Joshua 3:8

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Command the priests carrying the ark of the covenant: When you reach the edge of the water, stand in the Jordan.”

Hebrew Names Version
You shall command the Kohanim who bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When you are come to the brink of the waters of the Yarden, you shall stand still in the Yarden.

King James Version
And thou shalt command the priests that bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When ye are come to the brink of the water of Jordan, ye shall stand still in Jordan.

Lexham English Bible
You will command the priests carrying the ark of the covenant, saying, ‘At the moment that you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you will stand still in the Jordan.'"

English Standard Version
And as for you, command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.'"

New Century Version
Tell the priests who carry the Ark of the Agreement to go to the edge of the Jordan River and stand in the water."

New English Translation
Instruct the priests carrying the ark of the covenant, ‘When you reach the bank of the Jordan River, wade into the water.'"

Amplified Bible
"You shall command the priests who carry the ark of the covenant, saying, 'When you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.'"

New American Standard Bible
"So you shall command the priests who are carrying the ark of the covenant, saying, 'When you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.'"

Geneva Bible (1587)
Thou shalt therefore command the Priests that beare the Arke of the Couenant, saying, When ye are come to the brinke of the waters of Iorden, ye shall stande still in Iorden.

Legacy Standard Bible
Moreover, you shall command the priests who are carrying the ark of the covenant, saying, ‘When you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.'"

Contemporary English Version
Now, tell the priests who are carrying the chest to go a little way into the river and stand there."

Complete Jewish Bible
Now you are to order the cohanim carrying the ark for the covenant as follows: ‘When you come to the edge of the Yarden River, you are to stop in the Yarden itself.'"

Darby Translation
And thou shalt command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When ye come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, stand still in the Jordan.

Easy-to-Read Version
The priests will carry the Box of the Agreement. Tell them this, ‘Walk to the shore of the Jordan River and stop just before you step into the water.'"

George Lamsa Translation
And you shall command the priests who carry the ark of the covenant of the LORD, saying, When you are come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.

Good News Translation
Tell the priests carrying the Covenant Box that when they reach the river, they must wade in and stand near the bank."

Literal Translation
And you shall command the priests bearing the ark of the covenant, saying, When you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan you shall stand still in the Jordan.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And commaunde thou the prestes that beare the Arke, and saye: Whan ye come before in the water of Iordane, stonde styll.

American Standard Version
And thou shalt command the priests that bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When ye are come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, ye shall stand still in the Jordan.

Bible in Basic English
And you are to give orders to the priests who take up the ark of the agreement, and say, When you come to the edge of the waters of Jordan, go no further.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And thou shalt comaunde ye priestes that beare the arke of the couenaunt, saying: when ye are come to the edge of the waters of Iordane, ye shall stande still in Iordane.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And thou shalt command the priests that bear the ark of the covenant, saying: When ye are come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, ye shall stand still in the Jordan.'

King James Version (1611)
And thou shalt commaund the Priests that beare the Arke of the Couenant, saying; When ye are come to the brinke of the water of Iordan, yee shall stand still in Iordan.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And now charge the priests that bear the ark of the covenant, saying, As soon as ye shall enter on a part of the water of Jordan, then ye shall stand in Jordan.

English Revised Version
And thou shalt command the priests that bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When ye are come to the brink of the waters of Jordan, ye shall stand still in Jordan.

Berean Standard Bible
Command the priests carrying the ark of the covenant: 'When you reach the edge of the waters, stand in the Jordan.'"

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Forsothe comaunde thou to preestis, that beren the arke of bond of pees, and seie thou to hem, Whanne ye han entrid in to a part of the watir of Jordan, stonde ye therynne.

Young's Literal Translation
and thou, thou dost command the priests bearing the ark of the covenant, saying, When ye come unto the extremity of the waters of the Jordan -- in the Jordan ye stand.'

Update Bible Version
And you shall command the priests that bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When you come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.

Webster's Bible Translation
And thou shalt command the priests that bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When ye have come to the brink of the water of Jordan, ye shall stand still in Jordan.

