Joshua 4 2

Joshua 4:2 kjv

Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man,

Joshua 4:2 nkjv

"Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from every tribe,

Joshua 4:2 niv

"Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe,

Joshua 4:2 esv

"Take twelve men from the people, from each tribe a man,

Joshua 4:2 nlt

"Now choose twelve men, one from each tribe.

Joshua 4 verses

Joshua 4 2 Meaning

This verse contains a direct divine command from God, delivered through Joshua, for the people of Israel to select twelve men, with one man chosen from each of the twelve tribes. This selection was for the specific purpose of gathering twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan River, which had been supernaturally parted, to establish a memorial.

Joshua 4 2 Context

Joshua chapter 4 immediately follows the miraculous parting and crossing of the Jordan River by the Israelites, where the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant stood firm in the riverbed, allowing the entire nation to pass on dry ground. This act was a powerful demonstration of God's covenant faithfulness and power, mirroring the Red Sea crossing. Verse 2 specifically outlines God's command to Joshua to instruct the people on the next step: establishing a visible, tangible memorial to this incredible event. It links the recent divine act to the future memory of generations. The broader historical context is the culmination of forty years of wilderness wandering and the beginning of the conquest of the Promised Land, marking a pivotal transition from wilderness life to settled existence in the land of inheritance.

Joshua 4 2 Word analysis

• "Choose" (Hebrew: laqah - לָקַח): More accurately rendered "Take" or "receive." This implies an action initiated by Joshua and carried out by the people under divine instruction. It is not a casual selection but an intentional gathering for a sacred purpose, reflecting God's deliberate planning.
• "you" (Hebrew: lakhem - לָכֶם): A plural pronoun, indicating the instruction is directed to Joshua to command the entire assembly of Israel. It emphasizes that this task, while performed by specific men, is for the whole community.
• "twelve" (Hebrew: sheneym asar - שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר): This number is highly significant in the Bible, consistently representing completeness, governmental order, and the foundational structure of God's people (e.g., twelve sons of Jacob, twelve tribes of Israel, twelve apostles, twelve gates of New Jerusalem). Here, it reinforces the representative nature of the task for all of Israel.
• "men" (Hebrew: ish - אִישׁ): Specifies individual human beings. This task required direct human involvement, not just a miraculous display. These were designated individuals entrusted with a physical task and symbolic representation.
• "out of the people" (Hebrew: min ha'am - מִן־הָעָם): This phrase indicates the selection is to be made from the entire congregation of Israel. It signifies that the memorial represents everyone, not just a priestly or leading class, and that all the people were witnesses to God's deed.
• "out of every tribe a man" (Hebrew: mi-shevet shavet ish echad - מִשֵּׁבֶט שֵׁבֶט אִישׁ אֶחָד): This literally means "from tribe tribe, a man one," conveying the idea of "one from each and every tribe." This ensures equitable representation across the entire national fabric of Israel. Each tribal identity contributes to the unified witness, symbolizing the shared experience and common destiny under God.

• Words-group: "Choose you twelve men": This grouping highlights the authoritative divine command through Joshua to make a specific, numerically significant selection for an important task, emphasizing precision and divine ordination in leadership and action.
• Words-group: "out of the people, out of every tribe a man": This emphasizes the communal and representative nature of the selection. It ensures that the action taken (collecting the stones) and the memorial established reflect the collective experience and identity of the entire nation of Israel, fostering unity and shared ownership of God's miracle.

Joshua 4 2 Bonus section

The stones taken by these twelve men from the very place where the priests' feet had stood signify the tangible connection between divine action and human remembrance. The number twelve, pervasive throughout the Bible, served as a foundational motif for Israel's identity and, in the New Testament, foreshadowed the twelve apostles as the foundation of the Church. This act of physically moving the stones demonstrated the nation's participation in establishing a sacred witness. Such memorials were not just relics but dynamic tools for teaching and retelling God's powerful narrative to future generations, underscoring the importance of remembering and declaring God's wondrous works to those who follow.

Joshua 4 2 Commentary

Joshua 4:2 establishes the command for Israel's participation in creating a lasting testimony of God's faithfulness at the Jordan. God desired not merely to perform a miracle but for the people to actively memorialize it. The selection of twelve representative men underscores the corporate identity of Israel, emphasizing that the miracle of the Jordan crossing was a foundational event for the entire nation, not just a few individuals. This directive ensures that the memory of God's power in leading His people into their inheritance would be etched into the national consciousness, passed down through generations. It reinforces that divine instruction often requires human obedience and active engagement for God's purposes to be fulfilled and remembered.