Exodus 17:1-7

New American Standard Bible 1995

Water in the Rock

17 Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed by ^[a]stages from the wilderness of ^(A)Sin, according to the ^[b]command of the Lord, and camped at ^(B)Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. ² Therefore the people ^(C)quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water that we may drink.” And Moses said to them, “^(D)Why do you quarrel with me? ^(E)Why do you test the Lord?” ³ But the people thirsted there for water; and ^[c]they ^(F)grumbled against Moses and said, “Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill ^[d]us and ^[e]our children and ^[f](G)our livestock with thirst?” ⁴ So Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, “What shall I do to this people? A ^(H)little more and they will stone me.” ⁵ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pass before the people and take with you some of ^(I)the elders of Israel; and take in your hand your staff with which ^(J)you struck the Nile, and go. ⁶ Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at ^(K)Horeb; and ^(L)you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. ⁷ He named the place ^[g](M)Massah and ^[h](N)Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and because they ^(O)tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us, or not?”