Joshua 4:12

_AND THE CHILDREN OF REUBEN, AND THE CHILDREN OF GAD, AND HALF THE TRIBE OF MANASSEH, PASSED OVER ARMED BEFORE THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, AS MOSES SPAKE UNTO THEM:_ The children of Reuben ... passed over armed before the children of Israel. There is no precedency to the other tribes indicated herethere is no reason to suppose that the usual order of march was departed from; but these are honourably mentioned, to show that, in pursuance of their engagement (Joshua 1:16), they had sent a complement of fighting men to accompany their brethren in the war of invasion....

12._And the children of Reuben, _etc He makes mention of the expedition of the two tribes and half tribe, as they did not set out to engage in warfare on their own private account, but to assist their brethren, by whose valor their own possession had been obtained in seizing the land of Canaan. Moses had laid them under this obligation, and they had bound themselves by oath that they would accompany the rest of the people till all should have obtained a quiet settlement. They again made the same promise when the camp was about to be moved as we saw in Joshua 1:0. But from the narrative here we gather that only a part was selected, for the number amounts only to forty thousand, that is, a third, or about a third of the number ascertained by the census taken shortly before. Now, as they are everywhere said to have performed their promise, it may be probably conjectured that it was

10-19 The priests with the ark did not stir till ordered to move. Let none be weary of waiting, while they have the tokens of God's presence with them, even the ark of the covenant, though it be in the depths of adversity. Notice is taken of the honour put upon Joshua. Those are feared in the best manner, and to the best purpose, who make it appear that God is with them, and that they set him before them....

Verse Joshua 4:12. _THE CHILDREN OF REUBEN, AND - GAD_] Concerning the numbers of these tribes that stayed behind to take care of the women, children, and cattle, and which amounted to 70,580 men, Numbers 32:17. _PASSED OVER ARMED_] Joshua 1:14....

EXPOSITION THE MEMORIAL.— JOSHUA 4:2 TWELVE STONES. The commemoration of events by the setting up of huge stones was by no means peculiar to the Jews, though it was often used by them, as, for instance, Genesis 28:18; Genesis 35:14, 1 Samuel 7:12. Almost every nation has adopted it. The Egyptian obelisks, the stones at Hamath, supposed to be of Hittite origin, the dolmens and other megalithic monuments of the Celts, the Logan or rocking stones, are cases in point. The Scandinavians filled their country with them. Our own Stonehenge and the Avebury s

AND THE CHILDREN OF REUBEN, AND THE CHILDREN OF GAD, AND HALF THE TRIBE OF MANASSEH,.... Who were settled on the other side Jordan, in the countries taken from Sihon and Og: PASSED OVER ARMED BEFORE THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL; the rest of the tribes: AS MOSES SPAKE UNTO THEM; or ordered them, and as they promised they would, Numbers 32:17....

4. THE MEMORIAL STONES CHAPTER 4 _ 1. The first memorial (Joshua 4:1)_ 2. The second memorial (Joshua 4:9) 3. The return of the priests with the ark (Joshua 4:10) 4. The encampment at Gilgal (Joshua 4:19) Jehovah commanded that the great event should be remembered by a memorial. From the river-bed, where the priest's feet stood firm, twelve men, one from each tribe, were to carry twelve stones and leave them at the first lodging place in the land, that is, at Gilgal. These memorial stones were to tell subsequent generations the story of God's faithfulness and power in bringing His people through Jordan into t

JOSHUA 3:1 TO JOSHUA 5:1. THE CROSSING OF JORDAN. Here we begin to meet with more serious difficulties. The old tradition was that after the Israelites had crossed the Jordan, they commemorated the event by the erection of twelve stones. But this simple narrative existed in two recensions, which differed as to the destination of these memorial stones. According to one account, they were to be placed in the midst of the river; according to the other, they were to be set up on the W. side of the Jordan in the place where the army encamped for the night. Deuteronomic additions have been made to these narratives, _i.e._ additions of a religious colouring as in Joshua 3:7, And Yahweh said unto Joshua, This day will I begin to magnify thee in t

REUBEN. Compare Numbers 32:27. Compare Joshua 1:12. ARMED. by fives. Compare Joshua 6:7; Joshua 6:9. These formed the van....

_passed over armed before the children of Israel_ Contrary to the usual order (Numbers 32:20), as if to secure that they should fulfil their vow....