New English Translation
Joshua 5:14
14He answered, “Truly I am the commander of the Lord’s army. Now I have arrived!” Joshua bowed down with his face to the ground and asked, “What does my master want to say to his servant?”
Joshua 5:14 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)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?
- 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?”
Context of Joshua 5:14
12The manna stopped appearing the day they ate some of the produce of the land; the Israelites never ate manna again. 13When Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him holding a drawn sword. Joshua approached him and asked him, “Are you on our side or allied with our enemies?” He answered, “Truly I am the commander of the Lord’s army. Now I have arrived!” Joshua bowed down with his face to the ground and asked, “What does my master want to say to his servant?” 15The commander of the Lord’s army answered Joshua, “Remove your sandals from your feet, because the place where you stand is holy.” Joshua did so.
Read all of Joshua 5Joshua 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
Words taken from the KJV.
- 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 23:20“I am going to send an angel before you to protect you as you journey and to bring you into the place that I have prepared.
- Isaiah 55:4Look, I made him a witness to nations, a ruler and commander of nations.”
- Daniel 10:13However, the prince of the kingdom of Persia was opposing me for twenty-one days. But Michael, one of the leading princes, came to help me, because I was left there with the kings of Persia.
- Daniel 12:1“At that time Michael, the great prince who watches over your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress unlike any other from the nation’s beginning up to that time. But at that time your own people, all those whose names are found written in the book, will escape.
- Hebrews 2:10For it was fitting for him, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings.
- Revelation 12:7Then war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back.
- Revelation 19:11Then I saw heaven opened and here came a white horse! The one riding it was called “Faithful” and “True,” and with justice he judges and goes to war.
- Genesis 17:3Abram bowed down with his face to the ground, and God said to him,
- Leviticus 9:24Then fire went out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat parts on the altar, and all the people saw it, so they shouted loudly and fell down with their faces to the ground.
- Numbers 16:22Then they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all people, will you be angry with the whole community when only one man sins?”
- Matthew 8:2And a leper approached, and bowed low before him, saying, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
- Luke 5:12While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came to him who was covered with leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he bowed down with his face to the ground and begged him, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
- Acts 10:25So when Peter came in, Cornelius met him, fell at his feet, and worshiped him.
- Revelation 19:10So I threw myself down at his feet to worship him, but he said, “Do not do this! I am only a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony about Jesus. Worship God, for the testimony about Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
- Revelation 22:8I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things, and when I heard and saw them, I threw myself down to worship at the feet of the angel who was showing them to me.
- 1 Samuel 3:9So Eli said to Samuel, “Go back and lie down. When he calls you, say, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” So Samuel went back 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
In the dictionaries
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
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