Joshua 4:9

Joshua 4:9 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests which bare the ark of the covenant stood: and they are there unto this day.
• New International Version (NIV)Joshua set up the twelve stones that had been in the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant had stood. And they are there to this day.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the covenant had stood; and they are there to this day.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests who bore the ark of the covenant stood; and they are there to this day.

Context of Joshua 4:9

7you should tell them, ‘The water of the Jordan was cut off in front of the ark of the Lord’s covenant. When it crossed the Jordan, the Jordan’s water was cut off.’ Therefore these stones will always be a memorial for the Israelites.” 8The Israelites did just as Joshua had commanded them. The twelve 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 twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant were standing. The stones are still there today. 10The 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, 11and after everyone had finished crossing, the priests with the ark of the Lord crossed in the sight of the people.

Joshua 4:9 word by word

וּשְׁתֵּ֧ים עֶשְׂרֵ֣ה אֲבָנִ֗ים הֵקִ֣ים יְהוֹשֻׁעַ֮ בְּת֣וֹךְ הַיַּרְדֵּן֒ תַּ֗חַת מַצַּב֙ רַגְלֵ֣י הַכֹּהֲנִ֔ים נֹשְׂאֵ֖י אֲר֣וֹן הַבְּרִ֑ית וַיִּ֣הְיוּ שָׁ֔ם עַ֖ד הַיּ֥וֹם הַזֶּֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And Joshuaיְהוֹשׁוּעַyehôshûa‛ yehôshûa‛ · JoshuaH3091
• set upקוּםqûm · to arise: establishH6965
• twelveעָשָׂר‛âώâr · tenH6240
• twelveשְׁנַ֫יִםshenayim shettayim · twoH8147
• stonesאֶ֫בֶן'eben · stoneH68
• in the midstתָּ֫וֶךְtâvek · midstH8432
• of Jordanיַרְדֵּןyardên · JordanH3383
• in the place where the feetרֶ֫גֶלregel · footH7272
• of the priestsכֹּהֵןkôhên · priestH3548
• which bareנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: bearH5375
• the arkאֲרוֹן'ârôn 'ârôn · arkH727
• of the covenantבְּרִיתberîyth · covenantH1285
• stoodמַצָּבmatstsâb · stationH4673
• and they are there unto this dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117

Cross-references for Joshua 4:9

• Exodus 24:12The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and stay there so that I may give you the stone tablets with the law and commandments I have written for their instruction.”
• Exodus 28:21The twelve stones are to correspond to the names of Israel’s sons. Each stone must be engraved like a seal, with one of the names of the twelve tribes.
• 1 Kings 18:31Elijah took twelve stones — according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, “Israel will be your name” —
• Psalms 111:2The Lord’s works are great, studied by all who delight in them.
• Joshua 4:20Then Joshua set up in Gilgal the twelve stones they had taken from the Jordan,
• Genesis 26:33He called it Sheba. Therefore the name of the city is still Beer-sheba today.
• Deuteronomy 34:6He buried him in the valley in the land of Moab facing Beth-peor, and no one to this day knows where his grave is.
• Judges 1:26Then the man went to the land of the Hittites, built a town, and named it Luz. That is its name still today.
• 1 Samuel 30:25And it has been so from that day forward. David established this policy as a law and an ordinance for Israel and it still continues today.
• 2 Samuel 4:3and the Beerothites fled to Gittaim and still reside there as aliens today.
• 2 Chronicles 5:9The poles were so long that their ends were seen from the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they were not seen from outside; they are still there today.
• Matthew 27:8Therefore that field has been called “Field of Blood” to this day.
• Matthew 28:15They took the money and did as they were instructed, and this story has been spread among Jewish people to this day.

Commentaries on Joshua 4:9

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9And Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of Jordan - It seems from this chapter that there were two sets of stones erected as a memorial of this great event; twelve at Gilgal, Joshua 4:20; and twelve in the bed of Jordan, Joshua 4:9. The twelve stones in the bed of Jordan might have been so placed on a base of strong stone-work so high as always to be visible, and serve to mark the very spot where the priests stood with the ark. The twelve stones set…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9Another set of stones is intended than that before mentioned. The one set was erected by the command of God at the spot where they passed the night Joshua 4:3; the other by Joshua on the spot where the priests‘ feet rested while they bore up the ark during the passage of the people. This spot was near, or perhaps on, the eastern brink (compare Joshua 3:8). These stones would therefore mark the spot at which the people crossed, as the others marked the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9A second memorial of twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan River became covered with water when the river resumed its flow. The top of the monument would be visible during the dry summer seasons. are there to this day: This shows that the memorials stood for generations, until the final editing of the book (see Joshua Book Introduction, “Author and Date”).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. Joshua set up twelve stones ... in the place where the feet of the priests ... stood--In addition to the memorial just described, there was another memento of the miraculous event, a duplicate of the former, set up in the river itself, on the very spot where the ark had rested. This heap of stones might have been a large and compactly built one and visible in the ordinary state of the river. As nothing is said where these stones were obtained, some…Read the comment

Topics related to Joshua 4:9

• Instruction
• Pillar
• Stones
• Token

In the dictionaries

• Jordan
• Joshua
• Jordan River, Jordan
• Ark of the Covenant
• Shechem
• Joshua (2)
• Joshua, Book of
• Number
• Priests and Levites
• Sign

Commentaries on Joshua 4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings