Okay,
Introduction and Overview
we're gonna look at Joshua chapters three and four tonight. They're closely associated and will be treated here as a unit. The specific content or the specific theme is entering into the land. They cross the river Jordan, they're on the east side of the river poised to enter into Canaan in order to engage in the task that the Lord God has given them.
So chapter three details the crossing, chapter four includes the theme of these memorial stones. And one commentator says, it will be well in reading these chapters to keep in mind the Hebrew narrative technique employed. In this technique, the narrator concludes a certain matter, stating that the crossing was completed, yet at a later point, he resumes his description of the crossing when necessary for the development of his topic. So in verse 17, In chapter 3, it says Israel crossed over on dry ground.
But in chapter 4, in a few places, it speaks of Israel crossing over. The man's point is that this is a technique, a literary technique, to draw attention to specifics. Ralph Davis suggests that the reason the author does that is to highlight and focus upon verses 1 to 10 in chapter 4. He wants us to get, or the author wants us to get and understand the significance of these memorial stones.
So as you read, or as I read chapters 3 and 4, again, it's not contradictory. It's not due to later redaction where the author or the redactor didn't know what he was doing. It's more a technique by the author employed to drive home certain truths that the writer wants the reader to get. And so we'll look at chapters 3 and 4 tonight.
I know there's a lot of verses there. We won't look at every jot and tittle or every detail, but we'll look at five particulars. I'll give those to you now so that as we read, hopefully you can see how that breaks down. In chapter 3, verses 1 to 6 is an exhortation to God's people, and then in verses 7 to 17 is the execution of God's plan.
And then in chapter 4, we have the recognition of God's goodness. That's the memorial stones of verses 1 to 10. Fourthly, the fulfillment of God's promise in chapter 4, 10b to 20. And then finally, the declaration by God's servant, or a summary statement concerning the whole event by Joshua, the son of Nun, in verses 21 to 24.
So those are the five particular observations we're going to make on chapters 3 and 4 this evening. So I'll just begin reading in chapter 3 at verse 1.
Scripture Reading: Joshua 3–4
Then Joshua rose early in the morning, and they set out from Acacia Grove and came to the Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they crossed over. So it was after three days that the officers went through the camp, and they commanded the people, saying, When you see the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord your God and the priests, the Levites, bearing it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it. Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about 2,000 cubits by measure. Do not come near it that you may know the way by which you must go, for you have not passed this way before.
And Joshua said to the people, sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you. And Joshua spoke to the priests saying, take up the ark of the covenant and cross over before the people. So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people. And the Lord said to Joshua, this day I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.
You shall command the priests who bear the Ark of the Covenant saying, when you have come to the edge of the water of the Jordan, you shall stand in the Jordan. So Joshua said to the children of Israel, come here and hear the words of the Lord your God. And Joshua said, by this you shall know that the living God is among you and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Hivites and the Perizzites and the Girgashites and the Amorites and the Jebusites. Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is crossing over before you into the Jordan.
Now therefore take for yourselves twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one man from every tribe. And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, the waters that come down from upstream, and they shall stand as a heap. So it was when the people set out from their camp to cross over the Jordan with the priests bearing the Ark of the Covenant before the people. And as those who bore the Ark came to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests who bore the Ark dipped in the edge of the water.
For the Jordan overflows all its banks during the whole time of harvest. that the waters which came down from upstream stood still and rose in a heap very far away at Adam, the city that is beside Zeratan. So the waters that went down into the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, failed and were cut off. And the people crossed over opposite Jericho. Then the priests who bore the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan.
And all Israel crossed over on dry ground until all the people had crossed completely over the Jordan. And it came to pass when all the people had completely crossed over the Jordan that the Lord spoke to Joshua saying, take for yourselves 12 men from the people, one man from every tribe, and command them saying, take for yourselves 12 stones from here, out of the midst of the Jordan, from the place where the priest's feet stood firm. You shall carry them over with you and leave them in the lodging place where you lodged tonight. Then Joshua called the 12 men whom he had appointed from the children of Israel, one man from every tribe, and Joshua said to them, cross over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the Jordan, and each one of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, that this may be a sign among you when your children ask in time to come, saying, what do these stones mean to you? then you shall answer them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord.
