WEBVTT - 101 Moses & The Rock 0:00:00.160 --> 0:00:02.279 Previously on the Chosen people. 0:00:02.880 --> 0:00:07.280 I have heard the Israelites complaints against me. Tell them this, 0:00:08.080 --> 0:00:10.799 All who were counted in the cens is twenty years 0:00:10.880 --> 0:00:15.560 older will die in the desert. I swear that none 0:00:15.600 --> 0:00:20.439 will enter the Promised Land except Caleb and Joshua. 0:00:21.960 --> 0:00:22.440 The Lord. 0:00:25.600 --> 0:00:34.560 The Lord has spoken forty years, forty years of what exile? 0:00:37.880 --> 0:00:42.879 Enough, old man, Your time commanding us is through. After today, 0:00:43.320 --> 0:00:45.159 the people will have a new regime. 0:00:45.479 --> 0:00:49.240 Moses frowned, raising his voice to address the rebels. 0:00:49.720 --> 0:00:52.040 Get away from the tents of these wicked men. 0:00:53.360 --> 0:00:55.760 Don't touch anything that belongs to them, or you'll be 0:00:55.800 --> 0:00:57.200 swept away. Because of all. 0:00:57.120 --> 0:01:02.760 Their sins, the greedy ground and consumed them, all the usurpers, 0:01:02.880 --> 0:01:09.039 their families, their possessions, even their desperate cries. Everything once 0:01:09.080 --> 0:01:12.280 it all tumbled out of sight into the darkness below. 0:01:12.560 --> 0:01:17.200 A horrified Israel watched as the ground knit itself back together, 0:01:17.800 --> 0:01:21.959 leaving only open space and silence where the two households 0:01:22.000 --> 0:01:22.399 had been. 0:01:24.880 --> 0:01:27.000 How many times do I need to see the people 0:01:27.000 --> 0:01:30.040 of God devolve into mindless madness? 0:01:30.840 --> 0:01:32.480 How much longer must I endure this? 0:01:40.360 --> 0:01:44.120 Moses lifted his staff, struck the rock, and with it 0:01:44.440 --> 0:01:48.280 he struck his own future. Shello, my friends, from here 0:01:48.280 --> 0:01:50.960 in the holy Land of Israel, i'm l Extein with 0:01:51.080 --> 0:01:55.240 international Fellowship of Christians and Jews, and welcome to the 0:01:55.400 --> 0:01:59.480 Chosen People. It's been thirty eight years. The sand still 0:01:59.520 --> 0:02:02.160 shifts under the feet of the Chosen People. The same 0:02:02.240 --> 0:02:06.440 wilderness stretches into the horizon. Along the way. They've buried 0:02:06.480 --> 0:02:09.680 countless memories and more than a few loved ones. They 0:02:09.680 --> 0:02:13.760 are thirsty again, not just for water, but for hope, 0:02:13.960 --> 0:02:17.280 for land, for a future that doesn't feel like endless wandering, 0:02:18.000 --> 0:02:21.760 and so they cry out. What happens next is one 0:02:21.760 --> 0:02:24.400 of the most dramatic moments in the Journey of Israel, 0:02:24.440 --> 0:02:28.639 one that even Moses won't escape unscathed. This is the 0:02:28.680 --> 0:02:33.600 story of failure, of a leader's misstep, of consequences that 0:02:33.720 --> 0:02:37.880 ripple through generations, and it all began with the rock. 0:02:41.400 --> 0:02:45.040 Moses frowned at the dry rock marking the source of 0:02:45.080 --> 0:02:49.800 the stream, now empty, its creek bed dusty and barren. 0:02:50.560 --> 0:02:54.320 The parched air clung to him for telling the scorching 0:02:54.440 --> 0:02:58.560 day ahead. It was unseasonably hot for the first month 0:02:58.680 --> 0:03:04.840 of the year. Before dawn, the heat pressed down relentlessly Kadish, 0:03:05.320 --> 0:03:09.000 usually a well watered oasis and a familiar resting place 0:03:09.040 --> 0:03:13.679 for the Israelites, was lifeless for years. The Lord had 0:03:13.680 --> 0:03:17.760 provided water there, and year after year the people returned 0:03:17.760 --> 0:03:20.000 to this spot on the edge of the Promised Land 0:03:20.280 --> 0:03:24.680 before moving their flocks to the foothills for summer. Thirty 0:03:24.800 --> 0:03:28.760 eight years. That's how much time had passed since Israel 0:03:28.840 --> 0:03:32.160 refused to enter the Promised Land based on a negative 0:03:32.200 --> 0:03:36.160 