Why did the water reseed as far back as Adam?
Joshua 3:14-16 So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. (15) Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, (16) the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea ) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho.
Here we are told that 'the waters were pushed back in a heap back from the point where they were crossing; a very long way back for the waters to recede. They went all the way back to the city of Adam! We don't know anything about this city. They haven't found any archaeology concerning it but they believe it to be about 16 miles back. Now of all the cities that are named in the Bible, this one happens to be called Adam. This shows that Christ died to make a complete sacrifice for sin all the way back to Adam. Our Saviour was judged for all the sins of the fallen human race on the cross...past present and future. And not only our sins, but the sin principle in all of us. That Adamic, self-centred nature, which has no time for God, will never improve; will not get any better. The only thing that it is good for is crucifixion and burial. When I looked at that I thought it was such a good picture because the very thing that tripped up the nation of Israel is the thing that trips us up - the Adamic nature! That self- centred nature that loves to do its own thing. It doesn't have any time for God. An example often given is that of a pig. You could take a pig into your home and dress him up so that he was nice and clean and you could keep him in your house - for pigs are really intelligent. You could train this pig so that he doesn't make a mess, you could even train him to sit up at the table and hold back on his food while grace is said. However, if you leave the door open a bit he will bolt outside and head straight for the mud with all his nice little clothes on and roll over and over on his back. As he is rolling he sings 'home sweet home' because that is his real nature! Our Adamic, self-centred nature is exactly like that. Many times, the wilderness Christian life is about trying to do better, trying to put on an outward appearance, but it is carnal Christianity, and there is no victory there. But the good news is that Christ has actually judged that old nature, and it does not have to rule over us anymore, because He stands ready to do it for us, if we rely on Him.
Joshua 3:17 The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.
As we said before, this is a picture of the presence of God being in the place of judgement until everything was complete. The priests stood firm, they stood in the place of judgement until everybody had crossed over. This speaks so much of what our Saviour has actually done for us. Christ made an absolutely full payment when He died, and I believe that the nation of Israel had to rediscover this truth. What was the difference for the nation at this second crossing? When they had to cross the Red Sea they had armies behind them; Moses put out his arm and the waters were held back and they walked through into freedom. In this second crossing at the Jordan, the Ark, the presence of God, went before them in the midst of death. I think that this is the key to understanding this second crossing which is different from the first. Our eyes need to be opened to see that Christ has actually made a full payment for us at Calvary. We are with Him in that place of death. There has to be the realisation that not only was Christ there, but we are placed there too. This is a deeper, fuller, understanding of the working of God.
From: Joshua Chapter 3 and 4: The Ark, the Jordan & Baptism into Christ