Exodus 17:2

My Notes

What Does Exodus 17:2 Mean?

Exodus 17:2 captures a recurring crisis in the wilderness — the people are thirsty, and their response reveals the difference between legitimate need and illegitimate testing.

"Wherefore the people did chide with Moses" — the Hebrew vayyarev ha'am 'im-Mosheh (and the people contended/quarreled with Moses) uses riv — a legal term for bringing a lawsuit, lodging a formal complaint, entering into a dispute. The people aren't just grumbling. They're accusing Moses of malfeasance — essentially putting him on trial. The thirst is real. The accusation is that Moses brought them into the wilderness to kill them (v. 3).

"And said, Give us water that we may drink" — the Hebrew tĕnu-lanu mayim vĕnishteh (give us water that we may drink) is a demand, not a request. The imperative tĕnu (give) carries the force of a command. They're not asking. They're demanding. The need is legitimate — water in the desert is survival. The posture is not.

"And Moses said unto them, Why chide ye with me?" — Moses redirects. The quarrel isn't with him — he didn't choose the route or control the rainfall. The dispute is misdirected.

"Wherefore do ye tempt the LORD?" — the Hebrew mah-tĕnassun 'eth-Yahweh (why do you test the LORD) reframes the entire situation. The Hebrew nasah (test, try, put to proof) is the word used in Genesis 22:1 for God testing Abraham. But the direction is reversed: here, humans are testing God. The test isn't "does God exist?" It's "will God provide?" — asked not out of faith but out of accusation. They're putting God on trial: if He's really with us (v. 7), where's the water?

Moses will name this place Massah (testing) and Meribah (quarreling) — v. 7. The names become permanent warnings. Psalm 95:8-9 will recall them: "Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: when your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work." The testing at Meribah becomes the paradigmatic example of faithless response to legitimate hardship.

Reflection Questions

• 1.The people's need was real — water in the desert. But their posture was accusation, not trust. How do you bring legitimate needs to God without turning them into tests?
• 2.Moses asks 'why do ye tempt the LORD?' — testing God means demanding He prove Himself again despite past evidence. Where are you ignoring what God has already done because of a current need?
• 3.This place gets named Massah (testing) and Meribah (quarreling) — permanent warnings. What 'Massahs' in your own history do you need to remember as cautionary tales?
• 4.God provided the water anyway (v. 6). He met the need despite the testing. What does that tell you about God's character — and does it make the testing more forgivable or less?

Devotional

They were thirsty. And the thirst was real. There's nothing wrong with needing water in the desert.

But there's everything wrong with how they handled the need. Instead of asking God for provision, they put Him on trial. Instead of praying, they sued Moses. Instead of remembering the Red Sea (weeks ago), the manna (days ago), the pillar of cloud (overhead right now), they demanded: give us water — as if none of that had happened.

Moses names the place Massah and Meribah — Testing and Quarreling. And those names will echo through the rest of Scripture as the permanent example of what not to do with legitimate need. Psalm 95 will warn against it. Hebrews 3 will use it as the cautionary tale for the church. The lesson is so important that God gives the failure its own address.

The distinction Moses draws is razor-thin but critical: there's a difference between bringing your need to God and testing God with your need. Bringing your need says: I'm thirsty, and I trust you to provide. Testing God says: I'm thirsty, and if you don't provide, you're not real — or at least you're not good. The need is identical. The posture is opposite.

You've been here. In the desert, genuinely needing something, and the choice is between praying and accusing. Between remembering what God has already done and demanding He prove Himself again from scratch. Between "Lord, I'm thirsty" and "why did you bring me out here to die?"

The need isn't the sin. The testing is. God will provide the water (v. 6 — He tells Moses to strike the rock). He's not offended by thirst. He's grieved by the amnesia. The people who watched the sea split can't trust the God who split it to also provide water. And that gap — between what they've seen and what they're willing to trust — is the definition of Massah.

Commentary

Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.

Cross References

Related passages throughout Scripture