Joshua 5:3 records that Joshua obeyed God’s command to make flint knives and circumcise the Israelite men again, right after the nation crossed the Jordan River. The verse describes a practical act of obedience that restored a covenant sign which had been neglected for decades. Joshua speaks it as the narrator of Israel’s story, and the act is carried out at a place called the hill of the foreskins, near the new camp at Gilgal.
Joshua made himself flint knives, and circumcised the sons of Israel at the hill of the foreskins.
Joshua 5:3 (WEB)
What Joshua 5:3 Means
The verse begins with Joshua making flint knives. Stone blades were the tools of the day for this rite, and the choice of stone rather than bronze or iron gives the scene an old, ritual feel. Joshua does not delegate the task; he does it himself, which signals that the leader is personally committed to restoring this obligation before the people take on the next battle.
The second clause says he circumcised “the sons of Israel,” meaning the males of the generation that had been born in the wilderness. Circumcision was the sign of God’s covenant with Abraham, and it marked a person as belonging to the community of promise. The verse does not promise that this act will bring blessing or victory by itself. It records a faithful act of obedience that prepares the people to live as God’s covenant people in the land.
The Context of Joshua 5:3
The book of Joshua is traditionally attributed to Joshua himself, with a later editor likely adding the closing passages, and it tells how Israel entered and settled Canaan after Moses’ death. Its first audience was the Israelite people who had just crossed the Jordan and needed to understand their identity as God’s people in a new land. The surrounding verses describe the kings of the Amorites and Canaanites hearing of the crossing and losing their courage, which sets the stage for a people who must trust God’s power rather than their own.
Verses 4 through 6 explain why the rite was needed. The generation that left Egypt had largely died in the wilderness because they did not listen to the Lord, and the children born during those forty years had not been circumcised. Read this way, verse 3 is a moment of renewal, where the nation’s new generation takes its place under the covenant before taking up the land God had promised their parents.
Key Phrases in Joshua 5:3
Genesis 17:10
This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you. Every male among you shall be circumcised.
(WEB)
This verse records God’s original command to Abraham that every male be circumcised as a sign of the covenant. Reading it alongside Joshua 5:3 shows that the rite at Gilgal was a restoration of an ancient sign rather than a new invention. It helps you see the continuity of God’s promise across centuries.
Joshua 5:9
The LORD said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.” Therefore the name of that place was called Gilgal, to this day.
(WEB)
This verse explains that the Lord declared the reproach of Egypt rolled away and named the place Gilgal. It completes the story begun in verse 3 by showing what the renewal accomplished. Reading the two together highlights how God turns moments of shame into lasting reminders of grace.
A Short Prayer From Joshua 5:3
Lord, you call your people back to the covenant even after long seasons of neglect. Help me to notice the steps you are asking me to take, and give me the courage to take them without delay. Let my obedience be simple and sincere, trusting that you meet me in the act of returning. Renew in me the faithfulness of Joshua and the people at Gilgal, so that I walk in your ways with a whole heart. Amen.
