Meribah
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Meribah is one of the places the Israelites stopped at during the Exodus.
Its an ambiguous place, occurring twice in the Bible, first in Exodus 17, then in Numbers 20. It appears to be two different places based on the route they took, but both places have almost the same happenings.
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[edit] Exodus events
The Israelites were camped at Rephidim, and the people quarrelled with Moses saying there was no water. Moses rebukes the people, "Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test God?" Moses asks God for help, and is told to strike the rock with his staff. Water pours forth, and the people can drink and water their animals. The place is then subsequently named "Massah U-Meribah - מסה ומריבה," which means "Testing (Massah) and Quarreling (Meribah)." "Meribah" would be a shortened version of this longer name.
[edit] Numbers events
In this version (Numbers 20.1-13), the Israelites are camped at Kadesh, and the people quarrelled with Aaron and Moses saying there was no water. In this version, Aaron and Moses prostrate themselves at the Tent of the Meeting, and ask God for help. God tells them to speak to the rock and it will issue water. Moses raises his staff and strikes the rock twice, and it issues water. However God judges that they did not trust him sufficiently and honour him, God tells them as a consequence neither Moses or Aaron will enter the promised land.
Subsequently, this water is referred to in several locations as "Mei Meribah - מי מריבה," either "Water of [the place called] Meribah," or "Water of Quarrelling."
It is unclear what exactly Moses' crime was. Some possibilities are:
- He used his staff rather than words to draw water from the rock. Striking the rock twice can be seen as a deliberate and violent reaction, as opposed to the gentleness of speaking to the rock.
- He drew attention upon himself, as if the water were drawn by his own power rather than God's: "Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?"
- He did not trust in God sufficiently, just like the rest of the people who had already been sentenced to die in the wilderness. If he had trusted God, he would have done as he'd been ordered and not try doing things his way.
[edit] Documentary hypothesis
In the documentary hypothesis, the first story is from the JE source, and promotes Moses as the sole hero. The second version is from the Priestly source, and enhances Aaron to be a peer of Moses. It may also be seen as downplaying Moses role in history, as he is capable of sin and is disqualified from the promised land. Aaron had already done plenty to disqualify his entrance, as in the case of the Golden Calf and the Snow-white Miriam, although in neither action is he explicitly chastised.
[edit] Other references
Meribah is also referenced in Deuteronomy 32-33; Psalms 81, 95, 106; and Ezekiel 47.
[edit] Water from rocks
An interesting parallel event that happened in the 1930's, is taken from records of the British governor of the Sinai region, Major C.S. Jarvis.
Several men of the Sinai Camel Corps had halted in a dry wadi and were in the process of digging about in the rough sand that had accumulated at the foot of a rock face. They were trying to get at the water that was trickling slowly out of the limestone rock. The men were taking their time about it and the colour sergeant said, “Here, give it to me”. He took the spade of one of the men and began digging furiously in the manners of NCO’s the world over who want to show their men how to do things but have no intention of keeping it up for more than a couple of minutes. One of his violent blows hit the rock by mistake. The smooth hard crust which always forms the weathered limestone split open and fell away. The soft stone underneath was thereby exposed and out of its apertures shot a powerful stream of water. The Sudanese, who are well up in the activities of the prophets but do not treat them with a vast amount of respect, overwhelmed their sergeant with cries of ‘Look at him! Prophet Moses’!
