Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Numbers 20:2
And there was no water for the congregation: and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
2 13. The striking of the rock at Meribah. Many characteristics of language indicate that this is mainly the work of P . In Exo 17:1-7 there is another account (E ) of the striking of the rock, the place being similarly named Meribah. It is probable that these are two traditions of the same event. In E it is placed at Horeb, early in the journeyings; here it is placed at their close. This two-fold striking of the rock appears to have influenced S. Paul’s language in 1Co 10:4. See on Num 21:18.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The language of the murmurers is noteworthy. It has the air of a traditional remonstrance handed down from the last generation. Compare marginal references.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Num 20:2-13
Neither is there any water to drink.
The privations of man and the resources of God
I. There are privations in the pilgrimage of human life. One man thinks that without health his life would be worthless; yet he has to submit to its loss for a time. To another man prosperity seems essential; to another, friendship, or some one friend or relative; yet of these they are sometimes deprived. Life, in our view, has many privations. This characteristic of our pilgrimage is for wise and gracious ends. Privation should remind us that we are pilgrims–incite us to confide in God–and discipline our spirits into patience and power.
II. The privations in the pilgrimage of life sometimes develop the evil tendencies of human nature. This murmuring of the Israelites was–
1. Unreasonable.
2. Cruel.
3. Ungrateful.
4. Degraded.
5. Audaciously wicked.
III. The privations in the pilgrimage of life, and the evils which are sometimes occasioned by them, impel the good to seek help of God.
1. Consciousness of need.
2. Faith in the sufficiency of the Divine help.
3. Faith in the efficacy of prayer to obtain the Divine help.
4. Faith in the efficacy of unspoken prayer.
IV. The privations in the pilgrimage of life are sometimes removed in answer to the prayer of the good. (W. Jones.)
No water
I. The place here spoken of. The wilderness. The people were led thither–
1. For discipline.
2. For solitude.
3. For proving. How sadly they failed.
II. The want. Water–
1. A necessity for sustenance.
2. A necessity for purity.
3. A want which they were unable to provide for themselves.
III. The peoples action. They murmured. An act natural to the human heart; but very sinful and foolish–
1. Because it distrusted God.
2. Because it did no good.
3. Because it made themselves more wretched and miserable still.
IV. The provision made.
1. Unexpected in its source.
2. Unexpected in the manner of its attainment.
3. Unexpected in quantity.
V. The instruction afforded. That rock was a type of Christ. He was appointed of God, stricken of man, means of salvation to those appointed to die, &c. (Preachers Analyst.)
The muddy bottom
The heart of man is like a peeler standing water. Look at it on a summers day, when not a breeze ruffles the surface, not a bird flies over to cast its light shadow on its face. It is so clear, so bright, you may see your own image reflected there. Now cast a stone to the bottom, and watch the effect. The dark mud is rising all around, rank weeds are floating up which you never saw before; the whole pool is in a state of motion, and hardly a drop of water has escaped the foul pollution. Look at your heart when all outward things go well. No vexing, crossing care mars its tranquil calm, and you think you see the image of Jesus reflected there. It is so long since sin has molested you that you think it has left you quite, and that all is sure within. Now let a sudden offence come, an unkind, undeserved rebuke; let pride be touched, or self-will roused, and presently all is lost. Like the waves of an angry sea, the poor mind is tossed from thought to thought, and finds no rest. The mud is raised from the bottom, and not one comer of that wretched heart is free from its polluting influence. All gentle, soothing thoughts are gone, and one by one the dark weeds are floating on the surface. (Quiet Thoughts for Quiet Hours.)
Speak ye unto the rock.—
Gods use of insufficient means
He told Moses to speak to the rock, and it should give forth water. On a former occasion he was to smite the rock; now he was only to speak to it. If there were any unbelievers in the camp they might mock at this command, and say, How is it possible to get water out of a rock? let us rather dig wells, if haply we may find water. And truly to the eye and ear of sense these observations might appear plausible. Now Gods way of bringing sinners to glory is just the same. The life of the Christian is a life of faith throughout. The appointed means have no inherent efficacy. God tries the faith of His people; disappoint it He never will. He has provided strength equal to their day, yet will He send it in such a way as to make them feel their utter helplessness. They see most of Gods love and gracious designs, and have most peace and comfort in their afflictions, who live most by faith. (George Breay, B. A.)
