15:1 Kut 4:25; Hes 13:29; Mwa 42:28; Yos 2:9-11; Kut 15:14; Za 48:6; Eze 21:7; 1Fal 10:5Basi wafalme wote wa Waamori magharibi ya Yordani na wafalme wote wa Kanaani waliokuwa kwenye pwani waliposikia jinsi Bwana alivyoukausha Mto Yordani mbele ya Waisraeli hata tulipokwisha kuvuka, mioyo yao ikayeyuka kwa hofu, wala hawakuwa na ujasiri kuwakabili Waisraeli.
Tohara Huko Gilgali
25:2 Kut 4:25; Mwa 17:10-14Wakati huo Bwana akamwambia Yoshua, “Tengeneza visu vya mawe magumu sana na uwatahiri Waisraeli tena.” 3Kwa hiyo Yoshua akatengeneza visu vya mawe magumu sana na kutahiri Waisraeli huko Gibeath-Haaralothi.5:3 Gibeath-Haaralothi maana yake ni Kilima cha Magovi.
45:4 Hes 1:3; Kum 2:14, 16; Hes 14:29; 26:64Hii ndiyo sababu ya Yoshua kufanya hivyo: Wanaume wote waliotoka Misri, wote wenye umri wa kwenda vitani, walikufa jangwani wakiwa njiani baada ya kuondoka Misri. 5Watu wote waliotoka Misri walikuwa wametahiriwa, lakini watu wote waliozaliwa jangwani wakiwa safarini toka Misri walikuwa hawajatahiriwa. 65:6 Hes 32:13; Yos 14:10; Za 107:4; Kut 16:35; Hes 14:23-35; Kum 2:14; Kut 3:8Waisraeli walitembea jangwani miaka arobaini mpaka wanaume wote wale waliokuwa na umri wa kwenda vitani wakati waliondoka Misri walipokwisha kufa, kwa kuwa hawakumtii Bwana. Kwa maana Bwana alikuwa amewaapia kuwa wasingeweza kuona nchi ambayo alikuwa amewaahidi baba zao katika kuapa kutupatia, nchi inayotiririka maziwa na asali. 75:7 Hes 14:31Kwa hiyo akawainua wana wao baada yao na hawa ndio hao ambao Yoshua aliwatahiri. Walikuwa hawajatahiriwa bado kwa sababu walikuwa safarini. 85:8 Mwa 34:25Baada ya taifa lote kutahiriwa, waliendelea kukaa kambini mpaka walipokuwa wamepona.
95:9 Kum 11:30; 1Sam 14:6; Law 18:3; Yos 24:14; Eze 20:7Bwana akamwambia Yoshua, “Leo nimeiondoa aibu ya Wamisri kutoka kwenu.” Basi mahali pale pakaitwa Gilgali hadi leo.
105:10 Kut 12:6; 12:11Jioni ya siku ya kumi na nne ya mwezi, wakiwa kambini huko Gilgali katika tambarare za Yeriko, Waisraeli wakaadhimisha Pasaka. 115:11 Hes 15:19; Kut 12:15; Law 23:14; Hes 9:5Siku iliyofuata Pasaka, katika siku ile ile, wakala mazao ya nchi, mikate isiyotiwa chachu na nafaka za kukaanga. 125:12 Kut 16:35Mana ilikoma siku iliyofuata baada ya Waisraeli kula chakula kilichotoka katika nchi; hapakuwa na mana tena kwa ajili ya Waisraeli, ila mwaka huo walikula mazao ya nchi ya Kanaani.
Jemadari Wa Jeshi La Bwana
135:13 Mwa 18:2; Hes 22:23; Mwa 32:24; Kut 23:23; Mdo 1:10; Zek 1:8Basi wakati Yoshua alipokuwa karibu na Yeriko, akainua macho, akaona mtu aliyesimama mbele yake, akiwa na upanga mkononi uliofutwa kwenye ala. Yoshua akamwendea na kumuuliza, “Je, wewe uko upande wetu au upande wa adui zetu?”
145:14 Mwa 17:3; 19:1; Dan 10:13; Ufu 2:17; Law 9:24; Hes 16:22Akajibu, “La, siko upande wowote, lakini mimi nimekuja nikiwa jemadari wa jeshi la Bwana.” Yoshua akaanguka kifudifudi hadi chini, akasujudu, akamuuliza, “Je, Bwana, una ujumbe gani kwa mtumishi wako?” 155:15 Mwa 28:17; Kut 3:5; Mdo 7:33; Kut 19:10-13; Za 22:3; 29:2; Isa 6:3; 1Nya 26:25-29; 1Sam 2:2Jemadari wa jeshi la Bwana akajibu, “Vua viatu vyako, kwa maana mahali hapa unaposimama ni patakatifu.” Naye Yoshua akafanya hivyo.
1All the Amorite and Canaanite kings heard how the Lord had dried up the Jordan River. They heard how he had dried it up for the Israelites until they had gone across it. The Amorite kings lived west of the Jordan. The kings of Canaan lived along the Mediterranean Sea. When all those kings heard what the Lord had done, they were terrified. They weren’t brave enough to face the Israelites anymore.
Circumcision and Passover at Gilgal
2At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make knives out of flint. Use them to circumcise the men of Israel.” 3So Joshua made knives out of flint. Then he used them to circumcise the men of Israel at Gibeath Haaraloth.
4Here is why Joshua circumcised them. All the men who came out of Egypt had died. They died while they were wandering through the Sinai Desert. They were the men old enough to serve in the army. 5All the men who came out had been circumcised. But all the men born in the desert during the journey from Egypt hadn’t been circumcised. 6The Israelites had moved around in the desert for 40 years. By the end of that time all the men old enough to serve in the army when they left Egypt had died. That’s because they hadn’t obeyed the Lord. He had made a promise to them. He had told them they wouldn’t see the land. It’s the land he had promised to their people to give us. It’s a land that has plenty of milk and honey. 7Because they hadn’t obeyed him, he raised up their sons to take their place. They were the ones Joshua circumcised. They hadn’t been circumcised yet. That’s because no one had circumcised them during the journey. 8So Joshua circumcised all those men. The whole nation remained in the camp until the men were healed.
9Then the Lord spoke to Joshua. He said, “Today I have taken away from you the shame of being slaves in Egypt.” That’s why the place where the men were circumcised has been called Gilgal to this very day.
10The Israelites celebrated the Passover Feast. They observed it on the evening of the 14th day of the month. They did it while they were camped at Gilgal on the plains around Jericho. 11The day after the Passover, they ate some of the food grown in the land. On that same day they ate grain that had been cooked. They also ate bread made without yeast. 12The manna stopped coming down the day after they ate the food grown in the land. The Israelites didn’t have manna anymore. Instead, that year they ate food grown in Canaan.
Israel Captures Jericho
13When Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him. The man was holding a sword. He was ready for battle. Joshua went up to him. He asked, “Are you on our side? Or are you on the side of our enemies?”
14“I am not on either side,” he replied. “I have come as the commander of the Lord’s army.” Then Joshua fell with his face to the ground. He asked the man, “What message does my Lord have for me?”
15The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your sandals. The place you are standing on is holy ground.” So Joshua took them off.
