EXODUS 17
We have already noted that the people came into the varied circumstances of these chapters by divine leading. It was as led by Moses that they went out into the wilderness of Shur (15: 22); and here it is “at the command of Jehovah” that they journeyed to reach their encampment in Rephidim. They did not come into testing through failure or disobedience on their part; there was a divine intent in it; it was God’s way to bring them into circumstances of need so that they might learn His grace in supplying that need. His object was, not to expose their unbelief and infirmity — though that came out under the testing — but to instruct their hearts in His grace, and to unfold to them all the resources of that grace, and to bring them really to Himself. These chapters are most establishing as bringing out the wealth and sufficiency of grace.
God is set to instruct us in Christ, and to bring before our hearts all that His grace delights to make Christ to us. We see Him here as the Rock; we are told plainly “that rock was Christ;” and it is, in figure, Christ smitten so that we might have the Spirit. The instruction of all this is for us. “All these things happened to them as types, and have been written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages are come” (1 Corinthians 10: 11). They had material bread from heaven, and material water from the rock, but we are privileged to learn the spiritual import of these things.
The rod had smitten the river and turned its waters into blood; it had acted judicially on the sources of life and refreshment in Egypt; it had expressed God’s judgment, in figure, upon all that constitutes the life of the world. But it is now seen, in figure, as smiting Christ. The place is called Massah (Temptation) and Meribah (Contention), which shows that it is marked by bringing out all that the flesh is in its unbelief and contrariety. That state calls for judgment, but [p. 96] through infinite grace Christ has come into the place of the murmurer and complainer, and the judgment due to sinful flesh has come on Him so that the Spirit might be given to those who believe.
Provision is made in the gift of the Spirit for the maintenance of what is of God in freshness in the souls of His people. This is the first distinct type of the gift of the Spirit in this book, though it is involved in being brought to the abode of God’s holiness (chapter 15: 13). It is the gift of the Spirit looked at from the divine side as bestowed in pure grace — God discerning what was needed to meet man’s state and supplying it. Such is the amazing result of the death of Christ that God can give us His Holy Spirit. It would be well if believers thought more of the death of Christ in this connection. If we were to ask believers generally, What is the result of the death of Christ? we might get many true answers, but probably it would not occur to many to say, He died that the Holy Spirit might be given to those who believe. The result of the smiting of the rock was that water came out of it. This is clearly a type of the Spirit being given. It is good to see the wonderful grace in which God has set us up. We often fail to recognize the divine resources or to use them, and this is why saints often wander a long time in the wilderness without making much spiritual progress.
This was not a temporary or passing relief; the rock followed them (1 Corinthians 10: 4); it was always there. In Numbers 20 it had evidently ceased to give water, but that was at a time when Miriam had died, and the people were rebellious against Moses and Aaron. In figure there was no longer response to Christ, but rather a spirit of rebellion. One can quite understand [p. 97] the water ceasing to flow under such conditions. If response to Christ dies, and rebellion against His Lordship and Headship comes in, it is impossible to have the good of the Spirit. But the remedy for such a state is to return to a sense of grace, and Jehovah was acting at that time with a view to bringing this about. The rock was there, and it had only to be spoken to, and it would give its water. It was there that Moses and Aaron failed, and did not hallow Jehovah; they did not rise to the grace in which He was going on with, and dealing with, a murmuring and contentious people. No renewed smiting was needed, but the recognition that a supply was available because of the grace in which God was going on with His people. He could not deny Himself, and He was acting at the moment to restore the sense of His grace in the hearts of His people.
In Numbers 21 the springing well answers to the Spirit as spoken of in John 4. It is typical of the Spirit as given to energize the affections in the direction of eternal life. But here it is the Spirit as power for inward refreshment, so that what is of God should be kept fresh in our souls in the wilderness. We have all been made to drink into one Spirit, so that the sense of grace, and all that God is for us, might be preserved in living freshness in our affections. If all believers were walking in the joy and power and freshness of the Holy Ghost there might be many adversaries, but there would be few infidels! What a testimony! Millions of people on earth having the grace and love of God in living power in their souls by the Spirit!
Immediately consequent upon this type we get the first bit of warfare. “Amalek came and fought with Israel in Rephidim”. The people have to learn war. If a people have moved out of Egypt by God’s salvation, and have learned the lesson of Marah, and come into the good of the manna and the water from the Rock, their new manner of life will awaken the hostility of Amalek, who was the grandson of Esau — the profane despiser. I have thought that Amalek might represent Satan’s power in the way of persecution. He would have destroyed them, and particularly “the hindmost of thee, all the feeble that lagged behind thee, when thou vast faint and weary, and he feared not God” (Deuteronomy 25: 17 - 19). We may count upon meeting opposition; the Lord speaks of it as the time “when tribulation or persecution happens on account of the word” (Matthew 13: 21); He said, “In the world ye shall have tribulation”. (See also Matthew 18: 6 and 2 Thessalonians 1: 4 - 8). God takes account of every bit of opposition to His people: “I have considered what Amalek did to Israel, how he set himself against him in the way, when he came up from Egypt” (1 Samuel 15).