report of moses hand selected spies, and in that time, 0:03:36.640 --> 0:03:41.360 true to the Lord's fateful declaration, that entire generation had 0:03:41.400 --> 0:03:46.279 passed away. Moses, Aaron, and Miriam were all now advanced 0:03:46.320 --> 0:03:50.360 in age, each well over one hundred and ailing with 0:03:50.520 --> 0:03:54.360 all that accompanied such an achievement, Miriam was next to 0:03:54.440 --> 0:03:59.160 blind and frail. Aaron's hands shook terribly and he now 0:03:59.240 --> 0:04:02.640 walked with a hunch, and their younger brother Moses was 0:04:02.720 --> 0:04:06.960 not much better. His hands were gnarled and his joints 0:04:07.040 --> 0:04:11.440 ached all hours of the day and night, moving or resting, 0:04:11.840 --> 0:04:16.800 it made no difference. Only Moses, Aaron, Joshua, Caleb, and 0:04:16.880 --> 0:04:19.919 Miriam had made it to Kadosh that spring of the 0:04:20.000 --> 0:04:24.440 thirty eighth year, but Miriam fell gravely ill when they arrived. 0:04:25.000 --> 0:04:28.920 She had helped Moses and Aaron oversee the final stages 0:04:28.960 --> 0:04:32.440 of setting up the tabernacle and their family's tents, but 0:04:32.600 --> 0:04:36.160 had to retreat to her tent to rest. She never 0:04:36.360 --> 0:04:42.120 rose again after that. Moses was devastated and Aaron was 0:04:42.160 --> 0:04:46.840 beside himself. The High Priest was prohibited from coming into 0:04:46.880 --> 0:04:50.040 contact with dead bodies by their laws, as it would 0:04:50.080 --> 0:04:54.640 render him ritually impure, so when they received word that 0:04:54.680 --> 0:04:58.039 she had passed peacefully in her sleep, Aaron was barred 0:04:58.080 --> 0:05:01.760 from even entering her tent. Moses could have gone in, 0:05:02.080 --> 0:05:05.799 but he refrained. Somehow, it didn't feel right when Aaron 0:05:05.880 --> 0:05:10.240 could not. Instead, one of her great great grandchildren would 0:05:10.279 --> 0:05:14.360 close her eyes for the final time. Moses and Aaron 0:05:14.440 --> 0:05:18.320 sat outside the tabernacle, weeping for the sister who had 0:05:18.400 --> 0:05:21.640 saved Moses as a baby and stood as a leader 0:05:21.720 --> 0:05:26.920 alongside them for decades. Elieza, Aaron's son, prepared her body 0:05:27.480 --> 0:05:32.160 while the community's mournful cries filled the camp. The brothers 0:05:32.240 --> 0:05:39.080 wept until exhaustion overtook them. Eyes dry, bodies trembling, the mourners. 0:05:39.160 --> 0:05:42.479 Keening echoed into the night, and though they returned to 0:05:42.520 --> 0:05:48.400 their tents, sleep eluded Moses lightly. It escaped Aaron as well. 0:05:49.360 --> 0:05:53.760 Moses wandered to the rock, waiting for dawn. As the 0:05:53.880 --> 0:05:57.680 sun rose, casting harsh light on the parched stone, he 0:05:57.880 --> 0:06:04.760 sighed that problem would wait today. They would bury Miriam. 0:06:05.839 --> 0:06:08.720 Joshua was about to depart for the day when the 0:06:08.760 --> 0:06:12.200 sound of two approaching voices right outside of his tent 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:16.400 made him halt in his tracks. Joshua knew the tone 0:06:16.400 --> 0:06:17.840 of dissent when he heard it. 0:06:18.480 --> 0:06:19.719 He was all too. 0:06:19.680 --> 0:06:23.160 Familiar with where this type of complaining would inevitably lead. 0:06:23.760 --> 0:06:28.000 His stomach tightened, but he clenched his jaw and listened. Anyway, 0:06:28.360 --> 0:06:29.880 Did you see the stream? 0:06:30.600 --> 0:06:32.240 You mean the dry creek bed? 0:06:33.040 --> 0:06:37.400 Exactly? How can Moses possibly think that we can settle 0:06:37.440 --> 0:06:40.400 here this year? I know his sister just died, but. 0:06:40.480 --> 0:06:41.640 We should get moving. 0:06:42.200 --> 0:06:44.960 It's an insult to think that we should sit here 0:06:45.000 --> 0:06:48.120 and starve, mere miles away from the promised land. 0:06:48.480 --> 0:06:49.359 It's not fair. 0:06:50.320 --> 0:06:53.800 My father told me of the grapes the scouts brought back. 0:06:54.480 --> 0:06:56.960 He said they had to be lifted. 