Joshua 4:11

And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over, that the ark of the LORD passed over, and the priests, in the presence of the people.

The ark ... passed over. The ark is mentioned as the efficient cause: it had been the first to move-it was the last to leave; and its movements arrested the deep attention of the people, who probably stood on the opposite bank, rapt in admiration and awe of this closing scene.

And the priests, in the presence of the people. [The Septuagint has di' (G1223) lithoi (G3037) emprosthen (G1715) autoon (G846), and the stones before them.] It was a great miracle, greater even than the passage of the Red Sea, in this respect, that it was performed on a large river, remarkable for the extraordinary rapidity of its current, and at the season of its fullest volume. No doubt Israel could have effected their entrance into Canaan without a miracle, as they could have passed from Egypt into Canaan without the necessity of going through the midst of the Red Sea. But the necessity for these miracles was a moral, not a physical one; and in that view, both of them were subservient to the purpose of teaching various fundamental truths of religion. They were calculated to convince the Israelites of God's presence and nearness to them; and the people of the surrounding countries, that while the gods of the pagan were nonentities, Yahweh was the living God, the Almighty and Sovereign Controller of all nature. And those lessons were effectually taught; for while the awful displays of divine omnipotence paralyzed the nations with terror and despair, the revelation of God's power and grace in favour of the Israelites produced a most animating effect on the faith and courage of that people, and at the same time deepened their sense of dependence upon Him for their easy acquisition of the promised land. They were made to feel, both by the miraculous ebb of the Jordan, and by other miracles afterward performed, that they were saved, not by their own sword and bow, but by the right hand of the Lord; and that their possession of Canaan was not the fruit of their conquest, but the gift of God.