Ypological and Artistic Interpretations of Biblical Bodies of Water

Biblical typology is a form of interpretation in which a person, event, or thing found in the Old Testament is seen as a prefiguration of a person, event, or thing found in the New Testament. This essay features typological readings of various bodies of water described in the Hebrew Scriptures, specifically, the “river of water of life” (alluded to in Genesis and later described in Revelation), Noah's flood, the crossing of the Red Sea, the spring Moses brought forth from a rock, and the crossing of the Jordan River. The essay concludes with a proposed typological reading of Jesus' washing of his disciples' feet. The goal is to illuminate fundamental connections within the Christian Bible and to suggest these connections indicate an overarching divine plan.