by Bryony Wood
7 And the LORD said to Joshua, ‘Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses.
8 Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: “When you reach the edge of the Jordan's waters, go and stand in the river”.’
9 Joshua said to the Israelites, ‘Come here and listen to the words of the LORD your God.
10 This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites.
11 See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you.
12 Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe.
13 And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the LORD – the Lord of all the earth – set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.’
Joshua 3:7-13
For forty years, the people of Israel had wandered in the desert looking for their ‘Promised Land’. This had been a time of testing and training following their miraculous deliverance from slavery in Egypt. Their leader Moses had died, and Joshua was appointed to take his place. He would guide this final stage of their epic journey into the land that God had first promised Abraham some 500 years earlier. Sometimes God’s plans take a little longer to work out than we expected!
There were thousands of them. A dispossessed bunch of nomads gathered by the river bank almost tasting the milk and honey waiting for them on the other side. If only they could cross this last great barrier to complete a lifetime’s journey; but what a barrier it was! The River Jordan lay at the bottom of a gorge, some 500 feet below sea level. Its steep rocky precipices made reaching the river tricky and at that particular time of year, the river was swollen, making crossing even more treacherous. God’s instructions to cross the river just there and then must have seemed quite preposterous. But Joshua was faithful to God’s word, and the people were faithful to Joshua’s command.
After preparing themselves spiritually, the priests entered the formidable river carrying the Ark of the Covenant. This Ark was the physical reminder of God’s presence with them and the people followed a respectful distance behind. So respectful, that this distance of ‘2,000 cubits’ was later used as the basis for the permissible Sabbath day’s walk for a Jew.
A step of faith
As the priests stepped into the water, upstream the waters somehow dammed allowing the hordes to file past. They walked – as if on dry land – to the other side, past the priests and the Ark. And in doing so, no doubt they recalled that once before God had held back the waters to allow his people to cross in safety. The account of Hebrew slaves fleeing from Egypt across the Red Sea was part of their heritage; however, memories of miracles do not guarantee a miracle today.
That first step into the flowing river still took faith and obedience. Joshua and the Israelites then witnessed at first hand God’s miraculous power as they entered their long awaited Promised Land. Without taking such steps of faith, miracles can never be experienced.
Then, on the opposite banks of the Jordan they built an altar from stones found on the river bed, as a reminder of God’s faithfulness. For us, as for the Israelites, every journey of faith begins with a single step of faith. But perhaps more importantly, those journeys need to continue with yet further steps of faith along the way.
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