Joshua 23:10

Hebrew (Westminster Leningrad Codex)

English Translation

One man of you shall chase a thousand; for Yahweh your God, he it is who fights for you, as he spoke to you.

World English Bible · Public Domain

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יִרְדָּף

râdaph

H7291

“to pursue”

Verb, Qal, Imperfect, 3rd Person, Masculine, Singular

Appears 144× in the Hebrew Bible
First appears at Genesis 14:14

Full BDB Definition

Origin: a primitive root

TWOT: 2124

to be behind, follow after, pursue, persecute, run after - (Qal) - to pursue, put to flight, chase, dog, attend closely upon - to persecute, harass (figuratively) - to follow after, aim to secure (figuratively) - to run after (a bribe) (figuratively) - (Niphal) - to be pursued - one pursued (participle) - (Piel) to pursue ardently, aim eagerly to secure, pursue - (Pual) to be pursued, be chased away - (Hiphil) to pursue, chase

About this verse

These counts appear in no published source. They are computed here, from the morphology-tagged text and Lemma’s own curated glosses. What Lemma adds →

14: words
12: distinct lemmas
Historical: section

Grammatical profile

3 verbs
3 nouns
2 adjectives
1 pronoun
3 prepositions
1 conjunction
1 particle

Verb forms

יִרְדָּף Qal · Imperfect
הַנִּלְחָ֣ם Niphal · Participle Active
דִּבֶּ֥ר Piel · Perfect

Hebrew & Septuagint length

In English translation the verse runs 24 words from the Hebrew and 21 from the Septuagint (LXX English) — closely comparable.

A rough comparison of the two English renderings, which tokenize alike — not a word-level alignment.

Word counts can differ between the Hebrew and the Greek without any difference in meaning — e.g. the Hebrew direct-object marker אֵת has no separate Greek word, and Greek often adds the article ὁ.

In the original languages it is 14 Hebrew tokens and 14 Greek tokens — but the two are counted differently (Hebrew bundles its prefixes and suffixes into one token; the Greek is in lemma form), so that isn’t a like-for-like length.

Cross-references

Topical passages linked to Joshua 23:10 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — connected by theme and wording, ordered by reader-vote popularity; previews shown in the World English Bible.

Deuteronomy 32:30 How should one chase a thousand, Two put ten thousand to flight, Except their Rock had sold them, Yahweh had delivered them up?
Leviticus 26:8 Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall chase ten thousand; and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.
Deuteronomy 3:22 You shall not fear them; for Yahweh your God, he it is who fights for you.
Exodus 14:14 Yahweh will fight for you, and you shall be still."
Psalms 35:1 Contend, Yahweh, with those who contend with me. Fight against those who fight against me.
Deuteronomy 20:4 for Yahweh your God is he who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.
Romans 8:31 What then shall we say about these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
Psalms 46:7 Yahweh of Hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

Joshua 23:3 and you have seen all that Yahweh your God has done to all these nations because of you; for Yahweh your God, he it is that has fought for you.
Psalms 44:4–5 You are my King, God. Command victories for Jacob!
1 Samuel 14:6 Jonathan said to the young man who bore his armor, Come, and let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that Yahweh will work for us; for there is no restraint to Yahweh to save by many or by few.
Joshua 10:42 All these kings and their land did Joshua take at one time, because Yahweh, the God of Israel, fought for Israel.
Exodus 23:27–33 I will send my terror before you, and will confuse all the people to whom you come, and I will make all your enemies turn their backs to you.
Judges 15:15 He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, and put forth his hand, and took it, and struck a thousand men therewith.
2 Samuel 23:8 These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: Josheb Basshebeth a Tahchemonite, chief of the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite, against eight hundred slain at one time.
Judges 7:19–22 So Gideon, and the hundred men who were with him, came to the outermost part of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch, when they had but newly set the watch: and they blew the trumpets, and broke in pieces the pitchers that were in their hands.

Judges 3:31 After him was Shamgar the son of Anath, who struck of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox-goad: and he also saved Israel.
1 Samuel 14:12–16 The men of the garrison answered Jonathan and his armor bearer, and said, Come up to us, and we will show you a thing. Jonathan said to his armor bearer, Come up after me; for Yahweh has delivered them into the hand of Israel.

Cross-references courtesy of OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0).

Hebrew and Greek witnesses Masoretic Hebrew ↔ Greek Septuagint

The same verse in the two great witnesses to the Old Testament, shown verse-for-verse.

