵי אֲרוֹן בְּרִית ה' בְּעָבְרוֹ בַּיַּרְדֵּן נִכְרְתוּ מֵי הַיַּרְדֵּן וְהָיוּ הָאֲבָנִים הָאֵלֶּה לְזִכָּרוֹן לִבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל עַד עוֹלָם

You shall say to them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord in its crossing the Jordan; the waters of the Jordan were cut off and these stones will be as a remembrance to the children of Israel forever.

וַיַּעֲשׂוּ כֵן בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל כַּאֲשֶׁר צִוָּה יְהוֹשֻׁעַ וַיִּשְׂאוּ שְׁתֵּי עֶשְׂרֵה אֲבָנִים מִתּוֹךְ הַיַּרְדֵּן כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר ה' אֶל יְהוֹשֻׁעַ לְמִסְפַּר שִׁבְטֵי בְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיַּעֲבִרוּם עִמָּם אֶל הַמָּלוֹן וַיַּנִּחוּם שָׁם

The children of Israel did so as Joshua commanded, and they picked up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, as the Lord spoke to Joshua, corresponding to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and they brought them across with them to the lodging place, and placed them there.

וּשְׁתֵּים עֶשְׂרֵה אֲבָנִים הֵקִים יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בְּתוֹךְ הַיַּרְדֵּן תַּחַת מַצַּב רַגְלֵי הַכֹּהֲנִים נֹשְׂאֵי אֲרוֹן הַבְּרִית וַיִּהְיוּ שָׁם עַד הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה

And Joshua also established another set of twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan, not necessarily set up by those same twelve men, beneath the place of the feet of the priests, bearers of the Ark of the Covenant. These stones were arranged in a pile on the dry riverbed. And they are there, under the flowing river, to this day. Some explain that Joshua set up these twelve stones of his own accord, one on top of the other, so that they should protrude above the water to mark the spot of the miracle.

וְהַכֹּהֲנִים נֹשְׂאֵי הָאָרוֹן עֹמְדִים בְּתוֹךְ הַיַּרְדֵּן עַד תֹּם כָּל הַדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה ה' אֶת יְהוֹשֻׁעַ לְדַבֵּר אֶל הָעָם כְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה מֹשֶׁה אֶת יְהוֹשֻׁעַ וַיְמַהֲרוּ הָעָם וַיַּעֲבֹרוּ

The priests, bearers of the ark, stood in the middle of the Jordan with the ark on their shoulders until the completion of everything that the Lord had commanded Joshua to speak to the people, namely, the task of taking the stones. Some explain that the verse refers to Joshua’s instructions regarding the forthcoming inheritance of the land, or the people’s mutual responsibility to observe the commandments in the land, in accordance with everything that Moses had commanded Joshua, as the verse states: “It shall be on the day that you will cross the Jordan…you shall erect great stones….” Meanwhile, the people quickly crossed. Perhaps they went quickly because they feared that the water might overtake them, or they wished to fulfill the commandment of entering the land as soon as possible, or out of respect to the ark, that it should not have to wait so long in the Jordan for the people to pass.

וַיְהִי כַּאֲשֶׁר תַּם כָּל הָעָם לַעֲבֹר וַיַּעֲבֹר אֲרוֹן ה' וְהַכֹּהֲנִים לִפְנֵי הָעָם

It was when the entire people had finished crossing the Jordan, and the Ark of the Lord and the priests, who emerged last from the river, had passed before the people, according to Joshua’s command,

וַיַּעַבְרוּ בְּנֵי רְאוּבֵן וּבְנֵי גָד וַחֲצִי שֵׁבֶט הַמְנַשֶּׁה חֲמֻשִׁים לִפְנֵי בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר אֲלֵיהֶם מֹשֶׁה

that the children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh crossed armed before the children of Israel, as Moses had spoken to them. The other tribes advanced slowly, as they were traveling with their children, livestock, property, and tents. By contrast, the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh left their families and possessions on the eastern side of the Jordan River and would therefore serve as the vanguard in the meantime.

כְּאַרְבָּעִים אֶלֶף חֲלוּצֵי הַצָּבָא עָבְרוּ לִפְנֵי ה' לַמִּלְחָמָה אֶל עַרְבוֹת יְרִיחוֹ

From these two and a half tribes, some forty thousand mobilized soldiers passed before the Lord to war, to the plains [arvot] of Jericho, a wide expanse that was unsettled and uncultivated. In the Bible, the Arava refers to the Jordan Valley, the area between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea. The plains of Jericho form one section of this area, probably the region of the western bank of the Jordan opposite the plains of Moav.

בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא גִּדַּל ה' אֶת יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בְּעֵינֵי כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיִּרְאוּ אֹתוֹ כַּאֲשֶׁר יָרְאוּ אֶת מֹשֶׁה כָּל יְמֵי חַיָּיו

On that day, the Lord exalted Joshua in the eyes of all Israel. The people could easily have crossed the Jordan via one of its fords. The significance of their crossing lies in the miracle that was performed before the entire nation. And they revered him, as they had revered Moses, all the days of his, Joshua’s, life.

