JORDAN RIVER




The Jordan River



My husband Frank getting baptized in the Jordan River.
That's me right behind him with the smile.



Myself being baptized. NOW look at that smile. Am I happy or what?


JORDAN [JORE dun] (descending, flowing) - the name of the longest and most important river in Palestine. The river is part of the great rift valley that runs north to south into Africa. This rift valley is one of the lowest depressions on earth.

The headwaters of the Jordan River, which has three main sources, begin north of Lake Huleh. After the Jordan flows through Lake Huleh, it descends into the Sea of Galilee. It is possible to ford the river just below the lake where the waters are low. In the ancient world, trade caravans going from Damascus to Egypt probably crossed at this point.

At Lake Huleh the headwaters of the Jordan are about 230 feet above sea level. Some 10 miles south of the Sea of Galilee the river is about 700 feet below sea level. At the northern end of the Dead Sea (the end of the Jordan), the river has dropped to about 1,290 feet below sea level. This drastic drop is reflected in the name of the river, which means "the descender." The Jordan made a natural boundary as a serious obstacle in any east-to-west movement in the land of Palestine. A number of shallow spots, or fords occur in the Jordan. Possession of these fords was an important military factor.

The distance that the Jordan covers from the southern tip of the Sea of Galilee to the northern end of the sea is only about 70 miles. But the winding, zigzag pattern is such that it curves for about 200 miles as it weaves it's way north to south. The river varies from 90 to 100 feet in width and between 3 to 10 feet deep. The water is not really navigable. With great difficulty flat-bottomed boats are able to move along parts of the waterway; they must be towed, however, through sandbars and must survive swift currents because of the descending nature of the valley. There are some 27 series of rapids in the Jordan.

At one time the Jordan valley may have been a large lake. Earthquakes and tremors over the centuries have dumped loose soil and gravel into the river, forcing new courses for the water that produced the switchback design of the Jordan. The northern part of the Jordan has numerous tributaries that flood their banks in winter and spring, allowing for good irrigation of the farmlands nearby. It was probably this fertile area that caught Lot's attention (Gen. 13:10). The middle and southern areas of Palestne that parallel the Jordan are the badlands with scarcely any rainfall. This type of land is only interrupted by an ocassional oasis, such as those at Jericho.

The lower Jordan valley can be divided into three distinct regions. The first is the Zor, or thickets of underbrush, that because of seasonal flooding has produced a jungle of vines, dense brush, shrubs, willows, and poplar trees. This area is sometimes referred to in the Bible as "Jordan's dense thickets" (Jer. 12:5; 49:19; Zech. 11:3, REB; the thickets of the Jordan, NRSV; the lush thicket of the Jordan, NIV). The sons of the prophets were cutting down trees in the thickets of the Jordan when Elisha made an iron ax head float on the river, after all had been lost (2 Kin. 6:1-7).

The second area is called the Gattara, or badlands, on the outside of the Zor. This area is covered with sediment, probably from the period when the whole valley was flooded. Until the modern period, the soil was too salty for crops. But modern Israeli scientists have reclaimed the soil by washing it with river water.

The third region of the lower Jordan is the Ghor, or higher region. This area is steep but fertile. It has supported farming especially in the first 25 miles of the northern end of the river. The last 5 miles at the southern end is too barren for farming.

When the Hebrew tribes approached the Promised Land, they did so from the eastern side of the Jordan. To some degree the Jordan served as the boundary for the tribes (Num. 34:12). Ancient Israel occupied territory on both sides of the river. The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of the tribe of Manasseh settled on the eastern side of the Jordan.

Weak parties often went east of the Jordan to escape from the pressures from their opponents. For instance, Abner took Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, to the eastern side of the Jordan in opposition to David (2 Sam. 2:8). David fled to the eastern side after Absalom's initial success (2 Sam. 17:22-24: 19:15-18). However, the crossing of the Jordan from east to west was symbolic of the arrival of the Hebrews in the Promised Land. The west side of the Jordan was the area generally thought to have been promised to Abraham.

