Joshua 4:1–7 describes how twelve men picked up twelve stones from the dry riverbed of Jordan to commemorate how the LORD dried it, allowing His covenant people to cross it and enter the Promised Land.
In Joshua 4:1-7Joshua 4:1-7 commentary, commentary stones are collected to construct a memorial to God’s providence as the Israelites cross into Canaan.
The last section described how the LORD miraculously led the Israelites across the Jordan River, the 156-mile-long river flowing north to south from the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea. While the Jordan was at flood stage, God stopped the upstream waters and cut off the downstream, allowing the Levitical priests who carried the ark of the covenant to stand still in the river on dry ground until the entire nation finished crossing it (Joshua 3:14-17Joshua 3:14-17 commentary). Now, when all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD spoke to Joshua (v. 1).
The phrase all the nation refers to all the Israelites, including the elders, the infirm, and the children. It also includes the warriors of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, who chose to settle east of the Jordan since it was a prime area for raising livestock (Numbers 32Numbers 32 commentary).
Several centuries after the conquest of Canaan, because they were on the east side of the Jordan, Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh would be the first tribes of Israel conquered and exiled by Assyria (1 Chronicles 5:261 Chronicles 5:26 commentary). The original plan was for them to inherit land on the west side of the Jordan, but they insisted they wanted land on the east side. God permits their request, knowing it will later not be in their best interest. Had they submitted to God’s design, it may have gone better for them.
Although these two-and-a-half tribes would leave their wives, little ones, and livestock on the eastern side, they were to “cross over armed” before their fellow Israelites to fight the enemy and conquer the land of Canaan (Deuteronomy 3:18Deuteronomy 3:18 commentary−22). Thus, every tribe of Israel successfully made it to the western side of the Jordan.
The people of Israel were forced to wait some forty years in the wilderness before crossing the eastern geographical boundary (the Jordan River) into the land of Canaan, a land “flowing with milk and honey,” (Exodus 3:8Exodus 3:8 commentary), fertile and abundant for the children of Israel to build their self-governing society. A direct trip by foot from Egypt to Sinai and then to Canaan would have only taken several weeks apart from the time camped at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19Exodus 19 commentary).
While in the desert, the first generation of Israelites, age 20 and up, were condemned to live out their years in the wilderness and die there because of their lack of belief in God’s promises (Numbers 13Numbers 13 commentary and 1414 commentary). Twelve Israelite spies had surveyed Canaan and returned with a report that it was impossible to conquer the Canaanites. Only the two spies Joshua and Caleb declared that they believed God would fulfill His promise and deliver the Land to the Israelites. Joshua and Caleb were spared from God’s punishment. The ten unbelieving spies died of a plague, and the twelve tribes of Israel were not allowed to enter the Promised Land. Instead, their children would inherit it.
It took forty years for the first generation to pass on, forty years to match the forty days which the Israelite spies spent in Canaan during their reconnaissance. Joshua and Caleb are the only members of the first generation whom God allows to enter into the Promised Land, because they had faith that God would deliver the land to Israel. This new generation trusted God’s words and crossed the Jordan by faith. Now that the crossing was complete, the LORD spoke to Joshua, the successor of Moses, to give him further instructions. He said to him, Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe (v. 2).
Like Joshua and the Israelites, New Testament believers are required to live by faith, obeying the Spirit, through which we gain strength to perform His instructions. The author of the book of Hebrews makes many comparisons between the Israelites in the wilderness and believers in Jesus.
Like the first generation of Israelites in the Old Testament, who did not prove themselves faithful to God and did not possess the land as their inheritance, so too can New Testament believers fail to prove themselves faithful, and can also “come short” of receiving their inheritance (Hebrews 3:6Hebrews 3:6 commentary). The inheritance promised to New Testament believers to possess is to share in Christ’s reign over the earth according to God’s original design (Hebrews 2:7-9Hebrews 2:7-9 commentary).
The author of Hebrews exhorts believers to prioritize the Godly “fear” of falling “short” of possessing our inheritance (Hebrews 4:1Hebrews 4:1 commentary). We should care greatly about whether or not we are living lives of obedience.
