The Jordan River: More Than a Crossing

A River That Goes Down

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The Jordan is the most important river in the Bible. It runs from north to south along the eastern edge of the Promised Land. To enter the land, Israel had to cross it.

Where it starts. The Jordan begins with springs near Mount Hermon, a tall mountain with snow on top. Melting snow and rain feed the river all year.

Where it goes. The river flows into the Sea of Galilee, then winds south to the Salt Sea, which we call the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea is the lowest place on dry land anywhere on earth.

Its name. The name Jordan comes from a Hebrew word that means to go down. The river keeps going down, lower and lower, all the way south.

In flood. In spring, at harvest time, the river rose over its banks. “The Jordan overflows all its banks during the whole time of harvest” (Joshua 3:15). That was the very time God chose for Israel to cross.

Stopped far away. The water stood up “in a heap very far away at Adam” (Joshua 3:16). From there all the way down to the Dead Sea, the riverbed was empty.

Dry ground. “All Israel crossed over on dry ground” (Joshua 3:17). God did not leave them in thick mud. He dried the ground under their feet.

A song about God's path. “Your way was in the sea, Your path in the great waters, And Your footsteps were not known” (Psalm 77:19). God makes paths where no one else can.

A promise for hard days. God says, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you” (Isaiah 43:2).

Elijah and Elisha. Hundreds of years later, the prophet Elijah rolled up his cloak and struck the Jordan, and the water parted. After God took Elijah to heaven, Elisha struck the water the same way, and it parted again (2 Kings 2:8, 14).

Naaman. Naaman was an army commander from Syria with a skin disease. God's prophet told him to wash in the Jordan seven times. When he obeyed, God healed him (2 Kings 5:14). God's kindness reached other nations too.

Still the Lord of the river. Joshua said God dried up the Jordan “as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea” (Joshua 4:23). The same God did it again and again, for different people in different times.

What we learn. The Jordan was a real river with a real flood. God is not stopped by real problems. He makes a way through them, and He goes with His people.

What to do. Think of something in your life that feels like a river in flood. Pray about it this week, and ask God to go ahead of you.

The Jordan is a short river compared with the Nile, but no river matters more in Scripture. It marked the eastern edge of Canaan, and crossing it meant entering the land God swore to Abraham.

Yarden (say: yar-DANE). The name is usually linked to yarad (say: yah-RAHD), to go down. From the springs near Mount Hermon the river drops to the Sea of Galilee, about 700 feet below sea level, and then to the Dead Sea, about 1,400 feet below.

A winding river. The valley floor between Galilee and the Dead Sea is not very long, but the river twists back and forth so much that it is far longer than the valley.

Flood stage (Joshua 3:15). The crossing came in the first month (4:19), at barley harvest. Snow from Hermon and spring rain pushed the river beyond its banks and into the thick brush on either side. Jeremiah later used that brush as a picture of danger (Jeremiah 12:5).

Adam and Zaretan (3:16). God stopped the river at a town far upstream. The whole stretch below it ran dry, so a nation with children and flocks could cross at once.

Dry ground (3:17). The Hebrew charabah (say: khah-rah-VAH) means dry ground. It is the same word used for the floor of the Red Sea in Exodus 14:21. One generation walked through the sea, and the next walked through the river.

Psalm 114. The psalm sings that the sea fled and the Jordan turned back, and then asks why. The answer is the presence of the Lord, the God of Jacob (Psalm 114:3-7).

Psalm 77:19. “Your way was in the sea, Your path in the great waters, And Your footsteps were not known.” God's path is real even when His footprints cannot be seen.

Elijah and Elisha (2 Kings 2:8, 14). Elijah struck the Jordan with his mantle, and the two prophets crossed on dry ground. Elisha came back the same way, calling on the Lord God of Elijah. The God of Joshua was still at work.