With his rod he smote the rock twice.—
The smitten rock
I. The sinful attitude of the people. They were discontented, enraged, and faithless. And so men grow discontented and cry out against God, as if trouble were the only experience they knew anything about–the most unhappy and morbid state of mind into which any Christian believer can come. It is strange also how, when one thing goes wrong with us, everything seems to be awry. The children of Israel were thirsty, and therefore they complained that the desert of Zin was not the garden of the Lord, full of all manner of fruits. Put a red lamp into a mass of shrubbery, and leaf and blossom are forthwith dyed an angry crimson. Thwart some cherished purpose of a man, and immediately everything takes on the colour of his disappointment. Society is disintegrating, the Church is going to destruction, life is a vale of tears. Nothing but immovable faith in God can save us from this wretched partialism.
II. The merciful attitude of God. What might He be expected to do under the circumstances? What wonder if He should say, It is of no use to be patient any longer. This people will not have Me for their Ruler. Let them perish. But that is not Gods way. He recognises the weakness of men, pities their sufferings, relieves their wants, and so gives the people another chance to understand Him. And how often that ancient wonder is wrought anew in human experience! Some critical event occurs in our history, which for a time at least shatters our faith in the Divine goodness and justice, well established as that faith ought to be when we remember the general tenor of our life, and God, instead of flaming out against our inconstancy and leaving us to our own devices, makes that very event the occasion of a new and gracious revelation of His love. With time and pains we arrange some well-compacted plan, on whose success it seems to us all our good fortune depends, and it thrives for a while; but suddenly all things are against us, and our hopes are wrecked, and we grow bitter and rebellious, and then God uses that very disaster to teach us juster views of life and to create in us a nobler frame of mind, and develop a broader manhood, and we have a nobler ambition and are better equipped than ever before. And then from the barren rock of bereavement God brings streams of refreshing. The remaining members of the household are more closely welded together, a more tender sympathy with each other springs up, the unseen life becomes a grander reality, and, as in the flush of the sunset that follows the storm, we forget the fury of the blast in the glory of the transfigured heavens, so men and women, in the chastened spirit that results from trials, and in the light of new and larger hopes which have been kindled, bear glad testimony: It is good for us that we have been afflicted.
III. The unwarrantable attitude of Moses and Aaron. They were angry with the people and called them hard names, addressing them as rebels. They spoke as if they were the chief agents of the miracle which God wrought. Hear now, ye rebels, they said to the people, must we fetch you water out of this rock? So far as their words went, they were taking upon themselves the glory which belonged to God alone. Then, too, they were not satisfied with the Divine directions. For these assumptions Moses and Aaron were rebuked on the spot, and a sentence of punishment pronounced upon them. There is important practical instruction here for those who teach or preach Gods Word to sinful men. It is not to be done in a self-satisfied way, with the assumption of superior sanctity. Neither are we to take credit to ourselves for good results which may follow our administration of Divine truth. It is not our wisdom or eloquence, but the Word of God which is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword. Humility and self-distrust are eminently becoming in those who undertake to do Gods work of influencing men for good. (E. S. Atwood.)
Moses at the rock
1. Did you ever hear people cry out, I wish I were dead? That is what the Israelites said–Would God we had died! These wishes were hasty, and as insincere as hasty. No doubt those people would flee from death with terror at the first sign of his approach. It has been well said that a discontented heart makes a reckless tongue.
2. Now we come to Moses sin. He did not attend carefully to Gods Word, nor obey it, because he was angry. Notice his bitter words. Let us beware of the sin of anger. Look at the fifth of Galatians, and it tells you that wrath is one of the lusts of the flesh. In Proverbs we are told that he that is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city. Why is a person who conquers himself better than a great general who takes a city? There are three reasons.
(1) He is a greater hero; he does a more difficult thing.
(2) Because it leaves a happier feeling behind.
(3) It pleases God, The more you conquer your sins, the more you will be growing like Christ.
Do you know heaven is full of conquerors? And Rev 12:11 tells us how they conquered: They overcame by the blood of the Lamb. (British Weekly Pulpit.)
The scene at Meribah
This is a memorable incident in the Jews history, rich in warning to us at this day. Moses had failed in his duty towards God in three particulars.
1. He had failed in strict obedience.
2. He had shown temper, used hard language.
3. He had taken to himself the credit of supplying the Israelites with water.
I. The danger of departing, in the least jot or tittle, from any law of God.
II. The immense importance attached to temperate speech, the necessity of keeping a check on temper and not letting ourselves be moved to hot and angry words.
