Jos 3:3 | KingComments | STEP | The ark occupies the central place here. The ark descends first into the water of the Jordan. Thereby the water stays at a distance and the way is free for the people. At a respectful distance, they pass by the ark, which remains in the middle until all the people have safely crossed over. Here we see a beautiful picture of the work of the Lord Jesus. He has cleared the way to the blessings of the heavenly land by undergoing the judgment – of which the water is a picture here ( ) – for the church. All who belong to the church look at Him with gratitude at a respectful distance for He has turned away the judgment for them by undergoing the judgment for them. Going through the Jordan is an inadvertent reminder of passing through the Red Sea. If we compare the two crossings, we see that there are some differences. Both crossings are in their spiritual application a picture of the death of the Lord Jesus, but both waters represent two different perspectives of His death. What has happened to Israel at two different times in their history, is different for us in the spiritual sense. At our conversion we went, in picture, through both the Red Sea and the Jordan. The Red Sea represents the death of the Lord Jesus by which we are freed from the power of sin. The people of Israel come into the wilderness after the Red Sea and that is what the world has become for us after our conversion. The Jordan represents the death of the Lord Jesus by which we entered the heavenly land. The land is a picture of the heavenly places, where we are blessed “with very spiritual blessing” ( ). We are not, like Israel, leaving the wilderness behind us. They are pictures. As long as we live on earth, we remain in the wilderness and also in the heavenly places, but we are not at the same time in both territories. For example, when we work hard and get tired, we experience life in the wilderness. As well as when our (small) children give us a lot of work. However, when we are busy with God’s Word and enjoy the Lord Jesus, we experience what it is like to be in the heavenly places. There are even more differences between the passage through the Red Sea and the passage through the Jordan. The passage through the Red Sea happens at night – the passage through the Jordan happens during the day. The passage through the Red Sea is a run, with the enemy on the heels – the passage through the Jordan happens in peace, in majesty, where the people go to the enemy. The people go through the Red Sea between two walls of water – when going through the Jordan, the water is kept at a great distance, while in the middle only the ark is seen. At the Red Sea, Moses says to the people: “The LORD will fight for you while you keep silent” ( ). God does everything. He defeats the enemy from whom the people are fleeing. On the other bank they see that God has freed them from the power of the enemy ( ). Moses comes first. With his staff he divides the water, so that the people can pass freely. The truth of this is shown in the letter to the Romans. In that letter we see our life as sinners in the world. There we are added to a dead Christ in baptism ( ), just as the people are added to Moses in the Red Sea ( ). After our baptism we see the world as a wilderness, the land of death. In the letter to the Romans we do not read anywhere that we are raised with Christ. For this we have to go to the letter to the Colossians and the letter to the Ephesians. In those letters we read about the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus and His place in heaven now. That is what is represented to us in the Jordan. In our spiritual development the awareness of this comes later. First we only have an eye for the needs of our sins. We have the solution in Christ Who died for us. Later we discover that we went with Him through the Jordan, that is to say that we get an eye for all that God has given us through the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus because of our connection with Him. This requires a quiet consultation of three days. The death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus are enclosed in the number three ( ). It takes food ( ), exercises in our souls and hearts, to understand what the Jordan means, and then enter the land. The Red Sea is an exit (Exodus); the Jordan shows that the death of the Lord Jesus is not only an exit, but also an entrance. The exit from the power of death is great and gives joy. But God wants us to enter the land through the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus. As said, this truth is presented to us in the letter to the Colossians and in the letter to the Ephesians. We not only died with Christ (letter to the Romans), but also are raised up with Him (letter to the Colossians) and put in Him in the heavenly places (letter to the Ephesians). The Red Sea says that we died with Christ. The Jordan says that we are also raised with Him, but with the whole land still before us. Therefore we have to keep seeking “the things above” ( ). The letter to the Ephesians goes one step further and already sees us in possession of the land. The struggle there is a defensive struggle which we see in the picture at the end of the book Joshua. The book of Joshua can be considered as the bridge between the letter to the Colossians and the letter to the Ephesians. We are made alive and seated in Christ in the heavenly places ( ). We are already in heaven. That is our position. The book of Joshua shows us how we can experience that position, how we can realize what we are. But then we first need to know the meaning of the Jordan. Even after the Israelites have gone through the Jordan, they do not conquer the land lightning fast. First they stay three weeks before Jericho. Everything proceeds peacefully. All these pictures want us to reflect on the question: What does the death of the Lord Jesus mean? Not only has He taken away my sins, but He has also acquired heaven for Himself and also for me. I will show my answer in the practice of my life of faith. It makes clear what I have seen of this and what significance I attach to it. Joshua rises early on that important day with that important event. As the leader of the people, he must take the lead in everything. To rise early is a characteristic of him ( ), as well as of other leaders of God’s people: Moses ( ), David ( ), Hezekiah ( ). Above all, it is a characteristic of the superior Leader ( ; cf. ). When the moment for the crossing has actually come, the attention is first turned to the ark: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God.” Everything is about the ark, which does everything; the people must only follow. In Joshua 3-4 the eyes of the people are on this – the ark is mentioned sixteen times in these two chapters. The people see the blue of the garment that lies over the ark, the color of heaven. Thus we can only learn what the blessings of the land mean when our eyes are constantly on the Lord Jesus, the Son of God. ‘The ark of the LORD’ is a picture the Lord Jesus as God, what is represented in the gold of the ark, and as Man, what is represented in the wood of the ark. His Person stands before us. God wants to glorify Him. That it is the ark of the “covenant” reminds us of God’s promises. It is also the ark of “the Lord of all the earth” ( ). That shows us that the land belongs to Him. Therefore He can give it to whom He wants. To this end He says after His resurrection: “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” ( ). The ark is also called “the ark of the testimony” ( ). This points to God’s testimony to us through His Word – the law, the tablets in the ark. In this way, too, the ark is a picture of the Lord Jesus: He speaks to us. The ark is carried by the Levitical priests. Priests are used to approaching God and being in His direct presence. They represent spiritual believers who can show us this Person through their service. They carry the ark on their shoulders and thus keep the ark high, so that we can see the ark better.