When it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. And these stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever. And the children of Israel did so, just as Joshua commanded, and took up 12 stones from the midst of the Jordan, as the Lord had spoken to Joshua according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and carried them over with them to the place where they lodged, and laid them down there. Then Joshua set up 12 stones in the midst of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests who bore the ark of the covenant stood, and they are there to this day.
So the priests who bore the ark stood in the midst of the Jordan until everything was finished that the Lord had commanded Joshua to speak to the people according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua. And the people hurried and crossed over. Then it came to pass when all the people had completely crossed over that the Ark of the Lord and the priests crossed over in the presence of the people. And the men of Reuben, the men of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh crossed over armed before the children of Israel.
As Moses had spoken to them, about 40,000 prepared for war crossed over before the Lord for battle to the plains of Jericho. On that day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel. And they feared him, as they had feared Moses all the days of his life. Then the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying, Command the priests who bear the ark of the testimony to come up from the Jordan.
Joshua therefore commanded the priest, saying, Come up from the Jordan. And it came to pass, when the priest who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord had come from the midst of the Jordan, and the soles of the priest's feet touched the dry land, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and overflowed all its banks as before. Now the people came up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they camped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. And those twelve stones which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal.
And he spoke to the children of Israel, saying, When your children ask their fathers in times to come, saying, What are these stones? Then you shall let your children know, saying, Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry land. For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up before us until we had crossed over. That all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever.
Amen.
Introduction
So a lot of material in these two chapters, but very repetitive. Again, the whole idea, the whole theme is that they've crossed over the Jordan, now they will engage in wars in the land of Canaan to dispossess the Canaanites from the land to receive the inheritance that God had in fact given them. So let's just move through and make some observations along the way.
Exhortation to God's People
Notice first the exhortation to God's people. They are in Shittim or Acacia Grove on the east side of the Jordan They were located there according to chapter 2, verse 1, when Joshua dispatched the spies to go and check out the land of Jericho. Of course, it was there that God extends His grace to Rahab. The harlot will see her in chapter 6, verses 22 to 25 included, with the people of God.
The three days indicated here are probably not the same three days indicated in chapter 1, verse 11. I think the idea probably, with reference to verse 2, and the three days is to demonstrate, to highlight to the people the great difficulty that lie before them and their dependence and their need for God the Lord. Remember, the idea of two spies using a ford to make their way across the river is somewhat feasible. It's obviously feasible because the two spies did that.
But to take all of the people of Israel, as it's highlighted several times in the narrative, it is going to take the miraculous aid of God Most High. So probably this three days at the riverbank there is highlighting the reality that they stand in absolute dependence upon God the Lord. And then notice the
Instructions: Follow the Ark
instructions given specifically to Israel in verses 3 to 5. Notice, when you see the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests, the Levites bearing it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it. So there's an obvious pattern here. The people of Israel are to follow the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord.
The Ark of the Covenant of the Lord obviously is the visible symbolic representation of God the Lord being with His people. So the fact that the Ark is going to cross first indicates that it's God the Lord that goes into the land of Canaan prior to them. He's not only given them this gift of land or promised rather this gift of land, but He is going to be the one, the active agent and power to actually gift it to them. It is God who goes before them.
It is God who fights on their behalf. It is God who will indeed enable them to engage in victory when they get into the land of Canaan. So it is obvious that what we are to glean from this statement, and from the 17 other times that the Ark of the Covenant is mentioned in these two chapters, is that God the Lord goes before Israel. It is God the Lord's mission Israel are following.
