Bible Study Joshua 4
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Joshua 4 · WEB

Twelve Stones of Memorial

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When all the nation had finished passing over the Jordan, Yahweh spoke to Joshua, saying,
2"Take twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man,
3and command them, saying, 'Take from out of the middle of the Jordan, out of the place where the priests' feet stood firm, twelve stones. Carry them over with you, and lay them down in the lodging place where you will lodge tonight.' "
4Then Joshua called the twelve men whom he had prepared from the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man.
5Joshua said to them, "Cross over before the ark of Yahweh your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you pick up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel;
6that this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask in time to come, saying, 'What do these stones mean to you?'
7then you shall tell them how the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of Yahweh. When it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever."
8The children of Israel did as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the middle of the Jordan, as Yahweh spoke to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel. They carried them over with them to the place where they lodged, and laid them down there.
9Joshua set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan in the place where the feet of the priests who bore the ark of the covenant stood. They are there to this day.
10For the priests who bore the ark stood in the middle of the Jordan, until everything was finished that Yahweh commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua. The people hurried and passed over.
11When all the people had finished passing over, the ark of Yahweh passed over, with the priests, in the presence of the people.
12The children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, passed over armed before the children of Israel, as Moses spoke to them.
13About forty thousand men, ready for war, passed over before Yahweh to battle, to the plains of Jericho.
14On that day, Yahweh magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared him, as they feared Moses, all the days of his life.
15Yahweh spoke to Joshua, saying,
16"Command the priests who bear the ark of the testimony to come up out of the Jordan."
17Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying, "Come up out of the Jordan."
18When the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of Yahweh had come up out of the middle of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests' feet were lifted up to the dry ground, the waters of the Jordan returned to their place, and went over all its banks, as before.
19The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, on the east border of Jericho.
20Joshua set up those twelve stones which they took out of the Jordan in Gilgal.
21He spoke to the children of Israel, saying, "When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, 'What do these stones mean?'
22then you shall let your children know, saying, 'Israel came over this Jordan on dry land.
23For Yahweh your God dried up the waters of the Jordan from before you, until you had crossed over, as Yahweh your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up from before us, until we had crossed over;
24that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of Yahweh, that it is mighty; that you may fear Yahweh your God forever.' "
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Summary

Immediately after the crossing, God commands Joshua to have one man from each tribe carry a stone from the bed of the Jordan to the camp at Gilgal, creating a twelve-stone memorial. Joshua also sets up a second set of twelve stones in the river bed itself. These memorials are designed to provoke questions from future generations so that parents will retell the story of God's miraculous power in stopping the Jordan River. The chapter closes with the entire army — forty thousand warriors — camped at Gilgal, with Joshua established in the people's eyes as Moses' God-confirmed successor.

Themes

  • Intentional memory-keeping — God commands physical memorials to preserve spiritual stories
  • Intergenerational faith transmission — parents are responsible for explaining God's acts to children
  • God's universal reputation — His works in Israel are meant to reveal Him to all nations
  • The completion of the transition from Moses to Joshua

Key verses

  • Josh 4:23-24 — “For Yahweh your God dried up the waters of the Jordan from before you...that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of Yahweh, that it is mighty.”
  • Josh 4:6-7 — “That this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask in time to come, saying, 'What do these stones mean to you?' then you shall tell them how the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of Yahweh.”

Context & background

Gilgal was the first campsite of Israel in Canaan, located just east of Jericho in what is today the West Bank. The name Gilgal means "rolling" and will take on additional significance in chapter 5 when God "rolls away" the reproach of Egypt through circumcision. The crossing occurred on the tenth day of the first month (Nisan/Abib), exactly five days before the Passover — the same day families would have selected their Passover lambs (Exodus 12:3), making the timing deeply symbolic. Forty thousand warriors crossed from the eastern tribes, though their full populations were much larger (Numbers 26 records far greater numbers), suggesting not every fighting man came. The Jordan River valley near Jericho is today a heavily patrolled border zone between Israel and Jordan.

Cross-references

  • 1 Samuel 7:12 — Samuel sets up a stone called Ebenezer ("stone of help") after a victory, a similar memorial practice
  • Deuteronomy 6:20-25 — The principle of children asking about God's commands and parents explaining is a repeated pattern in Torah
  • Exodus 12:3 — Passover lambs selected on the tenth of the first month, the same day Israel arrived in Canaan
  • Psalm 78:4-7 — The purpose of telling the next generation about God's deeds so they will trust Him
  • Romans 15:4 — What was written in former times was written for our instruction

Check your reading

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  1. Observe

    What two sets of twelve stones did Joshua set up, and where was each set placed?

  2. Observe

    On what date did Israel cross the Jordan, and where did they camp afterward?

  3. Interpret

    Why did God design the memorial to be triggered by children's questions?

  4. Interpret

    How is God using Israel's story as a witness to the nations?

  5. Apply

    What "stones of memorial" should you have in your own life?

  6. Apply

    How does the intentionality of God's memorial-building challenge how you approach remembering His work?

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