Joshua 4

CHAPTER 4

The Stone Memorial (4:1–24)

1–9 The priests carrying the ark remained standing on the dry riverbed while the people crossed over into Canaan. When the whole nation had reached the other side, the twelve men who had been chosen earlier received their instructions: namely, to bring twelve large stones from the middle of the riverbed and carry them to Gilgal (verses 19–20), a place outside Jericho which would become Israel’s first campsite in Canaan. There Joshua set up the stones to create a memorial,²³ so that future generations would be reminded of how God had cut off the waters of the Jordan to allow the Israelites to cross over (verses 6–7,9).

10–14 In verses 12–13, we learn that the fighting men from the tribes of Reuben, Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over in front of the Israelites, as Moses had directed (see Numbers 32:16–24). The fighting men from the two and a half tribes numbered forty thousand.²⁴ Though they were armed for battle, they would never have to lift a sword against Jericho; the Lord would do all the “fighting” for them—just as He had done at the Red Sea forty years earlier (Exodus 13:18; 14:13–31).

By cutting off the waters of the Jordan, the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel (verse 14). This was in accordance with His promise to Joshua, recorded in Joshua 3:7.

15–18 No sooner had the priests stepped onto the river bank than the waters of the Jordan returned to their place (verse 18). As far as timing was concerned, the opening of the river was as great a miracle as the blocking of it, since both actions occurred thirty kilometers upstream (Joshua 3:16). God knew exactly how long it would take the water to reach the priests, and He also knew the exact moment they would step onto dry land.

19–24 In these verses, Joshua specifically compares the crossing of the Jordan to the crossing of the Red Sea (verse 23). We have already learned that one purpose of both miracles was to cause the Israelites to revere and trust their God-appointed leaders, Moses and Joshua (see Exodus 14:31; Joshua 3:7). But here in verse 24, two other reasons are added: first, the Lord did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that He was the one true and all-powerful God; and second, He did it so that the Israelites might always fear Him and Him alone²⁵ (see Exodus 14:4,31).