Israel is to be compliant and obedient to the Lord of the Covenant Himself. Notice they are to maintain a safe distance, 2,000 cubits from the arc. Now there's probably two reasons for this. is because we are not to draw near unto God unaided or unhelped or unassisted. There is to be a holy reverence and a holy fear and a holy esteem and a holy distance when it comes to God the Lord.
But as well, if you look specifically at the text, do not come near it, there's a directional element as well, that you may know the way by which you must go, for you have not passed this way before. So it's the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord they're to fix their eyes upon and they are to pursue or they are to walk with reference to that vision or that particular view. And then
Sanctify Yourselves Before God
notice the disposition required as they prepare for this particular event. Joshua said to the people, sanctify yourselves for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you. Sanctify yourself. Get yourself ready.
Prepare your heart. There's elements, there's things indicated in the Pentateuch what sanctifying oneself means. Perhaps abstaining from sexual relations, cleaning oneself in a particular way. The idea is prepare.
You're in the presence of the Holy God prepare, sanctify, hallow yourselves before him before you enter in to his midst." So these are instructions to the children of Israel and then he gives instructions specifically to the priests in verse 6. Then Joshua spoke to the priests saying, take up the ark of the covenant and cross over before the people. So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people. And
Execution of God's Plan
that brings us to the execution of God's plan in verses 7 to 17. Notice that
God Exalts Joshua Before Israel
God is going to exalt His servant Joshua. Again, this is most important. Moses, the leader of Israel, has died. God has made it public, this transition of leadership between Moses and Joshua.
In fact, Moses was key in this to announce this to the children of Israel. But God wants to continually reiterate this point. God wants the people of Israel to show allegiance to their earthly leader when they go into the land. For certainly when General Joshua starts issuing orders on how to go into the land and how to kill people and break things, the people need to trust their leader.
They need to know that he's a competent leader. They need to know that he's God's man. And this is what the Lord says to Joshua in verse 7. This day I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.
So God has promised Joshua this in Joshua chapter 1 with reference to his charge. But this event, crossing over the river Jordan in this miraculous way, is also going to be God's affirmation upon His man, upon Joshua, and the people must esteem Him. And then notice, over in chapter 4, at verse 14, it says, On that day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they feared Him as they had feared Moses all the days of His life. Ralph Davis says, God knew how vital his people's opinion of Joshua would be for the upcoming wars in Canaan.
Hence, he stooped down that day both to dam up the river and to place his seal of competence upon his man, Joshua. And I don't know that we fully appreciate what's going on as they enter into the land of Canaan. They're going to engage in a great military undertaking. They're to engage in holy war.
They're to engage in, basically, utter destruction of everything that moves, at least in those seven cities under the ban. And so they need to trust Joshua. They need to realize that this is, in fact, their man. This is, in fact, God's man.
And wherever He bids us, we will follow Him. And so the Lord God makes this promise, I will exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. And then in verse 8, specifically, he says, verse 8, You shall command the priests who bear the Ark of the Covenant, saying, When you have come to the edge of the water of Jordan, you shall stand in the Jordan. And then notice
God's Power Over Nature
there's a demonstration of God's power in verses 10 to 13. This is an interesting statement that Joshua says to the people here. Verse 9, Joshua said to the children of Israel, come here and hear the words of the Lord your God. Isn't that interesting?
What do they need prior to entering into the River Jordan to cross it? They need the Word of the Lord. They need the comfort and the encouragement of Scripture. If you ever learn anything, realize that your hope and your vitality and your life, your joy and happiness, largely consists of what is found in this particular book.
If you have loss, if you have trial, if you have injury, or if you have difficulty, it is the Word of the Lord that is going to sustain you. It is the Word of the Lord that is going to enable you and empower you to do what God the Lord calls you to do. And that is conspicuous here. Joshua says to the children of Israel, come here, hear the words of the Lord your God.