World English Bible
You shall command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When you are come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.

New King James Version
You shall command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, saying, "When you have come to the edge of the water of the Jordan, you shall stand in the Jordan."'

New Living Translation
Give this command to the priests who carry the Ark of the Covenant: ‘When you reach the banks of the Jordan River, take a few steps into the river and stop there.'"

New Life Bible
Tell the religious leaders who are carrying the special box of the agreement, ‘When you come to the water of the Jordan River, stand still in it.'"

New Revised Standard
You are the one who shall command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.'"

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Thou, therefore, shalt command the priests who am bearing the ark of the covenant, saying, - When ye are come as far as the edge of the waters of the Jordan, in the Jordan, shall ye stand.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And do thou command the priests, that carry the ark of the covenant, and say to them: When you shall have entered into part of the water of the Jordan, stand in it.

Revised Standard Version
And you shall command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, 'When you come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.'"

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"You shall, moreover, command the priests who are carrying the ark of the covenant, saying, 'When you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.'"

Contextual Overview

⁷ God said to Joshua, "This very day I will begin to make you great in the eyes of all Israel. They'll see for themselves that I'm with you in the same way that I was with Moses. You will command the priests who are carrying the Chest of the Covenant: ‘When you come to the edge of the Jordan's waters, stand there on the river bank.'" ⁹Then Joshua addressed the People of Israel: "Attention! Listen to what God , your God, has to say. This is how you'll know that God is alive among you—he will completely dispossess before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites. Look at what's before you: the Chest of the Covenant. Think of it—the Master of the entire earth is crossing the Jordan as you watch. Now take twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one man from each tribe. When the soles of the feet of the priests carrying the Chest of God , Master of all the earth, touch the Jordan's water, the flow of water will be stopped—the water coming from upstream will pile up in a heap."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

command: Joshua 3:3, 1 Chronicles 15:11, 1 Chronicles 15:12, 2 Chronicles 17:8, 2 Chronicles 17:9, 2 Chronicles 29:4-11, 2 Chronicles 29:15, 2 Chronicles 29:27, 2 Chronicles 29:30, 2 Chronicles 30:12, 2 Chronicles 31:9, 2 Chronicles 31:10, 2 Chronicles 35:2-6, Nehemiah 12:24-28, Nehemiah 13:22, Nehemiah 13:28

ye shall stand: Joshua 3:17, Exodus 14:13, Lamentations 3:26

Reciprocal: Joshua 4:11 - that the ark

Cross-References

Genesis 3:1
The serpent was clever, more clever than any wild animal God had made. He spoke to the Woman: "Do I understand that God told you not to eat from any tree in the garden?"

Genesis 3:2
The Woman said to the serpent, "Not at all. We can eat from the trees in the garden. It's only about the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, ‘Don't eat from it; don't even touch it or you'll die.'"

Genesis 3:9
God called to the Man: "Where are you?"

Genesis 3:10
He said, "I heard you in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked. And I hid."

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 3:21
God made leather clothing for Adam and his wife and dressed them.

Genesis 3:22
God said, "The Man has become like one of us, capable of knowing everything, ranging from good to evil. What if he now should reach out and take fruit from the Tree-of-Life and eat, and live forever? Never—this cannot happen!"