‏ Joshua 3:3

Introduction

The ark occupies the central place here. The ark descends first into the water of the Jordan. Thereby the water stays at a distance and the way is free for the people. At a respectful distance, they pass by the ark, which remains in the middle until all the people have safely crossed over.

Here we see a beautiful picture of the work of the Lord Jesus. He has cleared the way to the blessings of the heavenly land by undergoing the judgment – of which the water is a picture here (Psa 42:7) – for the church. All who belong to the church look at Him with gratitude at a respectful distance for He has turned away the judgment for them by undergoing the judgment for them.

Going through the Jordan is an inadvertent reminder of passing through the Red Sea. If we compare the two crossings, we see that there are some differences. Both crossings are in their spiritual application a picture of the death of the Lord Jesus, but both waters represent two different perspectives of His death. What has happened to Israel at two different times in their history, is different for us in the spiritual sense. At our conversion we went, in picture, through both the Red Sea and the Jordan.

The Red Sea represents the death of the Lord Jesus by which we are freed from the power of sin. The people of Israel come into the wilderness after the Red Sea and that is what the world has become for us after our conversion. The Jordan represents the death of the Lord Jesus by which we entered the heavenly land. The land is a picture of the heavenly places, where we are blessed “with very spiritual blessing” (Eph 1:3).

We are not, like Israel, leaving the wilderness behind us. They are pictures. As long as we live on earth, we remain in the wilderness and also in the heavenly places, but we are not at the same time in both territories. For example, when we work hard and get tired, we experience life in the wilderness. As well as when our (small) children give us a lot of work. However, when we are busy with God’s Word and enjoy the Lord Jesus, we experience what it is like to be in the heavenly places.

There are even more differences between the passage through the Red Sea and the passage through the Jordan. The passage through the Red Sea happens at night – the passage through the Jordan happens during the day. The passage through the Red Sea is a run, with the enemy on the heels – the passage through the Jordan happens in peace, in majesty, where the people go to the enemy. The people go through the Red Sea between two walls of water – when going through the Jordan, the water is kept at a great distance, while in the middle only the ark is seen.

At the Red Sea, Moses says to the people: “The LORD will fight for you while you keep silent” (Exo 14:14). God does everything. He defeats the enemy from whom the people are fleeing. On the other bank they see that God has freed them from the power of the enemy (Exo 14:30). Moses comes first. With his staff he divides the water, so that the people can pass freely.

