Preface: The chapter covers the second no-water incident; and the first military skirmish that Israel has (which is against Amalek).

The Bible Summary of Exodus 17 (in 140 characters or less): The LORD told Moses to strike a rock to provide water. Amalek attacked Israel, but as Moses held up his arms Joshua's army prevailed.

There are many chapter commentaries on the book of Exodus. This will be the most extensive examination of Exodus 17, where you will be able to examine in depth every word of the original text. Every attempt has been made to make this both a complete and self-contained study. Therefore, all references, vocabulary, and related concepts should be found within this extensive study. Easy access links to more in-depth studies of some vocabulary words, concepts and doctrines are also provided.

Outline of Chapter 17:

Introduction

         vv.     1–7           The First No-Water Test for Israel

         vv.     8–13         Israel Defeats Amalek in Their First Battle

         vv.    14–16         God Commands the Recording of These Historical Events

Chapter Summary

Addendum

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines:

         Preface               Quotations

         Introduction         Titles and/or Brief Descriptions of Exodus 17 (by various commentators)

         Introduction         Brief, but insightful observations of Exodus 17 (various commentators)

         Introduction         Fundamental Questions About Exodus 17

         Introduction         The Prequel of Exodus 17

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         The Principals of Exodus 17

         Introduction         The Places of Exodus 17

         Introduction         By the Numbers

         Introduction         Timeline for Exodus 17

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Exodus 17

         Introduction         Outlines of Exodus 17 (Various Commentators)

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Exodus 17 from the Summarized Bible

         Introduction         The Big Picture (Exodus 15b–19)

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         Changes—additions and subtractions (for Exodus 17)

         Introduction 

         v. 

         v.       1              Israel’s Route in the Desert-wilderness (a map)

         v.       2              The People Contend with Moses (a graphic)

         v.       3              The Israelites were constant complainers (a cartoon)

         v.       4              Exodus 17:4 (KJV) (a graphic)

         v.       5              A brief review of Exodus 17:1–5c

         v.       6              Waters of Massah & Meribah (a graphic)

         v.       6              God Gives Israel Water from the Rock (a graphic)

         v.       6              The Rock at Horeb is Jesus Christ

         v.       6              1Corinthians 10:4 (WEB) (a graphic)

         v.       6              God’s Directions Foreshadow Jesus and the Crucifixion

         v.       6              “Is YHWH among us or not?” (a graphic)

         v.       6              Jesus and the Samaritan Woman at the Well

         v.       7              The Age of Israel, the Church Age and the Millennium

         v.       7              Exodus 17:7 (NIV) (a graphic)

         v.       8              The Battle Belongs to the Lord (Exodus 17:8–16) (a graphic)

         v.       8              Egypt, Midian and Canaan (a map)

         v.      12              Aaron and Hur Support the Arms of Moses (Exodus 17:12) (a graphic)

         v.      14              Exodus 17:14 (a graphic)

         v.      15              The Abbreviated Doctrine of the Altar

         v.      15              Jehovah Nissi (a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         Summary            A Set of Summary Doctrines and Commentary

         Summary            Why Exodus 17 is in the Word of God

         Summary            What We Learn from Exodus 17

         Summary            Jesus Christ in Exodus 17

         Summary            A Brief Review of Exodus 17

         Summary            Vocabulary from the Tree of Life Version

         Summary            Moses Striking Water from the Rock by Niccolò Possino (1649)

         Summary            Aaron and Hur Holding Up Moses’ Hands (a graphic)

         Summary 

         Summary            Shmoop Summary of Exodus 17

         Summary            Edersheim Summarizes Exodus 17

         Addendum 

         Addendum          Josephus’ History of this Time Period

         Addendum          A Complete Translation of Exodus 17

         Addendum          Doctrinal Teachers Who Have Taught Exodus 17

         Addendum          Word Cloud from a Reasonably Literal Paraphrase of Exodus 17

         Addendum          Word Cloud from Exegesis of Exodus 17

——————————

An Introduction to Exodus 17

I ntroduction: Exodus 17 covers two basic topics. In the first half of this chapter, the Israelites are tested with regard to water and God provides them water. The second half of Exodus 17 deals with a skirmish between the Israelites and Amalek.