These are two independent witnesses, not word-aligned to each other, and the Septuagint is shown in lemma (dictionary) form.

Hebrew Joshua 23:10 Masoretic · Westminster Leningrad Codex

אִישׁ אֶחָ֥ד מִכֶּ֖ם יִרְדָּף אָ֑לֶף כִּ֣י יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֗ם ה֚וּא הַנִּלְחָ֣ם לָכֶ֔ם כַּאֲשֶׁ֖ר דִּבֶּ֥ר לָכֶֽם

One man of you shall chase a thousand; for Yahweh your God, he it is who fights for you, as he spoke to you.

World English Bible · Public Domain

Greek LXX Joshua 23:10 Septuagint · lemma form

εἷς σύ διώκω χίλιοι ὅτι κύριος ὁ θεός σύ ἐκπολεμέω σύ καθάπερ εἶπον σύ

One of you has chased a thousand, for the Lord our God, he fought for you, as he said to us.

LXX2012 (modern English Septuagint) · Public Domain

Hebrew: Westminster Leningrad Codex (CC BY 4.0). Greek: Septuagint (public domain); English from LXX2012 (modern English Septuagint) (Public Domain). How the Septuagint differs from the Hebrew →

Targum (Aramaic paraphrase)

The Targum is the ancient Jewish Aramaic paraphrase of the Hebrew Scriptures — an interpretive translation, not the Hebrew text itself. Onkelos (literal) and Pseudo-Jonathan (expansive) render the Torah, and Jonathan the Prophets. Coverage is partial: where no permissively-licensed English translation exists for a verse, only the Aramaic is shown. This is verse-level text, not a word-by-word alignment to the Hebrew.

Targum Jonathan Prophets (Joshua–Malachi)

גַבְרָא חָד מִנְכוֹן יִרְדוֹף אַלְפָא אֲרֵי יְיָ אֱלָהָכוֹן מֵימְרֵיהּ מֵגִיחַ לְכוֹן כְּמָא דִי מַלֵיל לְכוֹן:

(no public-domain English translation for this verse)

Targum Jonathan — Aramaic: “Mikraot Gedolot” (public domain). English: “Sefaria Community Translation” (CC0 1.0 (public-domain dedication)); “London "Chaldee Paraphrase," 1871” (public domain). Text via Sefaria.

Commentary

Notes on Joshua 23:10 from classic Christian and Jewish commentators (each source and its license shown beneath its notes). The classic Christian expositions comment on the surrounding passage and are grouped to its opening verse, so a note may address several verses; the Jewish commentaries on the Tanakh (Rashi and others) are per-verse, so they appear only where the commentator wrote on this verse.

Lemma curates 59 commentaries, every one of them public domain or Creative Commons licensed, each selected and text-cleaned for this edition rather than reprinted as found. About our sources →

Trapp's Complete Commentary

John Trapp

Jos 23:10 One man of you shall chase a thousand: for the LORD your God, he [it is] that fighteth for you, as he hath promised you.

Ver. 10. He it is that fighteth for you.] He who alone is a whole army of men, van and rear, both. {Isa 52:12} He who "strengtheneth" and weakeneth "the arm" of either party, {Eze 30:24} and rendereth their weapons vain or prosperous. {Isa 54:17}

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Tyndale Open Study Notes

Tyndale Open Resources

23:10 God fights for you: Just as God had fought for the Israelites in the past (e.g., 10:11-14), he would continue to fight for them in the future.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 10. One man of you shall chase a thousand] Do not remain inactive on the supposition that you must be much more numerous before you can drive out your enemies, for it is the Lord that shall drive out nations great and strong; and under his direction and influence one of you shall chase a thousand.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(10) One man of you shall chase a thousand.—See Deu_28:7.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne

10. One man of you] Comp. Lev_26:8; Jdg_3:31; Jdg_15:15; 2Sa_23:8.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

John Gill's Exposition

One man of you shall chase a thousand,.... Here Kimchi and Ben Melech observe, that the future tense is put for the past, and that the sense is, one of them had chased a thousand in their war with the Canaanites; but Abarbinel disapproves of this observation, and thinks it refers to time to come, what they should be able to do if they cleaved unto the Lord; this was fulfilled in Samson, Jdg 15:15; such a promise was made, Lev 26:8,

for the Lord your God he it is that fighteth for you; and no wonder then that a thousand should be put to flight by one man; the Targum interprets it of the Word of the Lord, as in Jos 23:3,

as he hath promised you; see Deu 1:30.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary

