At that time the LORD said to Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise the sons of Israel once again.”
Parallel translations
- WEB At that time, Yahweh said to Joshua, “Make flint knives, and circumcise again the sons of Israel the second time.”
- KJV At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time.
- NKJV At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make flint knives for yourself, and circumcise the sons of Israel again the second time.”
- NASB At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make for yourself flint knives and circumcise again the sons of Israel the second time.”
- NLT At that time the Lord told Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise this second generation of Israelites.”
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 told Joshua to make flint knives and circumcise the men of Israel. The covenant sign had to be renewed before they could possess the land.
Overview
The generation born in the wilderness had not been circumcised, so the covenant sign given to Abraham needed restoring. Before Israel could claim the promise, they had to be marked again as God's covenant people. This underscores that inheritance comes through covenant relationship with God, not merely through military strength.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Deut 10:16Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and stiffen your necks no more.
- Deut 30:6The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, and you will love Him with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live.
- Exod 4:25But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son’s foreskin, and touched it to Moses’ feet. “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,” she said.
- Rom 4:11And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but are not circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them.
- Gen 17:10–14This is My covenant with you and your descendants after you, which you are to keep: Every male among you must be circumcised.
- Col 2:11In Him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of your sinful nature, with the circumcision performed by Christ and not by human hands.
- Rom 2:29No, a man is a Jew because he is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man’s praise does not come from men, but from God.
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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 5:2 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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