Joshua 8:32
in Joshua 8And there in the presence of the Israelites, Joshua inscribed on the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he had written.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And he wrote there upon the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he wrote, in the presence of the children of Israel.
KJV
And he wrote there upon the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he wrote in the presence of the children of Israel.
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This verse in Joshua 8
Commentary
3 notes on this verseA copy of the law of Moses - משנה תורת mishneh torath, the repetition of the law; that is, a copy of the blessings and curses, as commanded by Moses; not a copy of the Decalogue, as some imagine, nor of the book of Deuteronomy, as others think; much less of the whole Pentateuch; but merely of that part which contained the blessings and curses, and which was to be read on this solemn occasion. See the note on Deu 27:3.
This site's exposition
a copy of the law
How much was written on the stones is read differently: the ten commandments, the blessings and cursings of Deuteronomy 27 and 28, or the book of the law entire, and the verse settles none of it. Deuteronomy 27:2 and 27:4 had the stones plaistered first, and writing on a plaistered face is the Egyptian method the generation out of Egypt knew. The word rendered copy here is the same word used at Deuteronomy 17:18 of the book a king was to write out for himself.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Upon the stones - Not upon the stones of the altar, which were to be rough and unpolished, ver. 31, but upon other stones, smooth and plaistered, as is manifest from Deut. xxvii, 2.
The words behind it
13 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיִּכְתָּב־ | vaiyikhtov- | and he wrote | H3789 → | 224 times |
| שָׁ֖ם | sham | there | H8033 → | 834 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| הָאֲבָנִ֑ים | haavanim | the stones | H68 → | 273 times |
| אֵ֗ת | ʾet | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| מִשְׁנֵה֙ | mishneh | <the> copy of | H4932 → | |
| תּוֹרַ֣ת | torat | [the] law of | H8451 → | 219 times |
| מֹשֶׁ֔ה | mosheh | Moses | H4872 → | 765 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֣ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| כָּתַ֔ב | katav | he had written | H3789 → | 224 times |
| לִפְנֵ֖י | lifnei | <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| בְּנֵ֥י | benei | [the] people of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
וַיִּכְתָּב־and he wrote
vaiyikhtov-H3789 →224 times
שָׁ֖םthere
shamH8033 →834 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
הָאֲבָנִ֑יםthe stones
haavanimH68 →273 times
אֵ֗ת<obj.>
ʾetH853 →10935 times
מִשְׁנֵה֙<the> copy of
mishnehH4932 →
תּוֹרַ֣ת[the] law of
toratH8451 →219 times
מֹשֶׁ֔הMoses
moshehH4872 →765 times
אֲשֶׁ֣רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
כָּתַ֔בhe had written
katavH3789 →224 times
לִפְנֵ֖י<to> before
lifneiH6440 →2123 times
בְּנֵ֥י[the] people of
beneiH1121 →4930 times
יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃Israel
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
3 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Deuteronomy 27:8And you shall write distinctly upon these stones all the words of this law.”
it leads to
- Habakkuk 2:2
Then the LORD answered me: “Write down this vision and clearly inscribe it on tablets, so that a herald may run with it.
- John 16:25
I have spoken these things to you in figures of speech. An hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you this way, but will tell you plainly about the Father.
- 2 Corinthians 3:12
Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold.
- Habakkuk 2:2
About Joshua
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth.