Joshua 5

Israel Is Circumcised

1Now it came about when all the kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the 1Canaanites who were by the sea, 2heard how the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the sons of Israel until 3they had crossed, that their hearts melted, and there was no spirit in them any longer because of the sons of Israel.

2At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make for yourself 4flint knives and circumcise again the sons of Israel the second time.” 3So Joshua made himself flint knives and circumcised the sons of Israel at 5Gibeath-haaraloth. 4This is the reason why Joshua circumcised them: 6all the people who came out of Egypt who were males, all the men of war, died in the wilderness along the way after they came out of Egypt. 5For all the people who came out were circumcised, but all the people who were born in the wilderness along the way as they came out of Egypt had not been circumcised. 6For the sons of Israel walked 7forty years in the wilderness, until all the nation, that is, the men of war who came out of Egypt, 8perished because they did not listen to the voice of the Lord, 9to whom the Lord had sworn that He would not let them see the land which the Lord had sworn to their fathers to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey. 7So their children whom He raised up in their place, Joshua 10circumcised; for they were uncircumcised, because they had not circumcised them along the way.

8Now when they had finished circumcising all the nation, they remained in their places in the camp until they recovered. 9Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away 11the shame of Egypt from you.” So the name of that place is called 12Gilgal to this day.

10While the sons of Israel camped at Gilgal 13they celebrated the Passover on the evening of the 14fourteenth day of the month on the desert plains of Jericho. 11Then on the day after the Passover, on 15that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and roasted grain. 12And 16the manna ceased on the day after they had eaten some of the produce of the land, so that the sons of Israel no longer had manna, but they ate some of the yield of the land of Canaan during that year.

13Now it came about when Joshua was by Jericho, he raised his eyes and looked, and behold, 17a man was standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” 14He said, “No; rather I have come now as captain of the army of the Lord.” And Joshua 18fell on his face to the ground, and bowed down, and said to him, “What has my lord to say to his servant?” 15And the captain of the Lord’s army said to Joshua, “19Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.