Joshua 1:2 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Joshua 1:2
Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel.
a servant · noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix
dead
מֵ֑תMet
H4191
to die (literally or figuratively) · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
arise
ק֨וּםkum
H6965
to rise (in various applications · verb, qal imperative, 2nd person masculine singular
over
עֲבֹ֜ר'a.Vor
H5674
to cross over · verb, qal imperative, 2nd person masculine singular
Jordan
הַיַּרְדֵּ֣ןhai.yar.Den
H3383
Jarden · definite article + proper noun, a place name
people
הָעָ֣םha.'Am
H5971
a people (as a congregated unit) · definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
land
הָאָ֕רֶץha.'A.retz
H776
the earth (at large · definite article + noun, common feminine singular absolute
give
נֹתֵ֥ןno.Ten
H5414
to give · verb, qal active participle, masculine singular absolute
children
לִבְנֵ֥יliv.Nei
H1121
a son (as a builder of the family name) · preposition + noun, common masculine plural construct
Israel
יִשְׂרָאֵֽלYis.ra.'El
H3478
Jisrael · proper noun, a place name
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Deuteronomy 3:28 But charge Joshua, and encourage him, and strengthen him: for he shall go over before this people, and he shall cause them to inherit the la…
Deuteronomy 31:7 And Moses called unto Joshua, and said unto him in the sight of all Israel, Be strong and of a good courage: for thou must go with this peop…
Numbers 27:16-21 Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation,
Joshua 1:1 Now after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass, that the LORD spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, sayin…
Joshua 1:11 Pass through the host, and command the people, saying, Prepare you victuals; for within three days ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in…
Isaiah 42:1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to th…
Hebrews 3:5-6 And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after;
Hebrews 7:23-24 And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death:
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Joshua 1:1-9
Honour is here put upon Joshua, and great power lodged in his hand, by him that is the fountain of honour and power, and by whom kings reign. Instructions are given him by Infinite Wisdom, and encouragements by the God of all consolation. God had before spoken to Moses concerning him (Num 27:18), but now he speaks to him (v. 1), probably as he spoke to Moses (Lev 1:1) out of the tabernacle of the congregation, where Joshua had with Moses presented himself (Deu 31:14), to learn the way of attending there. Though Eleazar had the breast-plate of judgment, which Joshua was directed to consult as there was occasion (Num 27:21), yet, for his greater encouragement, God here speaks to him immediatel…
now therefore arise, go over this Jordan--Joshua's mission was that of a military leader. This passage records his call to begin the work, and the address contains a literal repetition of the promise made to Moses (Deu 11:24-25; Deu 31:6-8, Deu 31:23).
Adam Clarke on Joshua 1:2
Moses my servant - The word, servant, as applied both to Moses and Joshua, is to be understood in a very peculiar sense. It signifies God's prime minister, the person by whom he issued his orders, and by whom he accomplished all his purposes and designs. No person ever bore this title in the like sense but the Redeemer of mankind, of whom Moses and Joshua were types.
