New English Translation
Joshua 4:2
2“Select for yourselves twelve men from the people, one per tribe.
Joshua 4:2 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man,
- New International Version (NIV)“Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe,
- English Standard Version (ESV)"Take twelve men from the people, from each tribe a man,
- New King James Version (NKJV)“Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from every tribe,
Context of Joshua 4:2
1When the entire nation was on the other side, the Lord told Joshua, “Select for yourselves twelve men from the people, one per tribe. 3Instruct them, ‘Pick up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests stand firmly, and carry them over with you and put them in the place where you camp tonight.’” 4Joshua summoned the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one per tribe.
Read all of Joshua 4Joshua 4:2 word by word
קְח֤וּ לָכֶם֙ מִן־הָעָ֔ם שְׁנֵ֥ים עָשָׂ֖ר אֲנָשִׁ֑ים אִישׁ־אֶחָ֥ד אִישׁ־אֶחָ֖ד מִשָּֽׁבֶט׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Joshua 4:2
- Joshua 3:12Now select for yourselves twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one per tribe.
- Numbers 1:4And to help you there is to be a man from each tribe, each man the head of his family.
- Numbers 13:2“Send out men to investigate the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. You are to send one man from each ancestral tribe, each one a leader among them.”
- Numbers 34:18You must take one leader from every tribe to assist in allocating the land as an inheritance.
- Deuteronomy 1:23I thought this was a good idea, so I sent twelve men from among you, one from each tribe.
- 1 Kings 18:31Then Elijah took twelve stones, corresponding to the number of tribes that descended from Jacob, to whom the Lord had said, “Israel will be your new name.”
- Matthew 10:15I tell you the truth, it will be more bearable for the region of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town!
Commentaries on Joshua 4:2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2Take you twelve men - From Joshua 3:12, it appears that the twelve men had been before appointed, one taken out of each of the twelve tribes; and now they are employed for that purpose for which they had been before selected.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2Take you twelve men - The order is given in the plural, because no doubt the tribes themselves were to choose their own representatives, the choice being approved by Joshua Joshua 4:4. These twelve would be left with Joshua on the hither bank of the river, waiting to receive his orders after the rest of the people had made their way across Joshua 3:17; Joshua 4:1.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2Choose twelve men: These men represented Jacob’s 12 sons. The tribe of Levi was not counted because the Levites settled in designated cities among the other tribes (Genesis 49:5–7; Numbers 1:49–52; 18:20). However, the number of tribes remained at 12 because Joseph’s two sons (Ephraim and Manasseh) were accounted as separate tribes (Genesis 48:5).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-81-3. the Lord spake unto Joshua, Take you twelve men--each representing a tribe. They had been previously chosen for this service (Jos 3:12), and the repetition of the command is made here solely to introduce the account of its execution. Though Joshua had been divinely instructed to erect a commemorative pile, the representatives were not apprised of the work they were to do till the time of the passage.Read the comment
Topics related to Joshua 4:2
In the dictionaries
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
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