Water From the Rock

17 The whole Israelite community set out from the Desert of Sin,^(A) traveling from place to place as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim,^(B) but there was no water^(C) for the people to drink. ² So they quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water^(D) to drink.”^(E)

Moses replied, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the Lord to the test?”^(F)

³ But the people were thirsty^(G) for water there, and they grumbled^(H) against Moses. They said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die^(I) of thirst?”

⁴ Then Moses cried out to the Lord, “What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone^(J) me.”

⁵ The Lord answered Moses, “Go out in front of the people. Take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand the staff^(K) with which you struck the Nile,^(L) and go. ⁶ I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb.^(M) Strike^(N) the rock, and water^(O) will come out of it for the people to drink.” So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel. ⁷ And he called the place Massah^[a](P) and Meribah^[b](Q) because the Israelites quarreled and because they tested the Lord saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”

² Now there was no water^(A) for the community,^(B) and the people gathered in opposition^(C) to Moses and Aaron. ³ They quarreled^(D) with Moses and said, “If only we had died when our brothers fell dead^(E) before the Lord!^{(F) 4} Why did you bring the Lord’s community into this wilderness,^(G) that we and our livestock should die here?^{(H) 5} Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to this terrible place? It has no grain or figs, grapevines or pomegranates.^(I) And there is no water to drink!^(J)”

⁶ Moses and Aaron went from the assembly to the entrance to the tent of meeting^(K) and fell facedown,^(L) and the glory of the Lord^(M) appeared to them. ⁷ The Lord said to Moses, ⁸ “Take the staff,^(N) and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water.^(O) You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink.”

⁹ So Moses took the staff^(P) from the Lord’s presence,^(Q) just as he commanded him. ¹⁰ He and Aaron gathered the assembly together^(R) in front of the rock and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?”^{(S) 11} Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water^(T) 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^(U) in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them.”^(V)

¹³ These were the waters of Meribah,^[a](W) where the Israelites quarreled^(X) with the Lord and where he was proved holy among them.^(Y)