This morning, we will read two separate, but connected stories from Exodus 17. And as we read, eventually, we are going to find ourselves focusing on one main question: "Is God with us, or not?"
In the first story, we will see what life looks like, when you don't know for sure if God is with you. And in the second, we will see what life can look like, (1) if God is with you, and (2) you have confidence He's with you.
So. Story #1. Exodus 17:1-2:
(1) and the whole congregation of the sons of Israel set out from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the mouth of Yahweh,
and they camped in Rephidim,
and there wasn't water for the people to drink,
(2) and the people quarreled (Gen. 26:20) with Moses,
and they said,
"Give to us water, that we may drink,"
The congregation has been moving through the wilderness in stages. Probably, this means that Yahweh has been a good shepherd to them, moving them from one water hole to the next.
But at Rephidim, there was no water. It's a dry camp. Probably, the distance between water holes was greater than the people could travel in a day. [It's a wilderness, uninhabited, for a reason].
And so the people, do what?
They "quarrel" with Moses. One lexicon defines "quarreling" as, "to be in a state of hostility and opposition to another person or group" (Swanson, DBL).
The people set themselves against Moses, and confront him. They challenge him to give them water, so that they may drink.
Basically, the people look at their situation, and decide that the buck stops with Moses. He's the problem, and he will be the solution.
Moses responds, still verse 2:
and Moses said to them,
"Why are you quarreling with me?
Why are you testing Yahweh?,"
Moses looks at what they are doing, and he asks two questions. The first: "Why are you quarreling with me?"
A single night, with a dry camp, is not a big deal. It's not worth treating Moses as an enemy. It's not worth the hostility.
And Moses then asks a second question: "Why are you testing Yahweh?"
We've seen Yahweh twice "test" the people, to see if they will obey him or not. Here, the people reciprocate-- they test Yahweh.
What does this mean?
What we've seen, over and over the past few weeks, is that God expects obedience. You have to do things his way. We saw that with the manna, in particular. You gather manna six days, not seven. The seventh day-- Saturday-- is a Sabbath to Yahweh. It's a day of rest. And when you gather manna, you gather enough for that day. You don't try to have leftovers. But the other part of obedience has to do with Moses. Moses is God's chosen servant. He's who God put in charge. And if you're an Israelite, what this means, basically, is that God expects you to do what Moses says. God commands Moses; Moses commands you. That's how life is supposed to look. So do what you're told, and don't be difficult about it (Hebrews 13:17).
Here, it's like Moses and Israel are on vacation. Israel is like a bunch of little kids in the backseat of the van, and they are complaining to their parents about the journey. And when they do this, they are "quarreling with Moses," and they are "testing Yahweh."
But in the end, it's God, and not Moses, who is driving the minivan. And when you complain to Moses, you run the risk your Father in Heaven is going to stop the car, and do something unpleasant to you.
So Moses wants to know, why would you do that? Why would you push God, to see how he will respond to you messing with his servant? Why would you test him that way? Why not just put up with a dry camp, for a single night?
Verse 3:
(3) and the people thirsted there for water,
and the people murmured/grumbled against Moses,
and they said,
"Is this why you brought us up from Egypt-- to kill us, and our sons, and our cattle, with thirst?,"
There's nothing rational about the people's response. Right? The people act like they are doomed. God will never again provide them with water. And so they straight-up challenge Moses-- did he bring them up from Egypt, just to kill them?
And even this, is pretty messed up. Who brought the people out of Egypt? At one level, Moses did. But at a higher level, it was very obviously God. So the people here show no spiritual understanding, at all. They are like toddlers on a bad day. Difficult. Unreasonable. Illogical.
Verse 4:
(4) and Moses cried out to Yahweh, saying,
"What shall I do for this people?
Almost ready, they are to stone me,"
The lack of water has become a matter of life and death-- but only for Moses. There is a real risk here that the people will completely turn on him, and stone him. And so he cries out to Yahweh-- "What should I do?"
Verse 5-6:
(5) and Yahweh said to Moses,
"Pass through before the people, (#courage)
and take with you from the elders of Israel,
while your staff that you struck with it the Nile, take in your hand, and go.
