Joshua 3:6

New Living Translation

In the morning Joshua said to the priests, "Lift up the Ark of the Covenant and lead the people across the river." And so they started out and went ahead of the people.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Then he said to the priests, “Carry the ark of the covenant and go on ahead of the people.” So they carried the ark of the covenant and went ahead of them.

Hebrew Names Version
Yehoshua spoke to the Kohanim, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. They took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

King James Version
And Joshua spake unto the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

Lexham English Bible
And Joshua said to the priests, "Take up the ark of the covenant and cross over ahead of the people." And they took up the ark of the covenant and went ahead of the people.

English Standard Version
And Joshua said to the priests, "Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on before the people." So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people.

New Century Version
Joshua said to the priests, "Take the Ark of the Agreement and go ahead of the people." So the priests lifted the Ark and carried it ahead of the people.

New English Translation
Joshua told the priests, "Pick up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people." So they picked up the ark of the covenant and went ahead of the people.

Amplified Bible
Joshua said to the priests, "Take up the ark of the covenant and cross over [the river] ahead of the people." So they took up the ark of the covenant and went on ahead of the people.

New American Standard Bible
And Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, "Take up the ark of the covenant and cross over ahead of the people." So they took up the ark of the covenant and went ahead of the people.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Also Ioshua spake vnto the Priestes, saying, Take vp the Arke of the couenant, and goe ouer before the people: so they tooke vp the Arke of the couenant, & went before the people.

Legacy Standard Bible
And Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, "Carry the ark of the covenant and cross over ahead of the people." So they carried the ark of the covenant and went ahead of the people.

Contemporary English Version
Then Joshua turned to the priests and said, "Take the chest and cross the Jordan River ahead of us." So the priests picked up the chest by its carrying poles and went on ahead.

Complete Jewish Bible
Then Y'hoshua said to the cohanim, "Take the ark for the covenant, and go on ahead of the people." They took the ark for the covenant and went ahead of the people.

Darby Translation
And Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and go over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

Easy-to-Read Version
Then Joshua said to the priests, "Take the Box of the Agreement and go across the river in front of the people." So the priests lifted the Box and carried it in front of the people.

George Lamsa Translation
And Joshua said to the priests, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

Good News Translation
Then he told the priests to take the Covenant Box and go with it ahead of the people. They did as he said.

Literal Translation
And Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant and go before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And vnto the prestes he sayde: Beare ye the Arke of ye couenaut, and go before the people. Then bare they the Arke, and wente before the people.

American Standard Version
And Joshua spake unto the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

Bible in Basic English
Then Joshua said to the priests, Take up the ark of the agreement and go over in front of the people. So they took up the ark of the agreement and went in front of the people.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And Iosuah spake vnto the priestes, saying: Take vp the arke of the couenaunt, and go ouer before the people. And they toke vp the arke of the testament, and went before the people.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And Joshua spoke unto the priests, saying: 'Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass on before the people.' And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

King James Version (1611)
And Ioshua spake vnto the Priests, saying, Take vp the Arke of the Couenant, and passe ouer before the people. And they tooke vp the Arke of the Couenant, and went before the people.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And Joshua said to the priests, Take up the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and go before the people: and the priests took up the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and went before the people.

English Revised Version
And Joshua spake unto the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

Berean Standard Bible
And he said to the priests, "Take the ark of the covenant and go on ahead of the people." So they carried the ark of the covenant and went ahead of them.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And Josue seide to the preestis, Take ye the arke of the boond of pees `of the Lord, and go ye bifor the puple. Whiche filliden the heestis, and tooken the arke, and yeden bifor hem.

Young's Literal Translation
And Joshua speaketh unto the priests, saying, `Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people;' and they take up the ark of the covenant, and go before the people.

Update Bible Version
And Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

Webster's Bible Translation
And Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

World English Bible
Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. They took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

New King James Version
Then Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, "Take up the ark of the covenant and cross over before the people." So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people.

New Life Bible
Joshua said to the religious leaders, "Take up the special box of the agreement and cross over in front of the people." So they took up the special box of the agreement and went in front of the people.

New Revised Standard
To the priests Joshua said, "Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass on in front of the people." So they took up the ark of the covenant and went in front of the people.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And Joshua spake unto the priests, saying, Take ye up the ark of the covenant, and pass on before the people. So they took up the ark of the covenant, and went on before the people.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And he said to the priests: Take up the ark of the covenant, and go before the people. And they obeyed his commands, and took it up, and walked before them.