0:06:56.560 --> 0:06:58.719 By two men across a long pole. 0:06:59.440 --> 0:07:00.159 Can you even. 0:07:02.120 --> 0:07:06.560 Moses has kept us from anything good? He would have 0:07:06.640 --> 0:07:10.240 us wandering the desert until we all die, just like 0:07:10.320 --> 0:07:11.040 our parents. 0:07:11.920 --> 0:07:15.760 We need to do something, something needs to change. 0:07:16.360 --> 0:07:19.760 Join us. We're going to Moses later today. Didn't he 0:07:20.120 --> 0:07:24.520 just bury his sister? Miriam's tomb has been sealed and 0:07:24.600 --> 0:07:28.520 the brothers earl morning. Why should we wait any longer 0:07:28.520 --> 0:07:32.760 to make our complaints known? We'll die out here ourselves 0:07:32.760 --> 0:07:34.160 if we wait much longer. 0:07:35.280 --> 0:07:36.160 I will go with you. 0:07:37.360 --> 0:07:41.560 The two men walked away, unaware that Joshua had overheard 0:07:41.600 --> 0:07:44.640 their blunt conversation from where he sat in the entryway 0:07:44.680 --> 0:07:48.520 to his tent. He sighed and rubbed his temples. It 0:07:48.680 --> 0:07:52.240 was time to find Moses and Aaron and alert them again. 0:07:53.200 --> 0:07:56.480 Now in his late fifties, Joshua was among the oldest 0:07:56.520 --> 0:08:00.480 who remembered the failures of their forebears. Nearly forty years ago, 0:08:01.280 --> 0:08:04.840 peace had settled over Israel as the older generations passed, 0:08:05.240 --> 0:08:08.080 replaced by younger ones who had only heard of the 0:08:08.120 --> 0:08:12.240 Red Sea whispered around Camphire's. They hadn't seen the lord's 0:08:12.240 --> 0:08:14.760 fearsome judgment first hand, as he and. 0:08:14.800 --> 0:08:18.040 Caleb had, how much longer until we take the promised land? 0:08:18.440 --> 0:08:19.080 Are we ready? 0:08:19.520 --> 0:08:22.280 Am I? Ready? Are they ready to take up the land? 0:08:22.320 --> 0:08:25.760 They've been promised? Will any of us have truly be ready? 0:08:26.520 --> 0:08:30.440 The Lord had promised that Joshua and Caleb would see Canaan. 0:08:30.960 --> 0:08:34.360 That much encouraged him when he felt lost and discouraged. 0:08:34.840 --> 0:08:38.280 But the Lord had extended no such promise to Moses, Aaron, 0:08:38.360 --> 0:08:42.559 and Miriam, And now Miriam was gone. Would the brothers 0:08:42.600 --> 0:08:45.120 live to see the fruition of the dream they've planted 0:08:45.160 --> 0:08:48.440 in every Israelite's art. Would their faithfulness at the next 0:08:48.480 --> 0:08:52.360 generation be rewarded. Joshua had come to accept that he 0:08:52.559 --> 0:08:56.000 was going to take the mantle of leadership when Moses passed. 0:08:56.720 --> 0:08:59.840 Such had been prophesied at the base of Mount Sinai. 0:09:00.600 --> 0:09:04.520 Yet even so, Joshua longed for Moses to lead the 0:09:04.600 --> 0:09:08.520 people into the promised land. He desperately wanted Moses to 0:09:08.640 --> 0:09:15.520 experience the joy of finishing what he had started. Moses 0:09:15.760 --> 0:09:19.400 was furious Joshua had just come to tell him of 0:09:19.440 --> 0:09:23.840 the approaching mob. After years of wandering the desert waiting 0:09:23.920 --> 0:09:27.680 for the faithless to pass, this new generation dared to 0:09:27.760 --> 0:09:32.400 echo the same ungrateful complaints of their forebears. Where was 0:09:32.480 --> 0:09:35.760 the justice in that? Weren't they supposed to be different? 0:09:36.080 --> 0:09:39.280 The ones worthy of the promised land. He had spent 0:09:39.400 --> 0:09:42.640 a third of his life preparing them, and this was 0:09:42.679 --> 0:09:47.920 their response. Moses glanced at Aaron, his brother, just as enraged, 0:09:48.200 --> 0:09:53.040 trembled from head to toe, his arthritic hands shaking uncontrollably. 0:09:53.640 --> 0:09:58.240 Have these children no respect? Her sister's party has not 0:09:58.440 --> 0:10:02.439 yet grown gold, and yet they hurl these complaints against us. 0:10:02.679 --> 0:10:08.640 It's this place, goodesh, it's still reeks of our past failures. 