And then Joshua recounts the following. And in this, what we find is the presence of God's power. The argument seems to be this, that if God the Lord can tame the river Jordan, certainly he can shut the mouths and destroy Amorites, Girgashites, Jebusites, Perizzites, Hivites, Canaanites. if God can take these thousands and thousands and thousands of people and bring them to the brink of the River Jordan at the worst time of the year. Remember I mentioned last week, Gil notes that there were times during the year that the river could be forded.
There were times during the year that one could successfully cross the River Jordan. The text is conspicuous that this is not one of those times. If you look at verse 15 for a moment, there is a parenthesis inserted there. And it really is inserted there by the author to highlight the gravity of the miracle.
Notice, beginning in verse 14, so it was when the people set out from their camp to cross over the Jordan with the priests, bearing the Ark of the Covenant before the people. And as those who bore the Ark came to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests who bore the Ark dipped in the edge of the water, you could just keep going. But what we find here is this insertion, for the Jordan overflows all its banks during the whole time of harvest. That's where they're at.
They're at a very inopportune time to cross the river Jordan. And so going back to verse 10, Joshua said, By this you shall know that the living God is among you, and that He will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Hivites, and the Perizzites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Jebusites. In other words, the fact that you're going to pass through this river Jordan, the fact that God, the Lord of all the earth, notice that Joshua refers to Him that way twice in the next couple of verses. He is the Lord of all the earth.
The implication seems to be the Lord of all the earth is able to control the forces of nature. He can stop the river Jordan from flowing from overflowing such that thousands and thousands and thousands of people can march right through that river. Certainly if he is Lord and Sovereign over the forces of nature, he is Lord and Sovereign over the persons who occupy nature in this world. So this is a down payment, this is a foretaste, this is a foreshadowing of the great power of Almighty God.
The fact that you're crossing through the River Jordan is proof positive that when you go up against Girgashites, you don't have to worry about them, you don't have to fear them, you don't have to be dismayed because the God who stops the River Jordan is able to stop the enemies of His people. That's the emphasis here. Notice in verse 11, Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is crossing over before you into the Jordan. God goes before you.
What God? He is the Lord of all the earth. Isn't this something that Rahab confesses as well in chapter 2? They're going into Canaan.
The Canaanites have a deity for everything. What Joshua is saying is that we are under the God of heaven and earth. We are under the sovereign, omnipotent, gracious care of the Almighty One. And this is to instill in the people of God, remember these are words of comfort from the Lord, all that they stand in need of in order to enable them and empower them to walk through this particular Jordan River.
Verse 12, now therefore take for yourselves twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one man from every tribe, and it shall come to pass as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, the waters that come down from upstream, and they shall stand as a heap. Now, put yourself in this situation. Put yourself in this particular position. You're probably wondering, Joshua, how are we going to do this?
Remember, we know what chapters 3 and 4 say. Up to this point, they don't know what chapters 3 and 4 say. They see a big, mighty, rushing, roaring river at the time of harvest where it overflows the river bank. They only see difficulty, trial, and impossibility.
Now this word from the Lord through His servant Joshua comes to them and He tells them and affirms what the Lord of all the earth is going to do. "...shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, the waters that come down from upstream, and they shall stand as a heap." and
Israel Crosses on Dry Ground
then the execution proper in verses 14 to 17. The people comply, verse 14. So it was when the people set out from their camp to cross over the Jordan with the priests bearing the Ark of the Covenant before the people, and as those who bore the Ark came to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests who bore the Ark dipped in the edge of the water. So God through His servant makes this announcement that he's going to stop, he's going to heap up the waters so that they are able to freely pass.
The people in faith step up. The people believe God through his servant Joshua and now they follow, they engage, they execute the particular plan just in case we have forgotten what a mighty and miraculous deed this is. Verse 15b reminds us. And then notice for a moment chapter 4 verse 18.
And it came to pass when the priests who bore the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord had come from the midst of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests' feet touched the dry land, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and overflowed all its banks as before." It's as if the author is countering the naturalistic explanation from the outset. In other words, people will suggest this was a fluke. There were times in history where there was a cave-in by the bank and the water was dammed up and so they had this opportunity to be able to cross. This wasn't the supernatural power of God the Lord or Jehovah.
