The Rock That Provided Water

During the Israelites’ wilderness wanderings after the Exodus, despite all the grace, forbearance, preservation, and revelation God gave them, they frequently complained.

Millions of people and animals wandering in the wilderness meant that drinking water was a serious problem. They traveled from the Wilderness of Sin to Rephidim, the last stop before Mount Sinai (Exodus 19:2), a time before the Law was given. When the people complained due to a lack of drinking water, Moses cried out to God. Instead of rebuking the people for their testing Him, God commanded Moses to strike a rock, and water flowed from it.

Decades after God gave the Ten Commandments and made a covenant with the people at Mount Sinai, the Israelites again found themselves in the wilderness. When they arrived at Kadesh, they again had no water to drink and gathered to complain against Moses and Aaron. Moses, a 120-year-old man who had led these Israelites through the wilderness for nearly forty years, was once again near the border of the Promised Land, yet was still met with curses and complaints from the Israelites. It was under these circumstances that Moses lost his temper. The Lord said to Moses, “Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink.” … But Moses did not fully listen to the Lord’s command before acting. He raised his hand and struck the rock twice with his staff, and a great amount of water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank. The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them” (Numbers 20:7-8, 11-12).

Moses had been cautious for forty years, but in this instance, he became agitated and acted in anger because of the people’s complaints and quarreling. He was unwilling to patiently wait for God to vindicate him; his heart was already full of anger and grumbling, and in his rage, he acted incorrectly. God had only instructed him and Aaron to speak to the rock, and water would flow, but instead, he struck the rock just as he had before, failing to strictly follow God’s instructions. As a result, he was punished by God and was not allowed to enter the Promised Land. Therefore, when people fail to honor God as holy, it is not God who suffers the loss, but the people themselves. However, the loss that Moses and Aaron suffered was an earthly one; it did not affect their remembrance before God. They accepted God’s righteous punishment and made up for their earthly loss with a testimony of obedience. God first allowed Moses to see the land of Canaan from Mount Nebo (Deuteronomy 34:1) before taking him back to heaven, and He continued to use him later, allowing him and Elijah to witness Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration (Luke 9:30).

(Compiled and edited based on the Chinese Union Version and a comprehensive biblical interpretation.)