Revised Standard Version
And Joshua said to the priests, "Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass on before the people." And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

THE MESSAGE
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.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
And Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, "Take up the ark of the covenant and cross over ahead of the people." So they took up the ark of the covenant and went ahead of the people.

Contextual Overview

¹ Early the next morning Joshua and all the Israelites left Acacia Grove and arrived at the banks of the Jordan River, where they camped before crossing. ² Three days later the Israelite officers went through the camp, ³ 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. ⁴ Since you have never traveled this way before, they will guide you. Stay about half a mile behind them, keeping a clear distance between you and the Ark. Make sure you don't come any closer." ⁵ Then Joshua told the people, "Purify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do great wonders among you." ⁶ In the morning Joshua said to the priests, "Lift up the Ark of the Covenant and lead the people across the river." And so they started out and went ahead of the people.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Take up: Joshua 3:3, Numbers 14:15, Numbers 10:33, Micah 2:13, John 14:2, John 14:3, Hebrews 6:20

Reciprocal: Numbers 4:33 - under the hand Deuteronomy 9:1 - to pass Joshua 3:14 - bearing the ark Joshua 6:6 - Take up the ark Joshua 8:33 - priests 2 Samuel 15:24 - bearing 1 Kings 8:3 - the priests took up 2 Chronicles 5:4 - the Levites Acts 7:45 - Jesus

Cross-References

Genesis 3:1
The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, "Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?"

Genesis 3:2
"Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden," the woman replied.

Genesis 3:12
The man replied, "It was the woman you gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it."

Genesis 3:14
Then the Lord God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all animals, domestic and wild. You will crawl on your belly, groveling in the dust as long as you live.

Genesis 3:15
And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel."

Genesis 3:17
And to the man he said, "Since you listened to your wife and ate from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat, the ground is cursed because of you. All your life you will struggle to scratch a living from it.

Genesis 3:19
By the sweat of your brow will you have food to eat until you return to the ground from which you were made. For you were made from dust, and to dust you will return."

Genesis 6:2
The sons of God saw the beautiful women and took any they wanted as their wives.

Genesis 39:7
and Potiphar's wife soon began to look at him lustfully. "Come and sleep with me," she demanded.

Joshua 7:21
Among the plunder I saw a beautiful robe from Babylon, 200 silver coins, and a bar of gold weighing more than a pound. I wanted them so much that I took them. They are hidden in the ground beneath my tent, with the silver buried deeper than the rest."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And Joshua spoke unto the priests,.... On the morrow, that is, on the tenth day of the month, the day on which they went over Jordan:

saying, take up the ark of the covenant; in which the law was put, which was the covenant between God and the people, from whence the ark had this name; and in which it was typical of Christ, in whom both the law, the covenant of works, was fulfilled, and with whom the covenant of grace was made; who is the Mediator; surety, and messenger of it, and in whom all the blessings and promises of it are, and with whom it is, and will be kept for evermore: the ark, the priests were ordered to take up and bear on their shoulders; for no other way might they carry it; these typified the ministers of Christ who bear his name, his Gospel in the world, see Acts 9:15;

and pass over before the people; over the river Jordan, to direct them in the way through it, and encourage them to follow them:

and they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people; from the place where they had lodged the night before to the brink of the river.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

They took up - i. e. on the day following. The course of events is anticipated.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Joshua 3:6. Spake unto the priests, saying, Take up the ark — It is remarkable that the priests, not the Levites, whose ordinary business it was were employed to carry the ark on this occasion. Calmet conjectures that this was because it was probably carried without being wrapped up in its curtains, as it always was when the Levites carried it. Though it was the business of the Levites, the sons of Kohath, to carry the ark; yet on certain occasions the priests alone performed this office.

1. In the present case.

2. When they encompassed Jericho, Joshua 6:6.

3. When it was carried to the war against the Philistines by the priests, the sons of Eli, 2 Samuel 15:25.

4. When David sent it back to Jerusalem, at the time he was obliged to fly from it, through the rebellion of his son Absalom, 2 Samuel 15:25; and,

5. At the time that it was taken out of the tabernacle, to be deposited in the temple; see 1 Kings 8:6-11. These were the most solemn occasions, and on such alone, we may presume, the priests performed this office instead of the Levites.

In all their former marches the ark was carried in the centre of this immense camp; (see the scheme at the end of Numbers 2:2 of the book of Numbers;) but now it was to proceed at the head of the army, and to go before them, and at such a distance, about three quarters of a mile, that the whole camp might see it as their guide.