Joshua 4:4-13

4Joshua called the 12 men whom he had selected (one from each tribe).

5He said to them, “Go to the middle of the Jordan River in front of the ark of the Lord your God. Each man must take a stone on his shoulder, one for each tribe of Israel.

6This will be a sign for you. In the future your children will ask, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’

7You should answer, ‘The water of the Jordan River was cut off in front of the ark of the Lord’s promise. When the ark crossed the Jordan, the river stopped flowing. These stones are a permanent reminder for the people of Israel.’ ”

8The people of Israel did as Joshua had ordered. They took 12 stones, one for each of the tribes of Israel. They took them from the middle of the Jordan as the Lord had told Joshua. They carried them to the camp and set them down there.

9Joshua also set 12 stones in the middle of the Jordan River, where the priests who carried the ark of the promise had stood. The stones are still there today.

10The priests who carried the ark remained standing in the middle of the Jordan. They stood there until everything the Lord had ordered Joshua to tell the people had been carried out. This was as Moses had told Joshua. The people hurried to the other side.

11As soon as everyone had crossed, the priests with the Lord’s ark crossed and went ahead of them.

12The men of Reuben, Gad, and half of the tribe of Manasseh did as Moses had told them. They marched across in battle formation ahead of the people of Israel.

13About 40,000 armed men crossed the river in front of the Lord to the plains of Jericho for battle.