Good News Translation has rearranged the material in verses 14-15 in order to place first the comment about the time when the crossing took place; in the Hebrew text the time is mentioned at the end of verse 15 (see Revised Standard Version). The exact date of the crossing is given in 4.19. This is harvest time, in the spring of the year, the season when the Jordan overflows its banks because of the melting snow of Mount Hermon.

It is helpful to rearrange the material of 14-15 as Good News Translation has done, so as to place first the information It was harvest time, and the river was in flood. But it is also possible to retain the verse sequence, and to move this information from the end of verse 15 up to the beginning of the verse. For example:

14 The people left the camp to cross the Jordan River, and the priests went ahead of them with the Covenant Box. 15 It was harvest time (or springtime), the time of the year that the Jordan River floods its banks. As soon as the priests stepped into the river …

There is indeed nothing sacred about the verse numbering, though it is less disturbing to some readers if the verse sequence can be preserved wherever possible.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Newman, Barclay M. A Handbook on Joshua. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .