Joshua
Chapter
3
{Crossing
of the Jordan River}
{Verses
1-17: Preparation for Crossing the Jordan
Principal: Preparation Precedes Success in Life}
1~~And
Joshua rose early in the morning;
and
they kept on setting out from Shittim
{from the meadow of the Acacias trees},
and
came to Jordan {the Jordan River},
he
and all the children of Israel,
and
lodged there before they passed over
{going from the East bank to the West bank of the Jordan}.
{Note:
The Jordan has a very steep flow. The drop from its source of the
base of Mount Herman to the Dead Sea is a drop of 2000 feet usually
from North to South. And the flow will be stopped at one end so the
water just stacked up high for maybe 30 miles back. So only one side
of the Jordan was stopped by God this time.}
{Note:
On the other side of the Jordan River is the 'Promised Land' of
Canaan. It is a place of fighting. It is NOT a 'type' of 'heaven'.
Canaan is a 'type' of 'salvation IN TIME' - when the battle
continues. It is beautiful but not perfect. It is a beautiful place
to be however for mature believers.}
2~~And
it came to pass after three days,
that
the officers went through the army/host.
{Israel
was Organized}
3-4~~And
they commanded the people, saying,
"When
you see the Ark of the Covenant
{speaks of manifest member of the Godhead - Jesus Christ}
of
Jehovah/God your 'Elohiym/Godhead,
and
the priests the Levites bearing it,
then
you shall move out from your place,
and
go after it
{illustration of faith in Christ}. 4~~
Yet
there shall be a space between you and it,
about
two thousand cubits by measure
{a cubit is about 18 inches 1000 yards or 1.6 miles -
the distance is because no one can help
the parting of the water - Christ does
the work independent of man's help}.
Come
not near unto it,
that
you may know the way
by
which you must go.
For
you have not passed this way heretofore."
{Note:
In Exodus at the Red Sea, God lead the way personally. Now the Ark
is to lead the way. The concept is that in Phase II (Phase I being
salvation - Phase II salvation 'in time') we must realize we are in
union with Christ and rely on Him to guide us. See also Psalm 114 for
comparison of crossing the Red Sea and the Jordan River.}
{Importance
of Temporal Fellowship}
5~~And
Joshua said unto the people,
"
'Sanctify yourselves'/'Set yourselves apart'
{I John 1:9 - confess your sins to God - get IN fellowship first - always}.
For
tomorrow, the Jehovah/God
will
do/'manufacture {'asah - from something else}
wonders
among you."
6~~And
Joshua spoke unto the priests, saying,
"Take
up the ark of the covenant,
and
pass around among the people
{idiom: literally 'over before the people'}."
And
they took up the Ark of the Covenant,
and
went before/'in front of' the people.
{Note:
Everyone had to know exactly what the Ark looked like first.
Principal: you must KNOW Christ before you can rely on Him. How do
you get to know Christ? Study His Mind. The bible is the Mind of
Christ. When the command GO was given, they would be occupied with
the Ark/Christ and follow it/Him.}
7~~
And Jehovah/God said unto Joshua,
"This
day I will begin to magnify you
in
the sight of all Israel,
that
they may know
that
as I was with Moses,
so
I will be with you."
{Note:
'This day will I begin to magnify you in the sight of all Israel' is
very important. Only from this day forward will Joshua be their
leader. Can only be one top leader at any time. And, you are not
promoted unless God promotes you! Joshua did not earn this privilege
or deserve it - it was a gift to a believer positive to Him.}
8~~And
you shall command the priests
who
bear the ark of the covenant, saying,
"When
you are come to the brink of the water of Jordan,
you
shall stand still in {the waters of the} Jordan."
{Note:
This is April and the banks of the Jordan would be flooded and
overflowing. All of this water rushing violently down hill to the
Dead sea is going to be stacked up by God, so Israel can pass through
safely. Principal: they do what they can do - move to the banks. But,
then 'stand still' - 'rest/trust' in the Lord. And, He will do what
you are not able to do for yourself.}
9~~And
Joshua said unto the children of Israel,
"Come
here, and hear the words/'doctrinal communication' {dabar}
of
Jehovah/God your 'Elohiym/Godhead.
{Note:
Joshua makes it clear this is NOT his idea, this is God's Word. And,
God's Word must be obeyed. Before we move, we must know doctrine.}
10~~And
Joshua said,
"Hereby
you shall know
{it is knowing it that makes the difference}
that
the living 'Elohiym/Godhead is among you
{God is REAL to Joshua - to KNOW the living God
you learn through God's Word},
and
that He will without fail
{absolute confidence in the results of God's promises being Truth}
drive
out from before you
the
Canaanites, and the Hittites,
and
the Hivites, and the Perizzites,
and
the Girgashites, and the Amorites,
and
the Jebusites.
{Note:
These are the last of these people in the land. They were mad dogs.
They engaged in bestiality, the Phallic Cult, and child sacrifice -
now the iniquity of the Amorites was full and it was time for them to
be removed off the earth to protect the rest of the human race.}
11~~"Behold,
the Ark of the Covenant
of
the Jehovah/God of all the earth {referring to Jesus Christ}
passed
over before you into Jordan {Christ must lead you}."
{A
Strange Command is Given}
12~~"Now
therefore
take
you twelve men out of the tribes of Israel,
out
of every tribe a man."
{Note:
The reason for this selection is not given in this chapter. Why? A
Principal is involved. It is because when God gives a person a task,
the person does not have to immediately know what God's plan is for
him. These men are set aside for a special job but they do not know
what it is. (The reason is given in Chapter 4).}
{Joshua
Announces A Miracle will be Performed by God}
13~~"And
it shall come to pass,
as
soon as the soles of the feet of the priests
who
bear the Ark of the Jehovah/God . . .
the
Jehovah/God of all the earth . . .
shall
rest in the waters of Jordan,
that
the waters of Jordan shall be cut off
from
the waters that come down from above
and
they {the waters} shall be stacked up
{idiom: literally: 'stand upon an heap'}."
{Note:
God parted the Red Sea. But here, He will cut off the flow upstream
coming down from the North - from the Sea of Galilee and it will
stack up for 30 miles back to the city of Adam (coming up).}
14-16~~And
it came to pass,
when
the people removed from their tents,
to
pass over Jordan,
and
the priests bearing the ark of the covenant
before
the people; 15~~
and
as they who bare the Ark
were
come unto Jordan,
and
the feet of the priests who bare the ark
were
dipped in the brim of the water,
(for
Jordan overflowed all his banks all the time of harvest) 16~~
that
the waters which came down from above stood
and
rose up upon an heap
very
far from the city Adam
{ 'Adam - name means 'red' it is a town of red clay}
{Jericho is about 30 miles downriver from Adam},
that
is beside Zaretan
{a city a little distance from the Jordan banks 30 miles up stream}.
And
those that came down
toward
the sea of the plain,
even
the salt sea, failed
{the water on the other side continued flowing but was abruptly
stopped}, and were cut off.
And
the people {the army} passed over right against Jericho
{this is over 2 MILLION people passing over!
The army, the cattle, the supplies - everything
except the wives and children
who were left on the East side of the Jordan}.
17~~And
the priests
who
bare the Ark of the Covenant of Jehovah/God
stood
firm on dry ground in the middle of Jordan
{it was not even WET! It was not even damp! It was dry! A Miracle.},
and
all the Israelites passed over on dry ground,
until
all the people were passed {clean} over Jordan.
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