Exodus 17: 1 –16
Did you fail the test?
17 Then all the congregation of the children of Israel set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin, according to the commandment of the LORD, and camped in Rephidim; but there was no water for the people to drink. 2 Therefore the people contended with Moses, and said, “Give us water, that we may drink.” So Moses said to them, “Why do you contend with me? Why do you tempt the LORD?” 3 And the people thirsted there for water, and the people complained against Moses, and said, “Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?” 4 So Moses cried out to the LORD, saying, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me!” 5 And the LORD said to Moses, “Go on before the people, and take with you some of the elders of Israel. Also take in your hand your rod with which you struck the river, and go. 6 Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7 So he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?” 8 Now Amalek came and fought with Israel in Rephidim. 9 And Moses said to Joshua, “Choose us some men and go out, fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand.” 10 So Joshua did as Moses said to him, and fought with Amalek. And Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11 And so it was, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. 12 But Moses’ hands became heavy; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. And Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. 13 So Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. 14 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Write this for a memorial in the book and recount it in the hearing of Joshua that I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.” 15 And Moses built an altar and called its name, The-LORD-Is-My-Banner; 16 for he said, “Because the LORD has sworn: the LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”
How do you like tests? If you thought that life’s tests were over when you finished school, guess again. There are many tests in life, and they can be much more difficult than chemistry or physics. And there isn’t that much homework we can do to prepare for these kinds of tests, either. You would like to think that there will come a time in your life when you are finished being tested. My response is – ‘Think Again!’
Every individual faces his or her own unique tests and challenges. We might wish the other fellow’s tests upon ourselves, but our tests are ours and ours alone to deal with. What tempts one person may not tempt the next. What is difficult for me might be simple for you, and vice versa. If we remember that the challenge of the moment is, in fact, a test, we might be better able to handle it and pass the test.
We don’t always realize that this may just be our very own personal, spiritual challenge, perhaps even the most important one of our entire existence. We don’t necessarily appreciate that our souls might have come down to this world for the express purpose of passing these tests.
So we rationalize -- If there is a God in the world, why? _____[You can fill in the blanks]
As believers in the Holy Son of God we come to know that if we accept the concept of a test of faith, then it becomes easier to deal with the challenges, as formidable as they may be.
The question remains: Why does God test us? Is it really—as our Bibles explain—“to know whether we do, in fact, love God with all our heart and soul”? Doesn’t God know all that already? How will we enlighten Him one way or the other? Is there anything God does not know?
The answer is that it is not for God to know, but for us to know. Of course, God knows. But He places tests and obstacles in our path, so that when we overcome them we develop and bring to the fore the inner, latent love of God that was always there inside our hearts and souls.
When we pass life’s tests, we discover that we do have that inner strength after all, that we really are believers who are profoundly connected to God, and that our commitment is true and genuine. In passing life’s tests we become more confident in our own moral strength, and enriched and ennobled with a higher awareness of how really great our God Is. This is why we are stronger after conquering these hurdles than we were before we faced them.
We don’t go looking for tests. Every morning in our prayers we should be asking our Holy Father God, “Lead us not to temptation.” But if it does come our way, we must appreciate that it is critical to our success as moral human beings and as committed Christians that we face up to the challenge.
In our last study we have learned that the Israelites have been led into The Wilderness. There situation there can either be looked at as hardships or as opportunities. Sadly, for our learning we find that they failed their tests over and over again. Unfortunately they are not over the tastings. We can take note that these same tests come our way as Christians. So, let us try to see what they are and see if we can glean the test answers so we can pass our exams of life as believers.
The children of Israel leave the wilderness of Sinai and encamp in Rephidim. Its site is uncertain. There they find themselves without water. Considering the continual shortage of water in the wilderness when they were not at oases or wells, a situation which they must have become used to, this comment must be taken to mean that they had reached a desperate state. Their mouths were parched, their water skins were dry, they were dehydrating and they saw no hope of finding water. And once again they murmur. And they turn to Moses their only hope. Behind all their belligerence lies the confidence that they have that Moses can somehow do something. Their only hope lay in deliverance from Yahweh.
Moses is therefore told to take the elders of Israel with him to a place which Yahweh will show him, and then Yahweh will stand before them on the rock in Horeb and when he smites the rock the water will flood out so that all may drink. All we are then told is that Moses did so. But we note that the emphasis is not on the provision of water but on the fact that the people tempted God, asking whether He was among them or not.
So the children of Israel have now been tested by water three times. Firstly after their first three days when there was no water (15.22), secondly at Marah, where it was bitter (15.23), and now here at Rephidim, where there was again none.
17 Then all the congregation of the children of Israel set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin, according to the commandment of the LORD, and camped in Rephidim; but there was no water for the people to drink.
