Scripture: And the people of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh. And Miriam died there and was buried there.
Now there was no water for the congregation. And they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. And the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Would that we had perished when our brothers perished before the LORD! Why have you brought the assembly of the LORD into this wilderness, that we should die here, both we and our cattle? And why have you made us come up out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place? It is no place for grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, and there is no water to drink.” Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance of the tent of meeting and fell on their faces. And the glory of the LORD appeared to them, and the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water. So you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give drink to the congregation and their cattle.” And Moses took the staff from before the LORD, as he commanded him.
Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels: shall we bring water for you out of this rock?” And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their livestock. And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe in me, to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.” These are the waters of Meribah, where the people of Israel quarreled with the LORD, and through them he showed himself holy.
Numbers 20:1-13 ESV
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Observation: Yesterday’s Daily Focus addressed the laws of purification for Israel when coming in contact with a dead body using purification ashes obtained from the sacrifice of an unblemished red bull. In brief, anyone who touches a corpse is deemed impure for seven days (v.11) and must seek ritual purification by receiving the sprinkling of ash water on the third and seventh day, along with washing clothes, bathing, and waiting until evening on the seventh day. If one fails to do so, they would defile the tabernacle and consequently bear the consequences of excommunication (v.20). To purify the person or space surrounding the corpse, the administrator mixes a portion of the ashes with fresh “living water” (v.17), dips hyssop in it and sprinkles it on the person or object (v.18). The administrator is unclean until evening and must wash his clothes (vv20-21). Also, any objects he touches are unclean until evening, and anyone who touches those objects is unclean until evening (v.22).
Today’s devotion covers Moses’ misstep at Meribah. Briefly mentioning Miriam’s death and burial in Kadesh (the wilderness of Zin), Moses then narrates yet another incident in which Israel grumbles against him for leading them to an arid region unsuitable for sustaining their lives and those of their livestock. Moses and Aaron wisely part company from the grumbling mob and humbly seek direction from the Lord. However, unlike the previous rebellions, Yahweh does not threaten to wipe out Israel. Instead, he directs Moses to take his staff, assemble the congregation, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water (vv.1-9).
Moses follows all but one detail of God’s instructions and strikes the rock with his staff, as he did on the rock in Horeb (Exodus 17:1-7), rather than commanding this rock to produce water. While water gushed from the rock and ended the uprising, the Lord privately addressed this matter to Moses and Aaron (vv.10-11). Because they demonstrated a lack of faith through their actions and failed to give the glory to God before the people, Yahweh would no longer allow them to lead the nation into the Promised Land.
Takeaway: There are a couple of lessons to extract from this story. On a positive note, whenever Israel stepped out of line, lodging accusations at Moses and threatening to revolt, he wisely stepped away from the escalating conflict and sought the Lord’s guidance. On the negative side, Moses leaned on what had worked in the past at Horeb and demonstrated a lack of faith in God’s directive that speaking the word would be sufficient to cause the rock to produce water.
Our takeaway? It’s hard to be critical of this man of God who continually exercised patience and humility in responding to his fellow people’s childish behavior. Nevertheless, this one lapse of faithful obedience would cost him dearly. Still, gracious Yahweh would permit Moses to lead the people to the door of the Promised Land and climb Mount Nebo to view this land flowing with milk and honey before passing away (Deuteronomy 34:1-6). But the privilege of leading Israel into the Promised Land would now be that of Joshua’s. Sadly, we, too, will face missed opportunities if we succumb to others’ criticism and impatiently take matters into our own hands.
Our part? As a preventive measure to avoid missteps, like Moses, we would do well to retreat from escalating conflicts and seek the counsel of the Holy Spirit in prayer and the wisdom of trusted believers before redressing the issue. The time away also allows us and those who unfairly lodge accusations to cool down and think about our attitudes and the next step. But we must carefully consider whether our planned response to our adversaries will demonstrate faith in God and bring him glory. This two-step process provides an essential check and balance that will keep us in good standing as we navigate a world that often contentiously looks for someone else to blame for its problems. Finally, as a corrective measure, when we act impetuously, we must humbly repent and trust that our gracious Lord will redeem our missteps with new vistas.
Prayer: Father God, we thank you for your Son, who always obeyed your directives without a misstep. And we thank you that under your Son’s New Covenant of Grace, we can always seek your forgiveness when we misstep. Still, we ask you to help us avoid heartache and guide us toward the godly counsel of the Holy Spirit and trusted believers to ensure we act in faith to your glory. Amen.
Rev. Gordon Green, M.Div., M.A. Counseling
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