Joshua 3 - Crossing the Jordan
Promise and the Problems:
On the shore of Jordan Israelites were lodging for three days as the Lord told them to do (Joshua 1:11). Now, they saw a rushing river, swollen with spring rains lie in front of them. They would have wondered and discussed “How can we ever cross this river?” At a moment like this, all the wonderful expectations about the Promised Land can sound hollow. There was an impossible obstacle blocking their way. There is a way out through holiness. The river was now broader and deeper than usual it was at other times of the year (Joshua 3:15). The melting of the snow on the mountains of Lebanon, near which this river had its rise, was the occasion that at the time of harvest, barley-harvest, which was the spring of the year, Jordan overflowed all his banks.
This terrible river, lying at the bottom of the most spectacular gash upon the surface of the planet Earth, most of its course lying even below the level of the sea, is an astoundingly appropriate symbol of death. The very name "Jordan" means "descender." The Encyclopaedia Britannica gives the meaning of "the down-comer."
So, Joshua told the people Sanctify yourselves. God does wonders, therefore, to be adored, admired, and trusted in Him. All spiritual battle requires spiritual preparation. We must go on in the way of our duty though we foresee difficulties, trusting God to help us through them when we come to them. We must prepare ourselves to receive the discoveries of God's glory and the communications of his grace.
A Step Forward:
As Joshua takes a step of faith, God encourages him all the way. God always wants to encourage and help along our faith, but we may have our ears closed to His encouragement. God would raise up Joshua to a leader like Moses in the eyes of the people. He will do it by using Joshua to miraculously lead the people across an impassable body of water. The priests began the procession, with the ark of the covenant and walked right into a river. God stopped the flow of the Jordan River as a miracle. This miracle obviously connects with the miracle of passing through the Red Sea 40 years ago. This crossing of the Jordan was an extreme act of Faith in Israel under the leadership of Joshua. There are instances of mighty rivers sometimes stopping flowing for a day, or even flowing upstream, which cannot be denied. The Jordan itself, in the year 1266, was left dry for ten hours as the result of a landslide; and in 1927, an earthquake near Adam (Adamah), stopped the Jordan's flow for twenty-one hours." It was absolutely a miracle through the words of God, promises of the Lord to Joshua.
Important Events:
The narrative in Joshua 3 and 4, weaves together a number of very important elements: (1) the elevation of Joshua in the estimation of the people; (2) the function of the ark of the covenant and the priests who carried it; (3) the beginning of the crossing, its continuation, and its conclusion; (4) the erection of two memorials - one in the middle of Jordan, the other at Gilgal; (5) the cessation of the manna; and (6) the timing of the event with reference to the 10th of Abib and the approach of the First Passover in Canaan. So, we can understand that the people passed over opposite Jericho.
Discussion: The Jordan in our Life Journey.
(Ref: Enduring Word Commentary, Mathew Henry, Coffman, study light commentaries)