The journey towards Sinai continued. Prior to reaching Rephidim they passed through Dophkah (possibly meaning ‘smeltery’, a reminder of the copper workings found in a number of places in South-central Sinai) and Alush (Numbers 33.12-13). Neither can be specifically identified. And then they reached Rephidim. A regular feature of such a wilderness journey is shortage of water, especially for so large a group. Thus in order to be mentioned the situation here must have become desperate. Their waterskins were empty and their mouths were parched. It is not said at this stage that their cattle and sheep needed water. They could survive far longer without it.
2 Therefore the people contended with Moses, and said, “Give us water, that we may drink.” So Moses said to them, “Why do you contend with me? Why do you tempt the LORD?” 3 And the people thirsted there for water, and the people complained against Moses, and said, “Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”
Our Precious Holy Spirit brings out another test an it involves the ‘Waterless Sin’
Again rebellion and a lack of appreciation Who the Lord God was. Grumble, grumble, grumble was all they did. There is no evidence of faith that the Lord who had sustained them and provided for them so far, would continue to do so. Even after God provided water miraculously from a rock, there were no thanks or appreciation in the ranks of the Israelites. One of our biggest failures is a lack of trusting our Holy God. He has over and over throughout our lives been there for us and has helped us. But when a new problem comes our way we revert to our old complaining, grumbling, griping, and murmuring selves.
Because their situation was getting desperate the people came to Moses in their desperation, crying out for water. But Moses too was parched and thirsty, yet he struggled on with confidence in Yahweh. Thus he challenged them as to their lack of faith. They too should share his confidence.
‘Why do you strive with me?’ The word means ‘to wrangle, to engage in controversy’. It was clear that they were in a very angry mood, even ready to attack him (verse 4) and he challenged what they were intending to do in order to diffuse the situation. Why were they doing it? he asked. The situation was not his fault. It was a consequence of desert journeying. They knew the position as well as he did and he possibly felt that they should have shown the same resilience as he did.
‘Why do you put Yahweh to the test?’ But worse he pointed out to them that what they were really doing was challenging Yahweh. They should have been continuing on in confident faith waiting for Yahweh to act on their behalf, not blaming His representative. It was Yahweh that they were really confronting. Let them remember with whom they were dealing. Compare 15.25; 16.4. There Yahweh had ‘proved’ them, now they were ‘proving’ Yahweh They had clearly not learned their lesson from those incidents.
‘And the people murmured against Moses.’ The controversy has now resulted in incipient rebellion. Their feelings are growing stronger.
4 So Moses cried out to the LORD, saying, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me!”
Moses himself was getting desperate, not at the shortage of water but because of the angry belligerence of the people. And he cried to Yahweh for help, possibly in the Tent where the covenant tablets of his fathers were held, or in front of the cloud which represented the presence of God.
5 And the LORD said to Moses, “Go on before the people, and take with you some of the elders of Israel. Also take in your hand your rod with which you struck the river, and go.
Yahweh answers Moses. This time Moses must take not only Aaron, but also all the elders of Israel. They too must now become involved in the finding of solutions that they might learn to trust in Yahweh. Note that on the one hand he has with him the weak and trembling elders, and on the other the mighty staff of God. The contrast is striking. On the one hand fears, on the other the perfect answer. But only Moses was aware of it.
‘Take in your hand the staff with which you smote the Nile.’ There the staff made the water undrinkable. Now it was to be used to provide drinkable water. It was not just a staff of judgment but one of mercy to those who followed Yahweh. The staff was the symbol of Moses’ authority and its use therefore confirmed his position before the elders and the people. Yahweh is here revealed as the great controller of waters.
6 Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.
And Yahweh would stand there on it. All the elders would see was a barren rock, but Moses would know that Yahweh was there. Although it may be that the cloud descended on it. Either way Horeb was to be the place of Yahweh’s blessing.
7 So he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?”
Moses was clearly very concerned at the behavior of the people and he expressed this concern by applying two names to the area (he is not said to have done this in other places so it is clearly seen as significant). This was possibly because there were two prominent landmarks to which he gave each a name. One he called Massah, which means ‘tempting, proving’, and the other he called Meribah, ‘chiding, striving’. These would be forever a symbol and reminder of the behavior of the people. They were to be a monument to rebellious doubt and lack of faith.
‘Is Yahweh among us or not?’ This was not the doubt of unbelief but the muttering of rebellion. They saw His cloud. But what use was that, they asked, if He did not provide for them? In other words they were disgruntled at the way He behaved.
Paul likens the rock from which the water flowed to Christ (1 Corinthians 10.4) Who provides His people with living water.