The truth of this is shown in the letter to the Romans. In that letter we see our life as sinners in the world. There we are added to a dead Christ in baptism (Rom 6:3), just as the people are added to Moses in the Red Sea (1Cor 10:1-2). After our baptism we see the world as a wilderness, the land of death.

In the letter to the Romans we do not read anywhere that we are raised with Christ. For this we have to go to the letter to the Colossians and the letter to the Ephesians. In those letters we read about the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus and His place in heaven now. That is what is represented to us in the Jordan. In our spiritual development the awareness of this comes later. First we only have an eye for the needs of our sins. We have the solution in Christ Who died for us.

Later we discover that we went with Him through the Jordan, that is to say that we get an eye for all that God has given us through the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus because of our connection with Him. This requires a quiet consultation of three days. The death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus are enclosed in the number three (Jos 3:2). It takes food (Jos 1:11), exercises in our souls and hearts, to understand what the Jordan means, and then enter the land.

The Red Sea is an exit (Exodus); the Jordan shows that the death of the Lord Jesus is not only an exit, but also an entrance. The exit from the power of death is great and gives joy. But God wants us to enter the land through the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus. As said, this truth is presented to us in the letter to the Colossians and in the letter to the Ephesians. We not only died with Christ (letter to the Romans), but also are raised up with Him (letter to the Colossians) and put in Him in the heavenly places (letter to the Ephesians).

The Red Sea says that we died with Christ. The Jordan says that we are also raised with Him, but with the whole land still before us. Therefore we have to keep seeking “the things above” (Col 3:1-2). The letter to the Ephesians goes one step further and already sees us in possession of the land. The struggle there is a defensive struggle which we see in the picture at the end of the book Joshua.

The book of Joshua can be considered as the bridge between the letter to the Colossians and the letter to the Ephesians. We are made alive and seated in Christ in the heavenly places (Eph 1:3 ; Eph 2:4-6). We are already in heaven. That is our position. The book of Joshua shows us how we can experience that position, how we can realize what we are. But then we first need to know the meaning of the Jordan. Even after the Israelites have gone through the Jordan, they do not conquer the land lightning fast. First they stay three weeks before Jericho. Everything proceeds peacefully.

All these pictures want us to reflect on the question: What does the death of the Lord Jesus mean? Not only has He taken away my sins, but He has also acquired heaven for Himself and also for me. I will show my answer in the practice of my life of faith. It makes clear what I have seen of this and what significance I attach to it.

Instructions for the Crossing

Joshua rises early on that important day with that important event. As the leader of the people, he must take the lead in everything. To rise early is a characteristic of him (Jos 6:12 ; Jos 7:16 ; Jos 8:10), as well as of other leaders of God’s people: Moses (Exo 24:4 ; Exo 34:4), David (Psa 57:8 ; Psa 119:147), Hezekiah (2Chr 29:20). Above all, it is a characteristic of the superior Leader (Mk 1:35; cf. Isa 50:4).

When the moment for the crossing has actually come, the attention is first turned to the ark: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God.” Everything is about the ark, which does everything; the people must only follow. In Joshua 3-4 the eyes of the people are on this – the ark is mentioned sixteen times in these two chapters. The people see the blue of the garment that lies over the ark, the color of heaven.

Thus we can only learn what the blessings of the land mean when our eyes are constantly on the Lord Jesus, the Son of God. ‘The ark of the LORD’ is a picture the Lord Jesus as God, what is represented in the gold of the ark, and as Man, what is represented in the wood of the ark. His Person stands before us. God wants to glorify Him. That it is the ark of the “covenant” reminds us of God’s promises.

It is also the ark of “the Lord of all the earth” (Jos 3:11). That shows us that the land belongs to Him. Therefore He can give it to whom He wants. To this end He says after His resurrection: “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Mt 28:18). The ark is also called “the ark of the testimony” (Jos 4:16). This points to God’s testimony to us through His Word – the law, the tablets in the ark. In this way, too, the ark is a picture of the Lord Jesus: He speaks to us.

The ark is carried by the Levitical priests. Priests are used to approaching God and being in His direct presence. They represent spiritual believers who can show us this Person through their service. They carry the ark on their shoulders and thus keep the ark high, so that we can see the ark better.