0:10:10.360 --> 0:10:14.520 It pollutes this place. It poisons their minds against us. 0:10:14.840 --> 0:10:19.079 Eh, what do they know? They don't know what we've 0:10:19.120 --> 0:10:20.640 been through on their behalf. 0:10:21.160 --> 0:10:27.440 These hunglings have no idea where we've been, what we've done. 0:10:28.000 --> 0:10:31.880 They they think they could have done better. How many 0:10:32.080 --> 0:10:35.679 countless men have died screaming in front of our. 0:10:35.520 --> 0:10:40.359 Eyes, even children crippled and scarred with disease. 0:10:41.040 --> 0:10:44.439 The ground splitting open between. 0:10:44.120 --> 0:10:48.360 Us, Oh, to give up what I have given up 0:10:48.400 --> 0:10:52.439 for their sake, the life I have been appointed to live, 0:10:53.080 --> 0:10:55.840 the mantle I carry, To give. 0:10:55.760 --> 0:11:02.360 Up my own sons, and to watch us see. 0:11:03.080 --> 0:11:05.720 I couldn't give him bury our sister. 0:11:05.679 --> 0:11:07.800 I'm telling you erin this time wile. 0:11:09.000 --> 0:11:12.520 Just then, Joshua poked his head back into Moses's tent. 0:11:12.800 --> 0:11:16.920 Moses baron, They are assembled before the tabernacle. They are 0:11:16.960 --> 0:11:21.719 ready for me. Moses sighed and steadied himself. He attempted 0:11:21.760 --> 0:11:24.840 to leash his rage and remind himself what his duty 0:11:25.000 --> 0:11:28.160 was to these people, what he had given his life for. 0:11:29.040 --> 0:11:33.360 Moses clenched his jaw and bawled his gnarled fists. What 0:11:33.400 --> 0:11:36.080 would it say about his legacy if he lost his 0:11:36.200 --> 0:11:40.199 temper and failed yet again? He motioned for Joshua to 0:11:40.320 --> 0:11:43.920 lead the way, and Moses and Aaron soon found themselves 0:11:43.960 --> 0:11:48.040 standing before an angry mob of disgruntled men and women. 0:11:48.679 --> 0:11:51.880 Again, have you brought us here? There's no water. Have 0:11:51.960 --> 0:11:54.240 you brought us here so that we will die like 0:11:54.280 --> 0:11:55.320 our father's The. 0:11:55.400 --> 0:11:59.000 Land of Canaan, just over the border, taunts us. We 0:11:59.120 --> 0:12:02.319 have grain and figs and vines, pomegranates. 0:12:02.679 --> 0:12:05.679 We have nothing. Have you forgotten what you taught us? 0:12:06.160 --> 0:12:09.280 We are the Lord's assembly, and yet we are still 0:12:09.320 --> 0:12:10.559 not in the promised land. 0:12:10.960 --> 0:12:14.640 You uprooted our fathers from Egypt just to strand us 0:12:14.800 --> 0:12:16.040 in this evil place. 0:12:16.480 --> 0:12:20.720 I'm starting to think you're afraid, Moses, not capable of 0:12:20.800 --> 0:12:24.320 leading us anymore. You don't have the boldness to lead 0:12:24.400 --> 0:12:28.439 us to the land of the promise. Does the Lord 0:12:28.520 --> 0:12:32.480 even speak to you anymore? Do you even have the 0:12:32.520 --> 0:12:33.600 authority to read? 0:12:34.480 --> 0:12:38.240 The crowd gathered around the instigators and devolved into shouting. 0:12:38.320 --> 0:12:42.680 Then Moses's mouth fell open in shock at these bold claims. 0:12:43.240 --> 0:12:46.200 One look at Aaron told him he was experiencing the 0:12:46.280 --> 0:12:50.000 same shock. The crowd before him blurred until he could 0:12:50.040 --> 0:12:53.679 only see read, and that familiar, willing sound returned, and 0:12:53.840 --> 0:12:57.120 Moses has again lost in his roiling thoughts. 0:12:59.400 --> 0:13:09.280 Of realizing. 0:13:10.880 --> 0:13:14.200 His hands gripped his staff, and just as he began 0:13:14.280 --> 0:13:17.600 to raise it, his body took over and his mind 0:13:17.679 --> 0:13:22.760 went blank with rage. Suddenly, a strong hand gripped his arm, 0:13:22.840 --> 0:13:26.080 and he saw Joshua's pleading face before him. 0:13:26.120 --> 0:13:30.040 Moses, please go before the Lord and ask for water, 0:13:30.600 --> 0:13:32.880 ask him to provide a way for us to stay here. 0:13:33.320 --> 0:13:36.520 Don't dignify their complaints with your rage. 0:13:36.559 --> 0:13:38.079 Moses' vision cleared. 