Joshua 4:20 records that Joshua set up twelve stones at Gilgal, stones that had been carried out of the bed of the Jordan River. The stones were a memorial, placed so that the crossing of the river would be remembered and explained to future generations. The verse is part of Joshua’s account of Israel entering the Promised Land, spoken within the narrative that the book of Joshua gives of that event.
Joshua set up those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, in Gilgal.
Joshua 4:20 (WEB)
What Joshua 4:20 Means
The verse begins with “Joshua set up,” which tells you that this was a deliberate act of Joshua as leader. He did not simply leave the stones lying where they were. He stood them up as a visible marker in a particular place.
The phrase “those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan” points back to the crossing itself. Each of the twelve tribes was represented by one stone taken from the riverbed where the priests carrying the ark had stood. The number twelve ties the memorial to the whole nation rather than to any one group within it.
“In Gilgal” names the place. Gilgal became the first campsite of Israel in the land, and the stones anchored the memory of the crossing to that ground. The verse does not promise anything directly to the reader. It records a memorial and gives its location, and the meaning is explained in the verses that follow it.
The Context of Joshua 4:20
The book of Joshua is traditionally attributed to Joshua himself, with later editing, and it tells the story of Israel’s conquest and settlement of Canaan after the death of Moses. Its first audience was the Israelites who had come out of Egypt or were the children of that generation, and the book addresses them as a people about to take up residence in a land given to them by God.
Just before verse 20, the waters of the Jordan return to their place after the priests come up from the middle of the river, and the people camp at Gilgal. Verses 21 through 23 then explain that the stones are to prompt questions from children, so that parents can tell them that Israel crossed on dry ground because the LORD dried up the waters. Read this way, verse 20 is the setting up of an answer to a question that has not yet been asked.
Key Phrases in Joshua 4:20
Deuteronomy 6:20-21
20 When your son asks you in time to come, saying, “What do the testimonies, the statutes, and the ordinances, which the LORD our God has commanded you mean?” 21 then you shall tell your son, “We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt. The LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand…
(WEB)
These verses describe a child asking what the laws and statutes mean, and the parent answering with the story of God’s deliverance from Egypt. The pattern matches the instruction in Joshua 4:21-23, where memorial stones prompt the same kind of question and answer.
Psalm 77:11-12
11 I will remember Yah’s deeds; for I will remember your wonders of old. 12 I will also meditate on all your work, and consider your doings.
(WEB)
The psalmist commits to remembering the mighty deeds of the LORD, which parallels the way the stones at Gilgal preserved the memory of God’s work at the Jordan. Both passages treat remembrance as a deliberate act of faith.
A Short Prayer From Joshua 4:20
Lord, you have brought me through rivers I could not cross on my own, and I confess that I forget your faithfulness too quickly. Help me to mark the places where you have carried me, so that I can point to them when fear returns. Let my memory of your goodness become a gift I pass on to the people who come after me. Keep me grateful and steady, trusting that you who parted the waters still walk with your people today. Amen.
