Joshua 3:3

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
and commanded the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God carried by the Levitical priests, you are to break camp and follow it.

Hebrew Names Version
and they commanded the people, saying, When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the Kohanim the Levites bearing it, then you shall remove from your place, and go after it.

King James Version
And 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.

Lexham English Bible
and they commanded the people: "When you see the Levitical priests carrying the ark of the covenant of Yahweh your God you must set out from your place and go after it.

English Standard Version
and commanded the people, "As soon as you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by the Levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place and follow it.

New Century Version
and gave orders to the people: "When you see the priests and Levites carrying the Ark of the Agreement with the Lord your God, leave where you are and follow it.

New English Translation
and commanded the people: "When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by the Levitical priests, you must leave here and walk behind it.

Amplified Bible
and they commanded the people, "When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God being carried by the Levitical priests, then you shall set out from where you are and follow it.

New American Standard Bible
and they commanded the people, saying, "When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God with the Levitical priests carrying it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And commanded the people, saying, When ye see the Arke of the couenat of the Lord your God, and the Priestes of the Leuites bearing it, ye shall depart from your place, and goe after it.

Legacy Standard Bible
and they commanded the people, saying, "When you see the ark of the covenant of Yahweh your God with the Levitical priests carrying it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it.

Contemporary English Version
shouting, "When you see some of the priests carrying the sacred chest, you'll know it is time to cross to the other side. You've never been there before, and you won't know the way, unless you follow the chest. But don't get too close! Stay about half a mile back."

Complete Jewish Bible
and gave the people these orders: "When you see the ark for the covenant of Adonai your God and the cohanim, who are L'vi'im, carrying it, you are to leave your position and follow it.

Darby Translation
and they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of Jehovah your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then remove from your place, and go after it;

Easy-to-Read Version
They gave orders to the people: "When you see the Levite priests carrying the Box of the Agreement of the Lord your God, follow them.

George Lamsa Translation
And they commanded the people, saying, When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests and the Levites carrying it, then you must proceed from your place, and go after it.

Good News Translation
and told the people, "When you see the priests carrying the Covenant Box of the Lord your God, break camp and follow them.

Literal Translation
And they commanded the people, saying, When you see the ark of the covenant of Jehovah your God, and the priests, and the Levites bearing it, then you shall pull up stakes from your place and shall go after it.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
and commaunded the people, and sayde: Whan ye se the Arke of ye couenaunt of the LORDE youre God, and the prestes from amoge the Leuites bearinge it, departe ye then out of youre place, and folowe after

American Standard Version
and they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of Jehovah your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it.

Bible in Basic English
Giving the people their orders, and saying, When you see the ark of the agreement of the Lord your God lifted up by the priests, the Levites, then get up from your places and go after it;

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And commaunded the people, saying: When ye see the arke of the testament of the Lorde your God, and the priestes that are Leuites bearing it, ye shall depart from your place, and go after it.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
and 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.

King James Version (1611)
And they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the Arke of the Couenant of the Lord your God, and the Priests the Leuites bearing it, then yee shall remooue from your place, and goe after it.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
and they charged the people, saying, When ye shall see the ark of the covenant of the Lord our God, and our priests and the Levites bearing it, ye shall depart from your places, and ye shall go after it.

English Revised Version
and 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.

Berean Standard Bible
and commanded the people: "When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God being carried by the Levitical priests, you are to set out from your positions and follow it.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
and bigunnen to crie, Whanne ye seen the arke of boond of pees of youre Lord God, and the preestis of the generacioun of Leuy berynge it, also rise ye, and sue the biforgoeris;

Young's Literal Translation
and command the people, saying, `When ye see the ark of the covenant of Jehovah your God, and the priests, the Levites, bearing it, then ye journey from your place, and have gone after it;

Update Bible Version
and they commanded the people, saying, When you see the ark of the covenant of Yahweh your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then you shall remove from your place, and go after it.

Webster's Bible Translation
And 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.

World English Bible
and they commanded the people, saying, When you see the ark of the covenant of Yahweh your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then you shall remove from your place, and go after it.

New King James Version
and they commanded the people, saying, "When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests, the Levites, bearing it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it.

New Living Translation
giving these instructions to the people: "When you see the Levitical priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord your God, move out from your positions and follow them.

New Life Bible
They told the people, "When you see the special box of the agreement of the Lord your God with the religious leaders carrying it, leave your places and follow it.

New Revised Standard
and commanded the people, "When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by the levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place. Follow it,

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
and commanded the people saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of Yahweh your God, and, the priests the Levites, bearing it, ye also, shall break up out of your place, and come after it.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And began to proclaim: When you shall see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests of the race of Levi carrying it, rise you up also, and follow them as they go before:

Revised Standard Version
and commanded the people, "When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God being carried by the Levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place and follow it,

New American Standard Bible (1995)
and they commanded the people, saying, "When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God with the Levitical priests carrying it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it.