0:13:38.679 --> 0:13:39.600 The boy was right. 0:13:40.200 --> 0:13:44.120 He was letting the people's words fester, poking at old 0:13:44.160 --> 0:13:48.199 insecurities and wounds from his past. He loosened his grip 0:13:48.240 --> 0:13:52.120 on the staff, flexing his hands and slowing his breath. 0:13:53.000 --> 0:13:58.000 Joshua stepped back but watched him with concern. Moses scowled 0:13:58.000 --> 0:14:01.840 at the shouting crowd, but said nothing. If they wanted 0:14:01.880 --> 0:14:05.199 to see his authority, he would show them by fulfilling 0:14:05.240 --> 0:14:10.319 his role, something none of them could do. Grasping Aaron's arm, 0:14:10.720 --> 0:14:14.720 Moses led him to the tabernacle. Aaron struggled to keep 0:14:14.800 --> 0:14:19.360 up these days. He hobbled, sometimes losing his way. Yet 0:14:19.400 --> 0:14:23.520 Moses was always there to guide him. He would until 0:14:23.560 --> 0:14:27.720 the bitter end. Inside they knelt in the most holy 0:14:27.840 --> 0:14:30.440 place and waited for the Lord to speak. 0:14:32.800 --> 0:14:36.960 Take the staff, the one I used to appoint the 0:14:37.080 --> 0:14:42.480 high priest, the one that sprouted before all Israel, and 0:14:42.600 --> 0:14:46.920 assemble the community by the dry stream. You and your 0:14:46.960 --> 0:14:50.600 brother Aaron are to speak to the source the rock 0:14:50.960 --> 0:14:54.640 while they want, Then it will yield its water. In 0:14:54.840 --> 0:14:58.600 that way, he would bring out water from them from 0:14:58.640 --> 0:15:03.360 the rock, and I drink for the entire community and 0:15:04.000 --> 0:15:05.080 live stock. 0:15:06.000 --> 0:15:10.400 Deep beneath Moses simmering anger, He knew he should be 0:15:10.480 --> 0:15:14.280 grateful for the solution the Lord provided. He knew he 0:15:14.320 --> 0:15:18.040 should rejoice that this spark of rebellion would not lead 0:15:18.120 --> 0:15:22.400 to ruin. Yet the sting of the people's complaints gnawed 0:15:22.440 --> 0:15:27.240 at him, distracting him, buzzing in his mind, crowding out 0:15:27.240 --> 0:15:30.480 the place where he usually felt the ever present presence 0:15:30.520 --> 0:15:33.920 of the Lord. Aaron mad the incense to fill the 0:15:33.960 --> 0:15:37.480 most holy place, veiling the glory of the Lord, and 0:15:37.600 --> 0:15:40.840 retrieved the sprouted starf from the ark of the Covenant. 0:15:41.480 --> 0:15:44.760 Both men marveled at how the olmans and blossoms had 0:15:44.800 --> 0:15:49.240 remained fresh and unaged. A true symbol of divine authority. 0:15:49.960 --> 0:15:53.880 Moses was to wield it. Taking the staff in hand, 0:15:54.280 --> 0:15:58.560 he led the reluctant, murmuring assembly of God's people out 0:15:58.720 --> 0:16:05.320 to the rock. Moses did as the Lord commanded, standing 0:16:05.320 --> 0:16:08.440 with Aaron before the gathered people of Israel in front 0:16:08.480 --> 0:16:11.840 of the dry rock. The crowd pressed in and around 0:16:11.920 --> 0:16:15.280 the creek bed, their water skins and jars held limply, 0:16:15.480 --> 0:16:20.040 their faces marked by doubt. They did not expect anything, 0:16:20.600 --> 0:16:24.040 nor did they believe Moses carried the true authority of God. 0:16:24.880 --> 0:16:27.800 They were too young to understand the significance of the 0:16:27.920 --> 0:16:31.680 staff in Moses hands. They hadn't seen the Nile turn 0:16:31.760 --> 0:16:35.280 to blood, or the Red Sea split in two. Yet 0:16:35.280 --> 0:16:38.520 here they were again, in Kaidish, at the edge of 0:16:38.560 --> 0:16:42.960 the promised Land, caught in the same cycle of doubt, fear, 0:16:43.200 --> 0:16:47.360 and disloyalty their parents had. Moses knew he had to 0:16:47.560 --> 0:16:50.800 end this uprising before it took root. He had to 0:16:50.840 --> 0:16:54.040 remind them of their place and the