Naturalists try to explain everything away. They try to explain the crossing of the Red Sea, that they went to a particularly shallow portion, and that what happened there really wasn't God walling up the waters for them to pass through on dry ground. It was just a shallow place. See, the naturalist has to reject God.
He has to reject the supernatural. he is committed to a non-theistic worldview, and as a result he takes passages like these, a critical scholarship, and they say they got lucky. It was a fluke. It was a historical accident, and they just happened to be there at the right place at the right time, and all these thousands of people were able to cross, and wow, isn't that just amazing? But the text is bracketed.
It says, after talking about how the Jordan overflows all its banks during the whole time of Iris, notice verse 16, that the waters which came down from upstream stood still and rose in a heap very far away at Adam, the city that is beside Zeritan. So the waters that went down into the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, failed and were cut off. and the people crossed over opposite Jericho. So they do this. As soon as everybody's out and the priests leave their position in the Jordan, as soon as their feet touch the riverbanks, then the water goes back into its normal course.
That's not a fluke. It's not a happy accident. It wasn't just a lucky event in history. It was God Almighty, as he did with this people, or at least the first generation, bringing them out of Egypt through the Red Sea, so God is giving this miraculous display He is evidencing His signs and wonders so that the people will know, the people are assured, that when they get into enemy territory, God will in fact fight for them and be able to stop their foes and stop their enemies.
If the Lord, the God of heaven and earth, is able to stop rivers, He's able to stop Girgashites. What a terrible title for a person. I'm a Girgashite. I say that because I doubt there's any Girgashites listening.
Anyways, so then verse 17 summarizes, then the priests who bore the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan and all Israel crossed over on dry ground until all the people had crossed completely over the Jordan. So when we get to chapter 4, again it's not several crossings in view. It is the author using the occasion of the crossing simply to make point, simply to reiterate, simply to highlight particular truths. So that
Recognition of God's Goodness
brings us to consider verses 1 to 10a in chapter 4 under the consideration of the recognition of God's goodness. You see, this is a one-time event. God doesn't always cause his people to witness miracles, to witness wonders, to witness signs. God's normal way is to work normally.
You see, a miracle is unique because it is outside of the normal course of things. But what God does do is He gives the children of Israel teaching, doctrine, lessons, these particular stones in order to rehearse and for the people to remember the great event. It's very similar to what we have in the Lord's Supper. Jesus isn't crucified every week.
The sacrifice isn't made every week. As the book of Hebrews highlights for us, it was once for all. But the Lord's supper, the Lord's table, functions like these memorial stones. It is something for us to rehearse, it is something for us to recall, it is something for us to remember the great redemptive act of God.
That's the purpose of these particular stones. So Joshua gives them instruction concerning the 12 stones in verses 2 to 5. Choose one man from each tribe, the 12 tribes of Israel, You each take a stone and you plant it in this particular area. Notice the purpose of the stones in verses 6 and 7.
Notice in verse 6, that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask in time to come, what do these stones mean to you? Then you shall answer them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off.
And these stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever. So you erect these stones as a living testimony, as markers, as evidences that God in fact stopped the Jordan so that the children of Israel could go. So what remains and what abides? What remains and what abides is the doctrine, the instruction associated with or that rehearses the particular event.
In fact, Davis, I think he summarizes it well. He says there is an implication here with reference to this necessity to remember. Look at these stones, son, and let me recall for you what God the Lord did at the River Jordan.
Cessationism and Memorial Doctrine
Davis says if God So insists that Israel remember this day, it implies that this event was unique and that God does not usually work with such visibly raw power. This is a great statement for the people in the New Covenant era that are looking to duplicate all the signs and wonders in the Book of Acts. All of the signs and wonders given in the Book of Acts were given to affirm and to confirm the revelatory word that was coming from God through His apostles. Such that when we have that revelatory word, we ought not to be chasing after tongues, or chasing after prophesying.
