Numbers 33:15
They set out from Rephidim and camped in the Wilderness of Sinai.
They set out from Rephidim
Rephidim is a significant location in the Israelites' journey, as it is where they experienced both God's provision and their own disobedience. In Exodus 17, Rephidim is the site where the Israelites quarreled with Moses due to a lack of water, leading to God providing water from the rock. This event is a demonstration of God's faithfulness despite the people's lack of trust. Rephidim is also where the Israelites faced the Amalekites in battle, with Moses' hands being held up as a sign of intercession, leading to victory. This location symbolizes both testing and divine intervention.

and camped in the Wilderness of Sinai
The Wilderness of Sinai is a crucial setting in the narrative of the Israelites. It is here that they receive the Law, including the Ten Commandments, at Mount Sinai. This wilderness represents a place of divine revelation and covenant-making between God and His people. The giving of the Law establishes Israel as a nation set apart for God's purposes. The Wilderness of Sinai is also a place of preparation and transformation, as the Israelites are being shaped into a community that reflects God's holiness. This location is central to understanding the covenant relationship between God and Israel, and it foreshadows the ultimate fulfillment of the Law in Jesus Christ, who embodies the perfect revelation of God.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Rephidim
A location where the Israelites camped during their exodus from Egypt. It is notable for the event where Moses struck the rock to provide water for the people (Exodus 17:1-7).

2. Wilderness of Sinai
A significant desert region where the Israelites camped after leaving Rephidim. It is here that they received the Ten Commandments and the Law from God through Moses (Exodus 19-20).

3. The Israelites
The chosen people of God, led by Moses, who were on a journey from slavery in Egypt to the Promised Land.

4. Moses
The leader of the Israelites, chosen by God to deliver His people from Egypt and guide them through the wilderness.

5. The Exodus
The journey of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt to freedom, marked by a series of miraculous events and divine guidance.
Teaching Points
The Journey of Faith
The Israelites' journey from Rephidim to Sinai symbolizes the journey of faith every believer undertakes. It involves moving from a place of need and dependence on God to a place of receiving His law and guidance.

God's Provision and Guidance
Just as God provided water at Rephidim and His law at Sinai, He provides for our needs and guides us through His Word. Trust in His provision and seek His guidance in every step of your journey.

The Importance of Obedience
The Wilderness of Sinai is where the Israelites received the Ten Commandments. This underscores the importance of obedience to God's commands as a response to His grace and provision.

Preparation for Greater Things
The time spent in the Wilderness of Sinai was a period of preparation for the Israelites. Similarly, God uses seasons of waiting and preparation in our lives to equip us for future challenges and blessings.
Bible Study Questions
1. What can we learn from the Israelites' experience at Rephidim about trusting God in times of need?

2. How does the journey from Rephidim to the Wilderness of Sinai reflect our spiritual journey as Christians?

3. In what ways does God's provision at Rephidim and His revelation at Sinai demonstrate His faithfulness to His people?

4. How can we apply the lessons of obedience and preparation from the Wilderness of Sinai to our own lives today?

5. What other biblical events or teachings can you connect to the themes of provision, guidance, and obedience found in Numbers 33:15?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Exodus 17:1-7
This passage describes the events at Rephidim, where the Israelites quarreled with Moses due to a lack of water, leading to God providing water from a rock.

Exodus 19-20
These chapters detail the Israelites' arrival at the Wilderness of Sinai and the giving of the Ten Commandments, highlighting the significance of this location in their spiritual journey.

Deuteronomy 1:2
This verse provides context for the journey from Horeb (Sinai) to Kadesh-barnea, emphasizing the importance of the Wilderness of Sinai as a place of preparation and covenant.
The Journeyings of the IsraelitesD. Young Numbers 33:1-49
People
Aaron, Abel, Arad, Egyptians, Gad, Geber, Israelites, Moses, Perez, Tahath, Terah, Zephon
Places
0, Abarim, Abel-shittim, Abronah, Almon-diblathaim, Alush, Arad, Baal-zephon, Bene-jaakan, Beth-jeshimoth, Canaan, Dibon-gad, Dophkah, Edom, Egypt, Elim, Etham, Ezion-geber, Hahiroth, Haradah, Hashmonah, Hazeroth, Hor-haggidgad, Iye-abarim, Iyim, Jericho, Jordan River, Jotbathah, Kadesh-barnea, Kehelathah, Kibroth-hattaavah, Libnah, Makheloth, Marah, Migdol, Mithkah, Moab, Moseroth, Mount Hor, Mount Shepher, Nebo, Negev, Oboth, Pi-hahiroth, Punon, Rameses, Red Sea, Rephidim, Rimmon-perez, Rissah, Rithmah, Sinai, Succoth, Tahath, Terah, Zalmonah, Zin
Topics
Camped, Departed, Desert, Encamp, Encamped, Journey, Journeyed, Pitched, Removed, Rephidim, Reph'idim, Sinai, Tents, Traveled, Waste, Wilderness
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Numbers 33:3-48

