Aside from the rugged adults, there were mothers with babies, children, handicapped and old people. Ĭrossing the Jordan River by the Hebrew nation sets the stage for the first miracle involving the River. Ĭenturies later, escaping Egypt through the parted the Red Sea, the fledgling Hebrew nation population was as “numerous as the stars of heaven.” Delayed by 40 years, it was time to return to the land of Abraham, referred to by God at Mt. The Jordan River marked the boundary between the two lands of Canaan and the Arabah. God promised Abram the land he could see in all four directions would belong to him and his descendants forever. By default, Abram took the land west of the Jordan – Canaan. Seeing the fertile “plain of the Jordan,” it became Lot’s choice. įirst reference to the Jordan River is implied in Genesis 13 when Abram gave his nephew, Lot, a choice where to live with his family and livestock. The northern valley contains fertile land, but by the time it reaches the southern end at the Dead Sea near Jericho, the terrain is hot and arid. Dropping 600 feet in the short distance between the two seas, it is characteristic of its Hebrew name Yarden meaning “descender.” Įither side of the River forms the Jordan River Valley expanding up to 15 miles wide. Not exactly a big river, it is the rapid current that makes it treacherous. Normal width of the Jordan River ranges between 30 to 100 feet and its depth is only 10 to 17 feet.
From there, the River covers a mere 65 land miles to the Dead Sea where it ends. Lowest elevation of all the rivers of the world, the head waters of the Jordan feed into the Sea of Galilee (aka Chinnereth, Lake Tiberius, Lake Kinneret) on the north end, exiting on the south end of the Sea. The River has served as a boundary, a landmark, the place of several miracles, John the Baptist’s ministry and where Jesus of Nazareth was baptized. Mentioned almost 200 times in the Bible from Genesis to the Gospels, the Jordan River plays an important role throughout.
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