The written word, or the revelatory word, is now codified in the New Covenant Scriptures, just like the Old Testament word is in the Old Covenant Scriptures. Davis goes on to say, If God did something of this magnitude every fifth Wednesday or so, why should Israel need to remember Jordan Day? Apparently, this sort of miracle will be infrequent. God's standard method of retaining his people's fidelity is not by frequent and dazzling displays of power, but by faithful witness and teaching of those particular acts in which he had already demonstrated his care for his own.
Now, if you don't feel the weight and the significance of this, let me just try to relate it this way. In the New Testament, in the New Covenant, the Reformed, people that understand that God's Word, the canon is now closed, there's not new revelation, there's not new speech coming from the Lord, we have it in the New Covenant, As a result of that, we don't look for tongues, we don't look for prophesying, two gifts in particular that were revelatory. That we have a closed canon speaks to the reality that we ought not to chase those particular sign gifts. What Davis says here is crucial.
God's standard method of retaining his people's fidelity is not by frequent and dazzling displays of power, but by faithful witness and teaching of those particular acts in which he had already demonstrated his care for his own. If you survey the New Testament scriptures, In the early church, there is a lot of signs, and a lot of wonders, and a lot of tongues, and a lot of prophesying. That is because God is giving revelation through these particular means. As the church progresses, as the canon is coming to a close, The latter epistles, primarily, in my mind, 1st and 2nd Timothy and Titus.
The emphasis that Paul gives to these young pastors is not seek after tongues. It's not seek after prophesying. The emphasis in the pastoral epistles is upon the faithful explanation of God's revealed word. In other words, the stress falls on sound doctrine.
This is why Paul, in the last letter written in the New Testament, maybe even after the book of Revelation, depending on when you date these particular documents, in what Paul, at least in the Pauline corpus, at least what Paul has written, the last thing, the last charge given to Timothy is not, Timothy, I want you to speak in tongues. Timothy, I want you to prophesy to the people. He says to Timothy, preach the word. Be ready in season and out of season.
Convince, rebuke, and exhort with all longsuffering and teaching. If Timothy were to say, why Paul? Paul would say, he does say, for the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine. But they'll want their ears tickled, so they'll heap up teachers to do that very thing.
So Timothy, because they reject sound doctrine, I want you to preach to them sound doctrine. The implication, God knows what they need a lot better than what they know. And the second reason Paul gives for that command is because Paul is going to die. I'm already being poured out as a drink offering.
And there's a crown laid up for me, and the righteous judge will give me." So Paul emphasizes in these pastoral epistles sound doctrine. Now, that does not mean the Reformed are afraid of the Holy Spirit. There's a teaching out there, it's called New Calvinism. And the New Calvinists say the Old Calvinists are afraid of the Holy Spirit.
That's not it at all. We just believe that the Holy Spirit normatively works through the preaching of God's Word. We see regeneration, the power of the Spirit opening the heart of dead sinners as miraculous, no, more miraculous as somebody uttering something in tongues. So New Calvinism, with their cavils or their insults against old Calvinism is absolutely wrong.
We're not afraid of the Holy Spirit. We believe that the Holy Spirit used these particular gifts in order to affirm and confirm the revelatory word that God was speaking through Christ, through his apostles, and once that canon is closed, we ought not to be chasing after tongue speakers and prophets. We ought to be submitting ourselves to the authority of Holy Scripture revealed in both the Old and the New Testaments. I think that is a great, at least, implication we find here.
It's not going to be every other week that God's going to open a river for the Israelites so that they can be affirmed and confirmed. with God's power. No, God does this once in this instance. You erect these 12 stones and the ongoing way of promoting fidelity among Israel is to point to those stones and say, look at those stones, that evidence is the faithfulness of God. Listen to the word, heed the word, and walk according to the word.
