Joshua
Chapter 3
1 Joshua got up early in the morning; they left Shittim and went to the Jordan River, he and all the Israelites, and stayed there before crossing over.
2 Three days later, the officers went among the people.
3 They told the people, “When you see the Ark of God’s covenant and the Levite priests carrying it, leave your spot and follow it.”
4 Stay about two thousand cubits away from it; do not go near it, so you can see the path you should take, because you have never traveled this way before.
5 Joshua told the people, “Make yourselves holy, because tomorrow God will do amazing things among you.”
6 Joshua told the priests, “Carry the covenant chest and walk ahead of the people.” So they carried the covenant chest and went in front of the people.
7 God said to Joshua, “Today I will start to make you great in front of all Israel, so they will know that I will be with you just like I was with Moses.”
8 Tell the priests carrying God’s covenant box, when you reach the edge of the Jordan River, to stand still in the water.
9 Joshua told the people of Israel, “Come here and listen to what God says to you.”
10 Joshua said, “You will know that God is with you because he will surely push out the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites from the land before you.”
11 Look, the box of God’s promise, belonging to the God of the whole world, is going ahead of you into the Jordan River.
12 Now choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe.
13 When the priests carrying God’s covenant box step into the Jordan River, the water flowing from upstream will stop and stand up like a wall.
14 When the people left their tents to cross the Jordan River, with the priests carrying God’s covenant chest ahead of them;
15 As those carrying the ark reached the Jordan River and the priests carrying the ark dipped their feet at the edge of the water (because the Jordan River overflows its banks during harvest season),
16 The water flowing from above stopped and piled up far from the city Adam, near Zaretan. The water flowing toward the Salt Sea in the plain was stopped and dried up, and the people crossed over facing Jericho.
17 The priests carrying God’s covenant box stood on dry land in the middle of the Jordan River, and all the Israelites walked on dry land until everyone had completely crossed the Jordan.