The previous entry can be found here.
I have recently been watching way too much baseball. You see, it’s the postseason, and eight teams were fighting to see who would be the champion this year. Now we’re five games into the World Series, and one team is soon to win the World Series trophy. It’s the trophy, not baseball, that i want to focus on at the moment. What is a trophy? By itself it is just a hunk of shiny metal shaped in a certain way. But we all know that a trophy is much more than that. A trophy represents something. A trophy is a memorial of some victorious action. In our example here it represents the best team in baseball for the 2017 season. Our passage today talks about a sort-of trophy that ultimately stands for something much bigger. In fact, it stands for something much bigger than the best team in baseball, for something much bigger than the best team in hockey, for something much bigger than the best team in football. It actually stands for Someone.
Our historian writes, “After the entire nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD spoke to Joshua: ‘Choose 12 men from the people, one man for each tribe, and command them: “Take 12 stones from this place in the middle of the Jordan where the priests are standing, carry them with you, and set them down at the place where you spend the night.” ’ So Joshua summoned the 12 men he had selected from the Israelites, one man for each tribe, and said to them, ‘Go across to the ark of the LORD your God in the middle of the Jordan. Each of you lift a stone onto his shoulder, one for each of the Israelite tribes, so that this will be a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, “What do these stones mean to you?” you should tell them, “The waters of the Jordan were cut off in front of the ark of the LORD’s covenant. When it crossed the Jordan, the Jordan’s waters were cut off.” Therefore these stones will always be a memorial for the Israelites.’ The Israelites did just as Joshua had commanded them. The 12 men took stones from the middle of the Jordan, one for each of the Israelite tribes, just as the LORD had told Joshua. They carried them to the camp and set them down there. Joshua also set up 12 stones in the middle of the Jordan where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant were standing. The stones are there to this day. The priests carrying the ark continued standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything was completed that the LORD had commanded Joshua to tell the people, in keeping with all that Moses had commanded Joshua. The people hurried across, and after everyone had finished crossing, the priests with the ark of the LORD crossed in the sight of the people. The Reubenites, Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh went in battle formation in front of the Israelites, as Moses had instructed them. About 40,000 equipped for war crossed to the plains of Jericho in the LORD’s presence. On that day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they revered him throughout his life, as they had revered Moses. The LORD told Joshua, ‘Command the priests who carry the ark of the testimony to come up from the Jordan.’ So Joshua commanded the priests, ‘Come up from the Jordan.’ When the priests carrying the ark of the LORD’s covenant came up from the middle of the Jordan, and their feet stepped out on solid ground, the waters of the Jordan resumed their course, flowing over all the banks as before. The people came up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and camped at Gilgal on the eastern limits of Jericho. Then Joshua set up in Gilgal the 12 stones they had taken from the Jordan, and he said to the Israelites, ‘In the future, when your children ask their fathers, “What is the meaning of these stones?” you should tell your children, “Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.” For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, just as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed over. This is so that all the people of the earth may know that the LORD’s hand is mighty, and so that you may always fear the LORD your God.’ When all the Amorite kings across the Jordan to the west and all the Canaanite kings near the sea heard how the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the Israelites until they had crossed over, they lost heart and their courage failed because of the Israelites.”
So, last time we looked at the preparation to cross the Jordan, and a few verses about the drying up of the waters, and the actual crossing. Here we find Israel still in the midst of the Jordan as our historian zooms in and basically says, “Let’s pay closer attention to this amazing event.” In our passage today, our historian wants us to pause and reflect even longer about just how powerful and faithful God is.