That's the emphasis here that we find. So then these men remove the stones in verses 9 and 10, and they do what they are told. They erect these stones as monuments, memorials to the faithfulness of God the Lord.
Fulfillment of God's Promise
Brings us fourthly to the fulfillment of God's promise, verses 10b to 20, the people cross. Again, he's rehearsing, he's recounting, he is repeating as it serves the narrative at this particular point. The end of verse 10, the people hurried and crossed over. Then it came to pass when all the people had completely crossed over that the ark of the Lord and the priests crossed over in the presence of the people, and the men of Reuben, the men of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh crossed over armed before the children of Israel as Moses had spoken to them.
They were armed. Notice that. Being armed isn't necessarily a sin. These men are going into combat.
And notice here, God the Lord fights for them, doesn't he? God the Lord is sovereign. God has promised them victory. But that does not diminish the responsibility to take up arms, to be 40,000 strong, and to locate yourself in the plains of Jericho.
Because up to this point, they don't know how they're going to conquer Jericho. As far as they know, they're going to take those arms, they're going to rush into Jericho, and they're going to kill the Jerichoites. So you see, God's sovereignty does not diminish our responsibility. God's sovereignty is the reason for our responsibility.
And remember, these three tribes, these were Transjordan, these were the east side tribes. These were the tribes that when they got their allotment on the east side of Jordan, remember that Moses said, when it comes time to go west into Jordan, you have to fight, you have to arm up, and you have to aid the rest of the tribe. So these men are being faithful, they are carrying out their commitment, their oath, their covenant to support the children of Israel. That's what the reference in verse 12 is.
The men of Reuben, the men of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh crossed over armed before the children of Israel as Moses had spoken to them. About 40,000 prepared for war crossed over before the Lord for battle to the plains of Jericho. On that day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel and they feared him as they feared Moses all the days of his life. This was an awesome, awesome Sigh.
They come through Jordan, 40,000 strong, ready for battle, take their place in the plains of Jericho. This is a force to be reckoned with. They've got God the Lord on their side, they've got the promises of God, they've got the evidences of His power. I bet these men are charged and ready to roll.
There is no better way to fire up an army than with the living and true God, and that's exactly what we find in this particular instance. And then notice the priests are summoned, in verses 15 to 17, the Lord commanded or spoke to Joshua saying, command the priests who bear the ark of the testimony to come up from the Jordan. Joshua therefore commanded the priests saying, come up from the Jordan. And it came to pass when the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord had come from the midst of the Jordan, and the soles of the priest's feet touched the dry land, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and overflowed all its banks as before.
Now notice, in terms of the fulfillment of God's promise, verse 19 is very important. Now the people came up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they camped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. And those twelve stones which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal. Kyle and Dalich It was probably Kyle, I think, that wrote the commentary on Joshua.
It's always hard when you have a multi-author commentary to know who to give credit to. I think it was Kyle that did Joshua. He mentions that the crossing took place on the tenth day of the first month. That is to say, on the same day on which 40 years before, Israel had begun to prepare for going out of Egypt by setting apart the Passover land.
Exodus chapter 12 verses 12, 2 and 3. So the reference to that particular date, that particular day in Exodus 12, 2 and 3, and the reference to that particular day and date in Joshua chapter 4, verse 19, highlights something of God's faithfulness. Davis says, therefore we might say this day had marked the beginning of redemption. Right?
Back in Exodus chapter 12, prepare the Passover lamb. Why? Because God the Lord is going to come, the angel of the Lord, he's going to kill the firstborn of Egypt and then the children of Israel are going to march with all boldness out of Egypt. Davis says, we might say this day had marked the beginning of redemption, now it marked its completion.
What God began, He brought to completion. God has written His faithfulness across another date on our calendars. Israel had been a slave. Now Israel was an heir.
And that is precisely the movement and the flow that we find when we compare Exodus chapter 12 to Joshua chapter 4 verse 19. The promises of God are yea and amen. He does not renege. He does not falsify information.