For the Israelites, entering the Promised Land is described as entering God’s rest (Hebrews 3:18Hebrews 3:18 commentary). Believers enter God’s “rest” of being a new creation in Christ simply by believing (2 Corinthians 2:172 Corinthians 2:17 commentary). However, there is another “rest” that goes beyond spending eternity with God (Hebrews 4:8-9Hebrews 4:8-9 commentary). That is the “rest” of the reward of the inheritance, to reign as co-rulers with Christ when He one day establishes His kingdom on this earth (Hebrews 2:10Hebrews 2:10 commentary).
The unbelieving Israelites of the first generation in the Old Testament did not enter God’s rest of possessing their inheritance (entering the Promised Land), but they were still God’s people. God still miraculously took care of their needs in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 8:3-4Deuteronomy 8:3-4 commentary). Likewise, New Testament believers are made new creations in Christ, which is a completed work. We are God’s children regardless of subsequent behavior (Hebrews 3:1Hebrews 3:1 commentary).
What is in question is our reward—the consequences from our choices in life. We are exhorted to pursue this additional “rest” (Hebrews 4:8-9Hebrews 4:8-9 commentary), which refers to the opportunity to receive an inheritance as a reward for completing the work God gives us to do (Ephesians 2:10Ephesians 2:10 commentary). God will not permit us to enter this “rest” if we are disobedient.
The author of Hebrews is not saying that believers could miss out on spending eternity with God, but that we could miss out on the reward of possessing the inheritance that has been granted to us. Paul himself asserts that because believers are placed into Christ when they are born again, if God rejected a believer He would be rejecting Himself (2 Timothy 2:132 Timothy 2:13 commentary). Everyone who believes on Jesus are children of God (John 3:5John 3:5 commentary, 14-1514-15 commentary).
But in order to possess the reward of our inheritance, we must combine faith with hearing and continue to exercise a daily, abiding faith in God, and be obedient to Him. The Israelites were promised by God that He would give them the Promised Land, “but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard” (Hebrews 4:2Hebrews 4:2 commentary). The first generation of Israelites did not act upon what God told them, and so failed to receive their inheritance of living in the Promised Land.
By using this comparison, the author of Hebrews wants us to hear and unite the hearing with faith, and act upon what we have heard. Jesus gave us this example to have faith in the promises of God (Philippians 2:5-9Philippians 2:5-9 commentary). We too have been granted an inheritance which God has laid up for us, to be joint heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17bRomans 8:17b commentary). This inheritance is also described in Hebrews 2Hebrews 2 commentary as Jesus bringing “many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings” (Hebrews 2:10Hebrews 2:10 commentary). New Testament believers are urged to possess our inheritance by living in faith and obedience in our daily lives.
The promise of the inheritance given to the Israelites did not benefit the first generation since they did not walk in faith (Hebrews 3:18-19Hebrews 3:18-19 commentary). Equally, the promises of God also have no benefit to us without faith to walk in them. To possess God’s promises, we must act upon them. Without faith in God, we cannot be obedient to Him; faith is required to gain the reward of our inheritance (Hebrews 3:18-19Hebrews 3:18-19 commentary).
As described in Hebrews 2Hebrews 2 commentary, commentary all authority has been given to Jesus because He was obedient, even to death on the cross (Hebrews 2:9-10Hebrews 2:9-10 commentary). He desires to share that authority with all who trust and follow Him, suffering rejection from the world as He did (Hebrews 2:10Hebrews 2:10 commentary, commentaryRevelation 3:21Revelation 3:21 commentary). We don’t want to miss out on this opportunity to fulfill our design to reign in the earth in harmony with God, nature, and one another (Hebrews 2:7-9Hebrews 2:7-9 commentary), just as the first generation mourned when they learned they would not inherit the Promised Land because of their disobedience (Numbers 14:39Numbers 14:39 commentary).
The Israelites descended from Abraham through Isaac and Jacob. God changed Jacob’s name to Israel (Genesis 32:28Genesis 32:28 commentary). Jacob had twelve sons who became the ancestors of the twelve tribes of Israel. Thus, the LORD urged Joshua to command twelve men who represented the twelve Israelite tribes. He was to say to them, Take up for yourselves twelve stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan (v. 3).