III. This scene is further useful as carrying our thoughts upwards to Him who is the source of all our hopes, the nourishment of our soul, the very life of our religion, the Lord Jesus Christ. (R. D. B. Rawnsley, M. A.)
Moses striking the rock
The Biblical writers are charmingly candid. Do they speak of other mens faults? They take care also to record their own. Reputation is sacrificed on the altar of truth; the unselfish lawgiver informs us of his own transgression and its terrible penalty. What may we learn from his sin?
I. We must not seek right ends by wrong means. Here Moses erred. How often has his sin been repeated! Look at Caiaphas. He says in reference to the Saviour, It is expedient that one man die, and not that the whole nation should perish. The latter part of the sentence is admirable, the former is atrocious . . . Error should be opposed; we ought to stop its progress as quickly as possible–but by persuasion, not persecution.
II. We must beware of doing more than God commands. There are two opposite ways of sinning–by defect, and by excess. A child who, in adding up a sum, makes it come to too much, blunders as completely as if he made it come to too little. And such a form of wrong-doing is possible spiritually. We as much violate our duty as followers of God, if we get ahead of our Guide, as though we lagged so far behind that we could no longer see Him or tread in His steps. Are we not all, for instance, harder in our judgments, more exacting, more stringent and rigorous in our demands, than He is whom we profess to follow; and is not this to go before God, and to go before Him not to prepare His way, but to scare men from His presence?
III. Precedent is a perilous guide. Moses had struck the rock before by Gods command, and probably he argued that what was right then could not be wrong now. But let us remember, that circumstances alter cases. A thing which is wise for one time may be folly for another. (T. R. Stevenson.)
The sin of Moses
I. What there was sinful in Moses.
1. Disobedience to the Divine command.
2. Immoderate heat and passion.
3. Unbelief.
4. It was all publicly done, and so the more dishonouring to God.
II. What we may learn from this tragical story.
1. What a holy and jealous God He is with whom we have to do.
2. The Lords children need not think it strange if they get abundance to exercise that grace in which they most excel.
3. Let us not be surprised to see or hear the saints failing even in the exercise of that grace wherein they most excel.
4. Never think yourselves secure from failing till ye be at the end of your race.
5. What need we have to guard constantly our unruly passions, and put a bridle on our lips.
6. Though God pardons the iniquity of His servants, yet He will take vengeance on their inventions (Psa 99:8).
7. If God punishes His children thus for falling into the snare, how shall they escape who lay the snare for them?
8. Observe the ingenuousness of the penmen of the Holy Scripture–Moses records his own fault. (T. Boston, D. D.)
Sin in the child of God
I. Very painful to God.
II. Most inexcusable.
III. Most disastrous in its results,
IV. Very certain of punishment.
Let this incident–
1. Make Gods people more watchful.
2. Lead others to ponder their ways ; for if God visits His own children for sin, a fortiori, He will not let the wicked escape.
3. Let none forget that God can forgive sin–all sin–through Jesus Christ. (David Lloyd.)
The sins of holy men, and their punishment
The sin of Moses and Aaron seems to have included–
1. Want of faith.
2. Irritation of spirit.
3. Departure from Divine directions.
4. Assumption of power.
5. The publicity of the whole.
I. The liability of the good to sin.
II. The danger of good men failing in those excellences which most distinguish them.
III. The impartiality of the administration of the Divine government.
IV. The great guilt of those who by their wickedness occasion sin in the good.
V. The means which God uses to deter men from sin. Divine judgments, expostulations with the sinner, encouragements and aids to obedience, are all so employed. By the voice of history, by the law from Sinai, by the gospel of His Son, by the Cross of Jesus Christ, by the influences of His Spirit, God is ever crying to the sinner, Oh! do not this abominable thing that I hate. Let Christians guard against temptation; let them cultivate a watchful and prayerful spirit. (W. Jones.)
How it went ill with Moses
It was but one act, one little act, but it blighted the fair flower of a noble life, and shut the one soul, whose faith had sustained the responsibilities of the Exodus with unflinching fortitude, from the reward which seemed so nearly within its grasp.
