Importance of Jordan River

"God's royal artery," the Jordan River pass through sandy wastelands and rich orchards flowing south from the Sea of Gennesaret (also known as the Sea of Galilee and Lake Tiberias) to the Dead Sea. John the Baptist attracts vast crowds of penitents to a section of the river just before the inlet to the Dead Sea, where the water turns saline and supports no life forms. John works in a marshy area, filled with tall reeds. He preaches from atop a flat rock and pours water from a shell over those who have confessed their sins publicly and wade beneath his hand.