The Old Testament records several occasions when people set up large stones to commemorate remarkable events. Jacob set up a stone “as a pillar and poured oil on its top” to remember the dream he had at Bethel (Genesis 28:18Genesis 28:18 commentary). Later, he set up another stone “as a heap of witness” between him and Laban (Genesis 31:45Genesis 31:45 commentary−47). Similarly, “Samuel took a stone and named it Ebenezer” to mark the site of the Israelite victory over the Philistines (1 Samuel 7:121 Samuel 7:12 commentary). Here in Joshua, the Israelites were to take twelve stones from the dry riverbed, from the place where the priests’ feet were standing firm. They were to carry them over with them and lay them down in the lodging place where they will lodge tonight.
Memorials are important tools for humans. The photographic camera was invented in 1816 due to the human desire to make a memorial. We as humans tend to forget what God has done for us, especially when life is good. Making written or visual memorials reminds us of God’s unfailing love and will help strengthen us when our flesh tries to deny God’s intimate involvement in the course of our lives.
The twelve chosen men were to pick up twelve stones from the river where the Levitical priests bearing the ark of the covenant stood. They were to use these stones to erect a monument commemorating the crossing of the Jordan River. In other words, the stones would serve as a memorial to celebrate how the LORD miraculously led His covenant people across the river on dry ground, to finally begin to possess the land that God swore to their ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Genesis 15:18Genesis 15:18 commentary, 26:326:3 commentary, 28:1328:13 commentary).
The new leader of Israel, Joshua, did as the LORD had commanded him. He called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe (v. 4). Having designated the men, Joshua said to them: Cross again to the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan (v. 5).
The ark was a wooden chest overlaid with gold. It contained the stone tablets on which the LORD wrote the Ten Commandments. It was a sacred object that symbolized the LORD’s throne⎯representing His presence with His covenant people (Exodus 25:10-22Exodus 25:10-22 commentary). It contained the second set of the Ten Commandments, Aaron’s rod which budded almond blossoms, as well as a bowl of manna. The lid of the ark is also called “The Mercy Seat” and was where God told Moses He would meet with him,
"There I will meet with you; and from above the mercy seat." (Exodus 25:22Exodus 25:22 commentary)
As such, the Israelites needed to follow the ark carried by the Levitical priests so God could guide them and grant them victory over their foes as they entered the land of Canaan. The LORD would do so for the Israelites because He was their God.
The Hebrew term translated as LORD is Yahweh, the self-existent and everlasting God who revealed Himself to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:14Exodus 3:14 commentary). Its usage often highlights God’s covenant relationship with the Israelites. In this relationship, Yahweh was the Suzerain ruler, and Israel was the vassal. He was their covenant partner who always cared for them and did what was in their best interest. In our passage, God ensured that His people took the necessary steps to possess the land He had promised them. Therefore, He provided them with the Covenant Box, which symbolizes His presence among them.
The men were to go over before the ark of the LORD just as the Israelites did “until all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan” (Joshua 3:17Joshua 3:17 commentary). They would return to the riverbed while it was still dry. Joshua instructed each of the twelve men to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the sons of Israel. The number “twelve” highlights Israel’s unity under the leadership of Joshua (Exodus 24:4Exodus 24:4 commentary). Since Israel had twelve tribes, it is fitting to have twelve stones to represent the whole nation.
The number twelve is used in the gospels to represent Israel and its twelve tribes.
Jesus chooses twelve disciples who are destined to rule over the twelve tribes of Israel.
Jesus raises a twelve-year-old girl back to life (Luke 8:42Luke 8:42 commentary) and in the same story heals a woman who had an unclean flow for twelve years (Luke 8:43Luke 8:43 commentary).
Both of these women in Luke 8Luke 8 commentary were real women who were healed by Jesus. But they also appear to be symbolic of Israel whom the expected Messiah is prophesied to raise to life (Hosea 6:1-2Hosea 6:1-2 commentary) and clean from her impurity (Ezekiel 36:24-25Ezekiel 36:24-25 commentary).
