Now there was no water for the congregation, so they gathered against Moses and Aaron. Now there was no water for the congregationThe Israelites were in the wilderness of Zin, a harsh desert region where water was scarce. This situation highlights the recurring theme of testing and reliance on God for provision. The lack of water is a physical manifestation of the spiritual challenges the Israelites faced. In the broader biblical narrative, water often symbolizes life and spiritual sustenance, as seen in John 4:14, where Jesus speaks of the "living water." The absence of water here foreshadows the need for divine intervention and points to the Israelites' dependence on God. so they gathered against Moses and Aaron
The congregation's gathering against Moses and Aaron reflects a pattern of rebellion and dissatisfaction that the Israelites frequently exhibited during their wilderness journey. This incident is reminiscent of previous complaints, such as in Exodus 17:1-7, where the people quarreled with Moses over water at Rephidim. The people's actions demonstrate a lack of faith and trust in God's appointed leaders, Moses and Aaron, who serve as mediators between God and the Israelites. This rebellion can be seen as a type of the rejection of Christ, the ultimate mediator, as described in Hebrews 3:12-19, where the unbelief of the Israelites is compared to the rejection of Jesus. Persons / Places / Events 1. MosesThe leader of the Israelites, chosen by God to lead His people out of Egypt and through the wilderness. Moses is a central figure in this account, representing God's authority and leadership. 2. AaronMoses' brother and the first high priest of Israel. He assists Moses in leading the people and performing priestly duties. 3. The Congregation of IsraelThe collective body of the Israelites who are journeying through the wilderness. They often face challenges and express their grievances to Moses and Aaron. 4. The WildernessThe setting of this event, representing a place of testing and reliance on God. The lack of water is a recurring challenge in the Israelites' journey. 5. KadeshThe specific location where this event takes place. It is a significant site in the Israelites' wilderness journey, often associated with testing and rebellion. Teaching Points Dependence on GodThe Israelites' lack of water reminds us of our need to depend on God for our daily needs. In times of scarcity, we are called to trust in His provision rather than grumble. Leadership ChallengesMoses and Aaron faced significant challenges as leaders. This passage encourages leaders to seek God's guidance and remain steadfast, even when facing opposition. The Danger of ComplainingThe Israelites' complaints against Moses and Aaron serve as a warning against grumbling. Complaining can lead to a hardened heart and a lack of faith in God's promises. God's FaithfulnessDespite the Israelites' repeated failures, God remains faithful. This passage reassures us of God's unwavering commitment to His people. Spiritual ThirstThe physical thirst of the Israelites points to a deeper spiritual thirst that only God can satisfy. Believers are encouraged to seek spiritual nourishment through Christ. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the Israelites' reaction to the lack of water reflect our own responses to challenges in life? 2. In what ways can we, like Moses and Aaron, seek God's guidance when facing leadership challenges or opposition? 3. How does the theme of God's provision in the wilderness encourage us in our current circumstances? 4. What are some practical steps we can take to avoid a spirit of complaining and cultivate gratitude instead? 5. How can we apply the lesson of spiritual thirst to our daily walk with Christ, ensuring we are spiritually nourished? Connections to Other Scriptures Exodus 17:1-7This passage recounts a similar situation where the Israelites grumbled about the lack of water, and God provided water from a rock. It highlights the recurring theme of God's provision despite the people's complaints. Psalm 95:8-9This psalm references the Israelites' testing of God in the wilderness, urging believers not to harden their hearts as the Israelites did. 1 Corinthians 10:4Paul refers to the spiritual rock that followed the Israelites, identifying it with Christ. This connection emphasizes the spiritual sustenance God provides. People Aaron, Egyptians, Eleazar, Israelites, Miriam, MosesPlaces Edom, Egypt, Kadesh-barnea, King's Highway, Meribah, Mount Hor, ZinTopics Aaron, Assembled, Assembly, Company, Congregation, Gathered, Opposition, ThemselvesDictionary of Bible Themes Numbers 20:2 5072 Aaron, spokesman Numbers 20:1-4 7206 community Numbers 20:1-11 4278 spring of water Numbers 20:1-13 5924 quarrelsomeness Numbers 20:2-5 4458 grape
5928 resentment, against God
6224 rebellion, against authority Numbers 20:2-11 5580 thirst Numbers 20:2-12 5714 men Library August 17. "Speak Ye unto the Rock" (Num. xx. 8).