The sons of Israel are being tested throughout this portion of the book of Exodus, and mostly, they are failing. Almost every test that they face—recorded chiefly here and in Numbers—they will fail as a nation.

This is the second no water test for Israel. Altogether, they will face three no water tests in all: the first was Exodus 15 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD) and the third one will occur in Numbers 20 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD). All three tests are different and they are all significant. Each one is typical (that is, each one looks forward to a future event or it illustrates a future event).

In this second no water test, the people complain to Moses again, as if he has some hidden agenda to harm them.

Moses understands that each day of life is a grace gift from God; but these people do not seem to have a clue about this, despite all that they have seen (remember, they are receiving manna every single morning). God will have Moses take his staff and slam it against a rock, which will then open up and water will rush out.

While Israel is at this place, drinking the water provided them by God, the people of Amalek come out to fight them. Apparently, they set a day and time for this engagement; and Moses chooses men from his population to oppose them. We might envision this more as a large, preplanned gang fight as opposed to a full-scale war. The fight would be to the death, but it appears that Amalek is giving Israel every chance. However, in their eyes, they might be simply toying with Israel, as a cat with a mouse.

During this skirmish, Moses will stand on a hill with others, and as he raised up his arms, the fight would go in Israel’s favor. As his arms became tired and they dropped down, Amalek would appear to start winning this fight.

Both of these incidents have meaning, both to the Israelites of that day; and for people in the future.

Timeline for Exodus 17

——————————

The First No-Water Test for Israel

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:                       Note: I compare the Hebrew text to English translations of the Latin, Syriac (= Aramaic) and Greek texts, using the Douay-Rheims translation; George Lamsa’s translation, and Sir Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton’s translation as revised and edited by Paul W. Esposito, respectively. I often update these texts with non-substantive changes (e.g., you for thou, etc.). I often use the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible instead of Brenton’s translation, because it updates the English text.

The Septuagint was the earliest known translation of a book (circa 200 b.c.). Since this translation was made before the textual criticism had been developed into a science and because different books appear to be translated by different men, the Greek translation can sometimes be very uneven.

When there are serious disparities between my translation and Brenton’s (or the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible), I look at the Greek text of the Septuagint (the LXX) to see if a substantive difference actually exists (and I reflect these changes in the English rendering of the Greek text). I use the Greek LXX with Strong’s numbers and morphology available for e-sword. The only problem with this resource (which is a problem for similar resources) is, there is no way to further explore Greek verbs which are not found in the New Testament. Although I usually quote the Complete Apostles’ Bible here, I have begun to make changes in the translation when their translation conflicts with the Greek and note what those changes are.

The Masoretic text is the Hebrew text with all of the vowels (vowel points) inserted (the original Hebrew text lacked vowels). We take the Masoretic text to be the text closest to the original. However, differences between the Masoretic text and the Greek, Latin and Syriac are worth noting and, once in a great while, represent a more accurate text possessed by those other ancient translators.

In general, the Latin text is an outstanding translation from the Hebrew text into Latin and very trustworthy (I say this as a non-Catholic). Unfortunately, I do not read Latin—apart from some very obvious words—so I am dependent upon the English translation of the Latin (principally, the Douay-Rheims translation).

The comparisons which I do are primarily between the English translations which are taken from the ancient tongues. For the most part, the variances are so minor that I rarely investigate them any further than that.

Underlined words indicate differences in the text.

Bracketed portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls are words, letters and phrases lost in the scroll due to various types of damage. Underlined words or phrases are those in the Dead Sea Scrolls but not in the Masoretic text.

I will only list the translation from the Dead Sea Scrolls if it exists and if it is different from the Masoretic text.

