| Church School Lesson: Family Legacies |
"Family Legacies"
September 13, 2026
Background: Joshua 4; Print: Joshua 4:14-24;
Key Verse: Joshua 4:21-22; Devotional: Luke 8:35-39
Joshua 4:14-24 (ESV)
14 On that day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they stood in awe of him just as they had stood in awe of Moses, all the days of his life.
15 And the LORD said to Joshua,
16 “Command the priests bearing the ark of the testimony to come up out of the Jordan.”
17 So Joshua commanded the priests, “Come up out of the Jordan.”
18 And when the priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the LORD came up from the midst of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were lifted up on dry ground, the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and overflowed all its banks, as before.
19 The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they encamped at Gilgal on the east border of Jericho.
20 And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal.
21 And he said to the people of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in times to come, ‘What do these stones mean?’
22 then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’
23 For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over,
24 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, that you may fear the LORD your God forever.”
Joshua Chapter 4 (Commentary)
4:10-18 After all the people had crossed the riverbed (4:10-13), God told Joshua to command the priests carrying the ark to come up from the Jordan (4:16). When they did, the water returned to its place (4:17-18). On that day the Lord exalted Joshua so that Israel revered Joshua as they had revered Moses (4:14), through whom God had worked to part the Red Sea four decades prior. God wanted all Israel to know: Joshua is my man. Follow him.
4:19-24 The people camped at Gilgal (4:19), where Joshua reminded the Israelites to use the memorial stones to bear witness to their children about the amazing works of God (4:21-23). But ultimately this testimony wasn’t merely for the benefit of the people of God. They were to report God’s deeds so that all the peoples of the earth (including you and me) [might] know that the Lord’s hand is mighty, and so that [they would] always fear the Lord (4:24). God’s people, past and present, are to work to spread his fame and glory throughout the earth.