CHAPTER 3
5. Then Y’hoshua told the people, “Keep yourselves set apart, because tomorrow YHWH will do extraordinary things among you!”
Keep…set apart: In what way? The Aramaic targum says, “Prepare yourselves”, and this seems appropriate, because it is not the kind of preparation needed at Mt. Sinai, where the men had to remain separate from their wives for three days. The three days was taken care of above (v. 2), but rather it is related to YHWH doing wonders and being in our midst. It is part of the preparation for this. He does not tell them that YHWH will set them apart. He has already appointed us to be a set-apart people, but it is up to each person to make sure he is set apart, so that we as a whole people can walk in the Torah. If we remain in our other pursuits, it will not actually be true of us, just as someone appointed to a government post could not claim that as his title if he did not leave his other employer, move to the seat of his office, and start doing that job. Israel thus has a huge part to play in the miracles YHWH does. Our part is to look at the other side of the Yarden as our home now. We start by looking at ourselves differently—as a people who are set apart. We must do the mental preparation because we have to see ourselves in a certain way to be able to deal with whatever is to take place. They have been away from the Acacias (Shittim) for three days, so they are somewhat accustomed to being away from where they had lived for so long. But they are not going back there; this is not just a camping trip. It is a permanent move. They will soon be part of a new place with new approaches to life. Everything will be different. They have until tomorrow to get used to that idea—not longer, so that they will not have time to get cold feet or raise “What if” questions that will make other people worry. They will not miraculously lose all attachment to their old homes or associations; they have to deal with whatever might want to keep us from crossing over. If they are not ready when it is time to walk across, they will be left to their own devices to get across, and they and their possessions will get soaked, and their children and livestock might drown. It seems rather sudden, but they have, after all, known since their childhood that they belong on the other side. We might have been Sunday keepers, but have seen from YHWH’s word that His Sabbath is the seventh day, and at some point He makes it clear that it is now or never. When the water recedes, we must enter in, or forget it. If we try to make the transition gradually, we usually never get there. It is usually trouble that moves Israel—like when Pharaoh drove us out of Egypt. When YHWH takes Israel Home again, will it be this quick? There may be no time to sell our houses, or bury our fathers and mothers. We must see ourselves as separate from whoever and whatever we are attached to now. We must begin to “see” ourselves in the Land, and we will end up there if we also start walking in that direction. Set yourself apart, and YHWH will work if we give Him room. Do not let doubt or fear have any place, because these repel YHWH. He has already made the first move by instructing us to get ready, and now the ball is in our court. Not that He needs our energy to accomplish anything, but if we are not doing anything to show that we really believe we belong on the other side, why should He do anything to get us there? If we told our children, “Get packed and get in the car; we’re going to Disney World!” and they went and played their favorite game instead, they would end up staying home, because we are not the ones interested in going there. We are so used to seeing YHWH as Santa Claus that we do not recognize that He takes it personally if we have to check our schedules and try to fit Him in when He wants to give us a great treasure.
6. And Y’hoshua spoke to the cohanim, saying, “Pick up the ark of the covenant and pass on before the people.” So they picked up the ark of the covenant and walked ahead of the people.
7. Then YHWH said to Y’hoshua, “This day I will make a breakthrough in causing you to be great in the eyes of all Israel, so that they will know that just as I was with Moshe, I will be with you.
A breakthrough: Though the preparation Y’hoshua received as Moshe’s apprentice, and the authority conferred openly on him by Moshe, should have been enough to establish his role as unquestioned leader, YHWH knew that most of this generation needed a more spectacular sign, so in His mercy He would give them one that would make Y’hoshua an “instant celebrity” in their eyes. This would also curb anyone’s jealousy of his position before it had time to fester. This, more than the need to get the people across a rushing river, was the stated purpose for the miracle He was about to perform. But YHWH gave Y’hoshua none of this reassurance until Y’hoshua took the risk of saying, “We’re going ahead with this” and gave the order to move. All of Y’hoshua’s fruit gave honor to his teacher Moshe, but YHWH’s response of greater support is the fruit of his being brave enough to enter in and set this in motion. What YHWH makes of us is depends directly on what we are doing.
8. “And you must give orders to the priests who are carrying the ark of the covenant, saying, ‘When you arrive at the edge of the waters of the Yarden, you must stand still in the Yarden.’”
The constituted ruler of Israel has authority over the priesthood. (2 Kings 22:3-5) Still, to command them must have made Y’hoshua pretty nervous. And going into the water would seem stranger still, when they were carrying the central furnishing of YHWH’s sanctuary. So YHWH reassures him by providing specific instruction.
9. So Y’hoshua said to the descendants of Israel, “Come close and listen to the words of YHWH your Elohim!”
If we do not draw near to YHWH, we may think we heard Him say something different from what He actually said. But recognize the magnitude of Y’hoshua’s bravery here: he is saying. “What I am about to say are the words of the Creator of the universe”! Most people who say such things probably believe they are right, but a tree is known by its fruit. It has to line up with the words of the faithful ones who came before us.