I. How it befell. The demand of the people on the water supply at Kadesh was so great that the streams were drained, whereupon there broke out again that spirit of murmuring and complaint which had cursed the former generation, and was now reproduced in their children. They professed to wish that they had died in the plague that Aarons censer had stayed. They accused the brothers of malicious designs to effect the destruction of the whole assembly by thirst. It could hardly have been otherwise than that he should feel strongly provoked. However, he resumed his old position, prostrating himself at the door of the tent of meeting until the growing light that welled forth from the Secret Place indicated that the Divine answer was near. Moses was bidden, though betook the rod, not to use it, but to speak to the rock with a certainty that the accents of his voice, smiting on its flinty face, would have as much effect as ever the rod had had previously, and would be followed by s rush of crystal water. Yes, when God is with you, words are equivalent to rods. Rods are well enough to use at the commencement of faiths nurture, and when its strength is small, but they may be laid aside without hesitance in the later stages of the education of the soul. For as faith grows, the mere machinery and apparatus it employs becomes ever less, and its miracles are wrought with the slightest possible introduction of the material. Moses might have entered into these thoughts of God in quieter moments, but just now he was irritated, indignant, and hot with disappointment and anger. The people did not suffer through their leaders sin. The waters gushed from out the rock as plentifully as they would have done if the Divine injunctions had been precisely complied with. Mans unbelief does not make the faith of God of none effect; though we believe not, yet He remaineth faithful, He cannot deny Himself, or desert the people of His choice.
II. The principle that underlay the divine decision.
1. There was distinct disobedience. No doubt was possible about the Divine command, and it had been distinctly infringed. This could not be tolerated in one who was set to lead and teach the people. God is sanctified whenever we put an inviolable fence around Himself and His words; treating them as unquestionable and decisive; obeying them with instant and utter loyalty. It is a solemn question for us all whether we are sufficiently accurate in our obedience.
2. There was unbelief. It was as if he had felt that a word was not enough. As if there must be something more of human might and instrumentality. He did not realise how small an act on his part was sufficient to open the sluice-gates of Omnipotence. It reminds us of the shattering of the Hell-Gate Rock at the entrance of New York Harbour. The touching of a tiny button by a little child set in action the train of gunpowder by which that vast obstruction was blasted to atoms, and heaved for all time out of the path of the ships. A touch is enough to set Omnipotence in action. It is very wonderful to hear God say to Moses, Ye believed not in Me. Was not this the man by whose faith the plagues of Egypt had fallen on that unhappy land, and the Red Sea had cleft its waters? Had the wanderings impaired that mighty soul, and robbed it of its olden strength, and left it like any other? Surely something of this sort must have happened. One act could only have wrought such havoc by being the symptom of some unsuspected wrong beneath. Oaks do not fall beneath a single storm, unless they have become rotten at their heart. Let us watch and pray, lest there be in any of us an evil heart of unbelief, lest we depart in our most secret thought from simple faith in the living God. Let us especially set a watch at our strongest point. But how much there is of this reliance on the rod in all Christian endeavour! Some special method has been owned of God in times past, in the conversion of the unsaved or in the edification of Gods people, and we instantly regard it as a kind of fetish. We try to meet new conditions by bringing out the rod and using it as of yore. It is a profound mistake. God never repeats Himself. He suits novel instrumentalities to new emergencies. Where a rod was needful once He sees that a word is better now. What does it matter if the means He ordains appear to our judgment inferior to those which He commanded once? This is no business of ours.
3. There was the spoiling of the type. That Rock was Christ, from whose heart, smitten in death on Calvary, the river of water of life has flowed to make glad the city of God, and to transform deserts into Edens. But death came to Him and can come to Him but once. Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many. It is clear that for the completeness of the likeness between substance and shadow, the rock should have been stricken but once. Instead of that it was smitten at the beginning and at the close of the desert march. But this was a misrepresentation of an eternal fact, and the perpetrator of the heedless act of iconoclasm must suffer the extreme penalty, even as Uzzah died for trying to steady the swaying ark.