"Speak ye unto the Rock" (Num. xx. 8). The Holy Ghost is very sensitive, as love always is. You can conquer a wild beast by blows and chains, but you cannot conquer a woman's heart that way, or win the love of a sensitive nature; that must be wooed by the delicate touches of trust and affection. So the Holy Ghost has to be taken by a faith as delicate and sensitive as the gentle heart with whom it is coming in touch. One thought of unbelief, one expression of impatient distrust or fear, will instantly …
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth The Waters of Meribah
'Then came the children of Israel, even the whole congregation, into the desert of Zin in the first month: and the people abode in Kadesh; and Miriam died there, and was buried there. 2. And there was no water for the congregation: and they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. 3. And the people chode with Moses, and spake, saying, Would God that we had died when our brethren died before the Lord! 4. And why have ye brought up the congregation of the Lord into this wilderness, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture Kadesh. Rekam, and that Double. Inquiry is Made, Whether the Doubling it in the Maps is Well Done.
The readers of the eastern interpreters will observe, that Kadesh is rendered by all Rekam, or in a sound very near it. In the Chaldee, it is 'Rekam': in the Syriac, 'Rekem': in the Arabic, 'Rakim'... There are two places noted by the name Rekam in the very bounds of the land,--to wit, the southern and eastern: that is, a double Kadesh. I. Of Kadesh, or Rekam, in the south part, there is no doubt. II. Of it, in the eastern part, there is this mention: "From Rekam to the east, and Rekam is as the …
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica The Baptist's Inquiry and Jesus' Discourse Suggested Thereby.
(Galilee.) ^A Matt. XI. 2-30; ^C Luke VII. 18-35. ^c 18 And the disciples of John told him of all these things. ^a 2 Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent by his disciples ^c 19 And John calling unto him two of his disciples sent them unto the Lord [John had been cast into prison about December, a.d. 27, and it was now after the Passover, possibly in May or June, a.d. 28. Herod Antipas had cast John into prison because John had reproved him for taking his brother's wife. …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel Epistle xxviii. To Augustine, Bishop of the Angli .
To Augustine, Bishop of the Angli [136] . Gregory to Augustine, &c. Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will (Luke ii. 14); because a grain of wheat, falling into the earth, has died, that it might not reign in heaven alone; even He by whose death we live, by whose weakness we are made strong, by whose suffering we are rescued from suffering, through whose love we seek in Britain for brethren whom we knew not, by whose gift we find those whom without knowing them we sought. …
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great Travelling in Palestine --Roads, Inns, Hospitality, Custom-House Officers, Taxation, Publicans
It was the very busiest road in Palestine, on which the publican Levi Matthew sat at the receipt of "custom," when our Lord called him to the fellowship of the Gospel, and he then made that great feast to which he invited his fellow-publicans, that they also might see and hear Him in Whom he had found life and peace (Luke 5:29). For, it was the only truly international road of all those which passed through Palestine; indeed, it formed one of the great highways of the world's commerce. At the time …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life Peræa to Bethany. Raising of Lazarus.
^D John XI. 1-46. ^d 1 Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. [For Bethany and the sisters, see p. 478.] 2 And it was that Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair [John xii. 3 ], whose brother Lazarus was sick. [The anointing had not yet taken place, as John himself shows. For a similar anticipation see Matt. x. 4. There are five prominent Marys in the New Testament: those of Nazareth, Magdala and Bethany; the …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel The Hebrews and the Philistines --Damascus
THE ISRAELITES IN THE LAND OF CANAAN: THE JUDGES--THE PHILISTINES AND THE HEBREW KINGDOM--SAUL, DAVID, SOLOMON, THE DEFECTION OF THE TEN TRIBES--THE XXIst EGYPTIAN DYNASTY--SHESHONQ OR SHISHAK DAMASCUS. The Hebrews in the desert: their families, clans, and tribes--The Amorites and the Hebrews on the left bank of the Jordan--The conquest of Canaan and the native reaction against the Hebrews--The judges, Ehud, Deborah, Jerubbaal or Gideon and the Manassite supremacy; Abimelech, Jephihdh. The Philistines, …
G. Maspero—History Of Egypt, Chaldaea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, V 6 Backsliding.
"I will heal their backsliding; I will love them freely: for Mine anger is turned away."--Hosea xiv. 4. There are two kinds of backsliders. Some have never been converted: they have gone through the form of joining a Christian community and claim to be backsliders; but they never have, if I may use the expression, "slid forward." They may talk of backsliding; but they have never really been born again. They need to be treated differently from real back-sliders--those who have been born of the incorruptible …
Dwight L. Moody—The Way to God and How to Find It Numbers
Like the last part of Exodus, and the whole of Leviticus, the first part of Numbers, i.-x. 28--so called,[1] rather inappropriately, from the census in i., iii., (iv.), xxvi.--is unmistakably priestly in its interests and language. Beginning with a census of the men of war (i.) and the order of the camp (ii.), it devotes specific attention to the Levites, their numbers and duties (iii., iv.). Then follow laws for the exclusion of the unclean, v. 1-4, for determining the manner and amount of restitution …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Numbers 20:2 NIVNumbers 20:2 NLTNumbers 20:2 ESVNumbers 20:2 NASBNumbers 20:2 KJV
Numbers 20:2 Commentaries
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