Joshua 5:14

NET Bible® (New English Translation)

He answered,“Truly I am the commander of the LORD’s army. Now I have arrived!” Joshua bowed down with his face to the ground and asked,“What does my master want to say to his servant?”

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר ׀ לֹ֗א כִּ֛י אֲנִ֥י שַׂר־צְבָֽא־יְהוָ֖ה עַתָּ֣ה בָ֑אתִי וַיִּפֹּל֩ יְהוֹשֻׁ֨עַ אֶל־פָּנָ֥יו אַ֙רְצָה֙ וַיִּשְׁתָּ֔חוּ וַיֹּ֣אמֶר ל֔וֹ מָ֥ה אֲדֹנִ֖י מְדַבֵּ֥ר אֶל־עַבְדּֽוֹ׃

Transliteration

And wayyōʾmer, "No, for I am śar-ṣəḇāʾ-YHWH, now bāʾṯî." And wayyippōl yəhôšuaʿ to his face ʾarṣâ and wayyištāḥû and wayyōʾmer to him, "What ʾăḏōnî mədabbēr to his servant?"

Grammar Details

• *wayyōʾmer*: waw-consecutive + 3rd masculine singular qal imperfect - and he said
• *śar*: noun masculine singular construct - commander of
• *ṣəḇāʾ*: noun masculine singular construct - army of
• *YHWH*: divine name - LORD/Yahweh
• *bāʾṯî*: 1st common singular qal perfect - I have come
• *wayyippōl*: waw-consecutive + 3rd masculine singular qal imperfect - and he fell
• *yəhôšuaʿ*: proper noun - Joshua
• *pānāyw*: noun masculine plural with 3rd masculine singular suffix - his face
• *ʾarṣâ*: noun feminine singular with directional suffix - to the ground
• *wayyištāḥû*: waw-consecutive + 3rd masculine singular hishtaphel imperfect - and he bowed down
• *ʾăḏōnî*: noun masculine singular with 1st common singular suffix - my lord
• *mədabbēr*: piel participle masculine singular - speaking
• *ʿaḇdô*: noun masculine singular with 3rd masculine singular suffix - his servant

Word Meanings

• *wayyōʾmer*: and he said/spoke/replied
• *śar*: commander/captain/prince/chief
• *ṣəḇāʾ*: army/host/troops
• *bāʾṯî*: I have come/arrived/entered
• *wayyippōl*: and he fell/dropped down/prostrated
• *pānāyw*: his face/presence/countenance
• *ʾarṣâ*: to the ground/earthward/to the earth
• *wayyištāḥû*: and he bowed down/worshiped/prostrated himself
• *ʾăḏōnî*: my lord/master/superior
• *mədabbēr*: speaking/saying/commanding
• *ʿaḇdô*: his servant/slave/subordinate

Referenced Verses

• Gen 17:3 : 3 Abram bowed down with his face to the ground, and God said to him,
• Isa 55:4 : 4 Look, I made him a witness to nations, a ruler and commander of nations.”
• Dan 10:13 : 13 However, the prince of the kingdom of Persia was opposing me for twenty-one days. But Michael, one of the leading princes, came to help me, because I was left there with the kings of Persia.
• Dan 10:21 : 21 However, I will first tell you what is written in a dependable book.(There is no one who strengthens me against these princes, except Michael your prince.
• Dan 12:1 : 1 “At that time Michael, the great prince who watches over your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress unlike any other from the nation’s beginning up to that time. But at that time your own people, all those whose names are found written in the book, will escape.
• Matt 8:2 : 2 And a leper approached and bowed low before him, saying,“Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
• Matt 22:44 : 44 ‘The Lord said to my lord,“Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet”’?
• Luke 1:43 : 43 And who am I that the mother of my Lord should come and visit me?
• Luke 5:12 : 12 Healing a Leper While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came to him who was covered with leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he bowed down with his face to the ground and begged him,“Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
• Luke 20:42 : 42 For David himself says in the book of Psalms,‘The Lord said to my lord,“Sit at my right hand,
• John 20:28 : 28 Thomas replied to him,“My Lord and my God!”
• Acts 9:6 : 6 But stand up and enter the city and you will be told what you must do.”
• Acts 10:25-26 : 25 So when Peter came in, Cornelius met him, fell at his feet, and worshiped him. 26 But Peter helped him up, saying,“Stand up. I too am a mere mortal.”
• Phil 3:8 : 8 More than that, I now regard all things as liabilities compared to the far greater value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things– indeed, I regard them as dung!– that I may gain Christ,
• Isa 6:8 : 8 I heard the voice of the Lord say,“Whom will I send? Who will go on our behalf?” I answered,“Here I am, send me!”
• Gen 17:17 : 17 Then Abraham bowed down with his face to the ground and laughed as he said to himself,“Can a son be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Can Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?”
• Exod 4:10 : 10 Then Moses said to the LORD,“O my Lord, I am not an eloquent man, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant, for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.”
• Exod 4:13 : 13 But Moses said,“O my Lord, please send anyone else whom you wish to send!”
• Exod 23:20-22 : 20 The Angel of the Presence“I am going to send an angel before you to protect you as you journey and to bring you into the place that I have prepared. 21 Take heed because of him, and obey his voice; do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your transgressions, for my name is in him. 22 But if you diligently obey him and do all that I command, then I will be an enemy to your enemies, and I will be an adversary to your adversaries.
• Lev 9:24 : 24 Then fire went out from the presence of the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat parts on the altar, and all the people saw it, so they shouted loudly and fell down with their faces to the ground.
• Num 16:22 : 22 Then they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground and said,“O God, the God of the spirits of all people, will you be angry with the whole community when only one man sins?”
• Num 16:45 : 45 “Get away from this community, so that I can consume them in an instant!” But they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground.
• 1 Sam 3:9-9 : 9 So Eli said to Samuel,“Go back and lie down. When he calls you, say,“Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.” So Samuel went back and lay down in his place. 10 Then the LORD came and stood nearby, calling as he had previously done,“Samuel! Samuel!” Samuel replied,“Speak, for your servant is listening!”
• Ps 110:1 : 1 A psalm of David. Here is the LORD’s proclamation to my lord:“Sit down at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool!”
• Heb 2:10 : 10 For it was fitting for him, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings.
• Rev 12:7 : 7 War in Heaven Then war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back.
• Rev 19:10-14 : 10 So I threw myself down at his feet to worship him, but he said,“Do not do this! I am only a fellow servant with you and your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony about Jesus. Worship God, for the testimony about Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” 11 The Son of God Goes to War Then I saw heaven opened and here came a white horse! The one riding it was called“Faithful” and“True,” and with justice he judges and goes to war. 12 His eyes are like a fiery flame and there are many diadem crowns on his head. He has a name written that no one knows except himself. 13 He is dressed in clothing dipped in blood, and he is called the Word of God. 14 The armies that are in heaven, dressed in white, clean, fine linen, were following him on white horses.
• Rev 22:8-9 : 8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things, and when I heard and saw them, I threw myself down to worship at the feet of the angel who was showing them to me. 9 But he said to me,“Do not do this! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers the prophets, and with those who obey the words of this book. Worship God!”