Joshua 3

₁Early the next morning Joshua and all the Israelites went away from the town of Shittim and they went to the Jordan River. They stayed there before they went over the river. ₂After 3 days the elders went to everyone in the camp ₃and they said to them: ‘When you see the Levite priests pick up the covenant box, you must come and follow the box. ₄But you must be careful and stay far behind the box, about 2 000 cubits away. You must not come near the covenant box. You must follow it so that you will know where to go, because it will be the first time that you walk on this road.’

₅Joshua also said to the people: ‘You must be ready to meet the Lord because tomorrow He will do miracles here and you will see them.’

₆Then Joshua said to the priests: ‘Pick up the covenant box and go in front of the people.’ The priests picked up the box and they walked in front of the people. ₇The Lord said to Joshua: ‘Today I will show the Israelites that you are very important. They must know that I will be with you like I was with Moses.’ ₈The Lord said: ‘Tell the priests who are carrying the covenant box to stand still in the water when they come to the Jordan River.’

₉Then Joshua said to the Israelites: ‘Come and listen to what the Lord your God, says. ₁₀I will tell you how you will know that the living God is here with you. He is the God who will chase away the Canaanite people and the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites and the Jebusites and He will give this land to you. He will do it, this is sure. ₁₁You will see the covenant box of the Lord of the whole world going over the Jordan River in front of you. ₁₂You must choose 12 men, one from each tribe. ₁₃The priests will carry the box of the Lord, the Lord of the whole world, and when the feet of the priests are in the water, the water from the top of the river will stop flowing. The water will stand still like a dam wall.’

₁₄The people came out of their tents to go over the Jordan River and the priests who carried the covenant box went in front of them. ₁₅It was the time of the year when the wheat was ready to be cut, and at that time the Jordan River was full. It was like a flood. But when the priests who carried the box put their feet into the water, ₁₆the water from the top of the river stopped flowing. The water was like a high wall and the river was dry up to the town of Adam near the town of Zarethan. The water stopped flowing down to the Salt Sea, the lake in the Jordan Valley. ₁₇All the Israelites then went over the dry river near the city of Jericho. All the Israelites walked over on dry ground. The priests who carried the covenant box of the Lord stood in the river on dry ground until all the people had gone over the river.