Our next test comes in the form of a quick quiz called the ‘Amalekite Assault’
Up to this point the problems of the journey have been physical problems arising from the environment, but now the children of Israel are reminded of other dangers, the dangers arising from people who resent their presence. This would seem not just to be a raiding party but a determined attack to prevent their progress. A sub-tribe of Amalekites had no doubt spotted them and reported their presence and their large numbers, to the wider elements of the Amalekites, and who would see this area as their territory and under invasion. No doubt they also hoped to gather much spoil.
8 Now Amalek came and fought with Israel in Rephidim.
Just as the Israelites were watering themselves the Amalekites attacked them but the Israelites were the victors and the Lord answered the prayers of His people. Thus the Lord God became known as Jehovah Nissi – “The Lord, our Banner.”
They are described by Balaam in Numbers 24.20 as ‘the first of the nations’ and he forecast their destruction. This probably means the first of the nations to attack the children of Israel after they left Egypt, or the first to attack them on their reaching Kadesh (Numbers 14.45).
In the book of Deuteronomy 25.17-19 we are told that the first that the children of Israel knew of their presence was when they attacked the rear of the party, where the weakest and feeblest were found, at a time when they were all weary. It would leave them stunned and apprehensive. This treacherous behavior ensured the Amalekites’ later condemnation.
Rephidim and Horeb were situated near each other in the Israelite journey. The rock from which the water came was in Horeb. But at this point only the elders had been to that rock. Thus this attack may well have taken place when the elders returned from the rock and when the people started off to move there to take advantage of the water (the Amalekites attacked the tail of the caravan). The final movement of the children of Israel to Horeb to take advantage of the water from the rock is not mentioned, it is assumed, and by 18.5 they are encamped ‘at the Mount of God’ in Horeb.
9 And Moses said to Joshua, “Choose us some men and go out, fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand.”
It is possible that the Amalekites, having made their presence felt and having realized the largeness of the numbers they were against, then approached and demanded that the children of Israel turn back, with the warning that if they did not do so they would be attacked again in force. But whatever the case Moses, having no doubt sent out spies to ascertain the source of the attack, recognized that the large force they had detected meant that they had a fight on their hands. Joshua may well have been one of those spies.
The Amalekites were not to know that the children of Israel were inexperienced warriors. But in fact they were so, for we must remember that the children of Israel had done no fighting either before or since being delivered. There can, however, be little doubt that Moses would have ensured that they had some military training while on the journey, for it would have been folly not to have done so. And he was presumably aided in this by Joshua whom he no doubt found to be a willing pupil, and who was a ‘young man’ (Exodus 33.11). It was the young men who would have been most willing to do the military training and there were no experienced older men to assist with it. Moses may well have been the only one trained to handle arms.
Thus we should not be surprised to find such a young man being given the responsibility of leading the troops. The fact that he is mentioned without introduction need also not surprise us. His name is at this point simply mentioned as the one chosen to select the best fighters, whom he would know from training, and to lead the attack, possibly because he was the spy who reported back on the situation. It was only later that he received a permanent appointment, although he may even by this stage have been in charge of the Tent of Meeting (33.11). At the time it was first recorded Joshua would be the hero and would need no introduction. He would be known to all.
‘Joshua’ is sometimes called Hoshea (Numbers 13.8). He is later called a young man and becomes the servant (aide-de-camp) of Moses (Exodus 33.11).
‘I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.’ Once more Moses’ staff is called ‘the staff of God’. It was the sign that Moses’ authority came from Yahweh. Thus it demonstrated that Yahweh would fight for them. Moses was now in his eighty’s so he started to experience physical decline. He said he would stand on the mount with the staff of God in his hand However; it would not be long before he would have to sit. The battle was to be longer than he expected, and his confidence in his own strength was too great. But the fact that he was there with the staff of God would be a huge confidence booster to Joshua.
10 So Joshua did as Moses said to him, and fought with Amalek. And Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11 And so it was, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.
The length of the battle emphasizes the size of the Amalekite forces, and the inexperienced Joshua with his inexperienced troops had a real fight on their hands. Meanwhile Moses went with Aaron and Hur to the top of the hill, probably so that he could be seen by his troops. Hur is mentioned again along with Aaron in 24.14 which emphasizes his authoritative position.
‘And when Moses held up his hand Israel prevailed.’ This was, of course, with the staff of God in his hand. This was no doubt seen as because this ensured the assistance of Yahweh. But there can be no doubt that such a belief would have given the troops new life whenever they saw it. And when his hand fell the reverse would be the case. They were not seasoned fighters like the Amalekites and their only hope lay in their larger numbers, and in Yahweh.
‘When Moses held up his hand Israel prevailed’, then ‘when he let down his hand Amalek prevailed, then - ‘Joshua discomfited Amalek’. It is made quite plain Who was the source of the victory.