In the next two verses, Joshua revealed the purpose of the stones. He stated, Let this be a sign among you (v. 6). The stones would be a testimony to educate future Israelite generations on the greatness of the LORD. Joshua put it this way: When your children ask later, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ Joshua foresaw a day when Israelite children would question their parents to know what these stones symbolized for them. For this reason, he provided them with the answer that described the miracle of the river crossing and the function of the ark of the covenant. He told the parents to say: ‘Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD; when it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off’ (v. 7).
This is reminiscent of the first Passover before Israel left Egypt. Moses instructed the people, saying:
“When you enter the land which the LORD will give you, as He has promised, you shall observe this rite. And when your children say to you, ‘What does this rite mean to you?’ you shall say, ‘It is a Passover sacrifice to the LORD who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He smote the Egyptians, but spared our homes.’ And the people bowed low and worshiped.” (Exodus 12:25-27Exodus 12:25-27 commentary)
Throughout Israel’s exodus journey, the LORD performed several miracles on their behalf. He freed them from their bondage to Egypt and parted the Red Sea for them,
“The sons of Israel went through the midst of the sea on the dry land, and the waters were like a wall to them on their right hand and their left.” (Exodus 14:22Exodus 14:22 commentary)
Also, during their wilderness journey, the Israelites faced harsh conditions, including a lack of food. But the LORD miraculously fed them daily with manna, a bread-like substance that came from heaven (Exodus 16:4Exodus 16:4 commentary; Psalm 78:24Psalm 78:24 commentary). Even when the people of Israel were thirsty, He instructed Moses to “strike the rock” with a staff so water would come out of it (Exodus 17:6Exodus 17:6 commentary). Here in Joshua, the people experienced another miracle: the crossing of the Jordan River on dry ground.
The Suzerain God guided His covenant people through the leadership of Joshua and the priests. While the Jordan River was at flood stage, He stopped the waters and dried the ground. By His grace, all the Israelites crossed the river on dry ground. Those who experienced this miracle were not to keep it for themselves. They were to inform future generations who did not experience the Jordan Crossing. Therefore, the command was given to haul these stones out of the river and set them up as a memorial to the sons of Israel forever. In other words, they would be a perpetual reminder of God’s greatness as He performed wonders on behalf of His covenant people.
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Joshua 4:1–7 meaning
In Joshua 4:1-7Joshua 4:1-7 commentary, commentary stones are collected to construct a memorial to God’s providence as the Israelites cross into Canaan.
The last section described how the LORD miraculously led the Israelites across the Jordan River, the 156-mile-long river flowing north to south from the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea. While the Jordan was at flood stage, God stopped the upstream waters and cut off the downstream, allowing the Levitical priests who carried the ark of the covenant to stand still in the river on dry ground until the entire nation finished crossing it (Joshua 3:14-17Joshua 3:14-17 commentary). Now, when all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD spoke to Joshua (v. 1).
The phrase all the nation refers to all the Israelites, including the elders, the infirm, and the children. It also includes the warriors of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, who chose to settle east of the Jordan since it was a prime area for raising livestock (Numbers 32Numbers 32 commentary).
Several centuries after the conquest of Canaan, because they were on the east side of the Jordan, Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh would be the first tribes of Israel conquered and exiled by Assyria (1 Chronicles 5:261 Chronicles 5:26 commentary). The original plan was for them to inherit land on the west side of the Jordan, but they insisted they wanted land on the east side. God permits their request, knowing it will later not be in their best interest. Had they submitted to God’s design, it may have gone better for them.
Although these two-and-a-half tribes would leave their wives, little ones, and livestock on the eastern side, they were to “cross over armed” before their fellow Israelites to fight the enemy and conquer the land of Canaan (Deuteronomy 3:18Deuteronomy 3:18 commentary−22). Thus, every tribe of Israel successfully made it to the western side of the Jordan.
The people of Israel were forced to wait some forty years in the wilderness before crossing the eastern geographical boundary (the Jordan River) into the land of Canaan, a land “flowing with milk and honey,” (Exodus 3:8Exodus 3:8 commentary), fertile and abundant for the children of Israel to build their self-governing society. A direct trip by foot from Egypt to Sinai and then to Canaan would have only taken several weeks apart from the time camped at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19Exodus 19 commentary).