It was probably at the south end of the river, near Jericho, that ancient Israel entered the region of Canaan (Joshus 3-4). At Gilgal, near the Dead Sea, on the western side of the river about a mile from Jericho, an important shrine area was set up to commemorate the entrance of the Israelites into the land (Josh. 4:19; 1 Sam. 7:16; 10:8).

In the period between the Old Testament and the New Testament, the Jordan River formed the main eastern boundary of the Persian and Greek province of Judea. The Decapolis, a federation of the ten Greek cities, was formed on the eastern side of the Jordan in the Greek period. John the Baptist carried out his ministry in the Jordan River region (Matt. 3:5-6; Mark 1:5; Luke 3:3; John 1:28: 3:26). Jesus' ministry was initiated by His baptism in the waters of the Jordan (Matt. 3:13; Mark 1:9; Luke 4:1). Jesus carried out His ministry on both sides of the Jordan (Matt. 4:15, 25: Mark 3:8; John 10:40). Later, Jesus commanded His followers to observe baptism (Matt. 28: 19-20).





And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar
Genesis 13:10

If thou hast run with the footmen, and they have wearied thee, then how canst thou contend with horses? and if in the land of peace, wherein thou trustedst, they wearied thee, then how wilt thou do in the swelling of the Jordan.
Jeremiah 12:5



Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the habitation of the strong: but I will suddenly make him run away from her: and who is a chosen man, that I may appoint her? for who is like me? and who will appoint me the time? and who is that shepherd that will stand before me?
Jeremiah 49:19

There is a voice of howling of the shepherds; for their glory is spoiled: a voice of the roaring of young lions; for the pride of the Jordan is spoiled.
Zechariah 11:4

And the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us.
Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make a place there, where we may dwell. And he answered, Go ye.
And one said, Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants. And he answered , I will go.
So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they cut down wood.
But as one was felling a beam, the ax head fell into the water: and he cried, and said, Alas, master! for it was borrowed.
And the man of God said, Where fell it? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it thither; and the iron did swim.
Therefore said he, Take it up to thee. And he put out his hand, and took it.

2 Kings 6:1-7

And the border shall go down to Jordan, and the goings out of it shall be at the salt sea: this shall be your land with the coasts thereof round about.
Numbers 34:12

But Abner the son of Ner, captain of Saul's host, took Ishbosheth the son of Saul, and brought him over to Mahanaim;
2 Samuel 2:8

Then David arose, and all the people that were with him, and they passed over Jordan: by the morning light there lacked not one of them that was not gone over Jordan.
And when Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his ass, and arose, and gat him home to his house, to his city, and put his household in order, and hanged himself, and died, and was buried in the sepulchre of his father.
Then David came to Mahanaim. And Absalom passed over Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him.
2 Samuel 17:22-24

So the king returned, and came to Jordan. And Judah came to Gilgal, to go to meet the king, to conduct the king over Jordan.
And Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjamite, which was of Bahurim, hasted and came down with the men of Judah to meet king David.
And there were a thousand men of David with him, and Ziba the servant of the house of Saul, and his fifteen sons and his twenty servants with him; and they went over the Jordan before the king.
And there went over a ferry boat to carry over the king's household, and to do what he thought good. And Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king, as he was come over Jordan;
2 Samuel 19:15-18

