Command the priests that bear the ark of the testimony, that they come up out of Jordan.
Parallel translations
- WEB “Command the priests who bear the ark of the testimony, that they come up out of the Jordan.”
- BSB “Command the priests who carry the ark of the Testimony to come up from the Jordan.”
- NKJV “Command the priests who bear the ark of the Testimony to come up from the Jordan.”
- NASB “Command the priests who carry the ark of the testimony that they come up from the Jordan.”
- NLT “Command the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant to come up out of the riverbed.”
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
God commanded the priests carrying the ark of the testimony to come up out of the Jordan. The ark, symbol of God's presence, led Israel through the riverbed.
Overview
The ark contained the testimony (the tablets of the law) and represented Yahweh's throne among His people. Having stood in the riverbed while Israel crossed, the priests are now told to come up so the waters can return. God's presence both opened the way and guarded the people until all had safely passed.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Exod 25:16–22And thou shalt put into the ark the testimony which I shall give thee.
- Josh 3:3–6And they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it.
- Rev 11:19And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.
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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 4:16 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
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