The Targum of Onkelos is actually the Pentateuchal Targumim, which are The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan Ben Uzziel. On the Pentateuch With The Fragments of the Jerusalem Targum From the Chaldee by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. From http://www.becomingjewish.org/texts/targum/onkelos_Exodus.html and first published in 1862.

Occasionally, there is an obvious error in the English translation, and I correct those without additional mention or footnoting. For instance, the online version of the Targum of Onkelos which I use has gorund in Ex. 4:9; I simply corrected the text. This may occur once or twice in a chapter.

I attempt to include translations which are different in their vocabulary and phrasing. On many occasions, I may include a translation which is not substantially different than another listed translation.

Most of the translations can be found here.

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And so journey all a congregation of sons of Israel from desert-wilderness of Sin, to their journeys by a mouth of Y^ehowah. And so they camp in Rephidim and [there are] no waters to drink [for] the people. And so they say, “Give to us waters and we will drink [it].”

Dead Sea Scrolls                   .

Targum (Onkelos)                  And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the desert of Sin, according to their itinerations by the Word of the Lord; and they encamped in Rephidim: but the people had no water to drink; and the people were contentious with Mosheh, and said, Give us water that we may drink. Translation for Onkelos and Pseudo-Jonathan by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. (1862).

Targum (Pseudo-Jonathan)   And all the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed from the desert of Sin by their journeyings according to the word of the Lord, and they encamped in Rephidim, a place where their bands were idle in the commandments of the law, and the fountains were dry, and there was no water for the people to drink. And the wicked of the, people contended with Mosheh, and said, Give us water, that we may drink.

Revised Douay-Rheims         Then all the multitude of the children of Israel setting forward from the desert of Sin, by their mansions, according to the word of the Lord, encamped in Raphidim, where there was no water for the people to drink. And they chode with Moses, and said: Give us water, that we may drink.

Aramaic ESV of Peshitta        All the congregation of the B'nai Yisrael travelled from the wilderness of Sin, by their journeys, according to Mar-Yah's commandment, and encamped in Rephidim; but there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people quarrelled with Mosha, and said, "Give us water to drink."

V. Alexander’s Aramaic T.     AND the whole congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Seen, after their journeys, according to the command of the LORD, and camped at Rephidim; and there was no water for the people to drink. Wherefore the people quarreled with Moses, and said to him. Give us water that we may drink.

Updated Brenton (Greek)       And all the congregation of the children of Israel departed from the wilderness of Sin, according to their encampments, by the word of the Lord; and they encamped in Raphidin: and there was no water for the people to drink. And the people reviled Moses, saying, Give us water, that we may drink;...

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             And the children of Israel went on from the waste land of Sin, by stages as the Lord gave them orders, and put up their tents in Rephidim: and there was no drinking-water for the people. So the people were angry with Moses, and said, Give us water for drinking.

Easy English                          God gives water out of a rock

Then all the Israelites travelled away from the desert called Sin. They moved from one place to another, when the LORD commanded them. When they came to Rephidim, there was no water. The people had nothing to drink. Because of this, the people quarrelled with Moses. They said: ‘Give us water to drink!’

Easy-to-Read Version–2006  Water From the Rock

The Israelites left the western Sinai desert. [Literally, “desert of Sin.”] They traveled all together from place to place as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. So they turned against Moses and started arguing with him. They said, “Give us water to drink.”

The Message                         Directed by God, the whole company of Israel moved on by stages from the Wilderness of Sin. They set camp at Rephidim. And there wasn’t a drop of water for the people to drink. The people took Moses to task: “Give us water to drink.”

Names of God Bible               The Lord Provides Water for the Israelites from a Rock

The whole community of Israelites left the desert of Sin and traveled from place to place as Yahweh commanded them. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. So they complained to Moses by saying, “Give us water to drink!”

