Joshua 3

Joshua 3 is the third chapter of the Book of Joshua. In chapter 2 the spies scouted out Jericho and returned with their report; in this chapter Israel crosses the Jordan River to enter Canaan.

Outline

• Verse 1: Joshua and the people set out from Shittim and come to the Jordan, where they lodge without crossing over.
• Verses 2–4: After three days the officers go through the camp and deliver instructions. When the people see the priests carrying the ark of the covenant, they are to follow it, but they must keep a distance of about two thousand cubits and not come near it.
• Verses 5–6: Joshua tells the people to sanctify themselves. The priests take up the ark of the covenant and go ahead of the people.
• Verses 7–8: The LORD declares that he will be with Joshua as he was with Moses. He commands the priests to step into the Jordan when they reach the edge of the water.
• Verses 9–13: Joshua proclaims that by this event the people will know that God will drive out the seven nations. He has them choose twelve men, one from each tribe, and foretells that the waters will be cut off and stand up in a heap.
• Verses 14–17: Because it was the time of the barley and wheat harvest, the Jordan was overflowing all its banks. Yet as soon as the priests' feet were dipped in the edge of the water, the water flowing down from upstream piled up near the city of Adam, and the water flowing toward the Salt Sea was cut off. The people crossed over opposite Jericho, while the priests stood on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan.

Key Verses

• Joshua 3:5: "Sanctify yourselves: for to morrow the LORD will do wonders among you" (KJV). This verse shows the preparation required of the people before the miracle.
• Joshua 3:7: This verse confirms that Joshua has been established as the leader succeeding Moses.
• Joshua 3:15: This verse describes the priests stepping into the water first, during the season of flooding.

People and Places

• Joshua: Moses' successor, who directs the crossing in this chapter.
• Priests: The text calls them "the priests the Levites." They carry the Ark of the Covenant and go ahead of the people.
• Shittim: Israel's encampment on the plains of Moab, east of the Jordan.
• Adam and Zarethan: Towns upstream on the Jordan, mentioned as the place where the water piled up. The city of Adam is commonly identified with present-day Tell ed-Damiyeh.
• The Salt Sea: The present-day Dead Sea. The text also calls it "the sea of the plain" (the Sea of the Arabah).

Points for Reflection

• The crossing in this chapter parallels the crossing of the Red Sea. Joshua 4:23 explicitly compares the two events.
• The twelve men chosen in verse 12 play no role in this chapter. Their task is taken up in the account of the memorial stones in Joshua 4.
• Most traditions read the stopping of the water as a direct miracle of God. Others have sought to explain it by connecting it with modern records of the Jordan being temporarily dammed by earthquakes or landslides. The text itself, however, does not state a cause.
• In the New Testament, the Jordan River is the site of the baptism of Jesus. For this reason Christian tradition has read the crossing of the Jordan as a symbol of baptism, or of passing through death into the promised land. This is a later interpretation, not something the text states directly.

In the Korean Church

A hymn whose Korean refrain says "we shall cross the Jordan and meet" is frequently sung at funeral and memorial services. Its lyrics liken crossing the Jordan to entering heaven. The scene of the priests' feet entering the water first is often cited in sermons about taking the first step of faith.