11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth passes over before you into the Jordan.
The angel answered me, "These are the four winds of the sky, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth.
It shall come to pass, when the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of Yahweh, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, even the waters that come down from above; and they shall stand in one heap.
Arise and thresh, daughter of Zion; For I will make your horn iron, And I will make your hoofs brass; And you will beat in pieces many peoples: And I will devote their gain to Yahweh, And their substance to the Lord of the whole earth.
Then he said, "These are the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the whole earth."
and they commanded the people, saying, When you see the ark of the covenant of Yahweh your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then you shall remove from your place, and go after it. Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure: don't come near to it, that you may know the way by which you must go; for you have not passed this way heretofore. Joshua said to the people, Sanctify yourselves; for tomorrow Yahweh will do wonders among you. Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. They took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.
Who has first given to me, that I should repay him? Everything under the heavens is mine.
As for my people, children are their oppressors, And women rule over them. My people, those who lead you cause you to err, And destroy the way of your paths.
Who should not fear you, King of the nations? for to you does it appertain; because among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their royal estate, there is none like you.
Yahweh will be awesome to them, for he will famish all the gods of the land. Men will worship him, everyone from his place, even all the shores of the nations.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Joshua 3
Commentary on Joshua 3 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 3
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, v. 1). and Gilgal, where they next pitched, ch. 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 (v. 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.
Jos 3:1-6
Rahab, in mentioning to the spies the drying up of the Red Sea (ch. 2:10), the report of which terrified the Canaanites more than anything else, intimates that those on that side the water expected that Jordan, that great defence of their country, would in like manner give way to them. Whether the Israelites had any expectation of it does not appear. God often did things for them which they looked not for, Isa. 64:3. Now here we are told,
Jos 3:7-13
We may observe here how God honours Joshua, and by this wondrous work he is about to do designs to make Israel know that he is their governor, and then how Joshua honours God and endeavours by it to make Israel know that he is their God. Thus those that honour God he will honour, and those whom he has advanced should do what they can in their places to exalt him.
Jos 3:14-17
Here we have a short and plain account of the dividing of the river Jordan, and the passage of the children of Israel through it. The story is not garnished with the flowers of rhetoric (gold needs not to be painted), but it tell us, in short, matter of fact.