Thousand. This Moses had repeatedly foretold, Leviticus xxvi. 13., and Deuteronomy xxviii. 7.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Matthew Poole's English Annotations

He it is that fighteth for you; impute not this therefore to your own valour, as you will be apt to do, but to God’s gracious and powerful assistance.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Whedon's Commentary on the Bible

Daniel D. Whedon

10. One shall chase a thousand — An enlargement of the promise in Lev_26:8, and nearly identical with Deu_32:30, signifying that a few shall vanquish a great multitude. See the night attack of Gideon. Jdg_7:22. Also the acts of David’s worthies, one of whom lifted his spear against eight hundred and slew three hundred. 2Sa_23:8; 2Sa_23:18; 1Ch_11:11.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The Pulpit Commentary

One man of you shall chase a thousand. A quotation from the song of Moses. (Deu_32:30)

Victory assured through the help of God.

I VICTORY IS ASSURED.

(1) The people of God are few and weak in comparison with the host of theft enemies. This was the case with the Jews. It is so in the comparison of the Church with the great godless and heathen world. It is true of our own spiritual resources and the dangers which beset our inner life. The comparison is as one to a thousand.

(2) It is a Divine law that success shall not turn on questions of numbers and visible strength. God is not always "on the side of the big battalions." Even in material warfare there are possible "accidents" and "mistakes" which vitiate arguments drawn from statistics. In spiritual warfare visible superiority counts for very little. Paul the tent maker was stronger than the Sanhedrim. The monk Luther was victorious over the Pope and the whole Roman hierarchy. Nothing could have looked feebler than Christianity when it appeared in the upper room at Jerusalem; yet in three centuries it conquered the Roman Empire, and it is now the most powerful factor in the life of the foremost races of mankind.

(3) God assures victory to His people. The victory is not only possible in spite of apparent weakness; it is certain. It is promised by God. Anticipations are constantly seen, as in the successes of Israel, the triumphs of Christianity, the victory of the Christian over his old sins, etc. Therefore let us see that we are on the side of right and truth and God, and then let us be trustful and hopeful.

II THE SECRET OF VICTORY IS THE HELP OF GOD. Israel must be brave and faithful, and must labour and fight. Yet victory is not secured by these means alone. Joshua points to the true ground of assurance: "The Lord your God, He it is that fighteth for you." How does God fight for us?

(1) He fights for us in His providence.

(a) God so overrules events that they shall minister to the victory of His people; His complete government of all things renders it certain that no calamities or temptations can fall upon His people against His will, and He can regulate and temper those that He permits.

(b) God guides the thoughts and inner lives of men. Pharaoh the oppressor and Nebuchadnezzar were led by God to do His will, though unconsciously. Even the bitterest opponents of God"s will cannot shake off this unseen control.

(2) God fights for us by innspiring us with strength to fight.

(a) He leads the mind to those thoughts which help us to resist evil and advocate truth and right with enthusiasm.

(b) He is the source of direct spiritual influences which strengthen the will in the determination to brave all for the right. W.F.A.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

John Wesley's Explanatory Notes

He fighteth - Impute not this therefore to your own valour, as you will be apt to do, but to God's gracious and powerful assistance.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

Lesson kit

Teaching starters — assembled from the data on this page, not authored interpretation. Every prompt links to the verse data it draws on. Edit before teaching.

Joshua, in the Historical, opens this verse with 14 words (12 distinct Hebrew lemmas). Its most distinctive word is râdaph (“to pursue”). A historical commentator’s framing appears above. Read the whole chapter for the surrounding context.

Discussion questions

The word râdaph carries the sense “to pursue.” How does it shape the verse?
Deuteronomy 32:30 shares this passage’s theme. How do the two illuminate each other?
The translations on this page render this verse differently — a whole-verse word diff, not a word-by-word alignment. What might account for the different wordings?
The verb «יִרְדָּף» is Qal Imperfect. How does its form color the action?
Reading how Trapp's Complete Commentary and Tyndale Open Study Notes read this verse, where do the two commentators agree and where do they part?

Things to notice

This verse counts 14 Hebrew ↔ 14 Greek words.
These translations choose different wording for 14 words in this verse.
12 distinct Hebrew lemmas span 14 words in this verse.