And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day.
Joshua was the military and spiritual leader of the Israelite people after Moses's death, charged with leading them into the land God had promised them. In this battle, Israel is fighting to defend an allied city against a coalition of five enemy kings. Joshua prays for God's help — specifically, for more daylight to finish the battle before darkness makes it impossible. The "Book of Jashar" mentioned here was an ancient Hebrew collection of songs and records that no longer survives today. The event described — the sun and moon stopping mid-sky — has been debated by scholars for centuries: some read it as a literal cosmic miracle, others as a localized atmospheric phenomenon or poetic language for an unusually decisive victory. The text doesn't explain it; it simply records it as fact.
God, I confess my prayers are often smaller than my problems. I ask for comfort when maybe I could ask for miracles. I don't fully understand how you stopped the sun, but I believe you are capable of far more than I bring to you. Teach me to pray with the boldness of Joshua. Amen.
The sun doesn't negotiate. That's the part of this story that's hard to shake. It's a fixed star at the center of a solar system, operating on a schedule that doesn't bend — and yet here's a general standing in a dusty valley asking God for more daylight, and apparently getting it. What's almost more unsettling than the miracle is the tone: no dramatic buildup, no lengthy explanation, just "the sun stopped in the middle of the sky." The text isn't embarrassed by it. Whatever happened in that valley, the writer believed God rearranged the order of things for one specific battle on one specific afternoon. You don't have to resolve every scientific question to sit with what this story is really asking you: Joshua prayed an audacious, specific, almost absurd prayer — and God took it seriously. Not a vague "Lord, help us somehow" but a concrete, impossible ask. There's something here for the person who has been keeping their prayers polite and safe, careful not to ask for too much. What would you dare to bring before God today if you actually believed he could stop the sun?
The writer references the "Book of Jashar" as a source — an ancient document we no longer have. Why do you think this detail was included, and what does it suggest about how seriously this event was taken in ancient Israel?
How do you personally approach miracle stories in the Bible — literally, metaphorically, or somewhere in between? How does your answer shape what you take away from this passage?
If God intervenes in physical reality in response to prayer, why do some desperate, faith-filled prayers seem to go unanswered? How do you hold that tension without dismissing either the miracle or the silence?
Joshua prayed something specific and concrete in a crisis moment. How specific are your own prayers typically — and what might be holding you back from asking more boldly?
Think of a situation in your life right now that feels impossible or stuck. What would it look like to pray about it with the same audacity Joshua showed here — and what's stopping you?
The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:
Acts 2:20
That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.
Matthew 5:45
And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the LORD thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.
Deuteronomy 4:19
And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;
Revelation 6:12
And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
Revelation 21:23
Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
Matthew 24:29
The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
Joel 2:31
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
Revelation 6:10
So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, Until the nation [of Israel] took vengeance upon their enemies. Is it not written in the Book of Jashar? So the sun stood still in the middle of the sky and was in no hurry to go down for about a whole day.
AMP
And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jashar? The sun stopped in the midst of heaven and did not hurry to set for about a whole day.
ESV
So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, Until the nation avenged themselves of their enemies. Is it not written in the book of Jashar? And the sun stopped in the middle of the sky and did not hasten to go [down] for about a whole day.
NASB
So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till the nation avenged itself on its enemies, as it is written in the Book of Jashar. The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day.
NIV
So the sun stood still, And the moon stopped, Till the people had revenge Upon their enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day.
NKJV
So the sun stood still and the moon stayed in place until the nation of Israel had defeated its enemies. Is this event not recorded in The Book of Jashar ? The sun stayed in the middle of the sky, and it did not set as on a normal day.
NLT
And Sun stopped, Moon stood stock still Until he defeated his enemies. (You can find this written in the Book of Jashar.) The sun stopped in its tracks in mid sky; just sat there all day.
MSG