So they answered Joshua, “Everything you have commanded us we will do, and everywhere you send us we will go.
Parallel translations
- WEB They answered Joshua, saying, “All that you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go.
- KJV And they answered Joshua, saying, All that thou commandest us we will do, and whithersoever thou sendest us, we will go.
- NKJV So they answered Joshua, saying, “All that you command us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go.
- NASB They answered Joshua, saying, “All that you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go.
- NLT They answered Joshua, “We will do whatever you command us, and we will go wherever you send us.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The eastern tribes pledge full obedience to Joshua, promising to do all he commands and go wherever he sends. They affirm wholehearted submission to God's appointed leader.
Overview
Their immediate and complete response stands in encouraging contrast to Israel's frequent rebellions. By submitting to Joshua, they submit to God's chosen instrument, recognizing his divine commission. This willing obedience models the response God's people owe to legitimate, God-given leadership and ultimately the perfect submission owed to Christ the King.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Titus 3:1Remind the believers to submit to rulers and authorities, to be obedient and ready for every good work,
- Deut 5:27Go near and listen to all that the LORD our God says. Then you can tell us everything the LORD our God tells you; we will listen and obey.”
- Rom 13:1–5Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which is from God. The authorities that exist have been appointed by God.
- 1 Pet 2:13–15Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to the king as the supreme authority,
- Num 32:25The Gadites and Reubenites said to Moses, “Your servants will do just as our lord commands.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Joshua — the same name as Jesus, 'the LORD saves' — leads God's people into their inheritance, a shadow of the greater Joshua who brings us into the true rest and the promised land that remains.
How Joshua 1:16 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.