Water From the Rock
Numbers 20The children of Israel, even the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month. The people stayed in Kadesh. Miriam died and was buried there. There was no water for the congregation, so they assembled against Moses and Aaron. The people quarreled with Moses, and spoke-spoke, “We wish that we had died when our brothers died before YHWH! Why have y’all brought YHWH’s assembly into this wilderness? So that we and our animals will die here? Why have y’all led us out of Egypt and brought us to this evil place? This place has no seed, or figs, or vines, or pomegranates; neither is there any water to drink.”
Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the Tent of Meeting, and fell on their faces. YHWH’s glory appeared to them. YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “You must take the staff and assemble the congregation. You and your brother, y’all are to speak to the rock before their eyes, and it pour out its water. You will bring water to them from the rock and give the congregation and their livestock drink.”
Moses took the rod from before YHWH, as he commanded him. [Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, “Listen now, y’all rebels! Must we bring water out of this rock for y’all?” Moses lifted up his hand, and struck the rock with his rod twice, and water came out abundantly. The congregation and their livestock drank.
YHWH said to Moses and Aaron, “Because neither of y’all believed in me enough to treat me as holy in the sight of the children of Israel, y’all will not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.”
These are the waters of Meribah;+20:13 “Meribah” means “quarreling”. because the children of Israel strove with YHWH, and he was sanctified in them.
Edom Refuses Passage for Israel
Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, saying:
“Your brother Israel says: You know all the travail that has happened to us; how our fathers went down into Egypt, and we lived in Egypt a long time. The Egyptians mistreated us and our fathers. When we cried to YHWH, he heard our voice, sent an angel, and brought us out of Egypt. Now look, we are in Kadesh, a city in the edge of your border.
“Please let us pass through your land. We will not pass through field or through vineyard, neither will we drink from the water of the wells. We will go along the king’s highway. We will not turn away to the right hand nor to the left, until we have passed your border.”
Edom said to him, “You must not pass through me, or I come out with the sword against you.”
The children of Israel said to him, “We will go up by the highway; and if we drink your water, I and my livestock, then I will give its price. Only let me, without doing anything else, pass through on my feet.”
He said, “You must not pass through.” Edom came out against him with many people, and with a strong hand. Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his border, so Israel turned away from him.
The Death of Aaron
They traveled from Kadesh, and the children of Israel, even the whole congregation, came to Mount Hor. YHWH spoke to Moses and Aaron in Mount Hor, by the border of the land of Edom, saying, “Aaron will be gathered to his people, for he will not enter into the land which I have given to the children of Israel, because y’all rebelled against my word at the waters of Meribah. Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up to Mount Hor. Remove Aaron’s garments and put them on Eleazar his son. Aaron will be gathered, and will die there.”
Moses did as YHWH commanded. They went up onto Mount Hor in the sight of all the congregation. Moses removed Aaron’s garments and put them on Eleazar his son. Aaron died there on the top of the mountain, and Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain. When all the congregation saw that Aaron was dead, they wept for Aaron thirty days, even all the house of Israel.