Those Israelites were never happy...
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Those Israelites were never happy, were they? Such a lot of complainers! Poor Moses had to put up with their grumbling almost from the moment they left Egypt. This story of the water from the rock is just one of several stories about how God deals with the complainers in the wilderness. When the people quarreled, Moses told them that their arguing was a sign of their lack of faith in the power of God to take care of them. "Why do you test the Lord?" he asked, but they argued all the more. So Moses did what a good leader always does: he took the problem to God, and God told Moses what to do.
"Go into the wilderness with some of the elders and I will show you a rock. Strike the rock with your staff, the same staff you used to strike the Nile when you were still captive in Egypt, and I will give you water from the rock." When Moses did as God instructed, the water flowed from the rock and the people were happy ... for a while at least.
Now wouldn't you think that when a miracle takes place, especially one as wondrous as water coming from a rock in the middle of the desert, that the very least Moses should do is name the spot after the miracle? Maybe he should have called the place "Waterstone," or "Streaming Boulders." That would certainly make sense. But that's not how Moses named this particular place, is it? He gave it the name "Quarreling and Testing," or in Hebrew, Meribah and Massah. He named the place after the attitude of the people toward their God. Moses knew that the most significant thing about this location wasn't the miracle, but the way the people revealed their mistrust of God's promises and presence.
Do you wonder if we are any better than these wandering Israelites? The next time you are tempted to complain about God's lack of care for you, remember "Quarreling and Testing," the place where God brought forth water to prove that he never abandons us and always loves us.
"Go into the wilderness with some of the elders and I will show you a rock. Strike the rock with your staff, the same staff you used to strike the Nile when you were still captive in Egypt, and I will give you water from the rock." When Moses did as God instructed, the water flowed from the rock and the people were happy ... for a while at least.
Now wouldn't you think that when a miracle takes place, especially one as wondrous as water coming from a rock in the middle of the desert, that the very least Moses should do is name the spot after the miracle? Maybe he should have called the place "Waterstone," or "Streaming Boulders." That would certainly make sense. But that's not how Moses named this particular place, is it? He gave it the name "Quarreling and Testing," or in Hebrew, Meribah and Massah. He named the place after the attitude of the people toward their God. Moses knew that the most significant thing about this location wasn't the miracle, but the way the people revealed their mistrust of God's promises and presence.
Do you wonder if we are any better than these wandering Israelites? The next time you are tempted to complain about God's lack of care for you, remember "Quarreling and Testing," the place where God brought forth water to prove that he never abandons us and always loves us.