     7222   exodus, events of

Library
Some Miscellaneous Matters Belonging to the Country About Jericho.
Let us begin from the last encampings of Israel beyond Jordan. Numbers 33:49: "They encamped near Jordan from Beth-jeshimoth unto Abel-shittim."--"From Beth-jeshimoth to Abel-shittim were twelve miles." It is a most received opinion among the Jews, that the tents of the Israelites in the wilderness contained a square of twelve miles. So the Targum of Jonathan, upon Number 2:2; "The encamping of Israel was twelve miles in length, and twelve miles in breadth." And the Gemarists say, "It is forbidden
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica

Arbel. Shezor. Tarnegola the Upper.
"Arbel a city of Galilee."--There is mention of it in Hosea 10:14. But there are authors which do very differently interpret that place, viz. the Chaldee paraphrast, R. Solomon, Kimchi: consult them. It was between Zippor and Tiberias. Hence Nittai the Arbelite, who was president with Josua Ben Perahiah. The valley of Arbel is mentioned by the Talmudists. So also "The Arbelite Bushel." "Near Zephath in Upper Galilee was a town named Shezor, whence was R. Simeon Shezori: there he was buried. There
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica

Christ the Water of Life.
"Jesus answered and said unto her, Every one that drinketh of this water shall thirst again: but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall become in him a well of water springing up unto eternal life" (John iv. 13, 14). "Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink" (John vii. 37). "And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank
Frank G. Allen—Autobiography of Frank G. Allen, Minister of the Gospel

Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners:
A BRIEF AND FAITHFUL RELATION OF THE EXCEEDING MERCY OF GOD IN CHRIST TO HIS POOR SERVANT, JOHN BUNYAN; WHEREIN IS PARTICULARLY SHOWED THE MANNER OF HIS CONVERSION, HIS SIGHT AND TROUBLE FOR SIN, HIS DREADFUL TEMPTATIONS, ALSO HOW HE DESPAIRED OF GOD'S MERCY, AND HOW THE LORD AT LENGTH THROUGH CHRIST DID DELIVER HIM FROM ALL THE GUILT AND TERROR THAT LAY UPON HIM. Whereunto is added a brief relation of his call to the work of the ministry, of his temptations therein, as also what he hath met with
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

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 Section Chap. I. -iii.
The question which here above all engages our attention, and requires to be answered, is this: Whether that which is reported in these chapters did, or did not, actually and outwardly take place. The history of the inquiries connected with this question is found most fully in Marckius's "Diatribe de uxore fornicationum," Leyden, 1696, reprinted in the Commentary on the Minor Prophets by the same author. The various views may be divided into three classes. 1. It is maintained by very many interpreters,
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

Peaceable Principles and True: Or, a Brief Answer to Mr. D'Anver's and Mr. Paul's Books against My Confession of Faith, and Differences in Judgment About Baptism no Bar to Communion.
WHEREIN THEIR SCRIPTURELESS NOTIONS ARE OVERTHROWN, AND MY PEACEABLE PRINCIPLES STILL MAINTAINED. 'Do ye indeed speak righteousness, O congregation? do ye judge uprightly, O ye sons of men?'--Psalm 58:1 SIR, I have received and considered your short reply to my differences in judgment about water baptism no bar to communion; and observe, that you touch not the argument at all: but rather labour what you can, and beyond what you ought, to throw odiums upon your brother for reproving you for your error,
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

In Death and after Death
A sadder picture could scarcely be drawn than that of the dying Rabbi Jochanan ben Saccai, that "light of Israel" immediately before and after the destruction of the Temple, and for two years the president of the Sanhedrim. We read in the Talmud (Ber. 28 b) that, when his disciples came to see him on his death-bed, he burst into tears. To their astonished inquiry why he, "the light of Israel, the right pillar of the Temple, and its mighty hammer," betrayed such signs of fear, he replied: "If I were
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

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

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