III. The irrevocableness of the Divine decisions. Moses drank very deeply of the bitter cup of disappointment. And no patriot ever yearned for fatherland as Moses to tread that blessed soil. With all the earnestness that he had used to plead for the people, he now pleaded for himself. But it was not to be. The Lord said unto him, Let it suffice thee; speak no more unto Me of this matter. The sin was forgiven, but its consequences were allowed to work out to their sorrowful issue. There are experiences with us all in which God forgives our sin, but takes vengeance on our inventions. We reap as we have sown. We suffer where we have sinned. At such times our prayer is not literally answered. By the voice of His Spirit, by a spiritual instinct, we become conscious that it is useless to pray further. But, oh! that God would undertake the keeping of our souls, else, when we least expect it, we may be overtaken by some sudden temptation, which befalling us in the middle, or towards the close of our career, may blight our hopes, tarnish our fair name, bring dishonour to Him, and rob our life of the worthy capstone of its edifice. (F. B. Meyer, B. A.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 2. And there was no water for the congregation] The same occurrence took place to the children of Israel at Kadesh, as did formerly to their fathers at Rephidim, see Ex 17:1; and as the fathers murmured, so also did the children.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
The water having followed them through all their former journeys, began now to fail them here, because they were now come near Canaan and other countries, where waters might be had by ordinary means, and therefore God would not use extraordinary, lest he should seem to prostitute the honour of miracles. This story, though like that Exo 17, is different from it, as appears by divers circumstances.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
2-13. there was no water for thecongregationThere was at Kadesh a fountain, En-Mishpat (Ge14:7), and at the first encampment of the Israelites there was nowant of water. It was then either partially dried up by the heat ofthe season, or had been exhausted by the demands of so vast amultitude.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And there was no water for the congregation,…. Which was so ordered, for the trial of this new generation, to see whether they would behave any better than their fathers had done in a like circumstance, the first year they came out of Egypt, Ex 17:1
and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron; just as their fathers had done before them, being of the like temper and disposition.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Sin of Moses and Aaron at the Water of Strife at Kadesh. – In the arid desert the congregation was in want of water, and the people quarrelled with Moses in consequence. In connection with the first stay in Kadesh there is nothing said about any deficiency of water. But as the name Kadesh embraces a large district of the desert of Zin, and is not confined to one particular spot, there might easily be a want of water in this place or the other. In their faithless discontent, the people wished that they had died when their brethren died before Jehovah. The allusion is not to Korah’s company, as Knobel supposes, and the word , “to expire,” would be altogether inapplicable to their destruction; but the reference is to those who had died one by one during the thirty-seven years. “ Why, ” they murmured once more against Moses and Aaron, “ have ye brought the congregation of God into this desert, to perish there with their cattle? Why have ye brought it out of Egypt into this evil land, where there is no seed, no fig-trees and pomegranates, no vines, and no water to drink? ”
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
2. And there was no water for the congregation. We have already seen a similar, though not the same, history. For, when the people had hardly come out of Egypt, they began to rebel in Rephidim on account of the scarcity of water; and now, after thirty-eight years, or thereabouts, a new sedition arose in Kadesh, because there, too, they wanted water. Their first murmuring, indeed, sufficiently showed how great was their depravity and contumacy; for, when God gave them their food from heaven every day, why did they not supplicate Him for water, so that their sustenance might be complete? Yet, not less with foul ingratitude than with impious refractoriness, they assail God with reproaches, and complain that they are deceived and betrayed. But this second rebellion is far worse; for, when they had experienced that it was in God’s power to extract plenty of water from the barren rock, why do they not now implore His aid? why does not that marvelous interference in their behalf recur to their minds? Yet, in their madness, they clamor that they have been more cruelly dealt with than as if they had been swallowed up by the earth, or consumed by fire from heaven, as if there were no remedy for their thirst. Assuredly this was incredible stupidity, designedly, as it were, to shut the gate of God’s grace, and to east themselves into despair. It is true that they rebel against Moses and Aaron; but they direct their complaints like darts against God Himself. They deem it a very great injustice that they had been brought into the desert, as if they had not in their own impious obstinacy themselves preferred the desert to the land of Canaan, and were deserving, therefore, of pining, in want of all things, to death itself. Perversely, then, do they throw the blame, which belongs to themselves alone, upon the ministers of their salvation. With truth, indeed, do they call the place evil and barren; but God would not have wished to keep them imprisoned there, unless they had voluntarily refused the land flowing with milk and honey, after it had been set before their eyes, and an easy entrance to it had been accorded to them under the guidance and authority of God. Thus the Prophet, in Psa 105:0, in recounting the history of their redemption, before he descends to the punishments inflicted upon their sins, relates that they were brought forth by God “with joy” and “with gladness.” (108) But, further, taking occasion from the inconvenience they experienced from thirst, they maliciously heap together other complaints. There was no lack of food to satisfy their hunger, and such as was pleasant to the taste; yet they complain exactly as if hunger oppressed them as well as thirst. God daily rained for them food from heaven, which it was mere sport for them to gather; but the ground of their murmuring is that they had not to fatigue themselves with ploughing and sowing. Behold to what senselessness men are driven by preposterous lust, and by contempt of God’s present blessings! The climax of their madness, however, is that they lament their fate in not having been swallowed up with Korah and his companions, or consumed by fire from heaven. They had been overwhelmed with great fear at that melancholy spectacle; and justly so, for God had exhibited a prodigy, terrible throughout all ages. Now they quarrel with Him because His lightnings did not smite them also. Nor do they only lament that they were not destroyed by that particular kind of death, but they willfully provoke God’s vengeance upon their heads, which ought to have terrified them more than a hundred deaths: for it is emphatically added, that those, with whom they desired to be associated, had “died before the Lord.” They acknowledge, therefore, that the destruction, which they imprecate upon themselves, had come to pass not by chance, but by the manifest judgement of God, as if they were angry with God for having spared themselves. Most truly do they call them their brethren, to whom they were only too like; yet is it in brutal arrogance that they desire to be accounted God’s Church; for, whilst they professedly connect themselves with the adverse faction, they arrogate falsely this title to themselves.
