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When all the nation had completely crossed over the Jordan, Yahweh spoke to Joshua, saying,
Joshua 4:1 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over Jordan, that the LORD spake unto Joshua, saying,
  • BSB When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD said to Joshua,
  • ESV When all the nation had finished passing over the Jordan, the LORD said to Joshua,
  • NKJV And it came to pass, when all the people had completely crossed over the Jordan, that the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying:
  • NASB Now when the entire nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying,
  • NLT When all the people had crossed the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua,

Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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

Once the whole nation has crossed the Jordan, God speaks again to Joshua. God now directs the establishing of a lasting memorial.

Overview

With the crossing complete, God's word comes once more to guide the next step. The repeated emphasis that 'all the nation' had crossed highlights the completeness of God's deliverance. God's continued speaking shows that His acts of salvation are to be remembered and proclaimed, not merely experienced and forgotten.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 2

  • Deut 27:2It shall be on the day when you shall pass over the Jordan to the land which Yahweh your God gives you, that you shall set yourself up great stones, and coat them with plaster.
  • Josh 3:17The priests who bore the ark of Yahweh’s covenant stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan; and all Israel crossed over on dry ground, until all the nation had passed completely over the Jordan.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Joshua videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Joshua 4:1YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JoshuaMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 4:1 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.