Exodus — Chapter 17

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1And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, after their journeys, according to the commandment of the LORD, and pitched in Rephidim: and there was no water for the people to drink.

2Wherefore the people did chide with Moses, and said, Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said unto them, Why chide ye with me? wherefore do ye tempt the LORD?

3And the people thirsted there for water; and the people murmured against Moses, and said, Wherefore is this that thou hast brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst?

4And Moses cried unto the LORD, saying, What shall I do unto this people? they be almost ready to stone me.

5And the LORD said unto Moses, Go on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel; and thy rod, wherewith thou smotest the river, take in thine hand, and go.

6Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

7And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the LORD, saying, Is the LORD among us, or not?

8Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim.

9And Moses said unto Joshua, Choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek: to morrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in mine hand.

10So Joshua did as Moses had said to him, and fought with Amalek: and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.

11And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.

12But Moses’ hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.

13And Joshua discomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.

14And the LORD said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.

15And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovah-nissi:

16For he said, Because the LORD hath sworn that the LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.

1And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, by their journeys, according to the commandment of Jehovah, and encamped in Rephidim: and there was no water for the people to drink.

2Wherefore the people stove with Moses, and said, Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said unto them, Why strive ye with me? Wherefore do ye tempt Jehovah?

3And the people thirsted there for water; and the people murmured against Moses, and said, Wherefore hast thou brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst?

4And Moses cried unto Jehovah, saying, What shall I do unto this people? They are almost ready to stone me.

5And Jehovah said unto Moses, Pass on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel; and they rod, wherewith thou smotest the river, take in thy hand, and go.

6Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

7And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the striving of the children of Israel, and because they tempted Jehovah, saying, Is Jehovah among us, or not?

8Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim.

9And Moses said unto Joshua, Choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek: to-morrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand.

10So Joshua did as Moses had said to him, and fought with Amalek: and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.

11And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.

12But Moses` hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side; And his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.

13And Joshua discomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.

14And Jehovah said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: that I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.

15And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovah-nissi;

16And he said, Jehovah hath sworn: Jehovah will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.

1The whole community of the Israelites traveled on their journey from the wilderness of Sin according to the Lord’s instruction, and they pitched camp in Rephidim. Now there was no water for the people to drink.

2So the people contended with Moses, and they said, “Give us water to drink!” Moses said to them, “Why do you contend with me? Why do you test the Lord?”

3But the people were very thirsty there for water, and they murmured against Moses and said, “Why in the world did you bring us up from Egypt—to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst?”

4Then Moses cried out to the Lord, “What will I do with this people?—a little more and they will stone me!”

5The Lord said to Moses, “Go over before the people; take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand your staff with which you struck the Nile and go.

6I will be standing before you there on the rock in Horeb, and you will strike the rock, and water will come out of it so that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in plain view of the elders of Israel.

7He called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the contending of the Israelites and because of their testing the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”

8Amalek came and attacked Israel in Rephidim.

9So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out, fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.”

10So Joshua fought against Amalek just as Moses had instructed him, and Moses and Aaron and Hur went up to the top of the hill.

11Whenever Moses would raise his hands, then Israel prevailed, but whenever he would rest his hands, then Amalek prevailed.

12When the hands of Moses became heavy, they took a stone and put it under him, and Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side and one on the other, and so his hands were steady until the sun went down.

13So Joshua destroyed Amalek and his army with the sword.

14The Lord said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in the book, and rehearse it in Joshua’s hearing; for I will surely wipe out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.”

15Moses built an altar, and he called it “The Lord is my Banner,”

16for he said, “For a hand was lifted up to the throne of the Lord—that the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”

1All the congregation of the children of Israel traveled from the wilderness of Sin, by their journeys, according to Yahweh’s commandment, and encamped in Rephidim; but there was no water for the people to drink.

2Therefore the people quarreled with Moses, and said, “Give us water to drink.” Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test Yahweh?”

3The people were thirsty for water there; and the people murmured against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us, our children, and our livestock with thirst?”

4Moses cried to Yahweh, saying, “What shall I do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.”

5Yahweh said to Moses, “Walk on before the people, and take the elders of Israel with you, and take the rod in your hand with which you struck the Nile, and go.

6Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb. You shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

7He called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because the children of Israel quarreled, and because they tested Yahweh, saying, “Is Yahweh among us, or not?”

8Then Amalek came and fought with Israel in Rephidim.

9Moses said to Joshua, “Choose men for us, and go out, fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with God’s rod in my hand.”

10So Joshua did as Moses had told him, and fought with Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.

11When Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed. When he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.

12But Moses’ hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side. His hands were steady until sunset.

13Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.