(108) These expressions occur, Psa 105:43. It is in Psa 106:0 that the Psalmist proceeds to narrate the history of their rebellions and punishments.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
B. SIN OF MOSES AT MERIBAH vv. 213
TEXT
Num. 20:2. And there was no water for the congregation: and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. 3. And the people chode with Moses and spake, saying, Would God that we had died when our brethren died before the Lord! 4. And why have ye brought up the congregation of the Lord into this wilderness, that we and our cattle should die there? 5. And wherefore have ye made us to come up out of Egypt, to bring us in unto this evil place? it is no place of seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates; neither is there any water to drink. 6. And Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they fell upon their faces: and the glory of the Lord appeared unto them.
7. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 8. Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink. 9. And Moses took the rod from before the Lord, as he commanded him. 10. And Moses took Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and said unto them, Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock? 11. And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also.
12. And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them. 13. This is the water of Meribah; because the children of Israel strove with the Lord, and he was sanctified in them.
PARAPHRASE
Num. 20:2. Now there was no water for the congregation; and they came together against Moses and against Aaron. 3. And the people argued with Moses, saying, We wish we had died when our brethren died before the Lord! 4. Why have you brought the congregation up into this wilderness? So that we and our cattle should die here? 5. It is no place for seed, or for figs, or for vines, or for pomegranates; and there is no water to drink. 6. Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the congregation to the door of the Tent of Meeting, and they fell upon their faces;
7. and the glory of the Lord appeared to them, and the Lord spoke to Moses saying, 8. Take the rod and gather the congregation together, you and Aaron your brother, and speak to the rock in front of their eyes; and it shall give forth water. You will bring forth water for them from the rock; in this manner you will give the congregation and their animals a drink. 9. So Moses took the rod from the presence of the Lord as he commanded him. 10. Then Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together in front of the rock and said unto them, Listen now, you rebels; shall we bring forth water from this rock for you? 11. And Moses lifted up his hand, and with the rod he struck the rock twice: and water came forth abundantly so that the congregation and their animals drank.
12. And the Lord said unto Moses and Aaron, Because you did not believe in me, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, you shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them. 13. These are the waters of Meribah, where the children of Israel contended with the Lord, and he was sanctified by them.
COMMENTARY
Kadesh has not been identified with certainty, and it is thought to designate either a large district of desert land in the wilderness of Zin, or a smaller area about a large natural spring. Nothing was said of a shortage of water when the Israelites first camped here. The present cause may have derived from the season or from an unusually dry period. In saying there was no water, Moses may have intended only that whatever supply they had was inadequate to serve the needs of so large a multitude. Since water is essential both to the people and their large herds and flocks, a great quantity would be required regularly. When their requirements are not met, they revert to the manners of their fathers, assembling to protest against Moses and Aaron, (Exodus 17).
Whether the older Israelites had died en masse toward the end of the wandering period or their deaths were spread throughout that time, the surviving ones expressed their preference to join the dead rather than endure the discomforts of being waterless. Certainly the situation would be far from comfortable; but a review of the history of the nation would show that God had never abandoned them in any time of need. This is a time for faith testing, and they are unprepared. Their charge that they have been brought into an evil place, (Num. 20:4), reflects only their momentary circumstance. They had not, for the most part, seen any of the bondage in Egypt; and on the other hand, their lives had been spent in the time of wandering. Hardships could not have been new and strange to them.
The evaluation of Kadesh is correct: it is not a place for an agricultural people, and it is far from ideal for their animals. while the Israelites are not at this time agricultural, they, like the Egyptians, may have come to depend largely upon the produce of the landa fact of which their fathers had loudly Complained, (Num. 11:5), when they grew tired of the manna.