He does not lie. He does not change his mind. He does not alter. He promised Israel that they would inherit a land, and God is delivering them to this particular land, and He has promised, He has given manifest evidence that He will go before them as He has opened up the River Jordan for them, and this is evidence that He will destroy their enemies.
Declaration by God's Servant
And that brings us finally to the declaration by God's servant in verses 21 to 24. Then he spoke to the children of Israel, saying, When your children asked their fathers in time to come, saying, What are these stones? I mean, you can hear it now, can't you? In a Lord's Supper service, your five-year-old leans over and says, Dad, what are you doing?
I hope you don't say, Shut up, son. Read Turretin. Read Calvin. Read our confession.
You can whisper gently if we're remembering our Lord. We're remembering our Christ. We're remembering the sacrifice at Calvary. Hopefully, as this is taking place, they're being reminded through the pulpit ministry as well.
But the children are going to ask. When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, what are these stones? Then you shall let your children know, saying, Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry land. Now imagine a kid looking at the Jordan.
He'd go, wow, that's amazing. See, kids react more than adults. We'd probably be thinking, how did that all happen? Was it a fluke?
Was it a natural disaster? Was there a dam? Kids just say, wow, God did that. He brought you through this river, Jordan.
That would be an amazing testimony to Junior. Then you shall let your children know, saying, Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry land. For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over." And it's not only this event, Junior, but as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea. In other words, not only do you instruct him on this redemptive event, the River Jordan, but you instruct him on the other redemptive event, the Red Sea, when God brought the children of Israel out of Egypt by his sovereign hand, by his mighty power.
You're supposed to teach your children. You're supposed to indoctrinate them. You're supposed to point them to these memorial stones. You're supposed to say, kid, do you see that stone?
Do you know what it means? It means that God brought us out, God loves us, God promised to us, God is faithful, and God carried out what he did promise. And then notice, the end of verse 23, which he dried up before us until we had crossed over, here's the purpose of the testimony. It transcends just a teaching moment for the children.
Any good teaching does do this, right? It's not just for children, it's for their parents. In this instance, it's for the peoples of the earth. Notice, that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the Lord, that He is mighty.
In other words, when the Girgashites, or the Perizzites, or the Jebusites, or the Hivites, when they see those twelve stones, they ought to fear. They ought to realize that Yahweh of Israel is not like their gods. Yahweh of Israel is God overall, Lord of heaven and Lord of earth. He is the one that opened the river Jordan.
He is the one that brought His people in there. They ought to recognize this and they ought to understand and know that He is mighty. But not only that, it's not just instruction for the pagans, it's not just instruction for the little children in Israel, but for the covenant community, when you look at those 12 stones, you ought to fear the Lord your God. you ought to reverence Him, you ought to honor Him, you ought to treat Him as holy, you ought to recognize His absolute sovereignty and His omnipotence, that you may fear the Lord your God forever. So the Lord God Almighty brings them through the river, has them erect these stones, and there is instruction for children, instruction for pagans, instruction for Israel, that they may indeed fear the Lord God Almighty.
So now they are poised in the land, they are about to go and conquer the land for God Almighty as he had commanded them. We've crossed the River Jordan in these two chapters. Well, let us pray.
Closing Prayer
Our Father in heaven, we thank you for your faithfulness and we thank you for your sovereign power and your might and your glory and your omnipotence so clearly displayed in a passage like this. May our hearts be warmed and may we be encouraged and may we realize that you who do these great things will certainly undertake in the lesser things in our day-to-day lives. It seems Paul had such an argument in mind in Romans chapter 8. If God the Lord did not spare his own son but delivered him up for us all, How will he not freely give us all things?
We thank you father for your grace and your mercy We thank you for our Lord Jesus Christ that new covenant Joshua who promises to take us into eternal rest God made these things strengthen us and may they embolden us and may we indeed walk by faith and we pray through Christ our Lord Amen