In 4:1-9, we see that God is powerful and faithful during the crossing. “After the entire nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD spoke to Joshua: ‘Choose 12 men from the people, one man for each tribe, and command them: “Take 12 stones from this place in the middle of the Jordan where the priests are standing, carry them with you, and set them down at the place where you spend the night.” ’ So Joshua summoned the 12 men he had selected from the Israelites, one man for each tribe, and said to them, ‘Go across to the ark of the LORD your God in the middle of the Jordan. Each of you lift a stone onto his shoulder, one for each of the Israelite tribes, so that this will be a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, “What do these stones mean to you?” you should tell them, “The waters of the Jordan were cut off in front of the ark of the LORD’s covenant. When it crossed the Jordan, the Jordan’s waters were cut off.” Therefore these stones will always be a memorial for the Israelites.’ The Israelites did just as Joshua had commanded them. The 12 men took stones from the middle of the Jordan, one for each of the Israelite tribes, just as the LORD had told Joshua. They carried them to the camp and set them down there. Joshua also set up 12 stones in the middle of the Jordan where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant were standing. The stones are there to this day.”
The timeline is definitely confusing throughout chapters 3-4, however this does not mean that we cannot trust God’s Word, or at the very least that we cannot trust this book of the Bible. What adds to the confusion is that in 3:12 we read, “Now choose 12 men from the tribes of Israel, one man for each tribe,” and in 4:1-2 we read, “After the entire nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD spoke to Joshua: ‘Choose 12 men from the people, one man for each tribe.’ ” If you remember the timeline last time, 3:12 occurred before they crossed, which makes us wonder, “Why does God say the exact same thing after the crossing that he said before the crossing?”
One commentator explains, “The phrase at the beginning of the account of the memorial begins with when and informs the reader that the following events took place as the people crossed the river. The verb finished . . . does not suggest that everyone had crossed before the next event took place. It is better understood as something still taking place and translated ‘were finishing the task’.”[1] With this in mind, going from 3:17-4:2, we would read, “The priests carrying the ark of the LORD’s covenant stood firmly on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, while all Israel crossed on dry ground until the entire nation had finished crossing the Jordan. As the entire nation finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD spoke to Joshua: ‘Choose 12 men from the people, one man for each tribe.’ ” The thousands of Israel were still crossing and the priests were still standing in the center of the river as the people crossed. “But why does 3:12 get repeated?” you ask. “Did God really say it twice, or does the author of this book just suck at storytelling[2]?” God said it to Joshua originally in the speech recorded in 3:7-8, which we read more of in 3:9-13. Later that same day, the Jordan dries up miraculously, and Joshua oversees thousands of people crossing the river. Just as it was briefly mentioned in 3:12, so it could be easily forgotten by Joshua. For this reason, God graciously reminds him of the twelve men.[3]
But at this point the question becomes, “What’s the point of the twelve guys that it was so important to remind Joshua about?” I’m glad you asked. In verse 3, God tells Joshua that these twelve men are to take stones from the floor of the river where the priests were standing and set them up on the opposite shore after they cross. And yes, they do get to approach the ark even though they aren’t of the priestly tribe. The reason given for the distance in 3:4 is “so that you can see the way to go,” which here doesn’t matter for the twelve because they are all crossing and the ark has stopped moving. There’s no reason to say that anyone else came this close to the ark, but God, through Joshua, specifically called these twelve close to Him for a specific purpose.
Joshua passes this information to them in verses 4-7 and explains the meaning of it all. “Go across to the ark of the LORD your God in the middle of the Jordan. Each of you lift a stone onto his shoulder, one for each of the Israelite tribes, so that this will be a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ you should tell them, ‘The waters of the Jordan were cut off in front of the ark of the LORD’s covenant. When it crossed the Jordan, the Jordan’s waters were cut off.’ Therefore these stones will always be a memorial for the Israelites.” Interestingly, the reason for the stones is explained again—to the whole nation—in verses 21-24, so i will explain it in more detail there. With that said, there are three other things worth drawing out of this passage.
First, the fact that there are twelve men, one from each of Israel’s tribes, each of whom must carry a stone, is very important. In chapter 1:12-18, Joshua talked with tribes that God, through Moses, has promised would live on the east side of the Jordan. Even though that land had been promised them, they were still to cross with the rest and fight for the land, which is what Joshua had talked to them about in chapter 1. By having all twelve tribes set up stones across the Jordan, it showed that God’s people were composed of twelve tribes, even if two and a half of them lived across the river. God is faithful to His people wherever they live!
