Setting the Stage

Yehoshua 5:1

Witnessing the profound miracles that unfolded for the Jewish people at the Yarden, the regional monarchs, ranging from the Amorites near the Yarden to the Canaanites by the Mediterranean, were struck with a profound sense of powerlessness against Am Yisrael.

ויהי כשמע כל־מלכי האמרי אשר בעבר הירדן ימה וכל־מלכי הכנעני אשר על־הים את אשר־הוביש יהוה את־מי הירדן מפני בני־ישראל עד־[עברם] (עברנו) וימס לבבם ולא־היה בם עוד רוח מפני בני ישראל

The Malbim explains that this pasuk provides a foundational context for the rest of the perek. It details the pivotal events of the Bnei Yisrael: the Mila at Gilgal, the Korban Pesach, and Yehoshua’s encounter with an angel outside Yericho. These events, unfolding over several days, did not weaken the military edge of Bnei Yisrael, as fear had deeply embedded itself in the hearts of their new neighbors.

Building upon this pshat, Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky broadens this idea. He suggests that this pasuk serves as a foundational element not just for this perek, but …