Daily Scripture Reading Exodus 17:1 - 18:4
We Christians worship a real, living God. However, we cannot see Him. People in the past have seen Jesus and testified to His power as demonstrated by His miracles and resurrection from the dead, but those of us living today have never seen God.
Sometimes this makes it hard to believe that God is real, especially when life is hard. If we have financial challenges, or if we have obstacles that seem insurmountable, then we start to question if God will indeed protect and provide.
While it is somewhat normal to have these questions, today’s passage illustrates something we are commanded not to do when doubt starts to creep into our minds.
When Israel traveled into the wilderness, they faced a lack of food and water. Yahweh provided all they needed, including sending quail in the evening and placing manna on the ground in the morning.
Ex. 17:1 ¶ Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed by stages from the wilderness of Sin, according to the command of Yahweh, and they camped at Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink.
Ex. 17:2 Therefore the people contended with Moses and said, “Give us water that we may drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why do you contend with me? Why do you test Yahweh?”
Notice the word “test”. Moses accused the Israelites of testing God. Obviously, Moses believed it was wrong to test God.
The Hebrew word that is used in this verse is the same Hebrew word used in Genesis 22:1 which tells us God tested Abraham when He told Abraham to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. It is also the Hebrew word that was used in Exodus 16:4 which tells us Yahweh tested Israel in the wilderness to see if they would obey Him. Just because it was okay for God to test Israel does not mean it was okay for Israel to test God.
Ex. 17:3 But the people thirsted there for water; and they grumbled against Moses and said, “Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to put us and our children and our livestock to death with thirst?”
Keep in mind this was happening mere weeks after Yahweh delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt and started sending manna every morning. They should have had more faith.
Ex. 17:4 So Moses cried out to Yahweh, saying, “What shall I do to this people? A little more and they will stone me.”
Ex. 17:5 Then Yahweh said to Moses, “Pass before the people and take with you some of the elders of Israel; and take in your hand your staff with which you struck the Nile, and go.
Ex. 17:6 Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.
Ex. 17:7 So he named the place Massah and Meribah because of the contending of the sons of Israel, and because they tested Yahweh, saying, “Is Yahweh among us or not?”
The Hebrew word “Massah” means “to try”. The Hebrew word “Meribah” means “place of strife”.
The word “tested” is a translation of the same Hebrew word that was used in Exodus 17:2, Exodus 16:4, and Genesis 22:1. Verse 7 defines what it means to test God. When a person asks “Is Yahweh among us or not?” they are demanding proof that Yahweh is among them. That is a test. It was wrong for Israel to test Yahweh (see Numbers 14:22-23 and Deuteronomy 6:16).
The New Testament commands us not to test Christ (see 1Cor 10:9). This means we should not demand that Jesus prove that He is with us. When we face financial challenges or other trials in life, we should not have the attitude that Jesus needs to do certain things in order to prove that He is real.
Ex. 17:8 ¶ Then Amalek came and fought against Israel at Rephidim.
The Amalekites were descendants of Esau (see Genesis 36:12).
Ex. 17:9 So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose men for us and go out, fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will take my stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.”
This is the first time Joshua was mentioned in the Bible. The Hebrew word used in this verse is “Yehoshua” which was later shortened to Yeshua. “Yehoshua” means “Yahweh saves”. The name “Jesus” is the Greek version of the Hebrew name “Yehoshua”. Joshua and Jesus had the same name.
Ex. 17:10 And Joshua did as Moses told him, to fight against Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.
Ex. 17:11 So it happened when Moses raised his hand up, that Israel prevailed, and when he let his hand down, Amalek prevailed.
Ex. 17:12 But Moses’ hands were heavy. Then they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it; and Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other. Thus his hands were steady until the sun set.
Ex. 17:13 So Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.
Just as Yahweh used Joshua to save Israel from Amalek, so too Yahweh saves us through His son Jesus.
Ex. 17:14 ¶ Then Yahweh said to Moses, “Write this in a book as a memorial and recite it in Joshua’s hearing, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.”
Ex. 17:15 And Moses built an altar and named it Yahweh is My Banner;
Ex. 17:16 and he said, “Because He has sworn with a hand upon the throne of Yah, Yahweh will have war against Amalek from generation to generation.”
Ex. 18:1 ¶ Now Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel His people, how Yahweh had brought Israel out of Egypt.
Ex. 18:2 And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took Moses’ wife Zipporah, after he had sent her away,
Ex. 18:3 and her two sons, of whom one was named Gershom, for Moses said, “I have been a sojourner in a foreign land.”
The Hebrew word “Gershom” means to drive out. Moses was a sojourner because he had to flee Egypt, meaning he was driven out of Egypt.
Ex. 18:4 And the other was named Eliezer, for he said, “The God of my father was my help and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh.”
The Hebrew name “Eliezer” is a combination of the Hebrew word “El” which means God and the word “ezer” which means helper.
We Christians worship a real, living God. However, we cannot see Him. Sometimes this makes it hard to believe that God is real, especially when life is hard. If we have financial challenges, or if we have obstacles that seem insurmountable, then we start to question if God will indeed protect and provide.
When Israel faced a lack of food and water in the wilderness, they demanded that Yahweh prove He was among them. That was wrong. The New Testament commands us not to test God. We should not demand that Jesus prove He is with us.
How can you ask God to provide for your needs without demanding that He prove His existence and generosity?
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“Scripture quotations taken from the (LSB®) Legacy Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org and 316publishing.com.”