Second, we must notice the reason given for the waters being dried up. “The waters of the Jordan were cut off in front of the ark of the LORD’s covenant. When it crossed the Jordan, the Jordan’s waters were cut off” (4:7). One commentator explains,
The explanation parents are to give their children regarding the significance of the memorial stones recalls briefly the great miracle of damming the waters before the ark. Again the ark’s role, so prominent in both chs. 3 and 4, is central. The ark is the very symbol of the covenant of the Lord. Thus the full light falls on the redemptive significance of the event. No mere recalling of a miracle is envisaged. The miracle is to be viewed as an expression of covenant fidelity.[4]In God drying up the Jordan, it is visible proof of His promise to give the people the land, but also, a very clear proof that not only is He faithful to keep His promise, but powerful to fulfill His promise. If a flooded body of water can just dry up, how hard can it be to defeat enemy nations? God is powerful!
Third, i must point something out that has been repeatedly seen in the first four chapters of this book so far. I owe the initial observation to my pastor, Joshua Ritchie, whose sermon can be found here. God does not speak to His people directly. Instead He always speaks through a mediator. This was seen when God spoke to Joshua in 1:1-3 and Joshua passed the information to the people in 1:10-11; it was seen in 3:7-8 when God spoke to Joshua and Joshua passed it along to the priests in 3:9-13; it was seen in 4:1 when God spoke to Joshua and Joshua passed it along to the twelve men in 4:4-7. It will be seen again in this chapter when God speaks to Joshua in 4:15-16 and Joshua passes it along to the priests in 4:17. There is always a mediator when God speaks to His people. In Hebrews 1:1-2, we read, “Long ago God spoke to the fathers by the prophets at different times and in different ways. In these last days, He has spoken to us by ⌊His⌋ Son.” God never spoke vocally to people, except in the person of Christ—our mediator. Today, God doesn’t speak audibly to us, except through His Word—again a mediator—or through a pastor—who is a mediator scouring the Word (the only trustworthy mediator we can touch today) for words from God. With that said i must add this caveat: As believers in Christ, we have the Holy Spirit. He helps us understand the Word. For this reason, if a pastor gives us counsel, seemingly from the Word, that goes against other portions of the Word, we do not have to obey the counsel. God speaks to His people through the Word primarily, not through someone’s potentially wrong understanding of the Word. However, this must be done with much prayer, and will likely not be a common occurrence.
But back to the text, we see in verses 8-9, “The Israelites did just as Joshua had commanded them. The 12 men took stones from the middle of the Jordan, one for each of the Israelite tribes, just as the LORD had told Joshua. They carried them to the camp and set them down there. Joshua also set up 12 stones in the middle of the Jordan where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant were standing. The stones are there to this day.”
The first thing to notice is that the people are obeying Joshua. How well do we obey our leaders? We can’t pull the excuse given in the prior paragraph, “My pastor is misunderstanding that passage,” because most of the time that will not be the case. No leader is perfect (cf. Joshua 9), but God has put them over us to be respected and obeyed.