Deuteronomy 5:25
Moses Teaches Israel on the Plains of Moab Moses called all Israel together. He said to them, Attention, Israel. Listen obediently to the rules and regulations I am delivering to your listening ears today. Learn them. Live them. God , our God, made a covenant with us at Horeb. God didn't just make this covenant with our parents; he made it also with us, with all of us who are alive right now. God spoke to you personally out of the fire on the mountain. At the time I stood between God and you, to tell you what God said. You were afraid, remember, of the fire and wouldn't climb the mountain. He said: I am God , your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of a house of slaves. No other gods, only me. No carved gods of any size, shape, or form of anything whatever, whether of things that fly or walk or swim. Don't bow down to them and don't serve them because I am God, your God, and I'm a most jealous God. I hold parents responsible for any sins they pass on to their children to the third, and yes, even to the fourth generation. But I'm lovingly loyal to the thousands who love me and keep my commandments. No using the name of God , your God, in curses or silly banter; God won't put up with the irreverent use of his name. No working on the Sabbath; keep it holy just as God , your God, commanded you. Work six days, doing everything you have to do, but the seventh day is a Sabbath, a Rest Day—no work: not you, your son, your daughter, your servant, your maid, your ox, your donkey (or any of your animals), and not even the foreigner visiting your town. That way your servants and maids will get the same rest as you. Don't ever forget that you were slaves in Egypt and God , your God, got you out of there in a powerful show of strength. That's why God , your God, commands you to observe the day of Sabbath rest. Respect your father and mother— God , your God, commands it! You'll have a long life; the land that God is giving you will treat you well. No murder. No adultery. No stealing. No lies about your neighbor. No coveting your neighbor's wife. And no lusting for his house, field, servant, maid, ox, or donkey either—nothing that belongs to your neighbor! These are the words that God spoke to the whole congregation at the mountain. He spoke in a tremendous voice from the fire and cloud and dark mist. And that was it. No more words. Then he wrote them on two slabs of stone and gave them to me. As it turned out, when you heard the Voice out of that dark cloud and saw the mountain on fire, you approached me, all the heads of your tribes and your leaders, and said, "Our God has revealed to us his glory and greatness. We've heard him speak from the fire today! We've seen that God can speak to humans and they can still live. But why risk it further? This huge fire will devour us if we stay around any longer. If we hear God 's voice anymore, we'll die for sure. Has anyone ever known of anyone who has heard the Voice of God the way we have and lived to tell the story? "From now on, you go and listen to what God , our God, says and then tell us what God tells you. We'll listen and we'll do it." God heard what you said to me and told me, "I've heard what the people said to you. They're right—good and true words. What I wouldn't give if they'd always feel this way, continuing to revere me and always keep all my commands; they'd have a good life forever, they and their children! "Go ahead and tell them to go home to their tents. But you, you stay here with me so I can tell you every commandment and all the rules and regulations that you must teach them so they'll know how to live in the land that I'm giving them as their own." So be very careful to act exactly as God commands you. Don't veer off to the right or the left. Walk straight down the road God commands so that you'll have a good life and live a long time in the land that you're about to possess.

Job 38:1
And now, finally, God answered Job from the eye of a violent storm. He said:

Proverbs 15:3
God doesn't miss a thing— he's alert to good and evil alike.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And thou shalt command the priests that bear the ark of the Lord,.... Who were subject to Joshua, the chief governor of the nation, and general of the army, as well as the common people; and whose commands they were to obey, and especially when they appeared to be from the Lord:

saying, when ye come to the brink of the water of Jordan; not of the bank of it, but of the water, which had now overflowed its bank; that is, the brink or extremity of it, which was nearest to them, and to which they first came; though it is a notion of some Jewish commentators t, and which some Christian interpreters u have given into, and both of considerable note, that this was the further extremity, or the brink on the other side of the river; but, according to this notion, they must pass the river to the other side before the waters were divided, which is not credible; and must return again into the midst of the river, which is not probable; and besides, it is expressly said, that as soon as their feet dipped in the brim, or extremity of the water, the waters parted, which must be the first brim or extremity they came at, Joshua 3:15;

ye shall stand still in Jordan; after the waters were parted; upon their coming to, and touching, the brink of them, they proceeded, and went into the middle of the river, where they were ordered to stop and stand still.

t Kimchi, Abarbinel. u Masius, Drusius.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Joshua 3:8. Ye shall stand still in Jordan. — The priests proceeded first with the ark, and entered into the bed of the river the course of which was immediately arrested, the waters collecting above the place where the priests stood, while the stream fell off towards the Dead Sea; so that the whole channel below where the priests were standing became dry. The whole camp, therefore, passed over below where the priests were standing, keeping at the distance of two thousand cubits from the ark; this they would readily do, as the whole bed of the river was dry for many miles below the place where the priests entered.