Story · 14 · Hoshayahu
'What do these stones mean?'
After crossing the Jordan, Israel piles up twelve stones at Gilgal so that children will ask about them, and parents will tell the story.
Monuments that invite questions teach best.
Dig deeper
The stones may have been a real local monument with nothing to do with the exodus. Biblical authors repurposed it as a prompt for 'teaching moments,' part of a wider educational project to make every family a classroom.
Bible reference: Joshua 4:6–7
Source: Why the Bible Began, pp. 228
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