10. Then Y’hoshua said, “By this you will recognize that the living El is in your midst, and [know that] He will certainly cause the Kanaanites, the Chittites, the Chiwites, the Prizzites, the Girgashites, the Emorites, and the Y’vusites to be dispossessed before you:
11. “Watch! The ark of the covenant of the Master of the whole earth is passing on ahead of you into the Yarden.
The people had asked Y’hoshua to be sure YHWH was with him (1:17), so this would be their evidence. He does not understate anything, but becomes braver still, saying, “This is how you can test whether what I am saying is true. If it is true, this is what you will experience. But if I am right, then I am the one in charge.”
12. “So now, fetch for yourselves twelve men out of the tribes of Israel—one man per tribe.
If they are to have a miracle in their midst, they have the responsibility to put their own necks on the line too. They have to prove they stand with Y’hoshua by sending a representative to participate. If they want their share, no one can sit on the sidelines and merely watch. They must stand behind him and uphold the proceedings. Do everyone a favor if you are not fully committed, and do not pretend to be in when you are not. It sends the wrong message—that you will be there when you are needed. If you will not, do not break people’s hearts by appearing attached and then disappointing them.
13. “And when the soles of the feet of the cohanim who are carrying the ark of YHWH, the Master of the whole earth, come to rest in the waters of the Yarden, the waters of the Yarden will be cut off from the waters coming down from up[stream], and they will stand still as a single heap.
14. And as it turned out, when the people set out from their tents to cross the Yarden, the cohanim
[were] carrying the ark of the covenant ahead of the people,
15. and as those who were carrying the ark arrived at the Yarden, and the feet of the cohanim who were carrying the ark were plunged into the edge of the water (and the Yarden was full, over[flowing] both its banks the whole period of the harvest),
As this was not long before Passover, this may have been just after the rainy season of the late winter. YHWH set them up for an even greater miracle by bringing them at the time when crossing the river looked even less possible than usual. Today the Yarden is a very small river, but at that time the climate was much wetter, and the river has shifted its course with every earthquake, being directly over a fault line. Infrared satellite photos show that the river’s course has been much different and the river much wider in times past. At this time there were probably rapids.
16. the waters of the Yarden [coming] from up[stream] stood still; they rose up in a single heap far in the distance above Adam, the city that is beside Tzarthan, and those [waters] going down into the sea of the Aravah (the Salt Sea) stopped, being blocked off, and the people crossed over opposite Y’rikho.
Historian Henry Howling notes that in 1927, an earthquake at Adam caused a landslide that blocked the Yarden’s flow for 21 hours, so the same things may have occurred at this time. The miracle was in the timing—and they had to act while there was this narrow window to get through. Tzarthan means “their distress”. Someone had to step into the unsafe situation first, so those who were expected to be closest to YHWH took the lead. If we do not risk moving into what we fear, we will spend our whole lives waiting on the shore, because it will never look safe. The object of our faith is never proven if we stay in the easy places. YHWH does not begin to provide until we begin to do what we know we cannot do without Him. Though they had the promise of crossing on dry land, at least two of the priests had to get their feet wet. But the right response would not be to complain that everyone else had it easy and they had to pay a greater price. It is not a reason to whine, but a privilege. They had to have greater faith, but they did, and this brought well-deserved honor. Nothing changed at all until they stepped into the water. There is no safety until we obediently enter an unsafe situation. There is no help unless we walk into a place where there appears to be no help. When we enter into what looks hopeless, their turns out to be hope, if we are doing it for the sake of obedience. There is a way where there was no way, once someone invests himself in it. Where it says YHWH will work wonders “among you” in verse 5 above, it is not the usual Hebrew word for being in our midst; it more literally says, “In your drawing near”—i.e., when you approach or come close, He will do miracles. For too long we have believed that if we invited YHWH into our situation, He would come and bring us comfort. We cannot expect Him to join us in our self-pity; instead, we have to find out where He is standing, then leave our situation and move into His. Get into His seasons and His timing, and watch the water divide. Return to Him and He will return to you. Do we want to see Him work in our generation? Then we have to get involved in what He is already planning and doing, even if we do not have the resources. When we move to where He wants us to be, and make what is important to Him our priority too, He will move as well.
17. While the priests who [were] carrying the ark of the covenant of YHWH remained standing firmly on dry ground in the middle of the Yarden, all Israel crossed over on dry ground until the whole nation had completely crossed the Yarden.
It was not damp, wobbly ground, but dry and firm. This was the Reed Sea again for this generation. Because they have committed to being on the other side whatever it might take, they could share in the same excitement as in Moshe’s day. There were a few million people lined up here. No one could come closer to crossing until the person in front of him took a step. But each step he then took allowed the person behind him to move closer. Others are depending on us to take steps in the right direction. As we approach, we make a way for others to take the same step.
Commentary on
Y'hoshua 3:5-17
Our Part
in YHWH's Miracles
