Topical Bible: Water: Miraculously Supplied: To the Israelites

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The miraculous provision of water to the Israelites during their wilderness journey is a significant event in biblical history, demonstrating God's providence and care for His chosen people. This divine intervention is recorded in several instances throughout the Pentateuch, primarily in the books of Exodus and Numbers.

Exodus 15:22-25
After the Israelites crossed the Red Sea, they traveled into the Desert of Shur. For three days, they found no water, and when they arrived at Marah, they could not drink the water because it was bitter. The people grumbled against Moses, asking, "What are we to drink?" In response, Moses cried out to the LORD, who showed him a piece of wood. When Moses threw it into the water, the water became fit to drink. This event not only provided for the immediate physical needs of the Israelites but also served as a test of their faith and obedience to God.

Exodus 17:1-7
As the Israelites continued their journey, they camped at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink. Again, they quarreled with Moses, expressing their fear of dying of thirst. Moses, in turn, cried out to the LORD, who instructed him to strike the rock at Horeb with his staff. When Moses did so, water gushed out, providing for the people and their livestock. This place was named Massah and Meribah because of the Israelites' quarreling and testing of the LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us or not?"

Numbers 20:1-13
Later in their journey, the Israelites arrived at the Desert of Zin, and once more, there was no water. The people gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron, lamenting their situation and expressing regret for leaving Egypt. The LORD instructed Moses to take the staff and speak to the rock before the assembly, promising that it would yield water. However, Moses, in frustration, struck the rock twice with his staff. Water still flowed abundantly, but because Moses did not trust in God enough to honor Him as holy before the Israelites, he was told that he would not lead the community into the Promised Land. This location was also called Meribah, highlighting the Israelites' contentious spirit and God's provision despite their lack of faith.

These accounts of water being miraculously supplied to the Israelites underscore God's faithfulness and the importance of trust and obedience. They serve as enduring reminders of God's ability to provide for His people in seemingly impossible circumstances, reinforcing the theme of divine sustenance throughout the biblical narrative.

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Exodus 17:1,6
And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, after their journeys, according to the commandment of the LORD, and pitched in Rephidim: and there was no water for the people to drink.
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Numbers 20:11
And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also.
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Library

The Early Training of a Race.
... the people is the milk and curds supplied by their ... rains again bring their supply
of water and pasturage ... and reported that their ancestors were miraculously fed ...
/.../kent/the making of a nation/study xi the early training.htm

The Assumption of Moses
... an amended text with the lacun?? mostly supplied, and with ... and when the multitude,
who were miraculously fed by ... to the abyss, the springs of water shall fail ...
//christianbookshelf.org/deane/pseudepigrapha/the assumption of moses.htm

The Counsel of Gamaliel.
... At this crisis, God miraculously interposed in favour of ... The places of those who
fell were speedily supplied. ... hands, and turns them "as the rivers of water.". ...
/.../dick/lectures on the acts of the apostles/lecture vii the counsel of.htm