יהושע, פרק ד׳, פסוק י״א

The crossing of the Jordan River marks a defining moment in the journey of the Israelites into their land. Once the entire nation completes their passage safely, attention shifts to the Ark of the Covenant and the priests carrying it, who made the miraculous event possible. The moment the Ark finishes its role in the riverbed signals a transition from the miracle of the splitting waters to the beginning of the conquest under God's leadership.

The people hurried to cross the river. The precise timing of the events, where the Ark crossed immediately after the people finished and the waters instantly returned to their place, was designed to show the Israelites the sheer power of the miracle and the greatness of Joshua, who acted in direct accordance with God's command [רלב״ג]. Practically, the Ark was the very last to leave the riverbed, completing its journey from the eastern bank to the western bank [מלבי״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ].

A central discussion emerges regarding the exact location and manner of the Ark's crossing in relation to the people. One approach suggests a physical repositioning at the head of the camp. According to this view, the Israelites waited on the riverbank until the Ark crossed, passed by them, and resumed its position at the front of the nation to lead them onward [רד״ק, מצודת דוד]. This highlights that the Ark was not merely a tool for crossing the river, but a constant guide leading them into the upcoming battles for the land [אברבנאל]. This perspective also clarifies why the military vanguard of the tribes of Gad and Reuben marched ahead of the camp. Their presence was not for military protection, as God's Ark was the true leader of the campaign. Rather, they marched ahead simply to fulfill the condition they had made with Moses and to prevent the Israelites from being afraid of the Canaanite nations [אלשיך].

Conversely, another approach interprets the Ark's movement as happening directly in the sight of the people, rather than describing its physical placement at the head of the camp. In this scenario, the entire nation stood and watched as the Ark crossed [רש״י, רד״ק, מלבי״ם]. Within this understanding, a profound debate arises regarding exactly how the Ark made its passage. Based on early rabbinic tradition, the crossing was entirely supernatural. The priests stepped backward toward the eastern bank where they had originally entered, causing the Jordan's waters to immediately resume their normal flow. This left the Israelites on the western bank and the Ark on the eastern side. At that moment, a wondrous miracle occurred: the Ark lifted the priests carrying it and hovered through the air over the rushing water to reach the people [רש״י].

However, commentators focusing on the plain meaning of the text strongly dispute this miraculous description. They argue there is no reason to introduce an additional, unmentioned miracle of levitation. Instead, they maintain that the Ark simply crossed the dry riverbed in full view of the watching nation just before the waters returned to their natural place [רד״ק, מלבי״ם].