NIRV                                      Water Out of the Rock

The whole community of Israel started out from the Desert of Sin. They traveled from place to place, just as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim. But there wasn’t any water for the people to drink. So they argued with Moses. They said, “Give us water to drink.”

Thought-for-thought translations; dynamic translations; paraphrases:

Contemporary English V.       The Israelites left the desert and moved from one place to another each time the LORD ordered them to. Once they camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for them to drink. The people started complaining to Moses, "Give us some water!"

The Living Bible                     Now, at God’s command, the people of Israel left the Sihn Desert, going by easy stages to Rephidim. But upon arrival, there was no water!

So once more the people growled and complained to Moses. “Give us water!” they wailed.

New Berkeley Version           .

New Life Version                    Water from the Rock

All the people of Israel left the Desert of Sin, traveling from one place to another as the Lord told them. They set up their tents at Rephidim. But there was no water for the people to drink. So the people argued with Moses, saying, “Give us water to drink.”

New Living Translation           Water from the Rock

At the Lord’s command, the whole community of Israel left the wilderness of Sin[a] and moved from place to place. Eventually they camped at Rephidim, but there was no water there for the people to drink. So once more the people complained against Moses. “Give us water to drink!” they demanded.

Unlocked Dynamic Bible        Obeying what Yahweh commanded, all the Israelite people moved from the wilderness of Sin. They traveled from one place to another. They camped at a place called Rephidim, but there was no water there for the people to drink. So the people complained to Moses again, saying, “Give us water to drink!”

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          Thereafter, the entire gathering of the children of IsraEl left the Sin Desert, following the order of their camps, and the Lord told them to camp in RaphiDin. However, there was no water for the people to drink in this place, so they started shouting at Moses and saying:

‘Give us water to drink!’

Beck’s American Translation .

Common English Bible           Water from a rock

The whole Israelite community broke camp and set out from the Sin desert to continue their journey, as the Lord commanded. They set up their camp at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. The people argued with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.”

International Standard V        God Provides Water from a Rock

(Numbers 20:1-13)

The whole congregation of the Israelis set out from the desert [Or wilderness] of Sin, traveling from place to place according to the command [Lit. mouth] of the LORD. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. The people quarreled with Moses: “Give us water to drink.”

New Advent (Knox) Bible       Then the whole people of Israel left the desert of Sin, moving on from stage to stage as the Lord directed them, and encamped at Raphidim. But here they had no water to drink, so they turned upon Moses crying out, We have nothing to drink; find water for us.

Translation for Translators                                 Yahweh provided water gushing from a rock

Obeying what Yahweh commanded, all the Israeli people moved from the Sin desert. They/We traveled from one place to another. They/We camped at a place named Rephidim, but there was no water there for the people/us to drink. So the people complained to Moses/me again, saying, “Give us water to drink!”

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Conservapedia                       The entire assembly of the Sons of Israel traveled from the wilderness of Sin, traveling as they were bidden by the LORD. They encamped in Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. So the people raised a contention with Moses, and said, "Give us water to drink!"

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                Marching in Thirst.

Afterwards the whole body of the children of Israel marched from the Desert of Sin by stages at the com- mand of the LORD, and encamped in exhaustion, for there was no water to quench the pe0ple’s thirst. There the people contended with Moses, Give us water, and quench our thirst.’

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           And all the company of the children of Israel went on their journeys from the wilderness of Sin at the commandment of the Lord, and pitched in Raphidim: where was no water for the people to drink. And the people chode (disapproving) with Moses and said: give us water to drink.

HCSB                                     Water from the Rock

The entire Israelite community left the Wilderness of Sin, moving from one place to the next according to the Lord’s command. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. So the people complained to Moses, “Give us water to drink.”

Lexham English Bible            Water from a Rock

And all the community of the {Israelites} set out from the desert of Sin for their journeys according to the command of Yahweh, and they camped in Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. And the people quarreled with Moses, and they said, "Give us water so that we can drink."

Unlocked Literal Bible            The whole community of the Israelites journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, following Yahweh’s instructions. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. So the people blamed Moses for their situation and said, “Give us water to drink.”