Go over this Jordan - The account given by Josephus of this river may not be unacceptable here. "Panium is thought to be the mountain of Jordan, but in reality it is carried thither in an occult manner from the place called Phiala. This place lies on the road to Trachonitis, and is one hundred and twenty furlongs from Caesarea,…
Moses my servant is dead,.... Which was said not for the information of Joshua, but to lead on to, and show the cause and reason of what he was about to say to him:
now therefore arise, go over this Jordan; near to which the whole body of the people of Israel were, and very probably were in sight of it:
thou, and all this people: which were very numerous, six hundred thousand men or more, besides a great number of women and children, and no boats to carry them over, or pontoons to put across the river:
unto the land which I give unto them, even to the children of Israel; and therefore it could be no case of conscience with Joshua, to go and take it out of the hands of the present inhabita…
The Church Fathers
We must also give an account of the death of Moses; for unless we understand how Moses dies, we shall not be able to perceive how Jesus reigns. If therefore you consider Jerusalem overthrown, the altar abandoned, nowhere sacrifices nor victims nor drink offerings, nowhere priests, nowhere high priests, nowhere the ministries of the Levites: when you see all these things cease, say that "Moses the servant of God is dead." If you see no one "coming three times a year into the sight of the Lord," nor offering gifts in the temple, nor slaying the "Passover," nor "eating unleavened bread," nor offering "firstfruits," nor "consecrating the firstborn," when you see all these things not being celebrated, say that "Moses the servant of God is dead." But when you see the nations entering into the faith, churches being built, altars sprinkled not with the gore of beasts but consecrated with the "precious blood" of Christ, when you see priests and Levites ministering not "the blood of bulls and goats" but the word of God through the grace of the Holy Spirit, then say that Jesus after Moses has taken up and obtained the leadership — not that "Jesus the son of Nave," but Jesus the Son of God. When you see that "Christ our Passover has been sacrificed" and we eat "the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth," when you see the fruits of the good land in the church "thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold," widows, virgins, and martyrs, when you see the seed of Israel multiplied from those who were "born not of blood, nor of the will of man, nor of the will of the flesh, but of God," and when you see "the sons of God who were scattered gathered into one," when you see "the people of God keeping the Sabbath," not keeping leisure from common intercourse, but keeping leisure from the working of sin, when you see all these things, say that "Moses the servant of God is dead" and Jesus the Son of God obtains the leadership. Finally, in a certain little book too — in which, although it is not held in the canon, nevertheless the figure of this mystery is described — it is related that two Moseses were seen: one alive in spirit and another dead in body. In which without doubt this is what was foreshadowed: that if you gaze upon the letter of the law as empty and void of all those things which we have mentioned above, that itself is the Moses dead in body. But if you are able to…
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Call · .JOSHUA — .JOSHUA
Communion · .Joshua — .Joshua
Courage · Enjoined upon Joshua — Enjoined upon Joshua
Desert, Journey Of Israel Through The · Joshua ordered to cross Jordan — Joshua ordered to cross Jordan
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
Joshua 1:1-4
1. Now after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass, that the LORD spoke unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' minister, saying,
1. Fuit autem post mortem Mosis, ut Jehova alloqueretur Josue, dicendo, [12]
2. Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel.
2. Moses servus meus mortuus est: nunc ergo surge, trajice Jordanem istum tu, et omnis hic populus, ad terram quam ego do illis, nempe filiis Israel.
3. Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.
3. Omnem locum quem calcaver…
As Moses had died without having brought the Israelites to Canaan, Joshua was to arise and go with all the nation over this Jordan (i.e., the river then before him) into the land which the Lord would give them.
Tyndale Open Study Notes on Joshua 1:1-9
God confirmed Joshua as Israel’s leader and Moses’ successor. God made Abraham a specific promise to bring his descendants into possession of the land of Canaan (Gen 12:7; 15:7; 17:8). This promise was repeated to Moses (Exod 3:6-8; 13:3-5; Deut 1:6-8; 6:10-19). Now God was ready to fulfill his promise using Joshua. Joshua led Israel’s first generation of settlers into the Promised Land, and his victories against two Canaanite coalitions—first in the south and then in the north—opened the hill country for settlement by the Israelites.
1:1-2 Moses had died on Mount Nebo east of the Jordan (Deut 34:1-5).
Rashi on Joshua 1:2
Moshe, My servant is dead. But if he were alive,4According to Rashi, this is connected to what follows: Since he is dead, you must arouse yourself and cross this Jordan. I would have wanted him [as the leader].5According to Metsudas Dovid, Hashem said that if Moshe was still alive, you would be unable to cross the Jordon because of the decree preventing him from crossing the Jordon. See Bamidbar 20:12; Ibid 27:12,13. Our Sages explain [that this passage is a reference] [to the three thousand laws that were forgotten] during the period of mourning for Moshe. Yehoshua then came and asked.6When the Bnei Yisroel realized that they had forgotten so many laws of the Torah, they came to Yehoshua an…
