In Joshua 3:4 it says that the officers of the Israelites went through the camp and told the people who were preparing to enter into the promise land "you have not passed this way before." In other words, for fourty years they have been wandering around in the desert under the leadership of Moses. But, now Joshua is taking the helm and a new way is being forged. No more wandering in circles, now it's time to claim what is yours.
A lot of us growing up in churches have heard the story of Moses and the parting of the Red Sea. But, there was also another parting, perhaps less dramatic, the parting of the Jordan River. It is also mentioned in these verses in Chapter 3 of Joshua. God parts a sea at the beginning and now here at the end, another body of water parts. Have you ever wondered why?
You might say "Well, isn't it obvious, they needed to get to the other side!" But, that really isn't the point. There are places where it would have been relatively easy to cross the Jordan. Historically significant and now a place of a great deal of conflict, it isn't that big of a river. Certainly, not one of the great waters of the world. I think rather, God is doing several things here, some for Joshua and some for the people and then also for those who would try and fight against the Israelites.
Rahab mentioned the Red Sea in Joshua 2:10 even though that event had happened about 40 years prior to the Israelites arrival in Jericho. Most of them couldn't even remember leaving Egypt since most had been born in the wilderness. But, as it always does, word had traveled around about what God had done. They knew the victories and also the defeats of the people of God. Rahab gives a pretty good testimony herself of what God had done by the way she receives the spies. But, now God puts his handprint on a new generation. It is almost as if he is saying to them, "I brought you into the wilderness and now I am taking you out." To a newly appointed Joshua, who is just getting use to Moses not being there, that must have been a comfort to him.
It was also a comfort to the people of God themselves. Slow to follow Moses, they were not use to seeing someone else guiding them. They rebelled repeatedly against Moses, but they knew him. Here was Joshua and human nature being what it is I am sure some had doubts about him. Just seeing the waters part as the started getting there feet wet must have been comforting and reassuring. God was still with them even if they did have a new leader. If God had not acted in this manner, it may have been that the people would not have been so willing to follow him when times got tougher, which they would.
But, it also served as a warning to the enemies of God. The same God that Rahab had heard about was still present with his people. It put everyone on notice. You notice that when the people of God arrive in Jericho, they may have been in awe of the huge wall around the city, but the city itself was shut up tightly. They were afraid (Joshua 6:1) Not because of the people, but becasue of what God had done through them.