(6) LOOK! I am standing before you there upon the cliff/crag at Horeb,
and you shall strike the cliff/crag,
and water shall come out from there,
that the people may drink,"
and Moses did thus before the eyes of the elders of Israel,
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For the translation "pass through before," see the same phrase in Joshua 4:5, 13; 6:7. The NET Bible says it means, "go ahead of," and most English translations agree (NASB a notable exception). But the references in Joshua, in particular, point in the direction to Moses very deliberately passing through the people. All other references: Gen. 32:17; 33:3; Deut. 3:18, 28; 9:3; 31:3; 1 Sam. 9:27; 25:19; 2 Kings 4:31.
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So God provides the people with water. But it's really important to see how he does it. First, Moses brings the elders to God's mountain, Horeb. This is the same place-- just a different name-- as Mt. Sinai. God will be waiting for him there, visibly. But, apparently, visible only to Moses. When Moses sees Yahweh standing on a particular rock formation, he will strike it, so that water comes out. The end result, is that Mt. Horeb becomes a source of life for the people.
Why does God do it that way?
God wants his people to understand that what comes out of his mountain-- Mt. Horeb-- Mt. Sinai-- gives life. He's preparing them to connect Horeb, with life. And in a few chapters, when God gives Moses detailed instructions for how God will relate to Israel through a covenant at Mt. Horeb, the people will hopefully remember the water.
Verse 7:
(7) and he called the name of the place "Testing" (Massah) and "Quarreling" (Meribah-- the noun form of the verb "to quarrel"),
because of the quarreling of the sons of Israel
and because of their testing Yahweh, saying,
"Is Yahweh in our midst, or not?"
The Israelites looked at their dry camp, and they turned it into a crisis of faith. If Yahweh hadn't given them water immediately, then they would've decided that Yahweh isn't in their midst, at all. If there was no water, then they'd explain everything else that happened to them some other way. Somehow, the entire Egyptian army drowned, while we walked through on dry ground. Somehow, manna forms on the ground every morning, except the Sabbath. Somehow, quail fall from the sky every night, except the Sabbath. Somehow, all of this just works out for us, on a daily basis. [It's like evolution-- somehow, we all just ended up here, magically. And what a happy string of coincidences].
If they didn't get water, they wouldn't give God credit for any of this. This was the single test, the defining moment, that determined whether or not Yahweh is real, and if He's with them.
So, we have this question ringing in our ears: "Is Yahweh in our midst, or not?" And now, we come to our second little story for the day. Here, we have Israel's first real war story. As we read, focus on Moses. Moses is strong, and confident, and knows exactly what to do. Moses understands that Yahweh is in their midst. Exodus 16:8:
(8) and Amalek came,
and they fought with Israel at Rephidim,
(9) and Moses said to Joshua,
"Choose for us men,
and go out.
Fight with Amalek tomorrow.
I [am] standing upon the head of the height, with the staff of the God/Elohim in my hand,"
(10) and Joshua did just as Moses told him to fight with Amalek,
while Moses and Aaron and Hur went up to the head of the height,
(11) and then, as soon as Moses held up his hand, Israel became strong,
and as soon as he rested his hand, Amalek became strong,
(12) and the hands of Moses [were] heavy,
and they took a stone,
and they put it under him,
and he sat upon it,
while Aaron and Hur held his hands, one on each side,
and his hand was steady until the sun went/set,
(13) and Joshua defeated Amalek and his people by the mouth of the sword,
(14) and Yahweh said to Moses,
"Write this as a memorial in the book,
and put it in the ears of Joshua, that I will surely annihilate the remembrance of Amalek from under the heavens,"
(15) and Moses built an altar,
and he called its name, "Yahweh is my banner,"
(16) and he said, "Because a hand [was lifted] upon the throne of Yah, a war [there will be] for Yahweh with Amalek from generation to generation."
When we read this story, and focus on Moses, we see that he has total confidence in God in the face of a crisis. He sees Amalek, and knows exactly what to do. He makes Joshua his general, and commands him to pick out men (not women) to fight in the battle. Moses understands that God doesn't usually fight your battles for you, independently of you. The Red Sea is the exception to the rule. Usually, God fights with you, and through you.
Moses also remembers what he's holding-- the staff of the God. This staff is God's gift to him. It's a source of incredible divine power. And Moses, understanding this, taps into the power during the battle. When Moses is lifting his hands during the fight, he's not praying. He's fighting, spiritually. Somehow, God used his hands, to give strength to the people's hands, so that they could defeat Amalek. The staff of God didn't do all the work. It was more subtle than this-- a tipping of the scales, in favor of Israel.
And why does God do it this way? God honored Moses' approach, and faith. God gave victory to Moses and Israel. But why did God make it a drawn-out battle, that could've gone either way?