divine power at 0:16:54.080 --> 0:16:54.960 work among them. 0:16:55.360 --> 0:17:00.440 Listen, you rebels, must erin, and I bring what out 0:17:00.440 --> 0:17:03.400 of this rock for you. We will show you where 0:17:03.440 --> 0:17:04.720 true authority lies. 0:17:05.440 --> 0:17:11.080 Anger surged, unchecked through Moses, finally unleashed as he spoke 0:17:11.160 --> 0:17:15.040 with ferocity to the ungrateful crowd. He raised his hand 0:17:15.080 --> 0:17:18.800 and struck the rock with the sprouted staff. The impact 0:17:18.880 --> 0:17:23.639 reverberated up his arm, jarring his shoulder, fueling his rage further. 0:17:24.520 --> 0:17:28.520 He struck the rock a second time. Water gushed in 0:17:28.600 --> 0:17:32.440 a torrent, filling the dry creek bed and surging into 0:17:32.480 --> 0:17:36.760 the camp. The current flowed fast and strong, spreading through 0:17:36.800 --> 0:17:41.480 the plains beyond. The people gasped and cheered, Astonished by 0:17:41.520 --> 0:17:46.080 the sight. Even Moses stood stunned. He had seen waterfalls 0:17:46.119 --> 0:17:49.040 in Egypt, that such a rush of water was unheard 0:17:49.040 --> 0:17:52.840 of in the desert. The people's amazement softened their anger. 0:17:53.480 --> 0:17:57.440 Moses saw Aaron's shoulders slump with relief, But as their 0:17:57.480 --> 0:18:01.400 relief settled Moses felt the presence of the Lord's stir 0:18:01.600 --> 0:18:06.160 within him. A familiar fear prickled his spine, and Aaron 0:18:06.240 --> 0:18:08.800 looked at him, worry creasing his face. 0:18:09.240 --> 0:18:14.320 He wants to speak with us, doesn't he? 0:18:14.400 --> 0:18:16.280 Yes, he does? 0:18:16.760 --> 0:18:21.360 Or Moses, we acted like those arrogant magicians back. 0:18:21.200 --> 0:18:25.000 At Pharaoh's court? What he acted like? What was his name? 0:18:25.520 --> 0:18:30.199 Remember Ramsey's high priest and that slippery snake of a 0:18:30.280 --> 0:18:33.920 man Nebermond, tolting the Lord's. 0:18:33.560 --> 0:18:35.240 Power as if it was our own. 0:18:36.000 --> 0:18:38.920 We've grown to accustom to oppositions. 0:18:39.480 --> 0:18:44.800 We've become compliant in our steady rain over the people. 0:18:45.320 --> 0:18:47.840 We're no better than those Egyptians. 0:18:48.680 --> 0:18:53.040 Aaron was right. Moses's stomach dropped out as he recalled 0:18:53.080 --> 0:18:56.159 the things he thought and said in his anger. His 0:18:56.320 --> 0:19:00.879 hardened heart was no better than Ramsey's. Moses swallowed and 0:19:00.920 --> 0:19:03.960 then nodded to Aaron. The two of them went away 0:19:04.040 --> 0:19:07.480 from the still celebrating crowds along the bank of the 0:19:07.560 --> 0:19:11.160 now rushing stream and knelt before the god they had 0:19:11.200 --> 0:19:13.280 been following for the last century. 0:19:13.920 --> 0:19:18.320 Lord speak, we are ready to hear. 0:19:18.160 --> 0:19:22.480 You, Moses felt to Lord's disappointment in the silence that 0:19:22.640 --> 0:19:27.320 hung between them. He hung his head in shame. He understood, 0:19:28.000 --> 0:19:31.159 in his haste and anger and pride he had taken 0:19:31.240 --> 0:19:34.600 up the Lord's authority and waved it before the masses 0:19:34.720 --> 0:19:38.480 as if it was his own. His heart sank. He 0:19:38.640 --> 0:19:41.320 was lucky to be alive and kneeling before the Lord 0:19:41.359 --> 0:19:44.359 at all. If any one else had been so brazenly 0:19:44.400 --> 0:19:47.600 disrespectful to his God, he would have expected the holy 0:19:47.680 --> 0:19:51.240 fires to consume them immediately. He had seen it happen 0:19:51.760 --> 0:19:56.760 a lot, and it had been justified. Tears brimmed in 0:19:56.880 --> 0:20:00.280 Moses's eyes. He had failed again. 0:20:00.880 --> 0:20:04.360 Why am I still kneeling, still breathing? 0:20:05.119 --> 0:20:07.080 Why am I still living at all? 0:20:08.080 --> 0:20:11.919 At the thought, he held his breath and waited for wrath, 0:20:12.840 --> 0:20:19.399 waited for fire, waited for oblivion. But it did not come. 0:20:20.359 --> 0:20:26.240 There was only stillness, and in that stillness resolution. 