In verse 9 we see that Joshua sets up stones too. This has been the cause of much confusion. One commentator says, “Thus a translation relating these stones to the first set is preferred: Joshua set up the twelve stones that had been in the middle of the Jordan.”[5] Woudstra explains contrarily, “In view of the fact that the role of the ark at the crossing is so consistently emphasized in the account, it comes as no surprise that the very spot where the priests’ feet had rested during the crossing should also receive a memorial, even though the account has not prepared the reader for this development.”[6] Calvin is very helpful on this point, making a very practical observation as to why Joshua would place stones in a location where they would be covered up by water:
Apparently there was no use of stones under the water, and it may therefore seem to have been absurd to bury stones at a depth. The others which were placed in Gilgal being publicly visible, furnished occasion for inquiry; but stones hidden from the eyes of men at the bottom of the water could have no effect in inciting their minds. I admit that a monument altogether buried in silence would have been useless. But when they talked among themselves of the evidence of the passage left there, the hearing even of what they did not see, strongly tended to confirm their faith. The ark of the covenant was shut up in the sanctuary and covered by a veil placed over against it, and yet its hidden splendor was not without benefit, when they learned from the Law that the covenant of God was deposited in it. It might also happen, that when the river was low, the tops of the heap would sometimes appear. But what I have already said is more probable, that though Joshua buried the stones in the middle of the stream, he did a useful act by establishing a testimony in presence of the people, which would afterwards become the subject of general conversation.[7]
The reason for these stones was ultimately so that the people could live by faith. Just like the ark of the covenant, which no one could open, had the covenant inside it (Deuteronomy 10:1-5) which was spoken about publicly in the Law, so the stones under the water (when the river resumed flowing) would not be seen, but could be believed to be there when the visible monument on the shore was asked about.
Verse 9 concludes with the phrase, “The stones are there to this day.” And no, if you go to Israel, you probably will not see twelve stones stacked against the bank of a river. The day that this sentence is referring to is the day that the book was written. As the author wrote, he knew the twelve stones were still there, and said, “You can verify this information if you so desire.” Nowadays, we have 65 other books within the same cover as our current book that give confirmation that the information within is true. (I plan to write a post in the hopefully near future on why we can trust the Bible, so i will leave this here for now.)
But with that we move into the second section of today’s text. It should move a bit quicker now.
In 4:10-18, we see that promises already referenced in the book have been fulfilled, proving God to be powerful and faithful. “The priests carrying the ark continued standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything was completed that the LORD had commanded Joshua to tell the people, in keeping with all that Moses had commanded Joshua. The people hurried across, and after everyone had finished crossing, the priests with the ark of the LORD crossed in the sight of the people. The Reubenites, Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh went in battle formation in front of the Israelites, as Moses had instructed them. About 40,000 equipped for war crossed to the plains of Jericho in the LORD’s presence. On that day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they revered him throughout his life, as they had revered Moses. The LORD told Joshua, ‘Command the priests who carry the ark of the testimony to come up from the Jordan.’ So Joshua commanded the priests, ‘Come up from the Jordan.’ When the priests carrying the ark of the LORD’s covenant came up from the middle of the Jordan, and their feet stepped out on solid ground, the waters of the Jordan resumed their course, flowing over all the banks as before.”
The first thing we must notice here is that the priests make up the focus of six of these nine verses. This is because it was the priests—the ones carrying the ark—who were proof of God’s faithful protective care in this whole sequence. As soon as the priests leave the water in verse 18, the waters crash back to their former level. As long as the priests are in the midst of the Jordan—God holds back the water. Verse 11 reads as follows: “after everyone had finished crossing, the priests with the ark of the LORD crossed in the sight of the people.” God will get every one of His people safe across the River of this life into the Promised Land of Heaven on the other. He is faithful!
In verses 12-13, we see explicit proof that the eastern tribes followed through on their word to Moses. They were included in the everyone who crossed in verse 11. It specifies that they were armed and ready for battle. It also specifies how many of them there were: “About 40,000 equipped for war crossed to the plains of Jericho.” It says in Numbers 26 that the total number of men of at least fighting age from Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh were (with some math) 110,580 strong. Only 40,000 crossed the Jordan. You may ask, “They didn’t follow their word, did they? Shouldn’t there be more?” In Deuteronomy 24:5 we read, “When a man takes a bride, he must not go out with the army or be liable for any duty. He is free ⌊to stay⌋ at home for one year, so that he can bring joy to the wife he has married.” (Compare Deuteronomy 20 as well.) Very likely, many of the men in these tribes had just been married, and were thus exempt from military duty. In addition, there were women and children, of whom Calvin writes, “And certainly it would have been harsh and cruel to leave an unwarlike multitude unprotected in the midst of many hostile nations. Nor would the remains of the enemy, assisted by neighboring nations, have long failed to take advantage of such an opportunity to avenge themselves by massacring the women and children.”[8] Calvin adds, after some more observations, “It rather seems to me that all who were most robust and best able to bear fatigue were enrolled [in the 40,000].”[9] God is faithful and powerful to protect His people.
