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Moses, the Waters of Marah, and a Lesson for Today
When the children of Israel left Egypt, led by Moses, the first major event one readsabout in the book of Exodus after the Red Sea crossing is found in Exodus 15:22-26, the crisis at the waters of Marah. I say crisis for that was how the children of Israel perceived it. They had been traveling 3 days in the wilderness and had foundno water to drink during that time.Was that a crisis? It was when you consider how much water was required for thismass human exodus to succeed. In Ex. 12:37-38 we get some idea of the numbers.It reads as follows: "And the people of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth,about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children. A mixedmultitude also went up with them, and very much livestock, both flocks and herds."(ESV) There may well have been easily over 2 million men, women, and childrenneeding water as well as all the herds of livestock. You do not carry that kind of water in canteens.After this 3 day journey without finding water they come to Marah, a place that haswater but water so bitter it cannot be drunk. In fact, according to the notes in theNET Bible, the Hebrew word "Marah" means bitter. The Bible says, "The peoplecomplained against Moses, saying, 'What shall we drink?'" (Ex. 15:24 NKJV) One hasto understand Moses was only God's representative thus to complain against Moseswas to complain against God (see Ex. 16:8). Moses individually had no power toprovide them with water and they knew that so the complaint was against God. This manifested a lack of faith in God. How so? Back in Ex. 3:16-17 before theplagues, before Moses ever entered Egypt after his exile, God told Moses at theburning bush incident to, "Go and gather the elders of Israel together, and say tothem, 'The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob,appeared to me, saying, "I have surely visited you and seen what is done to you inEgypt; and I have said I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivitesand the Jebusites, to a land flowing with milk and honey." ' " (NKJV)After entering Egypt Moses did this very thing according to Ex. 4:29-30 with Aaronbeing his spokesman. He was also directed to perform miracles before the elders asyou read about in Ex. 4:1-9 and according to Ex. 4:30 he did so as signs of confirmation that it was God that was behind this business. Afterwards we know of the plagues that hit Egypt which were further confirmation that God was intent onbringing the children of Israel out of Egypt into "a land flowing with milk and honey."Add to these miracles the Red Sea encounter where the waters were parted for thechildren of Israel but collapsed on the Egyptians and the children of Israel shouldhave seen God's determination to hold fast to his promise to them.Why then would the children of Israel believe that God would allow them to perishfor want of water after seeing all he had already done on their behalf? Did they not
 
believe in God? Did they not trust him after all they had both seen and heard?According to the footnotes in the NET Bible the Hebrew word translated"complained" or "murmured" or "grumbled," depending on your translation, "is amuch stronger word than 'to grumble' or 'to complain.' It is used almostexclusively in the wilderness wandering stories, to describe the rebellion of theIsraelites against God… They were not merely complaining — they werequestioning God's abilities and motives. The action is something like aparliamentary vote of no confidence." That they needed water there was no doubt. That they were in want there is nodoubt. What should they have done rather than rebel? Well, I can think of severalthings – trust in God for deliverance, pray to him, ask Moses not in a complaining ormurmuring way but in a supplicating way to intervene with God for them on theirbehalf, and be patient. God had told them he would bring them into a land flowingwith milk and honey. If they believed in the goodness of God, that he would not lieto them, then surely they should have seen he was not about to let them die of thirst. But, the Psalmist had this to say about them, "They did not believe in God,and did not trust in his salvation." (Psalms 78:22 NKJV) That was said of them at alater date in their history but was true of them basically from the beginning as theirfirst rebellion, based on a lack of faith, was at the Red Sea (Psalms 106:7).A lesson for all Christians in this is that of the need to trust in God in our ownpersonal crises. If we are faithful God is on our side and if we will trust and obeyand be patient he will work things out for us. This does not mean he will allow us tolive eternally upon the earth. It is appointed to man once to die (Heb. 9:27 NKJV).Nor does it mean we will be blessed in the ways we might like – say a million dollarsin the bank account. But it does mean he will see us through and that even in thevalley of the shadow of death (Psa. 23:4).But, that is not the lesson I want to get out of this Old Testament story. God didcome to their rescue and provide water but how did he do it? The Bible says he toldMoses to cast a tree he showed him into the bitter waters at Marah which uponhaving done so made those waters fit to drink (Ex. 15:25 NKJV). However, it is myunderstanding that the Hebrew word denotes "wood" and not necessarily a treealthough either is possible. Thus the English Standard Version translates the wordas a "log" rather than a tree while other translations say "a piece of wood" (CEV,GNB, NLT)Now I want to ask the reader some questions in order to get at the lesson that Iwant the reader to learn from this event. What power was there in that tree orpiece of wood to transform a body of water from bitter to pure sufficient to quenchthe thirst of over 2 million people with all their livestock? Not one bit of power -none at all. However, what would have happened had Moses not thrown the tree orwood into the water? Would the water have become drinkable had he not?What power was there in the rod Moses had in his hand to part the Red Sea? Godtold him, "Lift up your rod, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it."(Ex. 14:16 NKJV) None! But what if he had not done it?