0:20:26.320 --> 0:20:29.960 Yet you would let us live. 0:20:30.720 --> 0:20:35.760 He wept at the Lord's mercy, and Aaron wept beside him. 0:20:36.119 --> 0:20:41.000 It was not until Moses understood that the Lord finally spoke. 0:20:41.960 --> 0:20:46.639 You understand, You understand that you did not trust me 0:20:46.920 --> 0:20:50.480 to demonstrate mine holiness in the sight of all Israel. 0:20:50.960 --> 0:20:54.960 You took it upon yourself. You acted accordingly. To your 0:20:55.080 --> 0:20:56.320 own authority. 0:20:57.280 --> 0:21:01.439 Moses continued to weep as he remembered the Lord's instructions. 0:21:02.000 --> 0:21:05.040 The realization pressed down on him like a great weight. 0:21:05.600 --> 0:21:08.400 He was to speak and the water would flow from 0:21:08.400 --> 0:21:11.760 the rock. But in losing control, and in the midst 0:21:11.840 --> 0:21:16.560 of his outburst, he struck the rock twice, struck it 0:21:17.040 --> 0:21:17.760 out of anger. 0:21:18.600 --> 0:21:22.400 Because of this act of rebellion, neither of you will 0:21:22.480 --> 0:21:26.040 bring this assembly into the land I have given them. 0:21:26.200 --> 0:21:31.120 Moses slumped, and he felt Aaron collapse in despair beside him. 0:21:31.720 --> 0:21:35.680 He had heard the Lord as well. Moses was grateful 0:21:35.760 --> 0:21:38.920 he didn't have to relay the words. He doubted he 0:21:38.960 --> 0:21:43.040 could find the words to express this profound and utter failure. 0:21:43.840 --> 0:21:48.720 His words spoken in obedience could have brought life, but 0:21:48.880 --> 0:21:54.240 instead his angry words would only bring death and disappointment. 0:21:58.040 --> 0:22:02.040 I have to admit this story is really hard to understand. 0:22:02.640 --> 0:22:05.440 Moses strikes the rock instead of speaking to it as 0:22:05.480 --> 0:22:08.320 God has commanded, and for that he is punished by 0:22:08.359 --> 0:22:11.800 not being permitted to enter the promised Land. Leading the 0:22:11.800 --> 0:22:15.280 people into the Holy Land was his life's goal. Why 0:22:15.440 --> 0:22:19.639 was the punishment so severe? The great nineteenth century sage 0:22:19.680 --> 0:22:23.480 Rabby Neftalites via Huda Berlin explains this story in a 0:22:23.480 --> 0:22:27.320 different way, a way that's very interesting. He notes that 0:22:27.400 --> 0:22:29.960 this was the thirty eighth year for the Israelites in 0:22:30.000 --> 0:22:33.680 the desert, and that the generation who witnessed the Exodus 0:22:33.680 --> 0:22:36.960 and the giving of the Torah had almost completely died out. 0:22:37.600 --> 0:22:41.040 The Israelites in this story hadn't seen the miracles in Egypt, 0:22:41.160 --> 0:22:46.160 they hadn't experienced God's presence at Mount Sinai. These Israelites 0:22:46.240 --> 0:22:50.280 needed an injection of faith, and Rabbi Berlin says that 0:22:50.359 --> 0:22:55.159 it's here where Moses failed. Instead of listening exactly to 0:22:55.200 --> 0:22:58.960 God's command, Moses displayed anger and despair, and instead of 0:22:58.960 --> 0:23:00.840 giving the people the us sure of faith that they 0:23:00.880 --> 0:23:05.439 needed so badly, Moses calls them rebels. As a result, 0:23:05.520 --> 0:23:09.000 got understood that while Moses was the perfect leader for 0:23:09.080 --> 0:23:12.960 the previous generation, this new generation actually needed a different 0:23:13.080 --> 0:23:17.640 kind of leadership, a leader who was more inspirational and 0:23:17.760 --> 0:23:22.560 less confrontational. And so the decree for Moses not to 0:23:22.680 --> 0:23:26.480 enter the Holy Land wasn't really a punishment. Rather, it 0:23:26.680 --> 0:23:30.760 was the recognition that Moses, as holy as he was, 0:23:30.760 --> 0:23:33.359 was not the right leader for the new generation. About 0:23:33.400 --> 0:23:36.720 to make the transition to living in and building the 0:23:36.800 --> 0:23:41.840 Promised Land. It's difficult and it's sometimes painful to realize 0:23:41.840 --> 0:23:44.720 that new leadership is needed, but we see from the 0:23:44.840 --> 0:23:50.480 stories that it's necessary. Even Moses couldn't be a leader forever. 