In verse 14 we read, “On that day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they revered him throughout his life, as they had revered Moses.” This is a fulfillment of God’s word to Joshua in 3:7: “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, so they will know that I will be with you just as I was with Moses.” God is faithful to keep His promises!
In verses 15-18, our attention moves back to the priests still standing in the midst of the Jordan. All the people have crossed, the author has explained just how huge this crossing was for both the unity of the people and their leader, and now Joshua gets instruction from God for the priests. He passes it along to them—“come out of the Jordan”—and they obey. As soon as they exit the Jordan we read, “the waters of the Jordan resumed their course, flowing over all the banks as before.” Just as 3:15 had specified that the river was flooded before God dried it up, so it returned to its flooded state when God allowed it to flow back. God is powerful!
In 4:19-5:1, we see that God will always be powerful and faithful. “The people came up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and camped at Gilgal on the eastern limits of Jericho. Then Joshua set up in Gilgal the 12 stones they had taken from the Jordan, and he said to the Israelites, ‘In the future, when your children ask their fathers, “What is the meaning of these stones?” you should tell your children, “Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.” For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, just as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed over. This is so that all the people of the earth may know that the LORD’s hand is mighty, and so that you may always fear the LORD your God.’ When all the Amorite kings across the Jordan to the west and all the Canaanite kings near the sea heard how the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the Israelites until they had crossed over, they lost heart and their courage failed because of the Israelites.”
The people had entered the Promised Land. The author gives us a specific date, proving without a doubt that this was a historical event, and not merely a fabricated legend. They camped at Gilgal—though that name was not officially given for that site until chapter 5, which we will see next time. Their camp was located just east of Jericho on the western bank of the Jordan River. It was here that Joshua set up the twelve stones that had been carried by the men from each tribe. He explains the meaning of the stones to all of the people. They were put there to elicit questions, specifically from children. The answer to the question was simple: “Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.” This would ultimately lead to more questions because people don’t normally cross water on dry ground; even Jesus crossed water walking on the water, not on dry ground. And Joshua will explain further in verses 23-24. However, first, i must add this observation: Joshua assumes that children will be the ones asking the questions. Joshua tells the people that they should answer their children. When our children ask us questions, especially ones that ultimately point toward God, we should do our best to answer them, and not blow them off. They will grow up and have children of their own, but if we aren’t answering their questions about God, how will they be able to answer their children’s questions about God. Let’s be faithful in our parenting!
Joshua explains specific reasons for the memorials in verses 23-24. “For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, just as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed over. This is so that all the people of the earth may know that the LORD’s hand is mighty, and so that you may always fear the LORD your God.’” They crossed the Jordan on dry ground because of God’s intervention and power. In addition He did it so that they would know experientially[10] that God is powerful, and that with this knowledge they would learn to fear God. The same God who was powerful to fulfill His promise to Israel in Joshua 3-4, was also the God who said, “But if you do not obey Me and observe all these commands—if you reject My statutes and despise My ordinances, and do not observe all My commands—and break My covenant, then I will do this to you: I will bring terror on you—wasting disease and fever that will cause your eyes to fail and your life to ebb away. You will sow your seed in vain because your enemies will eat it. I will turn against you, so that you will be defeated by your enemies. Those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee even though no one is pursuing you” (Leviticus 26:14-17). The bad news for disobedience actually continues all the way through Leviticus 26:39.
Just as God was mighty to faithfully bring them across the Jordan, He was powerful to curse them if they disobeyed. Joshua is saying that the purpose of the stones was to remind them of God’s power and spur them to fear Him which would lead to wholehearted obedience.
