The passage describes how three thousand laws were forgotten during the mourning period following Moses' death, and when Joshua was asked to retrieve them, he declined, stating that prophets cannot introduce new teachings; subsequently Joshua's strength weakened and he forgot three hundred additional laws while seven hundred doubts arose, until God told him to proceed with warfare rather than seek answers.
אָמַר רַב יְהוּדָה, אָמַר רַב: בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁנִּפְטַר מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ לְגַן עֵדֶן, אָמַר לוֹ לִיהוֹשֻׁעַ: שְׁאַל מִמֶּנִּי כָּל סְפֵיקוֹת שֶׁיֵּשׁ לָךְ. אָמַר לוֹ: רַבִּי, כְּלוּם הִנַּחְתִּיךָ שָׁעָה אַחַת וְהָלַכְתִּי לְמָקוֹם אַחֵר? לֹא כָּךְ כָּתַבְתָּ בִּי ״וּמְשָׁרְתוֹ יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בִּן נוּן נַעַר לֹא יָמִישׁ מִתּוֹךְ הָאֹהֶל״? מִיָּד תָּשַׁשׁ כֹּחוֹ שֶׁל יְהוֹשֻׁעַ, וְנִשְׁתַּכְּחוּ מִמֶּנּוּ שְׁלֹשׁ מֵאוֹת הֲלָכוֹת, וְנוֹלְדוּ לוֹ שְׁבַע מֵאוֹת סְפֵיקוֹת, וְעָמְדוּ כׇּל יִשְׂרָאֵל לְהׇרְגוֹ. אָמַר לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא: לוֹמַר לָךְ אִי אֶפְשָׁר, לֵךְ וְטוֹרְדֵן בְּמִלְחָמָה, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״וַיְהִי אַחֲרֵי מוֹת מֹשֶׁה עֶבֶד ה׳ וַיֹּאמֶר ה׳ וְגוֹ׳״.
§ Rav Yehuda says that Rav says: Just before the time when Moses, our teacher, left this world and went to the Garden of Eden, he said to Joshua: Ask from me all the cases of uncertainty in matters of halakha that you have, so that I can clarify them for you. Joshua said to him: My teacher, did I ever leave you for even one moment and go to another place? Didn’t you write this about me in the Torah: “But his minister, Joshua, son of Nun, a young man, did not depart out of the tent” (Exodus 33:11)? If I would have had any case of uncertainty I would have asked you earlier. Immediately after he said this, Joshua’s strength weakened, and three hundred halakhot were forgotten by him, and seven hundred cases of uncertainty emerged before him, and the entire Jewish people arose to kill him, as he was unable to teach them the forgotten halakhot. The Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Joshua: It is impossible to tell you these halakhot, as the Torah is not in Heaven. But to save yourself from the Jewish people who want to kill you, go and exhaust them in war, so that they will leave you alone. As it is stated: “Now it came to pass after the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord, that the Lord spoke to Joshua, son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying: Moses My servant is dead, now therefore arise, go over this Jordan” (Joshua 1:1–2). This shows that immediately after the death of Moses, God commanded Joshua to lead the nation into battle.
