Week 53, Day 5: Waters at Meribah
Today’s Reading: Numbers 20:1-29
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
Once again we have an occasion where Israel comes into an area where there is not water (they are still in the wilderness). The people contend with Moses for bringing them out here. They say this as if Moses himself decided to drag the people out into the wilderness. The people also say that this isn’t a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates. This to me seems like a jab at Moses for deceiving them. Before they left Egypt, Moses had told the people that God would bring them to a land flowing with milk and honey. The people seem to be accusing Moses of lying to them about doing this. But we all know that the reality is that they would have been already in that land had they believed God and followed Him. Also, the fact that they are contending with Moses because there is no water verses requesting that Moses petition God for water shows that there has been little change in their attitude even though they had been shown so many signs.
Moses goes to the tent of meeting and is told to go before the people and speak to a rock and it will bring forth water. What Moses and Aaron do however is to disobey God. Instead of speaking to the rock Moses strikes the rock twice and also speaks to the people, “shall we bring forth water for you?” I have wondered at times if the way Moses and Aaron spoke to the people showed a lack of respect toward God because they didn’t say that it was God bringing the water forth for them. This one occasion is what prevents Aaron and Moses from entering the promised land. They had “not believed Me, to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel”. Disobedience shows a lack of respect and certainly not giving God the glory for providing for His people is not treating God with esteem. I have often cited this passage in studies on authority because what you and I could think of as only a minor thing causes Moses to not be able to enter the land. Afterall, Moses had served faithfully for years out in the wilderness and had such a close relationship with God. How could one occasion be all it took to keep him out? Man sometimes sees things from only his perspective. Man can try to reason that his actions should be accepted by God or that doing something contrary to God’s word is not a big deal as long as we have good intentions but keep in mind what we see happen here. Man’s ways are not God’s ways. God demands that those who come near to Him must treat Him as holy. We risk much when we think we “ought” to be okay to do something or that we think God will be pleased with doing something. God has told you oh man what is pleasing to Him. The Bible gives us all we need to make us complete and furnished completely for every good work (2 Tim 3:17).
Question: Why do you think water came forth from the rock even though Moses had disobeyed God?
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