Jordan Passed

“And the Lord said to him, ‘This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, “I will give it to your offspring.” I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not go over there.’ So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord.”—Deuteronomy 34:4-5

Reading: Deuteronomy 34:1-12

Moses was not permitted to cross Jordan and enter into the land of promise. He had sinned against God before the children of Israel at the waters of Meribah of Kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin; he had not sanctified God at that time in the midst of the children of Israel (Deuteronomy 32:51). As a consequence, God withheld from him an achievement that would have brought his life to rich fruition.

But God still loved Moses. He did not forsake him, but brought good to his soul through chastisement. He graciously permitted Moses before his death to ascend Mount Nebo and to behold the land that He had sworn to give to the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And in His goodness, God took Moses—when his eye was still not dim and his natural force not abated—over the Jordan to a better paradise than Canaan, where there would be no struggle for conquest, no sorrows, no agonizing labors, no tears.

As with Moses, God will cause all things to work together for good to all His people, and He will bless them despite their sins and failures. Although there may be frustrations and chastisements for them, there will also be for them as for Moses a day of “sorrow vanquished, labor ended, Jordan passed.”

Skilton, John H. Think on These Things: Bible Truths for Faith and Life. Philadelphia: Skilton House – Sowers, 1986.