While in the desert, the first generation of Israelites, age 20 and up, were condemned to live out their years in the wilderness and die there because of their lack of belief in God’s promises (Numbers 13Numbers 13 commentary and 1414 commentary). Twelve Israelite spies had surveyed Canaan and returned with a report that it was impossible to conquer the Canaanites. Only the two spies Joshua and Caleb declared that they believed God would fulfill His promise and deliver the Land to the Israelites. Joshua and Caleb were spared from God’s punishment. The ten unbelieving spies died of a plague, and the twelve tribes of Israel were not allowed to enter the Promised Land. Instead, their children would inherit it.
It took forty years for the first generation to pass on, forty years to match the forty days which the Israelite spies spent in Canaan during their reconnaissance. Joshua and Caleb are the only members of the first generation whom God allows to enter into the Promised Land, because they had faith that God would deliver the land to Israel. This new generation trusted God’s words and crossed the Jordan by faith. Now that the crossing was complete, the LORD spoke to Joshua, the successor of Moses, to give him further instructions. He said to him, Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe (v. 2).
Like Joshua and the Israelites, New Testament believers are required to live by faith, obeying the Spirit, through which we gain strength to perform His instructions. The author of the book of Hebrews makes many comparisons between the Israelites in the wilderness and believers in Jesus.
Like the first generation of Israelites in the Old Testament, who did not prove themselves faithful to God and did not possess the land as their inheritance, so too can New Testament believers fail to prove themselves faithful, and can also “come short” of receiving their inheritance (Hebrews 3:6Hebrews 3:6 commentary). The inheritance promised to New Testament believers to possess is to share in Christ’s reign over the earth according to God’s original design (Hebrews 2:7-9Hebrews 2:7-9 commentary).
The author of Hebrews exhorts believers to prioritize the Godly “fear” of falling “short” of possessing our inheritance (Hebrews 4:1Hebrews 4:1 commentary). We should care greatly about whether or not we are living lives of obedience.
For the Israelites, entering the Promised Land is described as entering God’s rest (Hebrews 3:18Hebrews 3:18 commentary). Believers enter God’s “rest” of being a new creation in Christ simply by believing (2 Corinthians 2:172 Corinthians 2:17 commentary). However, there is another “rest” that goes beyond spending eternity with God (Hebrews 4:8-9Hebrews 4:8-9 commentary). That is the “rest” of the reward of the inheritance, to reign as co-rulers with Christ when He one day establishes His kingdom on this earth (Hebrews 2:10Hebrews 2:10 commentary).
The unbelieving Israelites of the first generation in the Old Testament did not enter God’s rest of possessing their inheritance (entering the Promised Land), but they were still God’s people. God still miraculously took care of their needs in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 8:3-4Deuteronomy 8:3-4 commentary). Likewise, New Testament believers are made new creations in Christ, which is a completed work. We are God’s children regardless of subsequent behavior (Hebrews 3:1Hebrews 3:1 commentary).
What is in question is our reward—the consequences from our choices in life. We are exhorted to pursue this additional “rest” (Hebrews 4:8-9Hebrews 4:8-9 commentary), which refers to the opportunity to receive an inheritance as a reward for completing the work God gives us to do (Ephesians 2:10Ephesians 2:10 commentary). God will not permit us to enter this “rest” if we are disobedient.
The author of Hebrews is not saying that believers could miss out on spending eternity with God, but that we could miss out on the reward of possessing the inheritance that has been granted to us. Paul himself asserts that because believers are placed into Christ when they are born again, if God rejected a believer He would be rejecting Himself (2 Timothy 2:132 Timothy 2:13 commentary). Everyone who believes on Jesus are children of God (John 3:5John 3:5 commentary, 14-1514-15 commentary).
But in order to possess the reward of our inheritance, we must combine faith with hearing and continue to exercise a daily, abiding faith in God, and be obedient to Him. The Israelites were promised by God that He would give them the Promised Land, “but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard” (Hebrews 4:2Hebrews 4:2 commentary). The first generation of Israelites did not act upon what God told them, and so failed to receive their inheritance of living in the Promised Land.