וַיֹּאמֶר ה' אֶל יְהוֹשֻׁעַ לֵאמֹר

The verses now go on to provide a detailed description of Israel’s ascent from the Jordan River, which was previously mentioned in a general manner. The Lord said to Joshua, saying:

צַוֵּה אֶת הַכֹּהֲנִים נֹשְׂאֵי אֲרוֹן הָעֵדוּת וְיַעֲלוּ מִן הַיַּרְדֵּן

Command the priests, bearers of the Ark of the Testimony, that they shall come up from the Jordan.

וַיְצַו יְהוֹשֻׁעַ אֶת הַכֹּהֲנִים לֵאמֹר עֲלוּ מִן הַיַּרְדֵּן

Joshua commanded the priests, saying: Come up from the Jordan.

וַיְהִי כַּעֲלוֹת הַכֹּהֲנִים נֹשְׂאֵי אֲרוֹן בְּרִית ה' מִתּוֹךְ הַיַּרְדֵּן נִתְּקוּ כַּפּוֹת רַגְלֵי הַכֹּהֲנִים אֶל הֶחָרָבָה וַיָּשֻׁבוּ מֵי הַיַּרְדֵּן לִמְקוֹמָם וַיֵּלְכוּ כִתְמוֹל שִׁלְשׁוֹם עַל כָּל גְּדוֹתָיו

It was with the priests, bearers of the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord, coming up from the middle of the Jordan, when they received the order to ascend, some time after standing there for the duration of the people’s passage through the river, as the feet of the priests moved to the dry ground, that the waters of the Jordan immediately returned to their place, flowing on all its banks, and the Jordan was filled again as previously. The waters that had piled up started flowing again in their usual manner, leaving no sign of the miracle that just took place.

וְהָעָם עָלוּ מִן הַיַּרְדֵּן בֶּעָשׂוֹר לַחֹדֶשׁ הָרִאשׁוֹן וַיַּחֲנוּ בַּגִּלְגָּל בִּקְצֵה מִזְרַח יְרִיחוֹ

The people came up from the Jordan on the tenth of the first month. The verse notes the date of Israel’s entry into the land, even though they had not yet performed any extraordinary action or engaged in war. This date also recalls Moses and the exodus from Egypt, as it was on the tenth day of the first month that Israel began preparing for their redemption from Egypt by setting aside a lamb for the paschal offering, as commanded by Moses. And they encamped in Gilgal, on the eastern edge of Jericho, in the area between Jericho and the Jordan River.

וְאֵת שְׁתֵּים עֶשְׂרֵה הָאֲבָנִים הָאֵלֶּה אֲשֶׁר לָקְחוּ מִן הַיַּרְדֵּן הֵקִים יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בַּגִּלְגָּל

Joshua erected those twelve stones that they took from the Jordan in Gilgal, the place of their first encampment in the Land of Israel.

וַיֹּאמֶר אֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לֵאמֹר אֲשֶׁר יִשְׁאָלוּן בְּנֵיכֶם מָחָר אֶת אֲבוֹתָם לֵאמֹר מָה הָאֲבָנִים הָאֵלֶּה

He said to the children of Israel, saying: When your children will ask their fathers tomorrow, saying: What are these stones? The question would be asked because this is not simply a pile of rocks; the arrangement of a specific number of large stones is clearly a monument.

וְהוֹדַעְתֶּם אֶת בְּנֵיכֶם לֵאמֹר בַּיַּבָּשָׁה עָבַר יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת הַיַּרְדֵּן הַזֶּה

You shall inform your children, saying: Israel crossed this Jordan on dry land,

אֲשֶׁר הוֹבִישׁ ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם אֶת מֵי הַיַּרְדֵּן מִפְּנֵיכֶם עַד עָבְרְכֶם כַּאֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם לְיַם סוּף אֲשֶׁר הוֹבִישׁ מִפָּנֵינוּ עַד עָבְרֵנוּ

as the Lord your God dried the waters of Jordan from before you until you had crossed, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea that He dried before us, until we had crossed. By and large, the generation that crossed the Jordan was not present at the splitting of the Red Sea. Thus, Joshua is referring to himself and the previous generation that left Egypt, who witnessed that great miracle. The stopping of the Jordan’s waters is similar to the splitting of the Red Sea, as in both cases God performed a great miracle on the earth and its waters.

לְמַעַן דַּעַת כָּל עַמֵּי הָאָרֶץ אֶת יַד ה' כִּי חֲזָקָה הִיא לְמַעַן יְרָאתֶם אֶת ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם כָּל הַיָּמִים

This is a precious memory for our nation, and moreover, this miracle took place so that all the peoples of the earth know the hand of the Lord, for it is mighty. This wondrous event was not for the sake of Israel alone; all who saw the rising tower of water witnessed the mighty hand of God intervening in the world. Furthermore, this miracle took place so that you will fear the Lord your God all the days.