0:23:51.400 --> 0:23:54.720 And we learn from Rabbi Berlin's explanation that every generation 0:23:54.880 --> 0:23:58.680 needs a leader who can inspire faith. The person who 0:23:58.680 --> 0:24:02.639 did that for a previous generation might not inspire the 0:24:02.720 --> 0:24:05.760 new one. It's a hard lesson, but it's a very 0:24:05.760 --> 0:24:09.840 important one. This story is more than just one story 0:24:09.880 --> 0:24:13.680 about a simple mistake or a moment of frustration. God 0:24:13.720 --> 0:24:17.400 commanded Moses to speak to the rock, but instead Moses 0:24:17.560 --> 0:24:20.399 hit the rock, and on the surface, that seems like 0:24:20.480 --> 0:24:25.520 the problem disobedience to God's clear instructions. But the deeper 0:24:25.520 --> 0:24:30.520 issue is one of trust. Moses's frustration clouded his vision, 0:24:30.600 --> 0:24:33.880 and his loss of perspective led to an act of desperation, 0:24:34.800 --> 0:24:39.440 and it's here that we find a deep truth. Gratitude 0:24:40.119 --> 0:24:44.439 is a form of faith when we can recognize the 0:24:44.480 --> 0:24:47.800 good even in the dry and barren wilderness. We declare 0:24:47.800 --> 0:24:52.719 our trust in God in Hebrew Hakarata Toau. Recognizing the 0:24:52.760 --> 0:24:55.680 good is what it's called and it's not just about 0:24:55.760 --> 0:25:00.000 being thankful. It's about acknowledging that every blessing, every provision 0:25:00.280 --> 0:25:05.720 comes from God. Moses, for all of his greatness, missed 0:25:05.720 --> 0:25:08.440 that moment. How many times do we miss the good 0:25:08.440 --> 0:25:11.879 in our lives because of frustration, because we want something else, 0:25:11.960 --> 0:25:14.920 we want something more. It's something to think about as 0:25:14.920 --> 0:25:18.280 we learn from the victories and the failures of the 0:25:18.400 --> 0:25:22.600 chosen people who came before us. There is one more 0:25:22.640 --> 0:25:25.240 teaching from Jewish tradition that want to share with you today. 0:25:25.600 --> 0:25:28.000 Our tradition teaches that Moses did just hit the rock. 0:25:28.080 --> 0:25:29.520 He spoke to the wrong one. 0:25:30.200 --> 0:25:32.520 The Lord had told Moses to speak to the same 0:25:32.600 --> 0:25:35.439 rock that had blessed the people with water for forty years. 0:25:35.440 --> 0:25:39.560 But Moses, in a moment of frustration, couldn't even recognize 0:25:39.560 --> 0:25:42.600 the life giving rock. He lost sight of the gift 0:25:42.640 --> 0:25:45.200 God had provided, and in that moment he failed to 0:25:45.240 --> 0:25:48.719 see the blessing in front of him. I'll repeat that 0:25:48.800 --> 0:25:52.640 Hebrew phrase for gratitude that I used earlier. In Hebrew, 0:25:52.880 --> 0:25:58.399 the term for recognizing the good is hakarat hatauv, and 0:25:58.440 --> 0:26:03.160 Moses at this moment didn't have hakaratatov. He didn't recognize 0:26:03.200 --> 0:26:06.719 the good, the blessing that God had given him. It 0:26:06.760 --> 0:26:09.480 wasn't about striking the rock. It was about failing to 0:26:09.520 --> 0:26:12.359 see the miracle that was right in front of his eyes. 0:26:13.119 --> 0:26:15.359 How often do we do the same? How often do 0:26:15.400 --> 0:26:17.879 we miss the good because we're so focused on what 0:26:17.960 --> 0:26:22.600 we lack? Moses, our greatest leader, made mistakes, and from 0:26:22.680 --> 0:26:25.760 his story we learn a powerful truth that even the 0:26:25.800 --> 0:26:31.000 greatest among us aren't perfect. We fall, we fail, but 0:26:31.040 --> 0:26:34.240 that's not the end. It's not about being flawless. It's 0:26:34.240 --> 0:26:37.680 about learning from our mistakes, recognizing the good, and keeping 0:26:37.680 --> 0:26:41.240