Joshua Chapter 5
Showing all 15 verses for Joshua Chapter 5.
The People's Bible is written by people, for the people. Each verse below shows:
"And it came to pass, when all the kings of the Amorites, which were on the side of Jordan westward, and all the kings of the Canaanites, which were by the sea, heard that the LORD had dried up the waters of Jordan from before the children of Israel, until we were passed over, that their heart melted, neither was there spirit in them any more, because of the children of Israel. "
"When all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the coast heard that the LORD had dried up the Jordan River so the Israelites could cross, their courage failed them completely - they were terrified of Israel."
The terror gripping these kings wasn't caused by Israel's strength but by what God had just done at the Jordan - a reminder that when God moves, the outcome speaks for itself and needs no boasting from us. Don't let fear from others turn into pride in your own heart; let it turn into quiet trust that the battle and the glory belong to God.
"At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time. "
"At that time the LORD told Joshua to make flint knives and circumcise the Israelite males again, a second time."
Before Israel could move forward into the promise, they had to submit to an uncomfortable, deliberate act of obedience - a fresh commitment of the heart, not just showing up in the land. Real readiness for what God has next for you starts with letting Him deal honestly with what's unfinished inside you.
"And Joshua made him sharp knives, and circumcised the children of Israel at the hill of the foreskins. "
"So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the Israelite men at a place that came to be called the Hill of Foreskins."
Joshua didn't delegate this costly, awkward task away - he took up the knife himself and saw it through. Following God well sometimes means doing the plain, unglamorous work personally rather than waiting for someone else to handle it.
"And this is the cause why Joshua did circumcise: All the people that came out of Egypt, that were males, even all the men of war, died in the wilderness by the way, after they came out of Egypt. "
"Here is the reason Joshua did this: all the men who had left Egypt - all who were of fighting age - had died during the years in the wilderness."
A whole generation forfeited the promise through unbelief, yet God didn't hold that against their children - He gave the next generation a completely fresh chance to belong fully to Him. Whatever failures lie in your family's past, God offers you your own open door today.
"Now all the people that came out were circumcised: but all the people that were born in the wilderness by the way as they came forth out of Egypt, them they had not circumcised. "
"Everyone who had come out of Egypt had already been circumcised, but none of those born afterwards, during the years of wandering in the wilderness, had been."
The covenant sign had lapsed during the long, weary years of wandering, yet God patiently waited for the right moment to renew it fully rather than writing His people off over the gap. When circumstances have interrupted your walk with God, He is just as ready to restore what was missed.
"For the children of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, till all the people that were men of war, which came out of Egypt, were consumed, because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD: unto whom the LORD sware that he would not shew them the land, which the LORD sware unto their fathers that he would give us, a land that floweth with milk and honey. "
"The Israelites had wandered in the wilderness for forty years until that whole generation of fighting men who left Egypt had died off, because they had not obeyed the LORD's voice - the LORD had sworn they would not see the land he'd promised their ancestors, a land flowing with milk and honey."
Disobedience delayed the blessing by forty long years, but it didn't erase God's promise entirely - the land was still given, just to the generation ready to trust Him. Unbelief can genuinely cost us present joy, yet God's purposes keep moving forward for those willing to believe.
"And their children, whom he raised up in their stead, them Joshua circumcised: for they were uncircumcised, because they had not circumcised them by the way. "
"So Joshua circumcised their sons, who had taken their fathers' place, because they were uncircumcised - it had not been done for them along the way."
Joshua's tender, patient work here shows how leaders should bring people fully into relationship with God without holding past family failures against those now willing to obey. Whatever history lies behind you, a willing heart is always welcomed into full covenant with God.
"And it came to pass, when they had done circumcising all the people, that they abode in their places in the camp, till they were whole. "
"When the circumcising of the whole nation was finished, they stayed where they were in the camp until they had healed."
God let the people rest and heal in place rather than rushing them onward straight after this costly obedience. He never hurries our recovery after a hard but necessary step of faith - He lets us abide safely while He does the healing work in His own timing.
"And the LORD said unto Joshua, This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Wherefore the name of the place is called Gilgal unto this day. "
"The LORD said to Joshua, 'Today I have rolled away the disgrace of Egypt from you.' That is why the place is called Gilgal to this day."
God delighted in removing the shame of Egypt completely and for good - once dealt with, it was gone, never again to define His people. Whatever old reproach you carry, God is just as willing to roll it away permanently the moment you come fully to Him.
"And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal, and kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even in the plains of Jericho. "
"The Israelites camped at Gilgal and kept the Passover on the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, on the plains of Jericho."
Israel paused to remember, in the very land God had promised, exactly what He had done for them - Passover wasn't a one-off, it was a regular, joyful discipline of gratitude. Make space in your own life to keep remembering what God has already done, not just chase what's next.
"And they did eat of the old corn of the land on the morrow after the passover, unleavened cakes, and parched corn in the selfsame day. "
"The day after the Passover, they ate produce of the land - unleavened bread and roasted grain - on that very day."
Moving from manna to the land's own produce was a sign of maturing faith - God's provision simply changed form, and it was still just as much His care. Trust Him equally in the new, unfamiliar seasons of life, not only in the ones you already know well.
"And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year. "
"The manna stopped the day after they ate the produce of the land; the Israelites had no more manna, and that year they ate what the land of Canaan produced."
God withdrew the manna once His people were ready for greater responsibility - not as punishment, but as a kind of promotion into maturity. He wants to move you beyond old comforts into confident reliance on Him as new opportunities open up.
"And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? "
"When Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing opposite him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, 'Are you for us, or for our enemies?'"
Joshua instinctively wanted to know whose side this figure was on, but the real question was never about taking sides - it was about submitting to God's own purpose entirely. Let go of an us-versus-them mindset and ask instead what God is asking of you.
"And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant? "
"The man replied, 'Neither - but I have come now as commander of the LORD's army.' Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence and asked him, 'What does my lord want to say to his servant?'"
Israel's great commander fell on his face the moment he realised who truly stood before him, asking only what he should do rather than asserting his own plans. True leadership knows when to yield its authority entirely to God.
"And the captain of the LORD’s host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so. "
"The commander of the LORD's army told Joshua, 'Take off your sandal, because the place where you are standing is holy.' And Joshua did so."
Wherever God is truly present becomes holy ground, deserving reverence rather than a casual approach. God draws us close, but always with hearts postured in awe and respect for who He is.