Prepare you victuals: for after the third day you shall pass over the Jordan and shall go in to possess the land, which the Lord your God will give you.

“Prepare your travel needs. [Prepare] everything necessary for (traveling) and weapons for the [upcoming] battle, he said to them. You cannot say the צֵדָה refers to food and drink maintains that while they still ate of the manna, they bought other varieties of food from the non-Jewish merchants, and it was these foods that they were commanded to prepare. for they had sufficient manna in their vessels to last them untill the sixteenth of Nissan, and so it is said: ‘The manna ceased on the morrow.’ After three days. At the end of three days. When you will have been here three days; then you will cross [the Jordan].”

“Pass through the host,.... The whole camp of Israel, consisting of six hundred thousand fighting men: and command the people; even all the people of Israel; this includes women as well as men, for the one, as well as the other, were to do what follows, and especially it may seem the business of the former: saying, prepare ye victuals; this must be understood; as Kimchi observes, of other sorts of food besides bread; for they had manna, the bread of heaven, which fell about their tents every morning, so that they were sufficiently provided with that always, and which did not cease until they had entered the land, even until the sixteenth of Nisan, Jos 5:12; though indeed, as Abendana observes, that might be said to be prepared, it being ground in mills, and beat in mortars, and made cakes of, Num 11:8; but rather this designs meat and other provisions, which being upon the borders of Moab and Midian, they could furnish themselves with for their money; and besides, they were in the possession of a fine country, of Bashan and Gilead, they had taken from Sihon and Og. Jarchi interprets it of everything fit for journeying, and arms for war, with which they were supplied from the spoils of their enemies, the Egyptians at the Red sea, Amalek at Rephidim, and the Amorites and Midianites lately smitten by them; and to this sense Josephus (m) seems to agree: for within three days ye shall pass over this Jordan: or at the end of three days, as the Targum of Jonathan; and so Jarchi, while there are yet three days, after that ye shall pass over: but here arises a difficulty to be reconciled, how this could be done three days after, when the spies, which Joshua is afterward said to send into the land, stayed three days in the mountains, besides the time of their going, and returning, and stay at Rahab's house; and it was not till after their return that the camp began to move; to which it may be observed, that though the affair of the spies is afterward related, they might have been sent by Joshua before this order was given to prepare for the journey, and of this opinion are several of the Jewish writers (n): this being the case, they might return before the expiration of these three days, at the end of which Joshua, with the whole host, moved, agreeably to these orders: to go in to possess the land which the Lord your God giveth you to possess it; which must be a great inducement and encouragement to them to observe his instructions, and go over with him. (m) Antiqu. l. 5. c. 1. sect. 1. (n) Jarchi, Ben Gersom, & Abarbinel in loc.”

“Prepare you victuals - צדה tsedah, such prey or provisions as they had taken from the conquered countries, such as corn, oxen, sheep, etc.; for the word signifies prey, or what is taken by hunting, etc. This was necessary, as they were about to undergo considerable fatigue in marching, and in making preparations for the passage of the Jordan; for although the manna had not ceased to fall, yet such other provisions as are mentioned above were necessary on this occasion. For within three days ye shall pass - Calmet contends, with great appearance of truth, that these three days should be reckoned from the first day of their encamping at Jordan, three days after the return of the spies, i.e., on the eighth day of the first month, on the tenth of which they passed over Jordan. The text therefore is supposed to mean, Prepare victuals for three days' march, for "on the third day after your decampment from Shittim ye shall pass over this Jordan."”

“Victuals. The manna still supplied the army after they had passed the Jordan, chap. v. 12. But Josue might fear lest the people might not have liberty to gather it in the midst of the enemy’s country, or he might perhaps suppose that this miraculous food would be withdrawn, as soon as they had entered Chanaan. He therefore takes all necessary precautions, and gets other sorts of provisions in the neighbourhood. (Calmet) — This might foreshew, that in the primitive Church the ceremonies and privileges of the old law would not be abrogated immediately, but they might be used for a time along with the rites of the gospel, till the old law should be buried with honour. (Worthington) — Third day, after their departure from Setim; or perhaps this order was only published when the Israelites were arrived on the banks of the Jordan. (Calmet)”

“command the people, saying, Prepare you victuals--not manna, which, though it still fell, would not keep; but corn, sheep, and articles of food procurable in the conquered countries. for within three days ye shall pass over this Jordan--that is, the third day, according to Hebrew idiom--the time allotted for getting ready before the encampment in Abel-Shittim broke up and they removed to the desert bank of the river where no victuals were available. At the same time Joshua himself convened the two and a half tribes which had settled east of Jordan, to remind them of their promise (Num. 32:1-42) to assist their brethren in the conquest of western Canaan. Their readiness to redeem their pledge and the terms in which they answered the appeal of Joshua displayed to great advantage their patriotic and pious feelings at so interesting a crisis.”