CLEAN OVER JORDAN

"And the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood firm on dry ground in the midst of Jordan, and all the Israelites passed over on dry ground, until all the people were passed clean over Jordan." (Joshua 3:17)

FORTY YEARS AFTER their departure from Egypt, after the unbelievers had all fallen in the treacherous wilderness, Israel finally reached the promised land. Joshua was appointed by God to lead the people into the land of promise – a land promised to Abraham over 450 years earlier (Gen 15:18-21; 17:8). Spies were sent into the land, and this time they were not ruled by unbelief (Josh 2). Three days later, the people prepared to cross over into the land God had given to them.

BEFORE GOING OVER, officers went among the people, instructing them precisely how they were to enter Canaan. It would not be an "every-man-for-yourself" matter, with every man doing that which was right in his own eyes. The first thing to occur was the Levitical priests carrying the ark of the covenant across Jordan. The Israelites were to remain where they were until they saw the priests carrying the ark over. As soon as they saw the ark being carried over, they were to "set out" from their place and "go after it" (Josh 3:3). However, they were not to get too close to this piece of sacred furniture. Rather, they had to keep "a space" between themselves and the ark. That space was "about two thousand cubits by measure," or about a thousand yards. Solemnly they were told, "Do not come near it, that you may know the way by which you must go, for you have not passed this way before" (3:4). With this warning, Joshua turned to the priests and said, "Take up the ark of the covenant and cross over before the people" (3:6).

AS THE PRIESTS WENT before the people, the Lord told Joshua He was going to exalt him before the people, so they would know God was with him just as He was with Moses. He then told Joshua to tell the priests, "When you have come to the edge of the water of the Jordan, you shall stand in the Jordan" (3:7-8). Joshua then summoned the people to pay attention to what was happening. He said God was going to so work they would know He was among them, and would surely drive out the inhabitants of the land. In faith he declared, "Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is crossing over before you into the Jordan" (3:10). The people were then commanded to choose one man from each of the twelve tribes, who would later select twelve stones from Jordan, and pile them up for a memorial of their crossing. At this time, Jordan was overflowing its banks, and it was the time of harvest (3:15).

THE LORD PROMISED a display of unparalleled Divine power, "as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the LORD, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, the waters that come down from upstream, and they shall stand as a heap." Just that surely, when "feet of the priests who bore the ark dipped in the edge of the water, the waters which came down from upstream stood still, and rose in a heap very far away at Adam, the city that is beside Zaretan. So the waters that went down into the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, failed, and were cut off; and the people crossed over opposite Jericho" (3:15-16).

THE SCRIPTURES INFORM US that the priests stood firmly in the middle of Jordan, holding up the ark of the covenant, "until all the people were passed clean [or completely] over Jordan."The twelve men selected from the tribes then gathered their stones, and set them up in the middle of Jordan for a memorial. The priests remained standing in the midst of the river bed on dry ground "until everything was finished that the LORD had commanded" (4:10). After the safe passage of all of the people, then the priests carried the across Jordan and joined the rest of the people (4:11). It came to pass that as soon as "the soles of the priests' feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan returned unto their place, and flowed over all his banks, as they did before" (4:18) – but not until ALL of the people had safely crossed over into the promised land.

THERE WILL COME A DAY for every child of God when a crossing will be made into the eternal promised land. Like the ark of the covenant, the presence of the Lord remains in the middle of the river of death, guaranteeing safe passage to the other side, where we are "absent from the body and present with the Lord." That presence will not move until all of the children have safely passed to the other side. Then, and only then, will the river of separation once again overflow its banks. Then no one will be able to leave the cursed land for the blessed land. But as long as the waters remain open by the grace of God, multitudes can cross on dry land, with no fear of the waters of separation overflowing them.WHAT A MARVELOUS PICTURE of safe passage from this world to the next! It is refreshing to ponder that we are not the first to enter the waters of death. Jesus Christ goes before us.

– Given O. Blakely