Behold, 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. Exodus 17:6
What a sight that must have been! Many artists have tried to capture the essence of that great moment as Moses smote the rock in Horeb, and out flowed enough water to satisfy more than a million thirsty people. We will never know exactly what that scene was like, of course, but we do know that the Israelites were blessed in a miraculous way. And we also know that the scene in Horeb has a wonderful relationship with another scene that is very precious to us today.
In 1763, Augustus Toplady wrote one of our most famous and enduring hymns – Rock of Ages – that draws on today’s text. This hymn recognizes that the rock in Horeb was a wonderful foreshadowing of the Rock Who was smitten for us at Calvary. As strong a man as Moses was, it would have been impossible for his human efforts to break open a rock to allow a stream of water to pour out. So when we consider the torture and crucifixion of the Lord Jesus by the Jews and by Roman soldiers, we acknowledge that their puny efforts did little toward providing the flood that enables our salvation. The Israelites saw only that Moses smote the rock with his rod; but in reality, the work that actually brought the water forth was by God. Just as the smiting of the Lord Jesus in Golgotha’s darkness provides the actual bringing forth of all of the blessings that our Saviour’s suffering and death accomplished.
After the Israelites marched on from Horeb, they would thirst again. More miracles of God’s provision would be needed. Not so the living water that the Lord Jesus spoke of to the Samaritan woman at Sychar’s well, living water that has slaked our sin thirst for eternity. Today’s remembrance is of the Rock Who God did smite for us, for our salvation. -Jim MacIntosh
Here is the link to the video of this message: https://youtu.be/Z1aqYG5gxhk