Josue 5:16
Loose, saith he, thy shoes from off thy feet: for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Josue did as was commanded him.
Open Josue 5:16 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Solve, inquit, calceamentum tuum de pedibus tuis : locus enim, in quo stas, sanctus est. Fecitque Josue ut sibi fuerat imperatum.
- Septuagint (Swete) shown from Josue 5:15
- καὶ λέγει ὁ ἀρχιστράτηγος Κυρίου πρὸς Ἰησοῦν Λῦσαι τὸ ὑπόδημα ἐκ τῶν ποδῶν σου· ὁ γὰρ τόπος ἐφ᾽ ᾧ νῦν ἕστηκας ἅγιός ἐστιν.
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Josue 5:15
- וַיֹּאמֶר֩ שַׂר צְבָ֨א יְהוָ֜ה אֶל יְהוֹשֻׁ֗עַ שַׁל נַֽעַלְךָ֙ מֵעַ֣ל רַגְלֶ֔ךָ כִּ֣י הַמָּק֗וֹם אֲשֶׁ֥ר אַתָּ֛ה עֹמֵ֥ד עָלָ֖יו קֹ֣דֶשׁ ה֑וּא וַיַּ֥עַשׂ יְהוֹשֻׁ֖עַ כֵּֽן
Haydock's commentary
Loose. The angel did not only accept of the honour done to him, but also required more, shewing that the field near Jericho was rendered holy, by his presence. (Worthington)
Hence he ordered Josue to put off his shoes, as Moses had done at the bush, Exodus iii. 5. The Turks leave their shoes at the doors of their mosques, and do not dare to tread on the bare floor. Formerly the pagans would not spit in their temples. (Arrian.) "If, says Porphyrius, in the sacrifices instituted by men, in honour of the gods, people be careful to have their shoes clean, with how much greater attention ought we to preserve our bodies, which are, as it were, the garments of the soul, free from every impurity and corruption!" (Abstin. 2.) (Calmet)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Cyprian Three Books of Testimonies Against the Jews, That Christ is the Bridegroom, having the Church as His bride, from which spiritual children were to be born
In Joel: “Blow with the trumpet in Sion; sanctify a fast, and call a healing; assemble the people, sanctify the Church, gather the elders, collect the little ones that suck the breast; let the Bridegroom go forth of His chamber, and the bride out of her closet.” Also in Jeremiah: “And I will take away from the cities of Judah, and from the streets of Jerusalem, the voice of the joyous, and the voice of the glad; the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride.” Also in the eighteenth Psalm: “And he is as a bridegroom going forth from his chamber; he exulted as a giant to run his course. From the height of heaven is his going forth, and his circuit even to the end of it; and there is nothing which is hid from his heat.” Also in the Apocalypse: “Come, I will show thee the new bride, the Lamb’s wife. …
Eusebius The Church History of Eusebius, Summary View of the Pre-existence and Divinity of Our Saviour and Lord Jesus Christ
12. “And it came to pass when Joshua was at Jericho that he looked and saw a man standing over against him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went unto him and said, Art thou for us or for our adversaries? And he said unto him, As captain of the host of the Lord am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and said unto him, Lord, what dost thou command thy servant? and the captain of the Lord said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy.”
St Jerome The Letters of St. Jerome, To Eustochium
Some people may be eunuchs from necessity; I am one of free will. “There is a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing. There is a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together.” Now that out of the hard stones of the Gentiles God has raised up children unto Abraham, they begin to be “holy stones rolling upon the earth.” They pass through the whirlwinds of the world, and roll on in God’s chariot on rapid wheels. Let those stitch coats to themselves who have lost the coat woven from the top throughout; who delight in the cries of infants which, as soon as they see the light, lament that they are born. In paradise Eve was a virgin, and it was only after the coats of skins that she began her married life. Now paradise is your home too. …
St Jerome Against Jovinianus, Book I
21. I must not linger over Moses when my purpose is at full speed to lightly touch on each topic and to sketch the outline of a proper knowledge of my subject. I will pass to Joshua the son of Nun, who was previously called Ause, or better, as in the Hebrew, Osee, that is, Saviour . For he,according to the epistle of Jude, saved the people of Israel and led them forth out of Egypt, and brought them into the land of promise. As soon as this Joshua reached the Jordan, the waters of marriage, which had ever flowed in the land, dried up and stood in one heap; and the whole people, barefooted and on dry ground, crossed over, and came to Gilgal, and there was a second time circumcised. If we take this literally, it cannot possibly stand. For if we had two foreskins, or if another could grow after the first was cut off, there would be room for speaking of a second circumcision. …