Bible Commentaries

MEMORIAL STONES

‘Twelve stones in the midst of Jordan.’ ‘Twelve stones which they took out of Jordan.’

Joshua 4:9; Joshua 4:20

There were two sets of stones raised in commemoration of the passage of the Jordan.

I. Those on the bank.—From the place where the priests’ feet had stood in Jordan, twelve chosen men took each one a stone; and these were piled together in a heap before the eyes of all men. As they stood there, with the certainty to all men that they had once been in the river bed, they were a proof to the senses of what otherwise might have been disputed, that the river had actually been dried up. But there is a deeper lesson for us. As in the passage of the Jordan, all Israel stood in the river, and then came up on to the river’s bank, so in the death and resurrection of our Lord, the whole Church lay with Him in His grave, all rose with Him on the Easter morning, all passed with Him in the Divine intention to His throne. Those twelve stones represented the entire people, and commemorated their marvellous transportation from the one side of Jordan to the other. So each recurring Lord’s Day and Eastertide should remind us that the river of death rolls between us and the world, and that we have been raised together with Christ, and made to sit together with Him in the heavenlies.

II. Those in the bed of the stream.—Not content with pitching a cairn of stones on the river’s bank, Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of Jordan, where the feet of the priests had stood. It was to remind Israel from whence they had come, and the hole of the pit from which they had been digged. Ah! it is well to remember what the grace of God has done for us. ‘Such were some of you …’

Illustrations

(1) ‘The rude circle of unhewn stones without inscription was, no doubt, exactly like the many prehistoric monuments found all over the world, which forgotten races have raised to keep in everlasting remembrance forgotten fights and heroes. It was a comparatively small thing; for each stone was but a load for one man, and it would seem mean enough by the side of Stonehenge or Carnac, just as Israel’s history is on a small scale, as compared with the world-embracing empires of old. Size is not greatness; and Joshua’s little circle told a more wonderful story than its taller kindred, or Egyptian obelisks or colossi.’

(2) ‘The stones were set up because Israel remembered, but also lest Israel should forget. We often think of the Jews as monsters of ingratitude; but we should more truly learn the lesson of their history, if we regarded them as fair, average men, and asked ourselves whether our recollection of God’s goodness to us is much more vivid than theirs. Unless we make distinct and frequent efforts to recall, we shall certainly forget God’s goodness. The cultivation of thankful remembrance is a very great part of practical religion.’

MEMORIAL STONES

‘Twelve stones in the midst of Jordan.’ ‘Twelve stones which they took out of Jordan.’

Joshua 4:9; Joshua 4:20

There were two sets of stones raised in commemoration of the passage of the Jordan.

I. Those on the bank.—From the place where the priests’ feet had stood in Jordan, twelve chosen men took each one a stone; and these were piled together in a heap before the eyes of all men. As they stood there, with the certainty to all men that they had once been in the river bed, they were a proof to the senses of what otherwise might have been disputed, that the river had actually been dried up. But there is a deeper lesson for us. As in the passage of the Jordan, all Israel stood in the river, and then came up on to the river’s bank, so in the death and resurrection of our Lord, the whole Church lay with Him in His grave, all rose with Him on the Easter morning, all passed with Him in the Divine intention to His throne. Those twelve stones represented the entire people, and commemorated their marvellous transportation from the one side of Jordan to the other. So each recurring Lord’s Day and Eastertide should remind us that the river of death rolls between us and the world, and that we have been raised together with Christ, and made to sit together with Him in the heavenlies.

II. Those in the bed of the stream.—Not content with pitching a cairn of stones on the river’s bank, Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of Jordan, where the feet of the priests had stood. It was to remind Israel from whence they had come, and the hole of the pit from which they had been digged. Ah! it is well to remember what the grace of God has done for us. ‘Such were some of you …’

Illustrations

(1) ‘The rude circle of unhewn stones without inscription was, no doubt, exactly like the many prehistoric monuments found all over the world, which forgotten races have raised to keep in everlasting remembrance forgotten fights and heroes. It was a comparatively small thing; for each stone was but a load for one man, and it would seem mean enough by the side of Stonehenge or Carnac, just as Israel’s history is on a small scale, as compared with the world-embracing empires of old. Size is not greatness; and Joshua’s little circle told a more wonderful story than its taller kindred, or Egyptian obelisks or colossi.’

(2) ‘The stones were set up because Israel remembered, but also lest Israel should forget. We often think of the Jews as monsters of ingratitude; but we should more truly learn the lesson of their history, if we regarded them as fair, average men, and asked ourselves whether our recollection of God’s goodness to us is much more vivid than theirs. Unless we make distinct and frequent efforts to recall, we shall certainly forget God’s goodness. The cultivation of thankful remembrance is a very great part of practical religion.’