Moses And The Rock

“Because you did not believe in me, to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.” – Numbers 20:12

I am probably not alone in always having been somewhat bothered by God preventing Moses from entering the promised land. What does Moses do wrong here? He addressed the people instead of addressing the rock. He made himself both judge (“you rebels”) and deliverer (“shall we...”). His phrasing is one of grumbling and complaint. He struck the rock rather than speaking to it, directly disobeying the word of God. He struck the rock twice, even (sign of anger? lack of faith that striking even once would be enough?). Overall, his tone is one of anger and contempt. Don Carson writes, “His response is not only the striking of the rock, it is the answer of a man who under pressure has become bitter and pretentious.”

What God rebukes Moses for is unbelief: “you did not believe in me, to uphold me as holy.” God desired to extend mercy through lack of retribution for the people’s complaints, grace through providing water. The rock itself points to Christ: “For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ” (1 Corinthians 10:4). Carson writes, “It is hard to resist the conclusion that the reason God had insisted the rock be struck in Exodus 17:1–7, and forbids it here, is that he perceives a wonderful opportunity to make a symbol-laden point: the ultimate Rock, from whom life-giving streams flow, is struck once, and no more.” Moses did get water, but did it with a heart of rebellion and unbelief against God’s mercy and grace, pointing away from Christ.

The other time there was judgment for not upholding God’s holiness was when Aaron’s sons offered unauthorized fire in Leviticus 10:3, an act for which they were killed. Commentators have observed that God shows Moses a severe mercy, in sparing his life despite preventing him from entering the promised land. And in the end, he does see it from a mountaintop (Deuteronomy 32:49).

It is hard to be a leader who faces unfair criticism. It is difficult to be a caregiver who absorbs persistent complaint and buffers emotional instability (I think of mothers here and Moses saying he pretty much feels like one in Numbers 11:12). There is always the temptation to lash out in angry outbursts, to view or label others with criticism or contempt, to let our frustration seep out in ways that prevent us from upholding God’s holiness, from believing in the grace he asks us to extend. I am guilty of these things, but I have hope too. Some of my gravest mistakes are God’s severe mercies to me, laying bare the condition of my heart, giving me the capacity for greater compassion towards others. And I have Jesus, the living water. The water did come from the rock, and in the end, God did show himself holy through it. God works despite, or precisely through, my mistakes, and that is at times the most encouraging thing of all.