Original Torah: Ancient Words in a Modern Light

If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, then let’s look at the following passage and see what perspectives we can bring in. What does the Narrarator see, God see, and Israel see?

Exodus 17:2 The people quarreled with Moses. “Give us water to drink,” they said; and Moses replied to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you try YHWH?” 3 But the people thirsted there for water; and the people grumbled against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us up from Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” 4 Moses cried out to YHWH, saying, “What shall I do with this people? Before long they will be stoning me!” 5 Then YHWH said to Moses, “Pass before the people; take with you some of the elders of Israel, and take along the rod with which you struck the Nile, and set out. 6 I will be standing there before you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock and water will issue from it, and the people will drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7 The place was named Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and because they tried YHWH, saying, “Is YHWH present among us or not?“ ב וַיָּ֤רֶב הָעָם֙ עִם־מֹשֶׁ֔ה וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ תְּנוּ־לָ֥נוּ מַ֖יִם וְנִשְׁתֶּ֑ה וַיֹּ֤אמֶר לָהֶם֙ מֹשֶׁ֔ה מַה־תְּרִיבוּן֙ עִמָּדִ֔י מַה־תְּנַסּ֖וּן אֶת־יְהוָֽה׃ ג וַיִּצְמָ֨א שָׁ֤ם הָעָם֙ לַמַּ֔יִם וַיָּ֥לֶן הָעָ֖ם עַל־מֹשֶׁ֑ה וַיֹּ֗אמֶר לָ֤מָּה זֶּה֙ הֶֽעֱלִיתָ֣נוּ מִמִּצְרַ֔יִם לְהָמִ֥ית אֹתִ֛י וְאֶת־בָּנַ֥י וְאֶת־מִקְנַ֖י בַּצָּמָֽא׃

17:8 Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim.

I could probably summarize the entire Biblical outlook in this verse. The people don’t see God around them, they demand a man to provide what God should, God provides through a man, but the people aren’t satisfied and still don’t see God. In this case, the story is followed by an attack by Amalek, implying a kind of divine punishment for the people’s lack of faith.

Even though the different books in the Tanakh were written by different authors, they all deal with the issue of seeing God or serving God. This phrasing of the stama, the Narrarator, of the text shows that the people did not have a legitimate complaint.

Perhaps the people were legitimately thirsty, but the stama believes that they fought with Moses (17:2) which Moses took as trying YHWH. And the people complained about Moses (17:3) and asked why he (Moses) took them out of Egypt.

The Torah wants us to learn something about the behavior of Israel. The thirst must have been a legitimate complaint because they did get water (17:6). So, the problem must be that they doubted that Moses and therefore God would provide it. The text wants us to see how the people wanted Moses to solve their problems and blamed Moses for bringing them out of Egypt.

Not trusting that God would provide for them (given a reasonable request) merited a serious attack by the ignoble Amalek (17:8), which though it looked like Moses won for them by raising his hands (17:11), the text says Moses couldn’t do it alone (17:12), and ultimately, “And Yehoshua (Joshua) wasted Amalek and his people by the sword”(17:13). All because they doubted God was in their midst (17:7).

God manipulates the situation to “gain glory through Pharaoh and all his host” (Exodus 14:1-4) so that the Egyptians know YHWH is God (Exodus 14:1-4)

Exodus 14:10-14 Upon seeing the Egyptians, the Israelites were “Greatly frightened,” and “cried out to YHWH.” They did not trust God to save them and preferred slavery to death in the wilderness. Moses reassured them to

“Have no fear! Stand by, and witness the deliverance which YHWH will work for you today; for the Egyptians whom you see today you will never see again. 14 The Lord will battle for you; you hold your peace!”

In the miraculous crossing of the Reed Sea (anciently identified as the Red Sea, probably the Suez Strait, see picture), we see Moses hold out his arm, causing YHWH to drive back the sea with a wind (14:21), the Moses hold out his arm, and YHWH hurls the Egyptians into the sea (14:27). The Narrarator shows God acting through Moses.
And finally, the miracle of the splitting of the Reed Sea was so magnificent that it was used as evidence of God’s working wonders for Israel for generations (See ps 66:6; 77:17-21; 78:13,53; 106:9-11,22; 114:3,5; 136:13-5, Josh 4:22-28, Isa 51:9-10, 63:11-13).

14:29 But the Israelites had marched through the sea on dry ground, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left. 30 Thus the Lord delivered Israel that day from the Egyptians. Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the shore of the sea. 31 And when Israel saw the wondrous power which the Lord had wielded against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord; they had faith in the Lord and His servant Moses.

Israel’s faith and deeds don’t always reflect the absolute evidence of God’s manifestly saving Israel at the sea. The quote at the beginning “Is YHWH among us” is from after the crossing of the sea.

The Torah wants us to see God in history and believe in Him by engaging us with miracles. But as evidenced by the many times the Israelites stumble in their belief, especially so soon after the paradigmatic salvation at the sea, it seems that the Narrarator of the text has more faith in God than the people. It goes to show, that faith is truly in the eye of the beholder.

See my paper on Manna paper and writings from Be-Shalach 5762

14:17 And I will stiffen the hearts of the Egyptians so that they go in after them; and I will gain glory through Pharaoh and all his warriors, his chariots and his horsemen. 18 Let the Egyptians know that I am Lord, when I gain glory through Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”

14:23 The Egyptians came in pursuit after them into the sea, all of Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and horsemen. 24 At the morning watch, the Lord looked down upon the Egyptian army from a pillar of fire and cloud, and threw the Egyptian army into panic. 25 He locked the wheels of their chariots so that they moved forward with difficulty. And the Egyptians said, “Let us flee from the Israelites, for the Lord is fighting for them against Egypt.”