Joshua 3:15

Joshua 3:15 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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 overfloweth all his banks all the time of harvest,)
• English Standard Version (ESV)and as soon as those bearing the ark had come as far as the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the brink of the water (now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest),
• New King James Version (NKJV)and as those who bore the ark came to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests who bore the ark dipped in the edge of the water (for the Jordan overflows all its banks during the whole time of harvest),
• New Living Translation (NLT)It was the harvest season, and the Jordan was overflowing its banks. But as soon as the feet of the priests who were carrying the Ark touched the water at the river’s edge,

Context of Joshua 3:15

13And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.” 14So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, 16the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (that is, the Dead Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. 17The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.

Joshua 3:15 word by word

וּכְב֞וֹא נֹשְׂאֵ֤י הָֽאָרוֹן֙ עַד־הַיַּרְדֵּ֔ן וְרַגְלֵ֤י הַכֹּֽהֲנִים֙ נֹשְׂאֵ֣י הָֽאָר֔וֹן נִטְבְּל֖וּ בִּקְצֵ֣ה הַמָּ֑יִם וְהַיַּרְדֵּ֗ן מָלֵא֙ עַל־כָּל־גְּדוֹתָ֔יו כֹּ֖ל יְמֵ֥י קָצִֽיר׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And as they that bareנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: bearH5375
• the arkאֲרוֹן'ârôn 'ârôn · arkH727
• were comeבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• unto Jordanיַרְדֵּןyardên · JordanH3383
• and the feetרֶ֫גֶלregel · footH7272
• of the priestsכֹּהֵןkôhên · priestH3548
• were dippedטָבַלţâbal · to dipH2881
• in the brimקָצֶהqâtseh qêtseh · endH7097
• of the waterמַיmayim · waterH4325
• overflowethמָלֵאmâlê' mâlâ' · to fillH4390
• all his banksגָּדָהgâdâh · bankH1415
• all the timeיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• of harvestקָצִירqâtsîyr · harvestH7105

Cross-references for Joshua 3:15

• Joshua 3:13And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.”
• Isaiah 26:6Feet trample it down— the feet of the oppressed, the footsteps of the poor.
• Joshua 4:18And the priests came up out of the river carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord. No sooner had they set their feet on the dry ground than the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and ran at flood stage as before.
• 1 Chronicles 12:15It was they who crossed the Jordan in the first month when it was overflowing all its banks, and they put to flight everyone living in the valleys, to the east and to the west.
• Jeremiah 12:5“If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?
• Jeremiah 49:19“Like a lion coming up from Jordan’s thickets to a rich pastureland, I will chase Edom from its land in an instant. Who is the chosen one I will appoint for this? Who is like me and who can challenge me? And what shepherd can stand against me?”
• Joshua 5:10On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, while camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the Passover.
• Leviticus 23:10“Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the land I am going to give you and you reap its harvest, bring to the priest a sheaf of the first grain you harvest.
• Deuteronomy 16:1Observe the month of Aviv and celebrate the Passover of the Lord your God, because in the month of Aviv he brought you out of Egypt by night.

Commentaries on Joshua 3:15

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 15And the feet of the priests - were dipped in the brim of the water - Thus we find that every thing occurred exactly in the way in which Joshua had foretold it. This must have greatly increased his credit among the people. For Jordan overfloweth all his banks, etc. - It has often been remarked that there was no need of a miracle in crossing Jordan, as it is but an inconsiderable stream, easily fordable, being but about twenty yards in breadth. But the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15Jordan overfloweth all his banks - Rather “is full up to all his banks,” i. e. “brim-full.” This remark strikingly illustrates the suddenness and completeness, not less than the greatness, of the marvel. The Jordan River flows at the bottom of a deep valley, which descends to the water‘s edge on either side in two, occasionally in three, terraces. Within the lowest of these the stream, ordinarily less than 100 feet wide in this lower part of its course…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-17Verses 14-17 Jordan overflowed all its banks. This magnified the power of God, and his kindness to Israel. Although those who oppose the salvation of God's people have all advantages, yet God can and will conquer. This passage over Jordan, as an entrance to Canaan, after their long, weary wanderings in the wilderness, shadowed out the believer's passage through death to heaven, after he has finished his wanderings in this sinful world. Jesus, typified by…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 15The Jordan was overflowing its banks as a result of the spring runoff of the winter’s rainfall and snowfall, especially from Mount Hermon.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 14-1714-16. And it came to pass, when the people removed from their tents, &c.--To understand the scene described we must imagine the band of priests with the ark on their shoulders, standing on the depressed edge of the river, while the mass of the people were at a mile's distance. Suddenly the whole bed of the river was dried up; a spectacle the more extraordinary in that it took place in the time of harvest, corresponding to our April or May--when "the…Read the comment

Topics related to Joshua 3:15

• Jordan
• Miracles
• Water

In the dictionaries

• Jordan
• Ark
• Brim
• Clean
• Fail
• Ark of the Covenant
• Bank
• Brink
• Exodus, the Book of
• Ford

Commentaries on Joshua 3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings