Joshua 5 explains what happened at Gilgal after Israel crossed the Jordan River: the nation was circumcised, kept the Passover in the land, and received a visit from a mysterious commander who told Joshua to remove his sandals. People read this chapter because it marks a turning point, the moment Israel’s wilderness years ended and the work of taking the land began. It also raises questions about covenant faithfulness, renewal, and what it means to stand on holy ground.
Joshua 5 Summary
The chapter opens with the kings of the Amorites and Canaanites hearing that the Jordan had been dried up for Israel. Their courage collapsed, and the reader is reminded that the crossing was a sign of God’s power, not Israel’s strength. Then the focus shifts inward. God tells Joshua to circumcise the men again, a rite that had been neglected during the forty years in the wilderness.
Once the men are healed, the people celebrate Passover at Gilgal. The manna that had sustained them for decades stops, and they begin eating the produce of the land. The chapter closes with Joshua meeting a warrior with a drawn sword near Jericho, who identifies himself as commander of the LORD’s army and commands Joshua to take off his shoes.
Background and Setting
The book of Joshua is named for its central figure, Joshua son of Nun, who succeeded Moses as Israel’s leader. Jewish and Christian tradition has long attributed the book to Joshua himself, though the closing chapters describing his death and burial suggest a later editor. Most scholars date the events of the book to the late second millennium BC, with the final form of the text taking shape over a longer period.
The book was written for a people who had recently come out of slavery and were learning to live as a covenant community in their own land. Chapter 5 sits at the hinge of the book. Chapters 1 through 4 describe preparation and the crossing, while chapters 6 through 12 describe the conquest. Chapter 5 is the pause in between, where Israel is reshaped before it moves forward.
Joshua 5 Section by Section
Verses 1-9: The Covenant Sign Restored
2 At that time, the LORD said to Joshua, “Make flint knives, and circumcise again the sons of Israel the second time.” 3 Joshua made himself flint knives, and circumcised the sons of Israel at the hill of the foreskins.
Joshua 5:2-3 (WEB)
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.
Joshua 5:9 (WEB)
The section begins with the enemies’ fear, but the emotional center is God’s command to circumcise the new generation. Circumcision was the sign of the covenant given to Abraham, and the people born in the wilderness had not received it. The text explains that the men who left Egypt died in the wilderness because they did not obey the LORD, and their children were now standing where they had once stood.
When God says he has rolled away the reproach of Egypt, the point is that the people’s shame over their slavery and their failure is being lifted. The name Gilgal, which sounds like the Hebrew word for “rolling,” becomes a lasting memorial of that moment. The reader is invited to see that God restores identity before he restores territory.
Verses 10-12: Passover and the End of Manna
10 The children of Israel encamped in Gilgal. They kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month at evening in the plains of Jericho. 11 They ate unleavened cakes and parched grain of the produce of the land on the next day after the Passover, in the same day.
Joshua 5:10-11 (WEB)
The manna ceased on the next day, after they had eaten of the produce of the land. The children of Israel didn’t have manna any more; but they ate of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year.
Joshua 5:12 (WEB)
Once the camp has healed, Israel keeps Passover in the plains of Jericho, a feast that recalled the night of deliverance from Egypt. The timing is deliberate: the nation that had lived on manna now eats the grain of the land. This is a transition from dependence on daily gifts in the wilderness to a settled life of planting and harvest.
The end of manna can feel like a loss, and the text does not hide that. Yet the people are not abandoned. They are moved from the way God fed them in one season to the way he provides in another, and the chapter treats this change as the natural fruit of God’s faithfulness.
Verses 13-15: The Commander of the LORD’s Army
13 When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man stood in front of him with his sword drawn in his hand. Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our enemies?” 14 He said, “No; but I have come now as commander of the LORD’s army.” Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and worshiped, and asked him, “What does my lord say to his servant?”
Joshua 5:13-14 (WEB)
The prince of the LORD’s army said to Joshua, “Take off your shoes; for the place on which you stand is holy.” Joshua did so.
Joshua 5:15 (WEB)
The final scene is one of the most striking encounters in the Old Testament. Joshua sees a man with a drawn sword and asks whose side he is on. The answer is that he has come as commander of the LORD’s army, which means the question of allegiance is turned around: Joshua must ask whom he serves, not whether God serves him.
Joshua falls to the ground in worship, and the command to remove his sandals echoes the scene at the burning bush in Exodus 3. The place is holy because the presence of God makes it so. The chapter closes with Joshua obeying, preparing him for the battle at Jericho that follows.
Key Themes in Joshua 5
- Covenant renewal: Circumcision restores the sign of God’s promise to a generation that had been left out of it.
- Memory and identity: Gilgal and Passover tie the present people to the story of their deliverance and their name.
- Divine provision: The end of manna shows that God’s care changes form as his people move into a new season.
- Holiness and worship: The commander’s words to Joshua teach that God’s presence makes ground holy and calls for reverence.
Lessons From Joshua 5 for Today
Many people come to a new season of life, such as a new job, a move, or a recovery from a hard year, carrying the habits of the old one. Joshua 5 shows that God often begins a new chapter by calling people back to what matters most. A person who has drifted from prayer or church might find that the first step forward is simply returning to the basic practices of faith.
The chapter also speaks to those who feel that a change in provision means God has stopped caring. When a familiar support fades, as the manna did, it can feel like abandonment. Joshua 5 suggests that such moments are better read as an invitation to trust God in new ways, the way Israel learned to plant, harvest, and eat from the land.
Questions for Reflection
- What practices in your life function as a “sign of the covenant,” reminding you of God’s promises?
- Where might you be carrying shame or reproach that God has already said he is rolling away?
- When a source of provision has changed in your life, how did you respond, and what might you learn from it now?
- In what everyday places have you sensed that the ground is holy, and how did that change the way you acted?
A Prayer From Joshua 5
Lord, you bring your people across the water and then call them back to the signs that remind them who they belong to. Clear away the shame I carry from old failures and help me remember that you have already rolled it away. When the familiar ways you have provided for me begin to change, teach me to trust your hand in the new season and to eat the fruit of the land you are giving me now. Help me take off whatever keeps me from you and stand with reverence in the places you have made holy. Amen.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why was circumcision done again in Joshua 5?
The men who came out of Egypt had mostly died in the wilderness, and their children had not been circumcised during those forty years. God commanded the rite so that the new generation would be marked as part of his covenant before entering the land. It restored a sign that had been neglected.
What is the significance of the name Gilgal?
The text connects the name to God’s statement that he had rolled away the reproach of Egypt. The name resembles the Hebrew word for rolling, so it became a lasting memorial of that moment. It marked the place where Israel’s shame was lifted.
Who is the man Joshua meets near Jericho?
He identifies himself as commander of the LORD’s army, and the chapter presents him in a way that echoes God’s appearance at the burning bush. Interpreters have long debated whether he is a divine messenger or a direct manifestation of the LORD, but the text makes clear that the ground is holy because of his presence.
