Jehovah-Rapha…the Lord that healeth thee
Exodus 15:25-26 “And he (Moses) cried unto the Lord; and the Lord shewed him a tree, which when he had cast unto the waters, the waters were made sweet: there He made for them an ordinance, and there He proved them,
And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in His sight, and wilt give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee.”
This record deals with personal obedience….and our hearts attitude toward God, in the path He leads us in.
The Israelites are free! And in a miraculous manner….they came across the Red Sea…and they also saw their enemies which pursued them, dead on the seashore.
Singing, they go on, in the Way God leads, His fiery light at night, and HIs cloudy pillar going ahead….
….but three days into their journey….they see that the water barrels that they filled in Egypt were now empty. And they had found no water along the way! What were they to do?
They went on to a place called Marah….
Exodus 15:23 “And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the water of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah (bitter).”
The people were eagerly awaiting God to bring them to water….and when He did, they tasted it….and found it too bitter to drink. It would have made them all sick, if they continued….
…so…
…why would God lead them to a bitter well?
I believe there are two reasons:
First, He would prepare them for the things of trial and “bitterness”, in the wilderness that they were crossing.
God did not want them to think that now everything would be…”Hallelujah!”
(So it is with our walk. We have been miraculously saved…from our sin and Hell. But now, in the wilderness of this world, we will go through many trials and “bitterness” of days and nights. We are not in heaven, yet….so we must look and submit to the lessons the Lord sends.)
Second, God would use this bitter water to get their attention about HIs new Name to them. He is the Lord that heals them.
Why not just tell them?
Because God would make a point with them….the bitter waters…and the fact that they could run into all sorts of things which could make them sick….He could heal.
Nothing….nor anyone can satisfy HIs people…in all circumstances, but God, HImself.
And He wanted them to know His new Name to them….so they could call upon HIm, as such.
(And we too will learn as we go along with HIm…that He becomes all our need,…whether in health, troubles, or illness.)
You will notice that this came in the Way the Lord was leading…yet it says, “There He proved them”. It was for their good that He showed them these bitter waters,….to draw from them the response of faith….so they would call upon HIm for help!
So what did they do?
Exodus 15:24 “And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?”
Naturally, their fear might be understood….but they were to be molded into God’s people…and therefore they should have cried unto the Lord….not Moses.
This is the first place murmured is used…it means to be obstinate and complain.
(Before when they were at the Red Sea, they first “cried out unto the Lord”, then questioned Moses. Exodus 14:10-12)
But here, they begin to “dig in their heels”, or act like spoiled children, wanting the easy way to be given them,….but nothing of the hard.
Instead of trusting in the Lord, they demanded better treatment!
(And we too, are warned against a weak and faithless reaction to trials…instead: rejoice! 1 Peter 4:12-13
1 Peter 1:6-7 “Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:
That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the coming of Jesus Christ.”
2 Timothy 3:12 “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.”)
But, God did not deal with them according to their sin….but rather in mercy. Because one man among them believed the Lord, and sought Him for their need.
(And when we think our prayers are not important….remember approximately 2 million Israelites were given sweet water because of one man’s prayer.)
Moses cried unto the Lord…and when he did….the Lord showed him what to do:
“…and the Lord shewed him a tree, which when he had cast unto the water, the waters were made sweet:…”
(I love this! This is a foreshadowing of what Christ, “Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.” 1 Peter 2:24
Without this “tree” they would die. Without Christ, we would die!
By this “tree” the waters were healed. By Christ’s stripes we are healed!)
But then,…..and this is important for all of us….the lesson to be learned:
Exodus 15:26 “And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in His sight, and wilt give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee.”
Four different ways God’s Word is mentioned. HIs Voice, what is right in His sight, His commandments, His statutes.
God is stressing His Word and Will…for that is the way of growth and blessing. And we are told the same thing:
2 Timothy 3:15-17 “And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”
If they heard His Voice in His Word, and obeyed it….then they would not suffer the diseases that the Egyptians did….under HIs judgements….
…why? Because I am the Lord that healeth thee. Jehovah-Rapha.
Don’t fear, look to Me…..cry unto Me.
The Israelites were refreshed….for their further journey, because God healed the waters that were bitter. (They next came to Elim where were twelve wells…and palm trees….and they encamped there. The multitude of blessing came after the trial….after the lesson. It is not often in the prosperous times we learn the most….but in our afflictions, we cry unto Him. Psalm 119:67)
And we too, will come to many places that are “bitter” to us in our walk with God. They are part of the learning places with Him.
Praise Him, we know and have Jehovah-Rapha with us….and He can make the bitter, sweet to us. Making the very thing which was a trial….a blessing.
Hallelujah! What a Savior. Hallelujah! What a God we serve.
Preaching, Teaching, and Notes 