By using this comparison, the author of Hebrews wants us to hear and unite the hearing with faith, and act upon what we have heard. Jesus gave us this example to have faith in the promises of God (Philippians 2:5-9Philippians 2:5-9 commentary). We too have been granted an inheritance which God has laid up for us, to be joint heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17bRomans 8:17b commentary). This inheritance is also described in Hebrews 2Hebrews 2 commentary as Jesus bringing “many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings” (Hebrews 2:10Hebrews 2:10 commentary). New Testament believers are urged to possess our inheritance by living in faith and obedience in our daily lives.
The promise of the inheritance given to the Israelites did not benefit the first generation since they did not walk in faith (Hebrews 3:18-19Hebrews 3:18-19 commentary). Equally, the promises of God also have no benefit to us without faith to walk in them. To possess God’s promises, we must act upon them. Without faith in God, we cannot be obedient to Him; faith is required to gain the reward of our inheritance (Hebrews 3:18-19Hebrews 3:18-19 commentary).
As described in Hebrews 2Hebrews 2 commentary, commentary all authority has been given to Jesus because He was obedient, even to death on the cross (Hebrews 2:9-10Hebrews 2:9-10 commentary). He desires to share that authority with all who trust and follow Him, suffering rejection from the world as He did (Hebrews 2:10Hebrews 2:10 commentary, commentary Revelation 3:21Revelation 3:21 commentary). We don’t want to miss out on this opportunity to fulfill our design to reign in the earth in harmony with God, nature, and one another (Hebrews 2:7-9Hebrews 2:7-9 commentary), just as the first generation mourned when they learned they would not inherit the Promised Land because of their disobedience (Numbers 14:39Numbers 14:39 commentary).
The Israelites descended from Abraham through Isaac and Jacob. God changed Jacob’s name to Israel (Genesis 32:28Genesis 32:28 commentary). Jacob had twelve sons who became the ancestors of the twelve tribes of Israel. Thus, the LORD urged Joshua to command twelve men who represented the twelve Israelite tribes. He was to say to them, Take up for yourselves twelve stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan (v. 3).
The Old Testament records several occasions when people set up large stones to commemorate remarkable events. Jacob set up a stone “as a pillar and poured oil on its top” to remember the dream he had at Bethel (Genesis 28:18Genesis 28:18 commentary). Later, he set up another stone “as a heap of witness” between him and Laban (Genesis 31:45Genesis 31:45 commentary−47). Similarly, “Samuel took a stone and named it Ebenezer” to mark the site of the Israelite victory over the Philistines (1 Samuel 7:121 Samuel 7:12 commentary). Here in Joshua, the Israelites were to take twelve stones from the dry riverbed, from the place where the priests’ feet were standing firm. They were to carry them over with them and lay them down in the lodging place where they will lodge tonight.
Memorials are important tools for humans. The photographic camera was invented in 1816 due to the human desire to make a memorial. We as humans tend to forget what God has done for us, especially when life is good. Making written or visual memorials reminds us of God’s unfailing love and will help strengthen us when our flesh tries to deny God’s intimate involvement in the course of our lives.
The twelve chosen men were to pick up twelve stones from the river where the Levitical priests bearing the ark of the covenant stood. They were to use these stones to erect a monument commemorating the crossing of the Jordan River. In other words, the stones would serve as a memorial to celebrate how the LORD miraculously led His covenant people across the river on dry ground, to finally begin to possess the land that God swore to their ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Genesis 15:18Genesis 15:18 commentary, 26:326:3 commentary, 28:1328:13 commentary).
The new leader of Israel, Joshua, did as the LORD had commanded him. He called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe (v. 4). Having designated the men, Joshua said to them: Cross again to the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan (v. 5).
