Joshua 5:14

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

12No manna appeared on the day they first ate from the crops of the land, and it was never seen again. So from that time on the Israelites ate from the crops of Canaan. 13When Joshua was near the town of Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with sword in hand. Joshua went up to him and demanded, “Are you friend or foe?” “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?” 15The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did as he was told.

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

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“See, I am sending an angel before you to protect you on your journey and lead you safely to the place I have prepared for you.
• Isaiah 55:4See how I used him to display my power among the peoples. I made him a leader among the nations.
• Daniel 10:13But for twenty-one days the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia blocked my way. Then Michael, one of the archangels, came to help me, and I left him there with the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia.
• Daniel 12:1“At that time Michael, the archangel who stands guard over your nation, will arise. Then there will be a time of anguish greater than any since nations first came into existence. But at that time every one of your people whose name is written in the book will be rescued.
• Hebrews 2:10God, for whom and through whom everything was made, chose to bring many children into glory. And it was only right that he should make Jesus, through his suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation.
• Revelation 12:7Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels.
• Revelation 19:11Then I saw heaven opened, and a white horse was standing there. Its rider was named Faithful and True, for he judges fairly and wages a righteous war.
• Genesis 17:3At this, Abram fell face down on the ground. Then God said to him,
• Leviticus 9:24Fire blazed forth from the Lord’s presence and consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When the people saw this, they shouted with joy and fell face down on the ground.
• Numbers 16:22But Moses and Aaron fell face down on the ground. “O God,” they pleaded, “you are the God who gives breath to all creatures. Must you be angry with all the people when only one man sins?”
• Matthew 8:2Suddenly, a man with leprosy approached him and knelt before him. “Lord,” the man said, “if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.”
• Luke 5:12In one of the villages, Jesus met a man with an advanced case of leprosy. When the man saw Jesus, he bowed with his face to the ground, begging to be healed. “Lord,” he said, “if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.”
• Acts 10:25As Peter entered his home, Cornelius fell at his feet and worshiped him.
• Revelation 19:10Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said, “No, don’t worship me. I am a servant of God, just like you and your brothers and sisters who testify about their faith in Jesus. Worship only God. For the essence of prophecy is to give a clear witness for Jesus.”
• Revelation 22:8I, John, am the one who heard and saw all these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me.
• 1 Samuel 3:9So he said to Samuel, “Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say, ‘Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went back to bed.

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