Passing through Marah to Elim
(Exodus 15:22-27)
The world where we live is like barren desert.
It has various hazards such as ceaseless heat, thirsty, snakes and scorpions.
In our life in the world, the difficulties come to us as well.
However, there will be blessings of Canaan God prepared after the end of difficulties so we don’t need to be frustrated. Therefore, we should march forward with the cross of Jesus despite of any hardships. Today’s scripture reading focuses on the miracle that the bitter water of Marah was sweetened and the journey to get to Elim, where the abundant water and shelters were prepared.
1. The Bitter Water of Marah
When Israel people were delivered from Egypt and miraculously crossed the Red sea, they entered the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. The bitter water of Marah symbolizes the bitter moment of our life. Just as the Israelites met Marah in the desert, we often meet the bitter water in our life. In that case, people tend to show two types of reposes. One is to blame others like Israel people who criticized Moses. On the contrary, the other is to pray hard like Moses. When we face problems like Marah, we should cry out. God definitely answers our crying out to Him. When Moses cried out, God showed him what to do.
2. The Power of the Cross
Then Moses cried out, and God showed him a piece of wood.
He threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. The piece of wood represents of the cross of Jesus Christ. The cross of Jesus Christ can sweeten every bitter water of despair. Therefore, we should fix our eyes on to the cross of Jesus Christ every time we meet hardships and difficulties of life. Holding the cross of Jesus tightly, we will see the bitter water of sins changing into sweet water of righteousness, bitter water of sickness into sweet water of health, bitter water of poverty and curses into sweet water of wealth and blessings, and bitter water of death into sweet water of life.
3. The Blessing of Elim
Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees.
God prepared Elim for the Israel people who suffered from desert to take rest. God prepares the blessing of Elim for our desert-like life. Elim was not far away from Marah. Blessings of God are covered with hardships. After we are tested by difficulties, we are finally led to Elim, the type of the kingdom of heaven. The kingdom of heaven doesn’t have bitterness. It only has sweetness.
Therefore, in any situations where we experience the bitterness of Marah, we should hope for the kingdom of heaven in which we enjoy perfect blessings.
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supplement
Elim was an oasis in the desert.
Here is the ancient story behind Elim
The Israelites left Egypt after the conflict with Pharaoh.
Yet they did not leave alone. People from other nations, presumably Egyptians and other nationalities, left Egypt with them to form a new nation that worshipped one God.
This is found in Exodus 12:38 where a mixed multitude also went up with them.
After a few weeks, they came to Elim.
Exodus 15:27 – Then they came to Elim where there were twelve springs of water and seventy date palms, and they camped there beside the waters.
This verse has been interpreted by scholars as follows:
The twelve springs represent the 12 tribes of Israel.
The number 70 has typically represented the number of the nations, as pictured by the seventy date palm trees.
In ancient Hebrew, “el” could mean tree or god.
The plural form would be “elim.” Naturally, when they found the oasis of Elim on the Exodus path, the Israelites and the mixed multitude saw the hand of God providing them the trees and springs of water.
IDEA ...
When the righteous among the nations and Israel partner together, this creates an oasis in the desert. The themes of interdependence and mutual blessing are also seen in this imagery. The trees cannot survive without the water, and the water needs the shade of the trees to avoid evaporation in the desert. The passage in Ephesians 2 is possibly linked when it describes how He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace.
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