Moses and Aaron react properly at first, going before the Lord on their faces to determine His will and His course of action. Without Him they are powerless and at the mercy of the people. But they stand ready to do whatever may be required of them. Their wait was not long when the glory of Jehovah came unto them, and His words have a familiar ring. They are to take the rod (almost certainly that which had been used as a sign before Pharaoh, and at the parting of the waters of the Red Sea), approach the rock (otherwise unidentified, but surely a prominent landmark at the camp site), and produce the water so desperately needed.
Initially it appears that Moses will do exactly as the Lord has asked. He gathers the assembly and, after rebuking them by labelling them rebels, addresses himself to the problem. And what was his sin? Some have pointed to the fact that Moses used the plural we in reference to the miracle soon to be performed, thus seeming to equate his part in the miracle with the Lords; or, to say the least, sharing somewhat in it. Others point to the fact that Moses struck the rock twice, whether motivated by anger, righteousness, or impatience; still others remind us that he was told only to speak to the rock, and should not have touched it at all, Any one of these might have been enough, but if we allow Scripture to interpret Scripture, God Himself refers to Moses failure to glorify His name (Num. 20:12), thus singling out the greatest offense.
We should not be surprised that water gushed forth from the rock in spite of Moses error. God did not intend that the people should suffer, and He sent an abundant supply to care for them and their beasts. His rebuke is properly spoken to Moses and Aaron, and doubtless His verdict was given in private, for their ears alone: they would not be privileged to lead their people in the final triumphant step into the Promised Land. It was a most bitter sentence, but it underscores the grievous nature of the offense. A special weight of responsibility rests upon the shoulders of those entrusted with places of authority and leadership (cf. Jas. 3:1). Since their actions influence many others directly, they must be most careful at all times. The error of Moses was public. Had God ignored it, or had Moses gone unpunished, the people could rightly accuse Him of biased treatment. This God is incapable of doing. His judgments are impersonal, altogether fair and constant.
The name Meribah is used of this place, as it had been used in the early days of Israels exodus (see Exo. 17:7). The similarity between the two locations rests upon their need for water, their bitter complaints, and satisfaction through divine assistance. Otherwise, the narratives are most dissimilar, and cannot be confused. Even in these unusual circumstances, God was sanctified in them, that is, as PC says, He revealed there his holiness and power, and put to silence their evil murmurings against Him. He was sanctified in them all the more abundantly because Moses and Aaron failed to sanctify him in the eyes of the people; but what they failed to do he brought to pass without their agency, (p. 254).
QUESTIONS AND RESEARCH ITEMS
345.
Since the Israelites must have continually relied upon Gods providence in the past for the great quantity of water they needed, why should they suddenly show this strong doubt?
346.
Why should the people blame Moses and Aaron for their problem?
347.
What type of country surrounds Kadesh?
348.
Do you believe God deliberately delayed bringing water to the Israelites? If so, for what purposes?
349.
How could the people understand this area to be an evil place?
350.
Compare the list of the foods they now miss with those given when the nation had first removed from Egypt. Explain the differences.
351.
Some have suggested that Moses used Aarons budded rod in the incident here. Why is this unlikely?
352.
What explanations have been given for Moses sin at the rock? Which do you accept, and why?
353.
Explain why God sent water forth from the rock in spite of this fact.
354.
Does it seem fair to you that Moses should be prohibited from leading the people into the Promised Land on the basis of this single act of error? Defend your answer.
355.
What similarities can you find between the two incidents involving Meribah?
356.
What do you learn of Gods justice from the incident?
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(2) And there was no water . . . Kadesh may have comprised a considerable portion of the wilderness of Zin, and there may have been a supply of water in some parts of the district and a scarcity in others; or the supply may have proved insufficient for the wants of so great a multitude; or the miraculous supply which was given at Rephidim may have continued, with more or less frequent intermissions, up to the time to which this statement refers, and may have been suddenly withdrawn at this time in order to try the faith of the Israelites.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
CLAMOUR FOR WATER THE ROCK SMITTEN, Num 20:2-13.
2. No water Twice before had the cry for water come up into the ears of Moses. On the first occasion the bitter waters were miraculously sweetened. Exo 15:25. While at Rephidim, apparently near Horeb, (Exo 17:6,) water gushed from the smitten rock. The recurrence of the same want is not surprising, in view of the multitude of the people and their flocks in a desert. At Kadesh En-Mishpat was the “fountain of judgment.” Gen 14:7. It was now, probably, dry, and so insufficient for the demands of the people.
