“When I was a boy I somehow got the impression that the river Jordan was four thousand miles long and thirty-five miles wide. It is only 90 miles long, and so crooked that a man does not know which side of it he is on half the time. In going ninety miles it does not get over more that fifty miles of ground.” (Mark Twain, 1867)
Writing of himself, the famous author said he was known for “things which he stretched, but mainly he told the truth.” In actuality, the Jordan River flows southward from Mount Hermon at its source about 156 miles into the Sea of Galilee, then into the Dead Sea, divided into an upper and lower course. An important source in Israel for watering dry land, yet it runs through the Bible with an even greater spiritual status.
Eighteen miles east of Jerusalem there is a remarkable piece of geography concentrated over a few square miles of the Jordan River in which God has demonstrated His power time and again. For some it is referred to as the “Jordan River Intersect.” Right above the mouth of the Dead Sea and just nine miles to the east is Mt. Nebo where it is believed that Moses was buried. It was from here that God showed Moses the “Promised Land” from Gilead to Dan, (Deuteronomy 34:1) but he would not live to go there. The walls of Jericho were in clear view directly across the river in the Jordan Valley.
After Moses died and was buried by the Lord at Mt. Nebo, Joshua and the whole nation of Israel prepared to cross over the Jordan River having wandered the Wilderness for forty years. “And Joshua said unto the people, Sanctify yourselves: for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.” (Joshua 3:5) The Ark of the Covenant was with them, borne on the shoulders of the priests marching down into the river; stopping the flow of water according to the Lord’s command, so the whole Israelite nation could cross over into the Land of Canaan. (Joshua 3:1-4:24)
Shortly thereafter, the walls of Jericho would come tumbling down as Joshua’s army encircled it for seven days (Joshua 6:1-27) by the Lord’s command, and this would have been clearly visible within the “Jordan River Intersect.”
More than five centuries later, it is here that Elijah crossed the Jordan with his companion Elisha, right before he was taken up. “The sons of the prophets who were at Jericho drew near to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that today the LORD will take away your master from over you?”…Then Elijah said to him, “Please stay here, for the LORD has sent me to the Jordan” But he said, “As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you”….Fifty men of the sons of the prophets also went and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan. Then Elijah took his cloak and rolled it up and struck the water; and the water was parted to the one side and to the other, till the two of them could go over on dry ground.” (2nd Kings 2:5-8)
In the “Jordan River Intersect” just one mile east of the Israelite’s “Crossing” is a site known as “Elijah’s Hill” where the prophet was taken up or raptured in a “flaming chariot.” Before his very eyes Elisha watched as Elijah was taken up to heaven. Just moments before Elisha had asked the prophet for “a double portion of your spirit on me.” (verse 9) When Elijah was taken up in the “whirlwind” his cloak had dropped to the ground and Elisha retrieved it. “And he took up the cloak of Elijah that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. Then he took the cloak of Elijah that had fallen from him and struck the water, saying, “Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah?” And when he had struck the water, the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and Elisha went over.” (verses 13-14)
Map by Daniel M. Wright
This same “Crossing” site separated by one mile from “Elijah’s Hill” is also known as “Qasr El Yahud.” It is the location believed to be where Jesus Christ was baptized by John the Baptist. According to all four Gospels the ministry of John the Baptist drew thousands of Jews from surrounding areas to hear his fiery message of repentance and many were baptized here in the Jordan River. The day Jesus came to the river to commence His own 3.5 year ministry, John was there baptizing, precisely at this small location, the “Jordan River Intersect.”
Just five miles to the southwest is Qumran, where the Essenes sect lived separate and apart from the Pharisees and Sadducees whom they had sharp disagreement. They interpreted prophecy according to the interpretation of the patriarchs handed down over the ages rather than through rabbinical commentaries. The Essenes departed for the “wilderness” around 160 B.C. because they were anticipating the coming of Messiah based on Isaiah 40:3. “A voice cries: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” The English phrase “the desert” in Hebrew is translated as “Ba’Arbabah” which means “Jordan Valley.”
At Qumran the Essenes buried over 1,000 documents that have only been discovered and restored in recent decades. Today they are known as the “Dead Sea Scrolls.” After the Resurrection, the Essenes virtually disappeared because the vast majority became early Christians. Incredibly, their recovered writings and understanding of Messiah as the “Son of God” closely mirror the beliefs of the early Church. It is believed by many that John the Baptist was an Essene. (see blog post dated Oct. 24, 2018)
Over the years I have heard many personal testimonies. Often, I hear about lives that were broken or had suffered, before becoming the quintessential and beautiful testimony of God’s redemption. Others, like my personal testimony, reveal an area of their lives that they kept or reserved to themselves to “lord over” only to watch it become the focal point of pressure or stress that the Lord used to draw us into His light. I am reminded that I received Christ as Savior around 2am in January next to a cold running creek in Northern Virginia. It is a specific time and place in our lives that we seek God’s mercy, healing, power and/or salvation. It becomes our Jordan River moment…and He delivers us.
Maybe there is an area of your life that is begging for God’s attention. It may be an area of struggle or challenge, it could be an area of pain or suffering, it could be something that is lost or believed to be beyond recovery. Naaman was healed of his leprosy in the Jordan River. A cherished and needed ax head that was lost…floated and was recovered in the Jordan. Possibly this is an area of our life that you need God’s powerful intervention. Are you running away from a matter that might be described as your Jordan Valley or Jordan River?
I encourage you to turn around and go back to your “Ba’Arabah” or Jordan River. Maybe you have a friend or family member in mind that you can escort there. Go down to the valley and to the water’s edge. Humble yourself, confess your sins, and sanctify yourself as Joshua commanded the Israelites. God is known to part the waters and bring walls of resistance down! Call on the Lord and seek His mercy and He will meet you in your Jordan River.
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine! When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched. Nor will the flame burn you. For I am the Lord your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior.” (Isaiah 43:1-3a)