WARTS AND ALL!
Opening Prayer
Lord, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24).
Read NUMBERS 20:1–13
Water From the Rock
20 In the first month the whole Israelite community arrived at the Desert of Zin, and they stayed at Kadesh. There Miriam died and was buried.
2 Now there was no water for the community, and the people gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron. 3 They quarreled with Moses and said, “If only we had died when our brothers fell dead before the Lord! 4 Why did you bring the Lord’s community into this wilderness, that we and our livestock should die here? 5 Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to this terrible place? It has no grain or figs, grapevines or pomegranates. And there is no water to drink!”
6 Moses and Aaron went from the assembly to the entrance to the tent of meeting and fell facedown, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them. 7 The Lord said to Moses, 8 “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.”
9 So Moses took the staff from the Lord’s presence, just as he commanded him. 10 He and Aaron gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” 11 Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank.
12 But 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.”
13 These were the waters of Meribah,[a] where the Israelites quarreled with the Lord and where he was proved holy among them.
Footnotes:
a Numbers 20:13 Meribah means quarreling.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
“I bring my sins to thee, / the sins I cannot count, / that all may cleansèd be / in thy once-opened fount” (Frances R. Havergal, 1836–1879).
Think Further
It was Oliver Cromwell who reputedly told his portrait painter to depict him “warts and all,” rather than in the flattering manner expected at the time. Scripture has no such qualms about describing its characters, even heroes of the faith. Abraham in Gerar, David with Bathsheba, Peter’s threefold denial, and many other falls into quicksand are reported to us with nothing withheld. It is the same with Moses, and precisely because of this event Moses will behold the Promised Land only from the outside.
This seems a harsh punishment to modern readers. Moses strikes the rock rather than speaking to it, as God has instructed. There are extenuating circumstances, too. He has lost his sister (1), and the congregation of Israel is again doing what it does best—or worst: complaining. Moses and Aaron do what they know to do: take the grievance directly to the Lord. God responds as he has done repeatedly: provide for his disobedient people what they need. Then Moses’ frustration seems to overpower him. We hear it in his cry of verse 10. However, this cannot excuse his willful disregard of God’s express command. Moses, as the leader, should know better and will be dealt with accordingly, for he is supposed to set the example for the flock. He should have shown more of his famous humility, rather than imagine that it is he and Aaron who are supplying the water. And so Moses loses his long-anticipated entrée into Canaan.
Or does he? Centuries later, Christ emerges. He is the only flawless character of all Scripture, indeed throughout all history! At that point Moses does stand on its soil, along with Elijah and their mutual Savior on the Mount of Transfiguration! Moses doesn’t lose his salvation or his place in the kingdom, despite this considerable misstep.
Apply
Praise God that, despite your flaws, you too have an inheritance beyond the grave.
Closing prayer
Lord, Your people fully understand that You are a God who does not show favoritism (Acts 10:34) and that there are no privileged characters in Your kingdom.
Click here to sign up to receive the EXTRAs via email each quarter.
© 2024 Scripture Union U.S.A. All rights reserved. Reproduction of the whole or any part of the contents without written permission is prohibited.
Encounter with God is published in the USA under license from Scripture Union England and Wales, Trinity House, Opal Court, Opal Drive, Fox Milne, Milton Keynes, MK15 0DF.