Introduction
In Joshua 3 there were a number of speeches. The officers spoke to the people and told them to get ready to cross the Jordan. Joshua spoke to the people and priests, telling the people to consecrate themselves and telling the priests to take up the ark of the covenant and pass in front of the people. Then God spoke to Joshua about how he was going to exalt Joshua in the eyes of all Israel so that they would know that God is with him as he was with Moses. And Joshua spoke to the people again and explained to them what was going to happen. And after all those speeches, the chapter ended with our writer telling us that when the priests carrying the ark reached the Jordan, the water from upstream stopped flowing. And while the priests stood on dry land in the middle of the river bed, the whole nation crossed over.
The Lord was bringing his people out of the wilderness and into the Promised Land, just as he said he would.
In today’s passage, the writer continues his account of the crossing.
Verses 1 to 10
In verse 1, he tells us again that the whole nation crossed the Jordan. So, none of God’s people were left behind. None were prevented from crossing. None got stuck. None turned back. On the contrary, the whole nation crossed over.
And afterwards, the Lord spoke to Joshua and told him to choose twelve men, one from each of the twelve tribes. And he was to instruct them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan — so, one each — and carry them over to the other side and put them down where they camp that night.
The writer makes clear in verse 4 that Joshua obeyed the word of the Lord and he called together the men he had appointed and repeated to them the Lord’s command about the stones. But he added more information to explain why the Lord wanted them to do this. Take a look at verse 6 where he explained that the stones are to serve as a sign among them. In the future, when their children see the stones, piled together near the Jordan, and when their children ask what the pile of stones mean, the Israelites can tell their children about the wonderful thing God did for them when he cut off the water before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. They were to tell their children that when the ark of the covenant crossed the Jordan, the waters were cut off so that they were able to cross over on dry ground. In other words, the pile of twelve stones, taken from the river bed, was to be a memorial to the people of Israel for ever. It was to be a continual reminder to them of what God had done for them and it was to be a teaching tool so that parents could teach their children about how great and glorious and good their God is.
And just as Joshua obeyed the word of the Lord, so the men obeyed the word of Joshua. According to verse 8, they took the twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan and carried them over to their camp.
Verse 9 is a little puzzling. If you’re looking at the ESV, you’ll see that verse 9 suggests that Joshua created a second pile of stones in the middle of the river bed, where the priests had stood. However, the NIV translates the verse differently by saying that Joshua took the twelve stones the twelve men had carried from the river bed and he set them up. While it’s not clear, some of the commentators think the NIV has got it right. If so, that means that there were not two piles of stones, but only one.
And according to verse 10, the priests who were carrying the ark of the covenant remained in the middle of the river bed until everything that needed to be done was done. So, they remained there until all the people had crossed over and the twelve men had collected the twelve stones.
Verses 11 to 14
And in verses 11 to 14, the writer makes clear once again that all the people crossed over. And as soon they got to the other side, the priests who were carrying the ark also crossed over. And just in case it wasn’t clear enough, the writer tells us in verse 12 that when he said all the people crossed over, that included the men from the tribes of Reuben and Gad and Manasseh. In fact, the men from those tribes went on ahead of their fellow Israelites. So, these are the transjordan tribes. It had been agreed that they could live on land on the east side of the Jordan, which once belonged to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, so long as they were willing to cross over the Jordan with the other tribes and fight with them against the Canaanites. And our writer is making clear for us that they kept their word and they crossed over, ready for battle.
And this part of the chapter ends in verse 14 with a little summary statement that the Lord exalted Joshua that day in the sight of all Israel so that they revered him just as they revered Moses. As I said last week, by performing this miracle for Israel at the command of Joshua, who told the priests what to do, God honoured Joshua. It was clear to them that the Lord was with Joshua just as he was once with Moses.
Verses 15 to 18
From verse 15 it seems that our writer is repeating himself, because he’s already told us that the priests carrying the ark crossed over the river and now he’s telling us that the Lord told Joshua to command them to come up out of the Jordan. Haven’t they already crossed over? Why is he telling us the same thing again?
However, there’s a slightly different emphasis. In verse 11 it says they came to the other side. And so, it’s about crossing over. But in verses 15 and 16 God tells Joshua to command the priests to come up out of the Jordan. So, it’s about coming up. And the same words are used in verse 17 where it says Joshua commanded the priests to come up out of the Jordan. And the same words are used in verse 18, where it says the priests came up out of the river. So, verse 11 was about crossing over while verses 15 to 18 are about coming up.