Against Moses and Aaron The logic of the congregation is very defective. If Moses and Aaron are mere men they cannot create a supply of water, and hence are not worthy of blame. If they are the representatives of Jehovah, to execrate them is to curse Him.
In either case blame is folly. Patience and trust were qualities which would have made them victorious over their most forbidding surroundings.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Num 20:2. And there was no water for the congregation Here, almost all the commentators say, God permitted the water which flowed from the rock in Horeb, and followed the Israelites through the wilderness, to fail them; and that with a design to try them, as he had tried their forefathers. But in our notes on Exo 17:7 we have shewn the absurdity of the supposition of the waters following the people; and we must observe upon this miracle, that the same thing happened to the children at Kadesh, which had happened to the fathers at Rephidim: the water failed them, and they murmured; shewing the same unhappy disposition which their fathers had shewn.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
It is very awful to consider in our corrupt nature, (for Israel in all ages is the same), that neither past judgments for rebellions, nor past mercies when dispensed instead of punishments, have any effect in themselves. Nothing but preventing and restraining grace can bring the heart over to the side of GOD. LORD! I would pray for myself and for the Reader, in all thy providences, either in fulness or in need, in chastisement or forbearance, do thou sanctify everything to our hearts, and let our hearts be sanctified in thy providences, and then all will be well.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
no: Exo 15:23, Exo 15:24, Exo 17:1-4
gathered: Num 11:1-6, Num 16:3, Num 16:19, Num 16:42, Num 21:5, Exo 16:2, Exo 16:7, Exo 16:12, 1Co 10:10, 1Co 10:11
Reciprocal: Deu 9:7 – from the day 2Ki 3:9 – no water Psa 106:32 – angered
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Num 20:2. No water Which, as is generally thought, having followed them through all their former journeys, began to fail them here, because they were now come near countries where waters might be had by ordinary means, and therefore God would not use extraordinary, lest he should seem to prostitute the honour of miracles. This story, though like that Exodus 17., is different from it, as appears by divers circumstances.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Num 20:2-13 (mainly JE). The Lack of Water Supplied by a Miracle.The account of the peoples demand for water, and of the means by which it was supplied, seems to be a duplicate of the narrative in Exo 17:1-7, for the name Meribah appears in both; but whereas there the scene is Horeb, here it is Kadesh. Probably the account in Ex. comes mainly from E, whilst this account proceeds from J. These stories of water having been produced miraculously from a rock by the stroke of a leaders rod are perhaps prosaic interpretations of poetical descriptions (like that preserved in Num 21:16-18) of the procuring of water by more ordinary means. The explanation of the offence through which both Moses and Aaron were excluded from Canaan is very defective. In Num 20:12 the offence is represented as unbelief, but in Num 20:24 (cf. Num 27:14) it is declared to have been rebellion; whilst there is nothing in the present narrative to support either statement. There must be some considerable textual corruption (probably in Num 20:8 and Num 20:10); and it has been conjectured that in the original of one of the sources there was something like this, And Yahweh spake unto Moses and Aaron, and said, Speak ye unto the rock before their eyes, and ye shall bring forth to them water out of the rock. But Moses and Aaron rebelled against the commandment of Yahweh and said, Can we bring forth water for them out of this rock? To this Yahweh replied, Hear me (so LXX), ye rebels, and bade them strike the rock (which previously they had only been directed to address, Num 20:8), and this command was obeyed (Num 20:9). It must be supposed that to draw water from the rock by striking it with the wonder-working rod was less of a marvel than to do so by mere words, and that Moses and Aaron were punished for doubting Yahwehs power to effect the latter miracle: cf. Psa 106:33.
Num 20:9. the rod from before the Lord: i.e. Aarons rod (see Num 17:10).
Num 20:11. his rod: read (LXX), the rod (cf. Num 20:9). Aarons rod is used in the miracles related in Exo 7:9; Exo 7:19; Exo 8:5; Exo 8:16.
Num 20:13. Meribah: from the Heb. ribh, to strive. Perhaps the right reading is Meribah of Kadesh, as in Num 27:14, Deu 32:51.was sanctified: i.e. vindicated Himself; cf. Isa 5:16. The Heb. contains a reference to the name Kadesh.
Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible
20:2 And there was no water for the congregation: and they {c} gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
(c) Another rebellion was in Rephidim Exo 17:1-16, and this was in Kadesh.