Not everyone can frame a word the same way - some words are harder to pronounce than others; almost everybody has at least one word which gives him trouble to say. Little children, just learning to speak, often have trouble making an "l" or an "r." A small boy, in a church I served as pastor, had this problem. It was a delight to ask him to say: "I really like to see little rabbits run", for when he said it, it came out: "I weally wike wo see wittle wabbits wun."

This Old Testament text has a similar situation. Gilead and Ephraim are in a great fight, and Ephraim is getting the worst of the battle, and they decide to head for home. On their retreat they come to the fords of the Jordan River. To get home they must get to the other side, but since there are no bridges, some places are too w…