Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man,
Joshua 4:2 belongs to the account of Israel preparing to cross the Jordan into the promised land, an experience recorded as a lesson to be kept fresh in memory through careful study. By the Lord's direction Joshua chose twelve men, one from each tribe of Israel, in connection with that crossing.
The men were to take stones from the Jordan riverbed where the priests had stood with the ark and carry them to dry land on the western side, setting up twelve stones at Gilgal. The stones were a memorial of God's miraculous deliverance in bringing Israel across on dry ground. For future generations the memorial recalled that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the Lord's covenant as Israel crossed over.
Such memorials were to keep the history of God's care and deliverance before the people, so parents could explain their meaning to their children and the account would remain remembered and fresh. The twelve stones later used to rebuild the altar recalled the covenant the Lord made with Israel at the Jordan crossing and represented the tribes descended from Jacob.
Joshua 4:2 belongs to the account of Israel preparing to cross the Jordan into the promised land, an experience recorded as a lesson to be kept fresh in memory through careful study. By the Lord's direction Joshua chose twelve men, one from each tribe of Israel, in connection with that crossing.
The men were to take stones from the Jordan riverbed where the priests had stood with the ark and carry them to dry land on the western side, setting up twelve stones at Gilgal. The stones were a memorial of God's miraculous deliverance in bringing Israel across on dry ground. For future generations the memorial recalled that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the Lord's covenant as Israel crossed over.
Such memorials were to keep the history of God's care and deliverance before the people, so parents could explain their meaning to their children and the account would remain remembered and fresh. The twelve stones later used to rebuild the altar recalled the covenant the Lord made with Israel at the Jordan crossing and represented the tribes descended from Jacob.