12 But Moses’ hands became heavy; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. And Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. 13 So Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.
This brings out the genuineness of the account. Moses was not seen as a superhuman figure but revealed as a weary old man unable to last out the day, simply because it was so. This was a contemporary record. Yet his importance comes out in that without him the battle would have been lost. Inexperienced troops need such incentives as he provided if they are to succeed in a tough battle. They needed to know that Moses and the staff of God were in action. We will learn in future books of our bibles that the Israelites also took comfort knowing the Ark of The Covenant accompanied them.
The lifting up of the hand was the sign of entering into a solemn oath and the raising of both hands may have symbolized the fact that Moses was calling on the throne of Yahweh for Him to be faithful to His covenant oath.
The length of the battle emphasizes the size of the Amalekite force, but in the end they were ‘prostrated’ before Israel. Their superior experience could not combat the size of the opposing Israelite force when its morale was maintained by knowing that Yahweh fought for them. God wrought for them but He also expected them to fight.
In this situation our HolyLord God wanted the Israelites to understand a key point. The battle would be an important lesson for the future. It gave them their first experience of victory, and it let them know that with Yahweh fighting for them they were invincible. They had seen it against the Egyptians but now they experienced it firsthand in live battle. The next time this would make them stronger.
14 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Write this for a memorial in the book and recount it in the hearing of Joshua that I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.”
The instruction to write the details of what had happened is given because Yahweh wants His covenant concerning Amalek to be read and reread to Joshua. This confirms the practice, which we gathered from an examination of Genesis, that important covenant documents were written out in this way ‘for a memorial’, with the reading out of the covenant to those involved in view.
The crimes of Amalek were that they were the first to attack the children of Israel after they left Egypt, and we learn that they did so in a cowardly way, attacking the weakest and most helpless of Yahweh’s people. We are constantly reminded throughout the Old Testament of Yahweh’s great concern for the weak and helpless, the widow and the orphan.
15 And Moses built an altar and called its name, The-LORD-Is-My-Banner; 16 for he said, “Because the LORD has sworn: the LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”
The altar would be built for the purpose of offering sacrifice, and we note that Moses is said to have built it (been responsible for its building) and not Aaron. Moses was still looked to as the tribal priest. The altar was called ‘Yahweh is my banner’. Its main meaning is that Yahweh will always go with Israel into war as their banner, in this case against Amalek.
There would be no lasting truce with the Amalekites. They had proved their treacherous nature by their actions here. They dwelt ‘in the land of the south’ (Numbers 13.29) and would cause further trouble to the children of Israel when they were at Kadesh, an oasis in the south lands. They were a constant problem to Israel when Israel was weak. The blotting out was not to take place immediately. It would be a process through a number of generations.
In later generations Samuel sought their destruction on the grounds of what had happened here at Rephidim (1 Samuel 15). The remnant of the Amalekites was finally destroyed at their stronghold in Mount Seir in the days of Hezekiah (1 Chronicles 4.43).
To personalize this portion of Scripture we are reminded that Satan continues to do the same today. He will hit you in a surprise attack when you’re weak or vulnerable, busy with something else and not able to focus.
In this passage the people of God were attacked by an enemy after they had been saved from Egypt From that point of view they can be seen as a type of the Christian, who is saved from ‘the world’ and is a pilgrim on his way to the heaven. For the assault of evil on the people of righteousness has been true in all ages and never more so than in our spiritual warfare today. And the way of deliverance is the same in all cases. It is through trust in our Holy God, and standing firm against the enemy. It is especially interesting here that the general who saved the people was called ‘Yahweh is salvation’ or ‘Yahweh saves’.
We may note here that technically Moses did not pray. He did not need to pray. His confidence in Yahweh was such that he knew that all that he had to do was indicate Yahweh’s presence as there on their behalf, and Yahweh would do the rest. You see we can learn that in all our endeavors we take them on from a victorious point of view. The war has already been won.
Prayer would only have been necessary if Israel had sinned. We also need to learn that sometimes it is not prayer that is required, but confidence in God. There comes a time when prayer is not necessary because we already have God’s promise. Then instead we may praise in confident expectancy of what He will do.
It is very important for each of us to understand the reason and purpose for our wilderness time. We need to know what God wants to accomplish in us during that time, so that we can work with Him and get ourselves out of there as soon as possible.
The Israelites failed God’s tests in spectacular fashion, and we need to be certain we do not repeat their mistakes. Remember what God has done for us in the past and give thanks and praise for it, knowing that he can do the same, or more, again for us. We have a choice to follow our own fleshy ways, or submit our will to the Father. We have a choice to move forward, or stay where we are in rebellion and self pity. But be sure, the choices we make in our wilderness periods determine our future! As it was true for the Israelites, it is true for Christians. Amen.
