In the light of the preceding studies, the motives that led the
Hebrews to cross the Jordan become evident. As the Pilgrim
Fathers, to secure a home where they might enjoy and develop their
own type of belief and methods of civilization, braved the dimly
known dangers of the sea and the wilderness, the Hebrews braved the
contests that unquestionably lay before them. Between the Sea of
Galilee and the Dead Sea the Jordan is fordable at thirty points
during certain parts of the year. The first of the two main fords
in the lower Jordan is just below the point where the Wady Kelt
enters the Jordan from the west and deposits its mass of mud and
silt. The other ford is six miles further north below the point
where the Wady Nimrin comes down from the highlands of Gilead.
Here to-day the main highway connecting the east and the
west-Jordan country crosses the river. This spot was probably the
scene of the historic crossing at the beginning of Hebrew history.
Certain writers hold that variant accounts of the most important
facts in early Hebrew history have here been preserved. Traces of
three different versions of the crossing of the Jordan may still,
in their judgment, be found in the third and fourth chapters of the
book of Joshua. The latest and most familiar narrative represents
the crossing as a superlative miracle and the waters of the rushing
river as piled up like a wall on either side. The Northern
Israelite version appears to have stated that the waters of the
Jordan were dried up, implying that the Hebrews crossed during the
late summer when the river was easily fordable. The earliest
narrative, the Judean prophetic, states that "the waters rose up in
a heap, a great way off at Adam, the city that is beside Zarathan,
and those that went down toward the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt
Sea, were wholly cut off" (Josh. 3:16b). From other references in
the Old Testament it would appear that the city of Adam, which
means red earth, is to-day represented by the ruins of Ed-Damieh,
which stands near the famous Damieh ford at the point where the
river Jabbok enters the Jordan.
It is interesting to note in this connection that a reliable Moslem
historian states that in the year 1257 A.D. the retreating Moslems
found it neccessary to repair the foundations of an important
bridge which stood at this point. When the workmen arrived on the
scene they were amazed to find the riverbed empty and were able by
working rapidly to complete the repairs before the waters came
rushing down. This remarkable phenomenon seemed to them to be due
to the direct intervention of Allah; but the historian fortunately
records the cause: it was a huge landslide a little further up the
river which temporarily dammed its waters. The oldest Biblical
account of the crossing of the Jordan may point to a like natural
cause. If this be true, does it imply that Jehovah had no part in
preparing the way for the future conquests of his people? Would a
miracle, such as that recorded in the late-priestly tradition, be
any stronger proof of God's presence and activity in human history
than are the provisions which we to-day call natural?