14Yahweh said to Moses, “Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under the sky.”

15Moses built an altar, and called its name Yahweh our Banner.

16He said, “Yah has sworn: ‘Yahweh will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.’”

Summary
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
Commentary
Videos
Reflection

Summary

God provides water from the rock at Horeb, and Israel defeats Amalek in battle as long as Moses' hands remain raised.

Authorship & Background

Author: Moses (see Chapter 1 notes for full authorship details).
Historical Context: Chapter 17 records two critical events: (1) Water from the rock at Rephidim — God provides from an impossible source; (2) The battle with Amalek — Israel's first military engagement. Both events reveal essential truths: God provides what nature cannot (water from rock), and victory depends on God's power (Moses' raised hands), not human strength alone. Joshua appears for the first time as a military leader. Moses names the altar "Jehovah-nissi" — "The LORD is my banner." God declares perpetual war against Amalek — the enemy who attacked Israel's weakest (Deuteronomy 25:17-18).
Water from the Rock (vv.1-7): Israel camps at Rephidim — no water (v.1). They "chide" with Moses: "Give us water" (v.2). Moses: "Why do ye tempt the LORD?" (v.2). The people are "almost ready to stone me" (v.4). God instructs: take the rod, go to the rock at Horeb, "thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it" (v.6). God says "I will stand before thee there upon the rock" — God positions Himself ON the rock that is struck (v.6). Moses obeys; water flows (v.6). He names the place "Massah" (testing) and "Meribah" (quarreling) (v.7). Israel's question: "Is the LORD among us, or not?" (v.7).
The Battle with Amalek (vv.8-16): Amalek attacks (v.8) — descendants of Esau, attacking Israel's rear (Deuteronomy 25:18). Moses sends Joshua to fight and goes to the hilltop with the rod of God (v.9). When Moses' hands are raised, Israel prevails; when lowered, Amalek prevails (v.11). Moses' hands grow heavy — Aaron and Hur support them on a stone until sunset (v.12). Joshua defeats Amalek (v.13). God commands: "Write this for a memorial" — the first command to write Scripture (v.14). God declares: "I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek" (v.14). Moses builds an altar: "Jehovah- nissi" — "The LORD is my banner" (v.15).

Map & Geography

  • Rephidim (v.1): The camp before Sinai, where there is no water. God commands Moses to strike the rock at Horeb.
  • Horeb / the rock (v.6): God stands on the rock; Moses strikes it and water flows. The site is named Massah ("testing") and Meribah ("quarreling").
  • Rephidim is also where Amalek attacks (v.8) — Israel's first battle after the Exodus.

Commentary

  • Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik covers the rock as a type of Christ (smitten once, living water flows), Moses' raised hands as intercession, and Amalek as a type of the flesh that wars against the Spirit.
  • Charles Spurgeon: Sermon: "The Smitten Rock" on v.6 (MTP Vol. 9, No. 487) "Smite the rock — and God stands UPON the rock when it is smitten. Do you see it? God receives the blow. The rock is Christ (1 Corinthians 10:4). The rod is the law's judgment. God stands on the rock — God IN Christ receives the stroke of justice. And what flows? WATER — life, refreshment, salvation. Christ was smitten ONCE on the cross — and living water has flowed ever since. You need not smite Him again. The rock is already broken. The water already flows. Come and drink."
  • Sermon: "Jehovah Nissi" on v.15 (MTP Vol. 20, No. 1178) "The LORD is my BANNER — not my sword, not my shield only, but my banner. A banner is what you rally around. A banner identifies whose army you belong to. A banner is lifted HIGH for all to see. God is our rallying point. We fight under His flag. And when the battle is won, it is His banner that flies over the field — not ours. The victory belongs to the One whose banner we carry."

Reflection

  • 1. "Thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it" (v.6). God provides from impossible sources. The rock that looks dead and dry contains living water. Where do you need God to provide from an impossible source?
  • 2. "Is the LORD among us, or not?" (v.7). Israel asked this AFTER the Red Sea, AFTER the manna, AFTER the pillar of fire. How quickly we forget. Don't let present thirst erase the memory of past provision.
  • 3. "When Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed" (v.11). Your spiritual posture matters. Prayer, faith, dependence on God — these determine the outcome of your battles. Are your hands raised or lowered?
  • 4. "Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands" (v.12). Moses couldn't do it alone. Neither can you. Who is holding up your arms? Whose arms are you holding up? We need each other in the fight.
  • 5. "Jehovah-nissi" — "The LORD is my banner" (v.15). Whose banner are you fighting under? Whose flag flies over your life? Rally to God — He is your identity, your cause, and your victory.