โยชูวา 3:5 วิจารณ์

This chapter, and that which follows it, give us the history of Israel's passing through Jordan into Canaan, and a very memorable history it is. Long afterwards, they are told to remember what God did for them between Shittim (whence they decamped, Jos 3:1). and Gilgal, where they next pitched, Jos 4:19, Mic 6:5, that they might know the righteousness of the Lord. By Joshua's order they marched up to the river's side (Jos 3:1), and then almighty power led them through it. They passed through the Red Sea unexpectedly, and in their flight by night, but they have notice some time before of their passing through Jordan, and their expectations raised. I. The people are directed to follow the ark (Jos 3:2-4). II. They are commanded to sanctify themselves (Jos 3:5). III. The priests with the ark are ordered to lead the van (Jos 3:6). IV. Joshua is magnified and made commander in chief (v. 7, 8). V. Public notice is given of what God is about to do for them (v. 9-13). IV. The thing is done, Jordan is divided, and Israel brought safely through it (v. 14-17). This was the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes.

INTRODUCTION TO JOSHUA 3 Joshua removed from Shittim to Jordan, where he stayed three days, Jos 3:1; the people are directed to move when they saw the ark bore by the priests, and what distance they should keep from it, Jos 3:3; are bid to sanctify themselves against the morrow, when wonders would be wrought, Jos 3:5; and the priests are ordered to take up the ark, Jos 3:6; Joshua is encouraged by the Lord, and instructed to command the priests when they come to Jordan to stand still in it, Jos 3:7; and he declares to all the people, as a token that God would drive the Canaanites from before them, that as soon as the feet of the priests bearing the ark should rest in the waters of Jordan, they should be parted, and make way for them to pass through, Jos 3:9; which accordingly came to pass, so that all the Israelites passed over on dry ground, Jos 3:14.

And Joshua said unto the people,.... On the third day; and the thirtieth day of the mourning for Moses, Jarchi says, was the first of the three days, and that being the seventh day of the month, this must be the ninth, as it is most clear the morrow was the tenth: sanctify yourselves; in a ceremonial sense, by washing their bodies and their clothes, and abstaining from their wives; and in a moral sense, by acts of religion and devotion, by prayer and meditation, and the exercise of repentance and, good works: it may denote that sanctification is necessary to our passage over Jordan, or through death to the heavenly Canaan, for without holiness no man shall see the Lord: for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you: in their sight and presence, and for them, by dividing the waters of Jordan, that they might pass through it as on dry land; this, as Kimchi says, was the tenth of Nisan, as is plain from Jos 4:19.

In conformity with these words, let us also ask God to grant us the ability to understand spiritually the crossing of the Jordan through Jesus [Joshua]. We say that Paul would have said also of this crossing, "I do not wish you to be ignorant, brothers, that our fathers all passed through the Jordan and all were baptized into Jesus in the Spirit and in the river."Jesus [Joshua], who succeeded Moses, was a type of Jesus the Christ who succeeded the dispensation through the law with the gospel proclamation. This is why, although they are all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, their baptism has a bitter and briny element, for they still fear their enemies and cry out to the Lord and to Moses, saying, "Did you bring us out to die in the wilderness because there were no graves in Egypt? Why did you do this to us, having brought us out of Egypt?" But baptism into Jesus in the truly sweet and fresh river has many elements superior to that baptism, since the religion has by this time been clarified and received a proper order. The ark of the covenant of the Lord our God and the priests and Levites lead the way; the people follow the servants of God, which means that they follow those who are capable of understanding the commandment about purity. Jesus [Joshua] says to the people, "Purify yourselves tomorrow; the Lord will do wonders among us."

The Israelitish camp removes from Shittim to Jordan, Jos 3:1. The officers inform them how they are to pass the river, and the distance they are to keep from the ark, Jos 3:2-4. Joshua directs the people, Jos 3:5, Jos 3:6; and the Lord gives directions to Joshua, Jos 3:7, Jos 3:8. He delivers the Lord's message to the people, and foretells the miraculous passage and division of Jordan, Jos 3:9-13. The priests, bearing the ark, enter the river, and immediately the waters are cut off, and the priests stand on dry ground, in the bed of the river, till all the camp passes over, Jos 3:14-17.

Sanctify yourselves - What was implied in this command we are not informed; but it is likely that it was the same as that given by Moses, Exo 19:10-14. They were to wash themselves and their garments, and abstain from every thing that might indispose their minds from a profitable attention to the miracle about to be wrought in their behalf.

JOSHUA COMES TO JORDAN. (Jos 3:1-6) Joshua rose early in the morning--On the day following that on which the spies had returned with their encouraging report. The camp was broken up in "Shittim" (the acacia groves), and removed to the eastern bank of the Jordan. The duration of their stay is indicated (Jos 3:2), being, according to Hebrew reckoning, only one entire day, including the evening of arrival and the morning of the passage; and such a time would be absolutely necessary for so motley an assemblage of men, women, and children, with all their gear and cattle to make ready for going into an enemy's country.

Joshua said unto the people--rather "had said," for as he speaks of "to-morrow," the address must have been made previous to the day of crossing, and the sanctification was in all probability the same as Moses had commanded before the giving of the law, consisting of an outward cleansing (Exo 19:10-15) preparatory to that serious and devout state of mind with which so great a manifestation should be witnessed.

Passage Through the Jordan - Joshua 3-4 The following morning, after the return of the spies into the camp, Joshua proceeded with the people from Shittim to the bank of the Jordan, to complete the necessary preparations there, and then cross the river and enter Canaan (Jos 3:1). The crossing of this boundary river of Canaan, or rather the passage through the bed of the river, which had been dried up by a miracle of divine omnipotence at the place of crossing, is narrated in these two chapters in the following manner: first (Jos 3:1-6), the final preparations for crossing; and then the passage through the bed of the river and the erection of stones as a permanent memorial of this miracle. This is arranged in three parts: viz., Jos 3:7-17, the commencement of the crossing; Jos 4:1-14, its further progress; and Jos 4:15-24, its close. The account is also arranged upon the following plan: in every one of these three sections the command of God to Joshua is mentioned first (cf. Jos 3:7-8; Jos 4:2-3, Jos 4:15-16); then the communication of this command to the people by Joshua; and finally its execution (Jos 3:9-17; Jos 4:4-13, Jos 4:17-20). This arrangement was adopted by the author for the purpose of bringing distinctly out to view, not only the miracle itself, but also the means with which God associated the performance of the miracle, and also of impressing deeply upon the memory of the people both the divine act and the end secured. In doing this, however, some repetitions were inevitable, in consequence of the endeavour, so peculiar to the Hebrew mode of writing history to mark and round off the several points in the occurrences described, by such comprehensive statements as anticipate the actual course of events. It is to this arrangement and dovetailing of the differing points that we must attribute the distribution of the revelation and commands which Joshua received from God, over the several portions of the history; and consequently we are not to suppose, that at each separate point during the passage God revealed to Joshua what he was to do, but must rather assume that He actually revealed and commanded whatever was requisite all at once, on the day before the miraculous passage. (Note: The assertion made by Paulus, Eichhorn, Bleek, Knobel, and others, that the account is compounded from two different document, is founded upon nothing else than a total oversight of the arrangement explained above and doctrinal objections to its miraculous contents. The supposed contradictions, which are cited as proofs, have been introduced into the text, as even Hauff acknowledges (Offenbarungsgl. pp. 209, 210).)