And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over Jordan, that the LORD spake unto Joshua, saying,
This verse belongs to the account of Israel's preparation for and passage over the Jordan into Canaan, marking the moment when all the people had completely crossed over and the Lord spoke to Joshua. That experience was to be remembered so that the lessons God taught Israel would remain interesting and impressive. The crossing into the promised land was the time when the Lord made a covenant with Israel. That covenant was later honored by Elijah when he repaired the broken-down altar of the Lord with twelve stones according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob and built an altar in the name of the Lord.
What the Lord then directed was that twelve men, one from each tribe, should take stones from the riverbed channel and carry them to dry land. This was to be done while the priests and the ark still stood in the riverbed. The stones were to be carried to Gilgal, the first camp beyond the river, where Joshua set them up as a monument and memorial by divine direction.
The stones were a visible memorial of God's deliverance to commemorate the miraculous passage. They reminded Israel that God had brought them across on dry land because the waters of the Jordan had been cut off before the ark as it crossed. They were to prompt children to ask about them and parents to recount the miracle for generations, so that the story would be told to children and the deliverance kept in memory. In this way all people might know His power and Israel might fear Him forever, with His care, power, and mercy kept present in mind to strengthen faith and keep the lessons interesting and impressive.
This verse belongs to the account of Israel's preparation for and passage over the Jordan into Canaan, marking the moment when all the people had completely crossed over and the Lord spoke to Joshua. That experience was to be remembered so that the lessons God taught Israel would remain interesting and impressive. The crossing into the promised land was the time when the Lord made a covenant with Israel. That covenant was later honored by Elijah when he repaired the broken-down altar of the Lord with twelve stones according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob and built an altar in the name of the Lord.
What the Lord then directed was that twelve men, one from each tribe, should take stones from the riverbed channel and carry them to dry land. This was to be done while the priests and the ark still stood in the riverbed. The stones were to be carried to Gilgal, the first camp beyond the river, where Joshua set them up as a monument and memorial by divine direction.
The stones were a visible memorial of God's deliverance to commemorate the miraculous passage. They reminded Israel that God had brought them across on dry land because the waters of the Jordan had been cut off before the ark as it crossed. They were to prompt children to ask about them and parents to recount the miracle for generations, so that the story would be told to children and the deliverance kept in memory. In this way all people might know His power and Israel might fear Him forever, with His care, power, and mercy kept present in mind to strengthen faith and keep the lessons interesting and impressive.