Naaman (2 Kings 5:14). The Syrian commander washed in the Jordan seven times as Elisha told him, and his skin became like a little child's. Jesus pointed to Naaman to show that God's mercy reaches the nations (Luke 4:27).

Isaiah 43:2. “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.” God's promise uses the language of the Red Sea and the Jordan.

Application. The hard things in your life are real, but they are not bigger than God. Name one, pray about it, and look for the next step of obedience He is asking of you.

The River Where Jesus Was Baptized

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Many years after Joshua, crowds of people came back to the Jordan. This time they came to hear a prophet named John.

John the Baptist. John preached in the desert near the Jordan. He told people to turn away from their sins, and he baptized them in the river (Matthew 3:5-6).

Getting ready again. Joshua had told Israel to make themselves holy before God did wonders (Joshua 3:5). John also told people to get ready, because the Lord was coming.

Jesus comes. Jesus walked from Galilee to the Jordan and asked John to baptize Him (Matthew 3:13). Jesus had no sin, but He chose to stand with sinners.

The Lamb of God. When John saw Jesus coming, he said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29).

The Spirit came down. As Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit came down on Him like a dove (Matthew 3:16).

The Father spoke. A voice from heaven said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17). The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit were all there.

The same name. Joshua led Israel through the Jordan into the land. Jesus, whose name is the same as Joshua's, came to the Jordan to begin leading His people to God.

A new beginning. Israel's crossing began their life in the land. Jesus' baptism began His public work of teaching, healing and going to the cross.

A picture of the gospel. Going down into water and coming back up is a picture. Many Christians see in it what Jesus did: He died, He was buried, and He rose again (Romans 6:4).

For believers. When Christians are baptized, they show everyone that they belong to Jesus. Baptism does not save anyone. Jesus saves, and baptism tells the world.

For every nation. At the Jordan, God wanted all the peoples of the earth to know Him (Joshua 4:24). Jesus sent His followers to every nation with the good news.

What we learn. The Jordan points to Jesus. He is the Son the Father loves, and the Lamb who takes away sin.

What to do. If you have trusted Jesus, talk with your parents or pastor about being baptized. If you already have been, thank God for it this week.

The Jordan is where Israel entered the land under Joshua, and it is where Jesus stepped into His public ministry. The river ties the two stories together.

John at the Jordan (Matthew 3:5-6). People came from Jerusalem and all Judea and were baptized by John in the Jordan, confessing their sins. John's call to get ready echoes Joshua's “Sanctify yourselves” (Joshua 3:5).

Bethabara. John 1:28 places John's baptizing at a spot beyond the Jordan, on the east bank. Israel had crossed from that side into the land. Many Christians see a fitting picture in John calling Israel back to the river to begin again with God.

Why was Jesus baptized? Jesus had no sin to confess. He told John it was fitting to fulfill all righteousness (Matthew 3:15). He was standing in the place of sinners, the place He would take fully on the cross.

John 1:29. “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” John named Jesus as the sacrifice God Himself would provide.

The Trinity revealed (Matthew 3:16-17). The Son stands in the water, the Spirit descends like a dove, and the Father speaks: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one God, and all three are present.

The same name. Yehoshua (say: yeh-HOH-shoo-ah) means the Lord saves. Joshua brought Israel through the Jordan into the land, but “if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day” (Hebrews 4:8). Jesus gives the rest Joshua could not.

Baptism as a picture. Romans 6:4 says believers are buried with Christ through baptism and raised to walk in newness of life. Baptism does not save. It shows the union with Christ that faith already has.

A crossing for the nations. Joshua 4:24 looked ahead to all the peoples of the earth knowing God. After His resurrection Jesus sent His disciples to make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them (Matthew 28:19).

Naaman again. A foreign commander once found healing in the Jordan. Now people from every nation find new life in Jesus, who stood in that same river.

Application. If you trust Jesus, baptism is His command and a joyful way to say so in public. Talk with a parent or pastor about what it means and when you might take that step.

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