Introduction: Israel had crossed over the Jordan River and now they were camping in Canaan, the Promised Land! God had kept every promise He had made to Israel.
Israel, though, had not kept every promise they had made to God. One of those promises was to circumcise (definition omitted here but could be found in almost any dictionary) every male when he became eight days old (Leviticus 12:3). Nave’s Topical Bible has a number of other topics and references about circumcision (an online editions is available for free viewing at https://bibleportal.com/concordance/nave-s-topical-bible/circumcision). Verses 1 through 9 describe what Israel had to do before they could experience the LORD’s best.
1 Observing the rite of circumcision
Text, Joshua 5:1-9, KJV: 1 And it came to pass, when all the kings of the Amorites, which were on the side of Jordan westward, and all the kings of the Canaanites, which were by the sea, heard that the LORD had dried up the waters of Jordan from before the children of Israel, until we were passed over, that their heart melted, neither was there spirit in them any more, because of the children of Israel. 2 At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time. 3 And Joshua made him sharp knives, and circumcised the children of Israel at the hill of the foreskins. 4 And this is the cause why Joshua did circumcise: All the people that came out of Egypt, that were males, even all the men of war, died in the wilderness by the way, after they came out of Egypt. 5 Now all the people that came out were circumcised: but all the people that were born in the wilderness by the way as they came forth out of Egypt, them they had not circumcised. 6 For the children of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, till all the people that were men of war, which came out of Egypt, were consumed, because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD: unto whom the LORD sware that he would not shew them the land, which the LORD sware unto their fathers that he would give us, a land that floweth with milk and honey. 7 And their children, whom he raised up in their stead, them Joshua circumcised: for they were uncircumcised, because they had not circumcised them by the way. 8 And it came to pass, when they had done circumcising all the people, that they abode in their places in the camp, till they were whole. 9 And the LORD said unto Joshua, This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Wherefore the name of the place is called Gilgal unto this day.
Circumcision was designed to be a covenant (firm and binding agreement) between God, Abraham, and all of Abraham’s descendants. Abraham himself was the first man to undergo this procedure, then all of the men in Abraham’s household went through it, too (Genesis 17:9-14 and 17:23-27). Later, the Law commanded this be done on Hebrew boys when they were eight days’ old, as mentioned above (Lev. 12:3).
Israel, however, had not done this for nearly forty years! Verse 5 says that the youngsters who had left Egypt with Moses and Aaron had been circumcised but the rest, those born in the wilderness and on the journey, had not. In His mercy and grace, the LORD now gave Israel a chance to correct this error and make things right with Him. Joshua, then, “made sharp knives” and had the men of Israel circumcised. This most likely means Joshua himself did not do this but was the supervisor to make sure this was done properly.
And again, God in His Mercy and grace gave the Israelites a chance to rest and heal after this operation (these men had gone through a surgical procedure, after all). In fact, the very name of that place, Gilgal, would be a reminder that it was here God restored Israel to a right relationship with Him.
We’re not told how long the men of Israel remained in their pain—any surgery is painful!—but they seemed to rally when they knew the Passover was coming. Verses 10-12 describe some good things that happened.
2 Observing the Passover after the circumcision
Text, Joshua 5:10-12, KJV: 10 And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal, and kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even in the plains of Jericho. 11 And they did eat of the old corn of the land on the morrow after the passover, unleavened cakes, and parched corn in the selfsame day. 12 And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year.
Israel had arrived in Canaan, the Promised Land, on the 10th of the first month, sometime between mid-March and mid-April in our calendars. Now they’ve renewed the covenant with God by being circumcised, and just after this they kept the Passover. According to Exodus 12, the 14th day of the first month was the time when the Death Angel came through the land of Egypt. Unless the blood of a lamb was applied to the two side door posts and the upper post, the first born of that household would die. When the Angel saw the blood, He “passed over” that house and spared the first born.
It’s not recorded if Israel had ever kept the Passover during the 40 years of wandering in the desert, only that they kept the very first one when they left Egypt (Ellicott’s commentary states there was a second Passover kept during that time but he doesn’t give a biblical reference, per https://biblehub.com/commentaries/ellicott/joshua/5.htm). One thing for sure, though, there was a black and white statement, as we’d call it, in the Law (Exodus 12:48) that no one who was not circumcised shall eat of the Passover.
It’s also not stated but it’s likely the Israelites observed, killed, and ate the Passover just as they had done in Egypt 40 years before: the lamb, the unleavened bread, and the bitter herbs, just as Moses had instructed them. But now, they were in for a pleasant surprise: the next day, they ate some of the “old corn” or grain left in the fields or plains of Jericho! They still had manna for one more day, but the next morning, the manna was gone, never to be furnished again. As often as Israel had complained about the manna, I doubt anybody complained about the produce “ripe for the picking”, right where they were located now. As a reminder, the word translated “corn” in the King James Version really means “grain”. It’s highly unlikely maize or “Indian corn”, growing in the colonies, would be readily known in the Great Britain of King James’ time.
The Israelites were probably double-happy: they had renewed the covenant and relationship to God by observing circumcision. They also had something besides manna to eat and I’m sure they relished every bite of the new stuff, from Canaan! But while they were rejoicing, or anything else, Joshua was out and observing things. He found Someone he didn’t expect to see.
Conclusion: The encounter with the Captain of the LORD’s host
Text, Joshua 5:13-15, KJV: 13 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? 14 And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant? 15 And the captain of the LORD'S host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so.
Joshua was now “by” Jericho. The exact distance is not specified but he could have been close enough to observe or at least view the city. He also knew that if Israel failed, they would literally have nowhere to go. Would Israel be willing to flee back east, back across Jordan, to Moab and maybe even the wilderness?
And while he was “by’ Jericho, he was apparently deep in thought and didn’t even notice, at first, a very special Visitor. Joshua “looked up”—perhaps he was looking down at the ground or studying the land and terrain—and saw a man holding a drawn sword in his hand!
We have to admire Joshua’s courage. We’re not told if Joshua had any weapons at all with him, but he still walked up to him and made a challenge: “Are you for us, or for our enemies?” That seems like a fair question, to see somebody appear suddenly, and—what that drawn sword—ready for attack!
Now Joshua received one of the greatest surprises of his life. The Visitor, as we’ll see, did not answer him with an “I’m for thee” or “I’m for them”. Instead, The Visitor gave an almost cryptic answer: “Nay, (no, none of the above) but I am the Captain of the LORD’s host.”
That was enough for Joshua. The first thing he did was fall on his face and worship, and then in a very different tone, asked “What does my lord (Hebrew “adonai”, not the name of the LORD, per https://biblehub.com/text/joshua/5-14.htm) say to His servant? The only reply from the Captain was, “Take off your shoes; you’re standing on holy ground”. There was only one other time that had happened, and that was when Moses saw the burning bush (Exodus 3).
This chapter ends on an unfinished note or tone, to me. True, the Israelites had renewed the covenant and fulfilled the requirements of circumcision. They had also celebrated the Passover for what may have been a rarely observed event since leaving Egypt. And Joshua had the experience of a lifetime, seeing a Heavenly Visitor, the Captain of the LORD’s hosts! We’re not told much more—nothing, actually—about any of these but in reality, these were transition points, not terminal points. Israel was never intended to stay at or even near Gilgal—there was a whole lot of land, theirs for the taking, if they followed the LORD.
Speaking of taking the land, the time for the first encounter was right around the corner. Joshua had gone by Jericho; before long, he would lead Israel in battle against that city. For Israel, victory was closer than they had ever dreamed.
Scripture quotations taken from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV)