And Joshua rose early in the morning; and they removed from Shittin, and came to Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over.
And it came it pass after three days, that the officers went through the host;
And they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests and the Levites bearing it, then ye 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: come not near unto it, that ye may know the way by which ye must go: for ye have not passed this way heretofore.
And Joshua said unto the people, Sanctify yourselves: for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.
And Joshua spake unto the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.
And the Lord said unto Joshua, This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee.
And thou shalt command the priests that bare the ark of the covenant, saying, When ye are come to the brink of the water of Jordan, ye shall stand still in Jordan.
And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, Come hither, and hear the words of the Lord your God.
And Joshua said, Hereby ye shall know that the living God is among you, and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Hivites, and the Perizzites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Jebusites.
Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth passeth before you into Jordan.
Now therefore take you twelve men out of the tribes of Israel, out of every tribe a man.
And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests that bare the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off from the waters that come down from above; and they shall stand upon an heap.
And it came to pass, when the people removed from their tents, to pass over Jordan, and the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people;
And as they that bare the ark were come unto Jordan, and the feet of the priests that bare the ark were dipped in the brim of the water, (for Jordan overflowed all his banks all the time of harvest,)
That the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon an heap very far from the city of Adam, that is beside Zaretan: and those that came down toward the sea of the plain, even the salt sea, failed, and were cut off: and the people passed over right against Jericho.
And the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood on firm ground in the midst of the Jordan, and all the Israelites passed over to dry ground, until all the people were passed clean over Jordan.
And it came to pass, when all the people where clean passed over Jordan, that the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying
Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe of man,
And command ye them, saying, Take you hence out of the midst of Jordan, out of the place where the priests feet stood firm, twelve stones, and ye shall carry them over with you, and leaving them in the lodging place, where ye shall lodge this night.
Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had prepared of the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man:
And Joshua said unto them, Pass over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of Jordan, and take you up every man of you a stone upon your shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel:
That this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean ye by these stones?
Then ye shall answer them, That the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off: and these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever.
And the children of Israel did so as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the midst of Jordan, as the Lord spake unto Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and carried them over with them unto the place where they lodged, and laid then down there.
And Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests which bare the ark of the covenant stood: and they are there unto this day.
For the priests which bare the ark stood in the midst of Jordan, until every thing was finished that the Lord commanded Joshua to speak unto the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua: and the people hasted and passed over.
And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over, that the ark of the Lord passed over, and the priests, in the presence of the people.
And the children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh, passed over armed before the children of Israel, as Moses spake unto them:
About forty thousand prepared for war passed over before the Lord unto battle, to the plains of Jericho.
On that day the Lord magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared him, as they feared Moses, all the days of his life.
And the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying,
Command the priests that bear the ark of the testimony, that they come up out of Jordan.
And it came to pass, when the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord were come up out of the midst of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests' feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan returned unto their place, and flowed over all his banks, as they did before.
And the people came up out of Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, in the east border of Jericho.
And those twelve stones, which they took out of Jordan, did Joshua pitch in Gilgal.
And he spake unto the children of Israel, saying, When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean these stones?
Then ye shall let your children know, saying, Israel came over this Jordan on dry land.
For the Lord your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over:
That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever.
Joshua 3-4

And he went from year to year in circuit to Bethel, and Gilgal, and Mizpeh, and judged Israel in all those places.
1 Samuel 7:16

And thou shalt go down before me to Gilgal; and, behold, I will come down unto thee, to offer burnt offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace offerings: seven days shalt thou tarry, till I come to thee, and shew thee what thou shalt do.
1 Samuel 10:8

Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan,
And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.
Matthew 3:5-6

And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and they were baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins.
Mark 1:5

And he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins;
Luke 3:3

These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.
John 1:28

And they came unto John, and said unto him, Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to him.
John 3:26

Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.
Matthew 3:13

And it came to pass in thse days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan.
Mark 1:9

And Jesus being full of the Holy Spirit returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wolderness,
Luke 4:1

The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles;
And there followed him great multitudes of people from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and from Judaea, and from beyond Jordan.
Matthew 4:15, 25

And from Jerusalem, and from Idumaea, and from beyond Jordan; and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they had heard great things he did, came unto him.
Mark 3:9

And went away again beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized; and there he abode.
John 10:40

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
Matthew 28:19-20














Bashana Haba'a
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