Numbers, Chapter 20

Numbers Chapter 20

Verses 1-29: The Waters of Meribah and the Death of Aaron

1. The Israelites, the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh. Miriam died there and was buried.
2. Now there was no water for the congregation, and they assembled against Moses and Aaron.
3. The people quarreled with Moses and said, “If only we had perished when our brothers perished before the LORD!
4. Why have you brought the assembly of the LORD into this wilderness for us and our livestock to die here?
5. Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to bring us to this wretched place? It is no place for grain, or figs, or vines, or pomegranates; there is not even water to drink.”
6. Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance of the tent of meeting and fell on their faces. The glory of the LORD appeared to them.
7. The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
8. “Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and your brother Aaron, and speak to the rock before their eyes, that it may yield its water. You shall bring forth water for them out of the rock and give drink to the congregation and their livestock.”
9. Moses took the staff from before the LORD, as he had commanded him.
10. Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly before the rock, and he said to them, “Listen, you rebels, shall we bring water for you out of this rock?”
11. Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his staff; water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their livestock drank.
12. But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust in me, to show my holiness before the eyes of the Israelites, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land I have given them.”
13. These are the waters of Meribah, where the Israelites quarreled with the LORD, and by which he showed his holiness.
14. Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom: “Thus says your brother Israel, ‘You know all the hardship that has befallen us,
15. how our ancestors went down to Egypt, and we lived in Egypt a long time; and the Egyptians treated us and our ancestors badly.
16. We cried to the LORD, and he heard our voice, sent an angel, and brought us out of Egypt. Here we are in Kadesh, a town on the edge of your territory.
17. Please let us pass through your country. We will not pass through field or vineyard, or drink water from wells; we will go along the king’s highway, not turning aside to the right hand or to the left, until we have passed through your territory.’
18. But Edom said to him, ‘You shall not pass through, lest I come out with the sword against you.’
19. And the Israelites said to him, ‘We will go up by the highway; and if we drink of your water, I and my livestock, then I will pay for it; let me only pass through on foot, nothing more.’
20. But he said, ‘You shall not pass through.’ And Edom came out against them with a large force, heavily armed.
21. Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his territory; so Israel turned away from him.
22. Then the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed from Kadesh and came to Mount Hor.
23. At Mount Hor, near the border of Edom, the LORD said to Moses and Aaron,
24. “Aaron shall be gathered to his people. He shall not enter the land I have given to the Israelites because you rebelled against my command at the waters of Meribah.
25. Take Aaron and his son Eleazar and bring them up to Mount Hor;
26. and strip Aaron of his vestments and put them on his son Eleazar. Aaron shall be gathered to his people and shall die there.”
27. Moses did as the LORD commanded; and they went up Mount Hor in the sight of the whole congregation.
28. Moses stripped Aaron of his vestments and put them on his son Eleazar, and Aaron died there on the top of the mountain. Then Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain,
29. and when all the congregation saw that Aaron had perished, all the house of Israel wept for Aaron thirty days.

Interpretation: In this chapter, we witness significant events: the miraculous provision of water from the rock at Meribah, a testament to God’s power and patience; the attempt to pass through Edom, highlighting the challenges Israel faces from neighboring nations; and the poignant transition of the high priesthood from Aaron to Eleazar, symbolizing both the end of an era and the continuation of divine service. Each event underscores themes of faith, leadership, and the sacredness of divine commands.