⁸ The men followed the instructions that the Lord had given Joshua. They picked up twelve rocks, one for each tribe, and carried them to the camp, where they put them down.

⁹ Joshua set up a monument next to the place where the priests were standing. This monument was also made of twelve large rocks, and it is still there in the middle of the river.

The People of Israel Set Up Camp at Gilgal

^10-13 The army got ready for battle and crossed the Jordan with everyone else. They marched quickly past the sacred chest^[a] and into the desert near Jericho. Forty thousand soldiers from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and East Manasseh^[b] led the way, as Moses had ordered.^[c]

The priests stayed right where they were until the people had followed the orders that the Lord had given Moses and Joshua. Then they watched as the priests carried the chest the rest of the way across.