5:7a

And: Verse 7 is a summary of verses 5–6. The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as And is a connector word. It shows the relationship between this verse and the preceding verses.

Here are some other ways to translate this word:

That is why
-or-
In light of that
-or-
So, for that reason

You should translate this word with a connecting word or phrase that is most natural in your language.

Joshua raised up their sons in their place: The phrase raised up their sons in their place could mean that either God or Joshua allowed the sons of the men who had died to take their place. Although the Berean Standard Bible translates this clause as if Joshua raised up these people, most English versions follow the Hebrew and use the pronoun “he,” which can refer to either interpretation.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

he raised up their sons in their place (New International Version)
-or-
he replaced them with their sons (NET Bible)
-or-
their sons—those who had grown up to take their fathers’ places (New Living Translation (2004))

raised up their sons: The phrase their sons is the object of the sentence, and it is emphasized in the Hebrew text. The construction raised up their sons is a way of emphasizing their sons in English. You should choose a way that is natural in your language to emphasize this phrase.

their sons: The phrase their sons refers to the male children of the people who died in the wilderness because they disobeyed God. And their sons make up the same group of men as those referred to in verse 5:4a.

5:7b

these were the ones he circumcised: The clause these were the ones refers to the words “their sons” in verse 5:7a. Joshua circumcised the sons of the men who died in the wilderness. It may be more natural to reorder the verse. You could put the relative clause next to the noun it modifies. For example, you could say:

So, it was their children whom Joshua circumcised, those whom God had raised up instead of them

5:7c

Until this time they were still uncircumcised: It may be more natural in some languages to leave this clause implicit and untranslated, because the meaning is included in 5:7d. Consider whether such repetition is natural in your language.

5:7d

since they had not been circumcised along the way: The phrase along the way refers to the time that the Israelites walked through the wilderness for forty years.

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