Joshua 5:14

Joshua 5:14 in other versions

• New International Version (NIV)“Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?”
• English Standard Version (ESV)And he said, "No; but I am the commander of the army of the Lord. Now I have come." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him, "What does my lord say to his servant?"
• New King James Version (NKJV)So He said, “No, but as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and said to Him, “What does my Lord say to His servant?”
• New Living Translation (NLT)“Neither one,” he replied. “I am the commander of the Lord’s army.” At this, Joshua fell with his face to the ground in reverence. “I am at your command,” Joshua said. “What do you want your servant to do?”

Context of Joshua 5:14

12And 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. 13And 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? 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? 15And 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.

Joshua 5:14 word by word

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר׀ לֹ֗א כִּ֛י אֲנִ֥י שַׂר־צְבָֽא־יְהוָ֖ה עַתָּ֣ה בָ֑אתִי וַיִּפֹּל֩ יְהוֹשֻׁ֨עַ אֶל־פָּנָ֥יו אַ֙רְצָה֙ וַיִּשְׁתָּ֔חוּ וַיֹּ֣אמֶר ל֔וֹ מָ֥ה אֲדֹנִ֖י מְדַבֵּ֥ר אֶל־עַבְדּֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear

• And he saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• captainשַׂרώar · rulerH8269
• of the hostצָבָאtsâbâ' tsebâ'âh · armyH6635
• of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• am I now comeבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• And Joshuaיְהוֹשׁוּעַyehôshûa‛ yehôshûa‛ · JoshuaH3091
• fellנָפַלnâphal · to fall: fallH5307
• on his faceפָּנֶהpânîym · faceH6440
• to the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: soilH776
• and did worshipשָׁחָהshâchâh · to bowH7812
• unto him, What saithדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
• my lordאָדוֹן'âdôn 'âdôn · lordH113
• unto his servantעֶ֫בֶד‛ebed · servant/slaveH5650

Cross-references for Joshua 5:14

• Exodus 23:20Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.
• Isaiah 55:4Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.
• Daniel 10:13But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia.
• Daniel 12:1And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
• Hebrews 2:10For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.
• Revelation 12:7And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,
• Revelation 19:11And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
• Genesis 17:3And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying,
• Leviticus 9:24And there came a fire out from before the Lord, and consumed upon the altar the burnt offering and the fat: which when all the people saw, they shouted, and fell on their faces.
• Numbers 16:22And they fell upon their faces, and said, O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation?
• Matthew 8:2And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.
• Luke 5:12And it came to pass, when he was in a certain city, behold a man full of leprosy: who seeing Jesus fell on his face, and besought him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.
• Acts 10:25And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him, and fell down at his feet, and worshipped him.
• Revelation 19:10And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
• Revelation 22:8And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.
• 1 Samuel 3:9Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, Lord; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

Commentaries on Joshua 5:14

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 14But as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come - By this saying Joshua was both encouraged and instructed. As if he had said, "Fear not; Jehovah hath sent from heaven to save thee and thy people from the reproach of them that would swallow thee up. Israel is the Lord's host; and the Lord of hosts is Israel's Captain. Thou thyself shalt only be captain under me, and I am now about to instruct thee relative to thy conduct in this war." And Joshua…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 14Captain of the host of the Lord - i. e. of the angelic host, the host of heaven (compare 1 Kings 22:19; 1 Samuel 1:3, etc.). The armed people of Israel are never called “the host of the Lord,” though once spoken of in Exodus 12:41 as “all the hosts of the Lord.” The Divine Person intimates that He, the Prince (see the marginal references) of the Angels had come to lead Israel in the coming strife, and to overthrow by heavenly might the armies and the…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 13-15Verses 13-15 We read not of any appearance of God's glory to Joshua till now. There appeared to him one as a man to be noticed. This Man was the Son of God, the eternal Word. Joshua gave him Divine honours: he received them, which a created angel would not have done, and he is called Jehovah, chap. 6:2. To Abraham he appeared as a traveller; to Joshua as a man of war. Christ will be to his people what their faith needs. Christ had his sword drawn, which…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 14When Joshua realized who was standing before him, he fell facedown in reverence. This action showed that Joshua was ready to serve God fully and without reservation. Scholars disagree about who this commander was. Some think he was an appearance of God, others think he was Christ before becoming human, and others think he was an angel. The commander called himself the leader of the Lord’s army, which may suggest that he was an angel. However, he did not…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1414. the host of the Lord--either the Israelitish people (Ex 7:4; 12:41; Is 55:4), or the angels (Psa 148:2), or both included, and the Captain of it was the angel of the covenant, whose visible manifestations were varied according to the occasion. His attitude of equipment betokened his approval of, and interest in, the war of invasion. Joshua fell on his face ..., and did worship--The adoption by Joshua of this absolute form of prostration demonstrates…Read the comment

Topics related to Joshua 5:14

• Angel (a Spirit)
• Captain
• Jericho
• Jesus Continued
• Vision

In the dictionaries

• Joshua
• Bowing
• Captain
• Loose
• Angel
• Attitudes
• Joshua, Book of
• Prince
• Tabernacle

Commentaries on Joshua 5

• 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