What we are seeing here, again, is that God is training/teaching his people how to live confidently, with faith in him, and in his servant Moses. God has been calling Israel his "army" since chapter 12 (Exodus 12:51; 13:18). But it's only here, at the end of chapter 17, that the people maybe see themselves the way that God does. With God's help, they are a powerful army. With God's help, they can defeat their foes. With God's help, no one can stand against them. Yahweh is their banner, truly. They fight for Yahweh, and with Yahweh. And because of that, they win.
Now, let me just pause here, and explain verse 16. It's a little tricky (NIV handles it nicely). Amalek attacked God's people, unprovoked. And when they did this, verse 16 explains how God saw this. When you attack God's people, your hand is rising up, to challenge God's throne. It's a direct assault on his power and sovereignty. Fight God's people, and God takes it incredibly personally. And because Amalek did this, God makes a vow-- He will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek. The only way they will be remembered, is as a warning of what happens when you fight God's people.
Let this be a comfort to you. God has committed himself to you, and He takes that seriously.
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At this point, let's pause, and look at these two stories together. In our first story, we saw what life looks like, when you're not sure if God is with you or not. And in the second, focusing on Moses, we see what it can look like, if He's with you, and you know it.
If you're not sure God is with you, how will you go through life? [Make this the outline]
(1) You'll overreact to minor hardships and inconveniences.
It's easy to look at this story, and the way the Israelites respond to a single night's dry camp, and pick them apart. We assume we don't live this way. But do our tempers flare, over small, stupid things? Do we find ourselves getting worked up, as a way of life?
(2) You will quarrel with God's servants, over little things.
(Smirking) For some of you, one of the burdens you bear in life, is that you always know the right way to do things. It's a tough spot to be in, when you can see the obvious solution to every problem. This is especially hard when it comes to church, and pastors, and elders. In a perfect world, church leadership would show perfect humility, and follow your great ideas. But in practice, church leadership has their own ideas about how to lead the church. Is that weird?
When you find yourself disagreeing with church leadership, or wanting something from them, what should you do?
I know a church that had a business meeting once, that will forever be known as "The Copier Meeting." The church had a heated discussion about whether the church was throwing away a few hundred dollars a year on a contract to have the copier serviced, in case of malfunctions. The pastor was probably not particularly tech-savvy-- I'm just guessing-- and in any case, wasn't really being paid by the church to become a Geek Squad member. He maybe had lots of other pastoral things to do, besides fiddling with jammed copy machines (Acts 6:2). At least, that's what one half of the church argued. And the other half had a huge problem with part of their tithes, going to this rather than something more useful.
If you find yourself disagreeing with church leadership over small things, or wanting something from them, what should you do?
(A) Don't demand. Ask.
(B) Don't assume the worst of them-- that they are trying to kill you from thirst. Assume that they are faithful servants of God.
(C) Consider the possibility that their way, is the better way. Sometimes, a single night's dry camp makes for the shortest path to Mt. Sinai. Sometimes, a minor inconvenience to you, makes life a lot easier for someone else.
(D) Don't set yourself up against them, making yourself an opposing group (Genesis 26:20). The thing you want to avoid, maybe most of all, is becoming the type of member that your pastor cries out to God about, asking God, "What am I supposed to do with So-and-So?" I don't want my pastor crying out to God about me. I'd be a little nervous about how God would answer that prayer. And I don't want God viewing my actions, as me testing Him.
(E) Often times, the best approach is just to keep your mouth shut. A dry camp for a single night, is not a big deal. Minor inconveniences, and disagreements, are not a big deal. So just keep your mouth shut. Hang up the phone. Let it go.
(3) You'll have the tendency to turn hardships, into a crisis of faith.
Have you ever done this?
At some point in your life, maybe you needed God's help. It might not even have been that big of a thing. Not even close to being life or death. But you took that thing, and you turned into a crisis of faith. You turned into a test, for God. If God doesn't do this one thing for you, then you decided that God wasn't with you, at all. Nothing that God has done for you in the past matters. It's just about this one moment. And if God didn't respond to your test, and unbelief, the way you wanted, you've maybe gone through life since then, a little scarred. Part of you has wondered, ever since, if God isn't real, or if He isn't with you.
If you're spiritually mature, your starting point in life, is the truth about God. You react to hardship, based on that truth. But if you lack spiritual maturity, your starting point is your problem-- the hardship. And you base what you "know" about God, on what happens to you.
