Joshua 5:14

5:14 He answered, ¹  “Truly I am the commander of the Lord’s army. ²  Now I have arrived!” ³  Joshua bowed down with his face to the ground ⁴  and asked, “What does my master want to say to his servant?”

Joshua 6:2

6:2 The Lord told Joshua, “See, I am about to defeat Jericho for you, ⁵  along with its king and its warriors.

Joshua 7:10

7:10 The Lord responded ⁶  to Joshua, “Get up! Why are you lying there face down? ⁷ 

Joshua 13:1-7

The Lord Speaks to Joshua

13:1 When Joshua was very old, ⁸  the Lord told him, “You are very old, and a great deal of land remains to be conquered. 13:2 This is the land that remains: all the territory of the Philistines and all the Geshurites, 13:3 from the Shihor River ⁹  east of ¹⁰  Egypt northward to the territory of Ekron (it is regarded as Canaanite territory), ¹¹  including the area belonging to the five Philistine lords who ruled in Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron, as well as Avvite land ¹²  13:4 to the south; ¹³  all the Canaanite territory, ¹⁴  from Arah ¹⁵  in the region of Sidon ¹⁶  to Aphek, as far as Amorite territory; 13:5 the territory of Byblos ¹⁷  and all Lebanon to the east, from Baal Gad below Mount Hermon to Lebo Hamath. ¹⁸  13:6 I will drive out before the Israelites all who live in the hill country from Lebanon to Misrephoth Maim, ¹⁹  all the Sidonians; you be sure to parcel it out to Israel as I instructed you.” ²⁰  13:7 Now, divide up this land ²¹  among the nine tribes and the half-tribe of Manasseh.”

[5:14]  ¹ tc Heb “He said, “Neither.” An alternative reading is לוֹ (lo, “[He said] to him”; cf. NEB). This reading is supported by many Hebrew mss, as well as the LXX and Syriac versions. The traditional reading of the MT (לֹא, lo’, “no, neither”) is probably the product of aural confusion (the two variant readings sound the same in Hebrew). Although followed by a number of modern translations (cf. NIV, NRSV), this reading is problematic, for the commander of the Lord’s army would hardly have declared himself neutral.

[5:14]  ² sn The Lord’s heavenly army, like an earthly army, has a commander who leads the troops. For the phrase שַׂר־צְבָא (sar-tsÿva’, “army commander”) in the human sphere, see among many other references Gen 21:22, 32; 26:26; Judg 4:2, 7; 1 Sam 12:9.

[5:14]  ³ sn The commander’s appearance seems to be for Joshua’s encouragement. Joshua could now lead Israel into battle knowing that the Lord’s invisible army would ensure victory.

[5:14]  ⁴ tn Heb “Joshua fell on his face to the ground and bowed down.”

[6:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “I have given into your hand Jericho.” The Hebrew verb נָתַתִּי (natatti, “I have given”) is probably best understood as a perfect of certitude, indicating the certainty of the action. The Hebrew pronominal suffix “your” is singular, being addressed to Joshua as the leader and representative of the nation. To convey to the modern reader what is about to happen and who is doing it, the translation “I am about to defeat Jericho for you” has been used.

[7:10]  ⁶ tn Heb “said.”

[7:10]  ⁷ tn Heb “Why are you falling on your face?”

[13:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “was old, coming into the days.” This expression, referring to advancing in years, also occurs in the following clause.

[13:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “the Shihor”; the word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied to clarify the meaning.

[13:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “in front of.”

[13:3]  ¹¹ tn Heb “it is reckoned to the Canaanites.”

[13:3]  ¹² tn Heb “the five lords of the Philistines, the Gazaite, the Ashdodite, the Ashkelonite, the Gathite, and the Ekronite, and the Avvites.”

[13:4]  ¹³ tn Or “from Teman.” The phrase is especially problematic if taken with what follows, as the traditional verse division suggests. For further discussion see T. C. Butler, Joshua (WBC), 146.

[13:4]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “all the land of the Canaanites.”

[13:4]  ¹⁵ tc The reading “Arah” assumes a slight emendation of the Hebrew vowel pointing. The MT reads, “and a cave,” or “and Mearah” (if one understands the word as a proper noun).

[13:4]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “which belongs to the Sidonians.”

[13:5]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “and the land of the Gebalites.”

[13:5]  ¹⁸ tn Or “the entrance to Hamath.” Most modern translations take the phrase “Lebo Hamath” to be a proper name, but often provide a note with the alternative, where “Hamath” is the proper name and לְבוֹא (lÿvo’) is taken to mean “entrance to.”

[13:6]  ¹⁹ tn The meaning of the Hebrew name “Misrephoth Maim” is perhaps “lime-kilns by the water” (see HALOT 2:641).

[13:6]  ²⁰ tn Heb “only you, assign it by lots to Israel as an inheritance as I commanded you.”

[13:7]  ²¹ tn Heb “now apportion this land as an inheritance.”