Specifically though, in verse 24, Joshua says that the stones are there not so Israel would know God’s power, but so that “all the people of the earth may know that the LORD’s hand is mighty.” It was to be there as a testimony against those who are hostile to God. And in 5:1, our historian explains, “When all the Amorite kings across the Jordan to the west and all the Canaanite kings near the sea heard how the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the Israelites until they had crossed over, they lost heart and their courage failed because of the Israelites.” The peoples of the land were terrified. Rahab had said, “I know that the LORD has given you this land and that the terror of you has fallen on us, and everyone who lives in the land is panicking because of you. For we have heard how the LORD dried up the waters of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two Amorite kings you completely destroyed across the Jordan. When we heard this, we lost heart, and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on earth below” (Joshua 2:9-11). Now that Israel was on the same side of the Jordan as them, their terror increased exponentially. (I am sure, by contrast, that Rahab was confident in faith, looking forward to her salvation amidst the destruction of her city, because of her faithful obedience exhibited in chapter 2.)
But with that we have seen that God was faithful to bring His people across the Jordan River, and He ordered them to set up a memorial to remind them of His power. In much the same way, and ultimately in a much greater way, God is faithful to bring His people from death to life through the sacrifice and resurrection of His Son—Jesus Christ. Ironically, God—through Paul—commanded us to do a memorial of this fact: “For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: On the night when He was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took bread, gave thanks, broke it, and said, ‘This is My body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of Me.’ In the same way, after supper ⌊He⌋ also ⌊took⌋ the cup and said, ‘This cup is the new covenant established by My blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.’ For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.”
“For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.” This is so we would know that God is powerful, and so that we would fear Him all of our days. When a non-believer is in our midst during this memorial, it should convince them of God’s power. God’s power was put on ultimate display through the death and resurrection of God’s Son. If we’re accurately proclaiming His death in our Communion time, it should convict unbelievers. This is the New Testament equivalent of the twelve stones on the shore of the Jordan.
But with all that said, maybe you are convinced of God’s power. Maybe you want to know His faithfulness more experientially. Maybe you have miraculously made it through this extremely long blog post, and now realize that you are described more by the words of Leviticus 26 shared above than by any other verse shared today. Jesus died for you. Place your faith in Him, turn from your sin, seek His face, find a church, and grow in your knowledge of His grace, power, and faithfulness. God is good to His people, but He is a terror to those who aren’t His. Become His today! He’s waiting for you.
In conclusion, there will be a new World Series champion next year. There will be a new Stanley Cup champion next year. There will be a new Super Bowl champion next year. The champion over sin and death has reigned undefeated for 2,000 years. Do you remember Him or do you allow yourself to forget? I pray that it is the former. This is why our historian dedicated so much time to the crossing of the Jordan and the setting up of a memorial.
Solus Christus
Soli Deo Gloria
The next post can be found here.
[1] Richard S. Hess, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries – Joshua, (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Academic, 2011), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, 118.
[2] “J. de Groot, Hek Boek Jozua, p. 79, thinks he detects a lack of talent in composition.” Note 1: Marten H Woudstra, The Book of Joshua, NICOT (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1981), 90.
[3] Perhaps it was exactly because Joshua had forgot that God said it to him again.
[4] Marten H Woudstra, The Book of Joshua, NICOT (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1981), 91.
[5] Richard S. Hess, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries – Joshua, (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Academic, 2011), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, 120.
[6] Marten H Woudstra, The Book of Joshua, NICOT (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1981), 92. He explains in a footnote that in the Greek translation—Septuagint—it says, “Joshua also set up twelve other stones,” which helps to prove that there really were twenty-four stones involved in these memorials.
[7] John Calvin, Commentary on Joshua.
[8] John Calvin, Commentary on Joshua.
[9] Ibid.
[10] The Hebrew word is Yada which is also the Hebrew word used to describe sexual intercourse: “Adam knew his wife Eve” (Genesis 4:1).
live in Love; find your true reward 