But we should understand that a faith that falls apart, in every crisis, isn't really faith at all.
So all of that, is what can happen if you're not sure whether or not God is with you. Now, let's talk about the flip side-- the positive side-- to this.
If God is with you, and you know it, how will you go through life? You'll go through life like Moses:
(1) You'll remember the source of power God has given you, and you'll live in a way that taps into it. For Moses, it's the staff of God. For us, it's the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8).
(2) You'll act with confidence and courage. You'll "pass through" the midst of a people who want to stone you (Exodus 17:5; Luke 4:30).
(3) You'll give God glory, remembering that He is the one who fights for you, and gives you victory.
So, those are the two ways you can live. And what Yahweh is doing in this story, is teaching Israel to live like Moses. God shows grace here to an unreasonable, faithless people. If God had punished the people here, we'd understand. But instead, He shows them kindness, and favor. He gives them water, teaching them in the process that He is the source of life. And He gives them victory over a superior opponent, Amalek.
God's goal here is to bring Israel to a place, spiritually, where they understand what life can look like, if God is with you. You will have food to eat. You'll have water to drink. You'll be healed from every sickness. You'll have victory over your enemies. There are concrete blessings, and benefits, to a relationship with Yahweh.
And God wants the people to understand this, because we are rapidly approaching the place in Exodus, where God will invite Israel to make a choice. If Israel wants, they can freely choose to enter into a covenant relationship with Him at Mount Horeb/Sinai. This relationship, is a committed, exclusive relationship. It's like a marriage, in many ways. And Israel will have to decide if it wants to enter into this relationship. How will they decide?
Largely, by what they've seen God do in Egypt, and in the wilderness.
Yahweh has proven to be patient, and loving, and powerful. He is committed to his people, and takes it personally when someone attacks them. Yahweh is the kind of God, you should want to serve, and worship, and obey. He is the kind of God, you want to enter into a covenant with (Luke 22:20).
[Could do a gospel call here].
Translation:
(1) and the whole congregation of the sons of Israel set out from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the mouth of Yahweh,
and they camped in Rephidim,
and there wasn't water for the people to drink,
(2) and the people quarreled (Gen. 26:20) with Moses,
and they said,
"Give to us water, that we may drink,"
and Moses said to them,
"Why are quarreling with me?
Why are you testing Yahweh?,"
(3) and the people thirsted there for water,
and the people murmured/grumbled against Moses,
and they said,
"Is this why you brought us up from Egypt-- to kill us and our sons, and our cattle, with thirst?,"
(4) and Moses cried out to Yahweh, saying,
"What shall I do for this people?
Almost ready, they are to stone me,"
(5) and Yahweh said to Moses,
"Pass over before the people,
and take with you from the elders of Israel,
while your staff that you struck with it the Nile, take in your hand, and go.
(6) LOOK! I am standing before you there upon the cliff/crag at Horeb,
and you shall strike the cliff/crag,
and water shall come out from there,
that the people may drink,"
and Moses did thus before the eyes of the elders of Israel,
(7) and he called the name of the place "Testing" (Massah) and "Quarreling" (Meribah-- the noun form of the verb "to quarrel"),
because of the quarreling of the sons of Israel
and because of their testing Yahweh, saying,
"Is Yahweh in our midst, or not?"
(8) and Amalek came,
and they fought with Israel at Rephidim,
(9) and Moses said to Joshua,
"Choose for us men,
and go out.
Fight with Amalek tomorrow.
I [am] standing upon the head of the height, with the staff of the God/Elohim in my hand,"
(10) and Joshua did just as Moses told him to fight with Amalek,
while Moses and Aaron and Hur went up to the head of the height,
(11) and then, as soon as Moses held up his hand, Israel became strong,
and as soon as he rested his hand, Amalek became strong,
(12) and the hands of Moses [were] heavy,
and they took a stone,
and they put it under him,
and he sat upon it,
while Aaron and Hur held his hands, one on each side,
and his hand was steady until the sun went/set,
(13) and Joshua defeated Amalek and his people by the mouth of the sword,
(14) and Yahweh said to Moses,
"Write this as a memorial in the book,
and put it in the ears of Joshua, that I will surely annihilate the remembrance of Amalek from under the heavens,"
(15) and Moses built an altar,
and he called its name, "Yahweh is my banner,"
(16) and he said, "Because a hand [was lifted] upon the throne of Yah, a war [there will be] for Yahweh with Amalek from generation to generation."
