The Message Bible MSG
New Century Version NCV
1 When all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and the Canaanite kings along the seacoast heard how God had stopped the Jordan River before the People of Israel until they had crossed over, their hearts sank; the courage drained out of them just thinking about the People of Israel.
1
All the kings of the Amorites west of the Jordan and the Canaanite kings living by the Mediterranean Sea heard that the Lord dried up the Jordan River until the Israelites had crossed it. After that they were scared and too afraid to face the Israelites.
2 At that time God said to Joshua, "Make stone knives and circumcise the People of Israel a second time."
2
At that time the Lord said to Joshua, "Make knives from flint stones and circumcise the Israelites."
3 So Joshua made stone knives and circumcised the People of Israel at Foreskins Hill.
3
So Joshua made knives from flint stones and circumcised the Israelites at Gibeath Haaraloth.
4 This is why Joshua conducted the circumcision. All the males who had left Egypt, the soldiers, had died in the wilderness on the journey out of Egypt.
4
This is why Joshua circumcised the men: After the Israelites left Egypt, all the men old enough to serve in the army died in the desert on the way out of Egypt.
5 All the people who had come out of Egypt, of course, had been circumcised, but all those born in the wilderness along the way since leaving Egypt had not been.
5
The men who had come out of Egypt had been circumcised, but none of those who were born in the desert on the trip from Egypt had been circumcised.
6 The fact is that the People of Israel had walked through that wilderness for forty years until the entire nation died out, all the men of military age who had come out of Egypt but had disobeyed the call of God. God vowed that these would never lay eyes on the land God had solemnly promised their ancestors to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey.
6
The Israelites had moved about in the desert for forty years. During that time all the fighting men who had left Egypt had died because they had not obeyed the Lord. So the Lord swore they would not see the land he had promised their ancestors to give them, a fertile land.
7 But their children had replaced them. These are the ones Joshua circumcised. They had never been circumcised; no one had circumcised them along the way.
7
Their sons took their places. But none of the sons born on the trip from Egypt had been circumcised, so Joshua circumcised them.
8 When they had completed the circumcising of the whole nation, they stayed where they were in camp until they were healed.
8
After all the Israelites had been circumcised, they stayed in camp until they were healed.
9 God said to Joshua, "Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt." That's why the place is called The Gilgal. It's still called that.
9
Then the Lord said to Joshua, "As slaves in Egypt you were ashamed, but today I have removed that shame." So Joshua named that place Gilgal, which it is still named today.
10 The People of Israel continued to camp at The Gilgal. They celebrated the Passover on the evening of the fourteenth day of the month on the plains of Jericho.
10
The people of Israel were camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho. It was there, on the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, they celebrated the Passover Feast.
11 Right away, the day after the Passover, they started eating the produce of that country, unraised bread and roasted grain.
11
The day after the Passover, the people ate food grown on that land: bread made without yeast and roasted grain.
12 And then no more manna; the manna stopped. As soon as they started eating food grown in the land, there was no more manna for the People of Israel. That year they ate from the crops of Canaan.
12
The day they ate this food, the manna stopped coming. The Israelites no longer got the manna from heaven. They ate the food grown in the land of Canaan that year.
13 And then this, while Joshua was there near Jericho: He looked up and saw right in front of him a man standing, holding his drawn sword. Joshua stepped up to him and said, "Whose side are you on - ours or our enemies'?"
13
Joshua was near Jericho when he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a sword in his hand. Joshua went to him and asked, "Are you a friend or an enemy?"
14 He said, "Neither. I'm commander of God's army. I've just arrived." Joshua fell, face to the ground, and worshiped. He asked, "What orders does my Master have for his servant?"
14
The man answered, "I am neither. I have come as the commander of the Lord's army." Then Joshua bowed facedown on the ground and asked, "Does my master have a command for me, his servant?"
15 God's army commander ordered Joshua, "Take your sandals off your feet. The place you are standing is holy." Joshua did it.
15
The commander of the Lord's army answered, "Take off your sandals, because the place where you are standing is holy." So Joshua did.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New Century Version. Copyright © 1987, 1988, 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.