What’s the difference? One commentator (Howard) suggests that the idea of crossing over fits the first half of the chapter, where they’re leaving the wilderness to cross over to the other side. On the other hand, the idea of coming up fits the second half of the chapter where the people are now standing in the Promised Land and they’re watching the priests climb up out of the river bed to join them.
And as soon as they stepped out of the river bed, the waters of the Jordan returned to their place. The water from upstream began to flow again. And the fact that the water began to flow again as soon as the priests came up out of the river bed shows us that this was indeed a miracle. One commentator (Davis) records for us that there have been occasions when the Jordan was blocked after earthquakes or after the river bank collapsed and the water stopped flowing. However, on this occasion, the fact that the river was blocked as soon as the priests came to the water and the fact that the river was unblocked as soon as the priests came up out of the river bed demonstrates that this was not a chance occurrence, but that it happened by the will of God, who was opening up the way for his people into the Promised Land.
4:19 to 5:1
And in verse 19 our writer notes for us that this happened on the tenth day of the first month. And do you know what else happened on the tenth day of the first month? On the tenth day of the first month forty years previously the people were commanded by God to get ready to leave Egypt. Forty years previously God told his people to get ready because he was taking them from Egypt to the Promised Land. And on the exact same day, but forty years afterwards, God brought them into the Promised Land.
We abandon things all the time: we’re going to paint the house; we’re going to get fit and run the marathon; we’re going to learn a new language. But then we get tired and fed up and we give it up. But the Lord does not grow tired and weary. He does not give up what he starts. He had promised that he would set his people free from their slavery in Egypt and bring them into the land of Canaan. And he kept his promise.
And they camped at Gilgal and Joshua set up the twelve stones. And once again he explained to the people what the pile of stones is for. So, in the future, when their descendants ask their fathers what the stones are for, tell them how Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground. And explain to them that it was the Lord who enabled them to cross over on dry ground, because the Lord their God dried up the Jordan River just as he once dried up the Red Sea. And explain to them that the Lord did this so that all peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful. And explain to them that he did this so that you will worship him.
And the passage ends in verse 1 of chapter 5 where the writer tells us that the Amorite kings on the west of the Jordan and the Canaanite kings along the coast heard what the Lord had done. And their hearts sank. Their hearts melted with fear and they no longer had the courage to face the Israelites. They realised that the Lord God of Israel was indeed powerful.
Application 1
The Lord is powerful. The Scriptures bear witness to his might and power, because the Scriptures tell us how he made all things in the beginning and he sustains all things day by day. And he powerfully guides and directs all people and all events according to his most holy will. And the Scriptures bear witness to his mighty miracles. And this chapter bears witness to two of those mighty miracles: causing the Red Sea to dry up in the days of Moses and causing the Jordan River to dry up in the days of Joshua.
However, the fact that God commanded Joshua to set up the stones as a memorial to what happened at the Jordan indicates to us that his miracles were few and far between. One the commentators (Davis) points out that if the Lord performed miracles routinely, there would be no need to memorialise this one, because why remember what happened at the Jordan when God will perform another miracle next week? But the fact that the Lord commanded his people to remember this one suggests that they didn’t happen routinely. They only happened occasionally.
But when they did happen, they were to remember them and they were to bear witness to them, passing on to the next generation what God had done for them so that future generations will also trust in the Lord to help them.
And in a similar way, the Lord has given us the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper and he’s given us the preaching of his word to remember what he once did for us in the past. Every baptism reminds us how in the past Christ died on the cross to wash away our sins. The Lord’s Supper reminds us how in the past Christ’s body was broken and his blood was shed for us and for our salvation. And every sermon reminds us of what he has done for us in the past through his Son’s life and death and resurrection. Every baptism, every Lord’s Supper, every sermon reminds us of what he did for us so that we will continue to trust him in the present.
Application 2
And the fact that they crossed the Jordan on the same day when forty years previously they were commanded to get ready to leave Egypt teaches us that our God finishes what he begins. Forty years earlier, he started to bring them to the Promised Land. Forty years later, he brought them into the Promised Land. The Lord finishes what he begins.
And he has begun his work in us to renew us in his image. And what he has begun to do he will bring to completion. And we need to keep telling ourselves this, because when we see our sins and shortcomings, when we think about how far we are from being like God, when we feel our weakness, when we return to the same sins and give in to the same temptations and sinful desires, we might sometimes be tempted to despair about ourselves that we’ll never be perfect. But we need to remember and believe that our God finishes what he begins. He began his good work in us when he enables us to believe in the Saviour. And what he has begun he will finish when he brings us at last into his presence in the Promised Land of Eternal Life where we’ll be made perfectly holy and happy for ever.
Sermons and Stuff 