The ark was a wooden chest overlaid with gold. It contained the stone tablets on which the LORD wrote the Ten Commandments. It was a sacred object that symbolized the LORD’s throne⎯representing His presence with His covenant people (Exodus 25:10-22Exodus 25:10-22 commentary). It contained the second set of the Ten Commandments, Aaron’s rod which budded almond blossoms, as well as a bowl of manna. The lid of the ark is also called “The Mercy Seat” and was where God told Moses He would meet with him,
"There I will meet with you; and from above the mercy seat."
(Exodus 25:22Exodus 25:22 commentary)
As such, the Israelites needed to follow the ark carried by the Levitical priests so God could guide them and grant them victory over their foes as they entered the land of Canaan. The LORD would do so for the Israelites because He was their God.
The Hebrew term translated as LORD is Yahweh, the self-existent and everlasting God who revealed Himself to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:14Exodus 3:14 commentary). Its usage often highlights God’s covenant relationship with the Israelites. In this relationship, Yahweh was the Suzerain ruler, and Israel was the vassal. He was their covenant partner who always cared for them and did what was in their best interest. In our passage, God ensured that His people took the necessary steps to possess the land He had promised them. Therefore, He provided them with the Covenant Box, which symbolizes His presence among them.
The men were to go over before the ark of the LORD just as the Israelites did “until all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan” (Joshua 3:17Joshua 3:17 commentary). They would return to the riverbed while it was still dry. Joshua instructed each of the twelve men to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the sons of Israel. The number “twelve” highlights Israel’s unity under the leadership of Joshua (Exodus 24:4Exodus 24:4 commentary). Since Israel had twelve tribes, it is fitting to have twelve stones to represent the whole nation.
The number twelve is used in the gospels to represent Israel and its twelve tribes.
Both of these women in Luke 8Luke 8 commentary were real women who were healed by Jesus. But they also appear to be symbolic of Israel whom the expected Messiah is prophesied to raise to life (Hosea 6:1-2Hosea 6:1-2 commentary) and clean from her impurity (Ezekiel 36:24-25Ezekiel 36:24-25 commentary).
In the next two verses, Joshua revealed the purpose of the stones. He stated, Let this be a sign among you (v. 6). The stones would be a testimony to educate future Israelite generations on the greatness of the LORD. Joshua put it this way: When your children ask later, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ Joshua foresaw a day when Israelite children would question their parents to know what these stones symbolized for them. For this reason, he provided them with the answer that described the miracle of the river crossing and the function of the ark of the covenant. He told the parents to say: ‘Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD; when it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off’ (v. 7).
This is reminiscent of the first Passover before Israel left Egypt. Moses instructed the people, saying:
“When you enter the land which the LORD will give you, as He has promised, you shall observe this rite. And when your children say to you, ‘What does this rite mean to you?’ you shall say, ‘It is a Passover sacrifice to the LORD who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He smote the Egyptians, but spared our homes.’ And the people bowed low and worshiped.”
(Exodus 12:25-27Exodus 12:25-27 commentary)
Throughout Israel’s exodus journey, the LORD performed several miracles on their behalf. He freed them from their bondage to Egypt and parted the Red Sea for them,
“The sons of Israel went through the midst of the sea on the dry land, and the waters were like a wall to them on their right hand and their left.”
(Exodus 14:22Exodus 14:22 commentary)
Also, during their wilderness journey, the Israelites faced harsh conditions, including a lack of food. But the LORD miraculously fed them daily with manna, a bread-like substance that came from heaven (Exodus 16:4Exodus 16:4 commentary; Psalm 78:24Psalm 78:24 commentary). Even when the people of Israel were thirsty, He instructed Moses to “strike the rock” with a staff so water would come out of it (Exodus 17:6Exodus 17:6 commentary). Here in Joshua, the people experienced another miracle: the crossing of the Jordan River on dry ground.
The Suzerain God guided His covenant people through the leadership of Joshua and the priests. While the Jordan River was at flood stage, He stopped the waters and dried the ground. By His grace, all the Israelites crossed the river on dry ground. Those who experienced this miracle were not to keep it for themselves. They were to inform future generations who did not experience the Jordan Crossing. Therefore, the command was given to haul these stones out of the river and set them up as a memorial to the sons of Israel forever. In other words, they would be a perpetual reminder of God’s greatness as He performed wonders on behalf of His covenant people.