 
What power was there in the rod Moses used to strike the rock, in a later incidentwhere water was needed, to bring forth water out of the rock to provide for thepeople's thirst? (see Ex. 17:5-6) None! But what if he had not done it?What power was there in the fiery serpent God told Moses to make and put on apole (he made it out of bronze) to heal those who had been bitten by poisonousserpents to save them from death if they would look at it? (see Numbers 21:8-9)None! You surely do not believe your doctor would treat you that way if bitten by apoison scorpion or rattlesnake do you? But, what about those back then who didnot look at Moses bronze serpent?What power was there inherent in marching around the walls of Jericho, blowingtrumpets, blowing a ram's horn, and shouting to get the walls of the city to falldown? (Joshua 6:2-5) None! But, what if they had not done it?What power was there in the water of the Jordan River to cleanse Naaman of hisleprosy? (2 Kings 5) None! Could all have been cleansed of leprosy by doing whatNaaman did? What if Naaman had not gone and washed 7 times as directed? (Weknow don't we for until he did so, having refused for a time, he remained leprousand was not cleansed.)In John 9 Jesus crosses paths with a man blind from birth. The Bible says, "He spaton the ground and made clay with the saliva; and he anointed the eyes of the blindman with the clay. And he said to him, 'Go, wash in the pool of Siloam' (which istranslated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing." (John 9:6-7NKJV) What power was there in the water of the pool of Siloam to cure blindness?None at all! But, what if he had not gone to the pool of Siloam?Are you seeing a pattern? The God that spoke the universe into existence and whoneeds but speak and it is done does not need rods, or bronze serpents, specialwaters, or marching, or horn blowing, or anything else to achieve the end hedesires. All he needs to do is speak and it is done but sometimes he chooses towork by means of agency or means. When he chooses to do so it becomes a matterof faith on our part - faith to believe and do or faithlessness to disbelieve and notdo.Naaman was one who had a hard time believing and doing. He just could not seethe sense in it or the reason for it. Be that as it may he was not healed until hebelieved enough to obey.Let me drive the point home. It does not matter in the least whether you or I see areason in a command God gives. Sometimes he gives commands just to test ourobedience (Abraham being a case in point with the sacrifice of his son Isaac). Paulwriting by the Holy Spirit said to the Corinthians, "For to this end I also wrote, that Imight put you to the test, whether you are obedient in all things." (2 Cor. 2:9 NKJV)Many, many people who consider themselves to be Christians (the reality is theyare not) cannot bring themselves to be baptized. Is it a command of God? Theyknow it is (Mark 16:16, John 3:5, Acts 2:38, Acts 22:16, Gal. 3:27, 1 Peter 3:21, Rom.6:3-4, etc.) but they cannot believe it is necessary for they cannot see any reason
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