We get in this chapter the conditions of victory. The first thing is that there is no thought of surrender, compromise, or making peace with the foe. “Not frightened in anything by the opposers, which is to them a demonstration of destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God” (Philippians 1: 28). Courage is needed and the true spirit of soldiers. “Choose us men”, says Moses; “Quit yourselves like men; be strong”, says Paul in a similar strain. The “hindmost” and “feeble” were smitten. The fact that there were such was in itself the evidence of decline, for as brought forth from Egypt in the strength of a divine salvation, “there was not one feeble among their tribes” (Psalm 105: 37). It would suggest that such had not really been going on in the energy and freshness which would have been imparted by the manna and the water from the Rock. They were not, therefore, in military power.
Then a good Leader is needed — a good General in the field to direct the operations — such as we see in Joshua, who is a type of Christ as the Leader of His saints in a military sense. We sing sometimes,
“Lead on, Almighty Lord,
Lead on to victory”. (115:1)
When it is a question of meeting the assaults of the enemy we need Christ, not only as Moses and Aaron — representing the authority of God over us in the Lord, and the Priest to sustain us — but we need to be under His direction as Joshua, the military Leader. Otherwise we may make mistakes which give the enemy an advantage, but if we are really led by the true Joshua we shall not make moves of that kind. Many believers know what it is to be face to face with opposition and persecution. Watched, perhaps, the whole day long by those who wait for a chance to strike, as it were, at an unguarded moment! What vigilance is needed! What an exercise to be led by the Lord in every step so that the enemy gains no advantage! Paul knew what it was, but he could say, “The Lord stood with me, and gave me power, that through me the proclamation might be fully made ... and I was delivered out of the lion’s mouth” (2 Timothy 4: 17).
But the secret of power was on the hill-top; Moses was there with the staff of God in his hand. We see the militant character of the men of Israel in presence [p. 100] of their adversaries down below under the leadership of Joshua. But I think Moses in this incident represents them in their exercises God-ward, conscious that His power — the staff of God — is with them and on their behalf, but deeply conscious, too, of weakness in themselves. It seems to me he is not exactly a type of Christ here, but that he represents the people in their conscious weakness. His hands were heavy, and apart from the support of Aaron and Hur they would have been let down, and Amalek would have prevailed. It is rather conscious weakness that we see in him, and the need for the priestly support of Christ even to maintain a right attitude of dependence before God. Aaron would be rather the figure of Christ in this particular type, supporting the feebleness of Moses, even as He supports two of His own who ask as gathered together unto His Name (Matthew 18: 19, 20). He is there to support them in all that they ask in relation to His Name. I do not know anything more encouraging than to be conscious of the support of Christ as we pray for His interests. We sometimes think that we shall have a good prayer meeting if we have a sense of need and dependence, but what gives such peculiar character to the prayers of the saints when gathered together in Christ’s interests is the consciousness of His support. It is a peculiar and blessed experience. But I do not think it will be realized unless Hur is present also, to use the language of the type before us. Hur means “purity”; it suggests that purity of heart out of which alone there can be a true calling on the Lord — that purity in the affections which thinks only of the Lord’s Name and of what is due to Him. Men are to pray in every place, lifting up pious hands (1 Timothy 2: 8).
[p. 101] These are the conditions of victory. In the presence of men, courage and the leading of the Lord in the conflict; in the presence of God, the consciousness of weakness, but the support of Christ as Priest in a dependent attitude of soul, and also that purity of motive which enables one with a good conscience to count upon God. Where such conditions are present there is power to prevail “until the going down of the sun” — until the day of conflict is over. A man who worked in a forge in a Yorkshire town was converted, and when his work-mates heard of it and saw the change in him they took the opportunity while he was at breakfast to put his anvil in the fire and make it hot, and then laid it down as if it had been knocked over. He came back and — as they expected — laid hold of it to put it in its place. His hands were very badly scorched. That was an attack of Amalek. They expected to hear from his lips such words as had often come out of them in times past. But he had been with God, and he prevailed. He turned to the men and quietly said, “You see I cannot work, but I shall go home and pray for you”.
It is a serious thing to persecute the people of God. “It is a righteous thing with God to render tribulation to those that trouble you, and to you that are troubled repose with us, at the revelation of the Lord Jesus from heaven” (2 Thessalonians 1: 6, 7). Jehovah is the banner of His people; “Jehovah-nissi” means that; it is because He is their banner that they are attacked; but such a banner ensures victory. The hand of the adversaries against the people of God is really on, or against, the throne of Jah, and He will have war with them “from generation to generation”. Eventually He will “utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under the heaven”. He will bruise Satan under the feet of His saints, and not one adverse power will remain. And even at the present time it is a very serious thing to be hostile to the people of God, and especially to young believers, as the children of Israel were typically when Amalek fought with them. Gamaliel gave good counsel when he said, “Take heed to yourselves as regards these men, what ye are going to do ... lest ye be found also fighters against God” (Acts 5: 35 - 39).