Contextual Overview

¹Joshua was up early and on his way from Shittim with all the People of Israel with him. He arrived at the Jordan and camped before crossing over. After three days, leaders went through the camp and gave out orders to the people: "When you see the Covenant-Chest of God , your God, carried by the Levitical priests, start moving. Follow it. Make sure you keep a proper distance between you and it, about half a mile—be sure now to keep your distance!—and you'll see clearly the route to take. You've never been on this road before." ⁵ Then Joshua addressed the people: "Sanctify yourselves. Tomorrow God will work miracle-wonders among you." ⁶ Joshua instructed the priests, "Take up the Chest of the Covenant and step out before the people." So they took it up and processed before the people.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Numbers 10:33

When ye see: Joshua 3:11

the priests: Joshua 3:6, Joshua 3:8, Joshua 3:14-17, Joshua 4:10, Joshua 6:6, Numbers 4:15, Deuteronomy 31:9, Deuteronomy 31:25, 2 Samuel 6:3, 2 Samuel 6:13, 1 Chronicles 15:11, 1 Chronicles 15:12

ye shall remove: Exodus 13:21, Exodus 13:22, Matthew 8:19, Matthew 16:24, Revelation 14:4

Reciprocal: Joshua 3:17 - the priests Joshua 4:16 - General Joshua 8:33 - priests 2 Samuel 15:24 - bearing 1 Chronicles 15:2 - None ought to

Cross-References

Genesis 3:12
The Man said, "The Woman you gave me as a companion, she gave me fruit from the tree, and, yes, I ate it." God said to the Woman, "What is this that you've done?"

Genesis 3:13
"The serpent seduced me," she said, "and I ate."

Genesis 3:16
He told the Woman: "I'll multiply your pains in childbirth; you'll give birth to your babies in pain. You'll want to please your husband, but he'll lord it over you."

Genesis 3:17
He told the Man: "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree That I commanded you not to eat from, ‘Don't eat from this tree,' The very ground is cursed because of you; getting food from the ground Will be as painful as having babies is for your wife; you'll be working in pain all your life long. The ground will sprout thorns and weeds, you'll get your food the hard way, Planting and tilling and harvesting, sweating in the fields from dawn to dusk, Until you return to that ground yourself, dead and buried; you started out as dirt, you'll end up dirt."

Genesis 20:6
God said to him in the dream, "Yes, I know your intentions were pure, that's why I kept you from sinning against me; I was the one who kept you from going to bed with her. So now give the man's wife back to him. He's a prophet and will pray for you—pray for your life. If you don't give her back, know that it's certain death both for you and everyone in your family."

Job 1:11
"But what do you think would happen if you reached down and took away everything that is his? He'd curse you right to your face, that's what."

Job 19:21
"Oh, friends, dear friends, take pity on me. God has come down hard on me! Do you have to be hard on me, too? Don't you ever tire of abusing me?

1 Corinthians 7:1
Now, getting down to the questions you asked in your letter to me. First, Is it a good thing to have sexual relations?

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And they commanded the people,.... In the name of Joshua, by whom they were sent:

saying, when ye see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it: the Targum reads, the priests and Levites; so the Septuagint: it was the business of the Levites, particularly the Kohathites, to bear the ark in journeying, but here the priests, who also were Levites, were to carry it: it is remarked in the Talmud p, that there are three places in which the priests are said to bear the ark; here, and when they surrounded Jericho, Joshua 6:6; and when it was returned to its place in the times of David,

2 Samuel 15:29; and Kimchi and Abarbinel observe a fourth, when it was brought into Solomon's temple, 1 Kings 8:6;

then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it; their usual signal for marching was the cloud, when that was taken up, Numbers 9:17, c. but now the ark, the clouds of glory having removed at the death of Moses, and were seen no more, as Abarbinel and other Jewish writers observe and therefore it was proper the Israelites should be made acquainted with this signal; for, as Jarchi says, this journey was different from all the journeys (though that of the three days journey from Sinai must be excepted, Numbers 10:33), for all the time Moses was in being, the pillar of cloud marched first and showed them the way, and the ark moved after two of the standards (Judah and Reuben), and now the ark went first: the cloud was a figure of the dark and cloudy dispensation of the law, particularly the ceremonial law, the shadow of good things to come, and which continued only during the former state, and discontinued to be of any use when the Mosaic dispensation ceased, and when Joshua or Jesus was come: the ark was a type of Christ, the forerunner for us entered, and whom we are to follow whithersoever he goes or directs to, in the exercise of grace and performance of duty; and the ark being carried now by different persons, may denote that Christ was held forth in a weaker manner under the legal dispensation, and by his apostles and ministers under the Gospel dispensation in a clearer and stronger manner, and who are to be followed no further or longer than as they bear the ark or direct to Christ.

p T. Bab. Sotah, fol. 33. 2.