Bible Strands
Joshua 5:2
At that time the LORD said to Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise the sons of Israel once again.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — At the moment the surrounding kings fear Israel after the Jordan crossing, Yahweh speaks directly to Joshua. He commands Joshua to prepare flint knives and perform circumcision on the Israelite men again.
The words — The Hebrew עֲשֵׂה ('a.Seh) commands "make" or "do," while חַרְבֹּת (char.Vot) specifies "knives" or "daggers" forged from flint. These terms ground the divine command in tangible, immediate action.
The thread — This physical act echoes the flint knife Zipporah used in Exodus 4:25 and anticipates the spiritual circumcision of Deuteronomy 10:16 and 30:6. The narrative links ritual obedience to covenant identity across the Pentateuch and conquest accounts.
Why it lands — The text demands immediate compliance with a covenant sign at a critical military juncture. It requires readers to recognize that physical preparation precedes divine action and that covenant markers are non-negotiable prerequisites for entering the promise.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
At that time the Lord said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time.
Cross-references
- Deuteronomy 10:16 Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and stiffen your necks no more.
- Deuteronomy 30:6 The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, and you will love Him with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live.
- Exodus 4:25 But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son’s foreskin, and touched it to Moses’ feet. “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,” she said.
- Genesis 17:10 This is My covenant with you and your descendants after you, which you are to keep: Every male among you must be circumcised.
- Romans 4:11 And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but are not circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them.
- Colossians 2:11 In Him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of your sinful nature, with the circumcision performed by Christ and not by human hands.
- Romans 2:29 No, a man is a Jew because he is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man’s praise does not come from men, but from God.