Announcing God's presence through narration and dialogue : an exegesis of Joshua 3

Abstract

The narration and dialogue surrounding the ark of the covenant and its ‘amazing things’ testify to God’s presence in Israel during the crossing of the Jordan, as well as to God’s call for the response of the faithful. The importance of this vacillation between narration and dialogue, and of the repetition of motifs in the Hebrew Bible, is demonstrated in this exegesis of Joshua 3. The author first illustrates the switch between narration and dialogue from Joshua 3:1-13 and 3:14-17 as a stylistic device that uses thematic repetition of instructions and actions as a reminder of the Exodus account. Following this analysis is a demonstration of the purpose of repetition of the ark of the covenant, crossing the Jordan, and the amazing things in testifying to God’s presence with the Israelites during the crossing of the Jordan and his call for the response of the faithful. Through using the illustrations of vacillation between narration and dialogue and illustrations of the repetition of motifs in the Hebrew Bible, the author concludes with emphasising that, when we as contemporary readers read the Bible, we must step into the shoes of the intended readers of each passage in order to better understand its intended message.