Wikipedia Bible Project          And all the congregation of the sons of Israel drove off from the steppe of Sin on their journey, by Yahweh's word, and they camped in Refidim, and there is no water to quench the people. And the people argued with Moses and said "Give us water, and we will drink."

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

Christian Community (1988)  The whole community of the people of Israel moved on from the desert of Sin going from place to place as Yahweh commanded, and encamped at Rephidim. But there was no water to drink. The people complained to Moses and said, "Give us water to drink."

The Heritage Bible                 And all the congregation of the children of Israel pulled up from the desert of Siyn, after their journeys, according to the mouth of Jehovah, and pitched in Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. And the people contended with Moses, and said, Give us water that we may drink.

New American Bible (2011)   Water from the Rock.

From the wilderness of Sin the whole Israelite community journeyed by stages, as the LORD directed, and encamped at Rephidim. [Nm 33:12–14]

But there was no water for the people to drink,

[[17:2–7] Nm 20:2–13] and so they quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.”

New English Bible–1970        Sin to Massah-Meridah - water from the rock.

The whole community of Israel set out from the wilderness of Sin and travelled by stages as the LORD told them. They encamped at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink, and a dispute arose between them and Moses. V. 2b will be placed with the next passage.

New Jerusalem Bible             The whole community of Israelites left the desert of Sin, travelling by stages as Yahweh ordered. They pitched camp at Rephidim where there was no water for the people to drink. The people took issue with Moses for this and said, 'Give us water to drink.'

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

The Complete Tanach           The entire community of the children of Israel journeyed from the desert of Sin to their travels by the mandate of the Lord. They encamped in Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. So the people quarreled with Moses, and they said, Give us water that we may drink.

Complete Jewish Bible           (vii) The whole community of the people of Isra’el left the Seen Desert, traveling in stages, as Adonai had ordered, and camped at Refidim; but there was no water for the people to drink. The people quarreled with Moshe, demanding, “Give us water to drink!”

Hebraic Roots Bible               And all the congregation of the sons of Israel pulled up stakes from the Wilderness of Sin, according to their journeys, by the mouth of YAHWEH. And they camped in Rephidim. And there was no water for the drinking of the people. And the people fought with Moses, and said, Give us water that we may drink.

The Scriptures 1998              And all the congregation of the children of Yisra’ĕl set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin, according to the command of יהוה, and camped in Rephid?im. And there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people strove with Mosheh, and said, “Give us water to drink.”

Tree of Life Version                Test and Quarreling

All the congregation of Bnei-Yisrael journeyed from the wilderness of Sin in stages, according to the command of Adonai, and camped in Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. So the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.”

Weird English, Olde English, Anachronistic English Translations:

Concordant Literal Version    The whole congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin in their journeys at the bidding of Yahweh, and they encamped in Rephidim; yet there was no water for the people to drink. So the people contended with Moses and said: Give to us water that we may drink.

exeGeses companion Bible   WATER FROM THE ROCK

And all the witness of the sons of Yisra El

pull stakes from the wilderness of Sin,

on their journeys according to the mouth of Yah Veh;

and encamp in Rephidim:

and there is no water for the people to drink.

And the people strive with Mosheh

and say, Give us water to drink.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           And kol Adat Bnei Yisroel journeyed from the midbar of Siyn, setting out, according to the commandment of Hashem, and encamped in Rephidim; and there was no mayim for HaAm to drink.

Wherefore the people did chide (quarrel, become dissatisfied with) Moshe, and said, Give us mayim that we may drink.

Rotherham’s Emphasized B. And all the assembly of the sons of Israel set forward out of the desert of Sin, by their removings, at the bidding of Yahweh,—and encamped in Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. And the people found fault with Moses, and said—Give us water, that we may drink.

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Amplified Bible                Water in the Rock

Then all the congregation of the children of Israel moved on from the Wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water so we may [have something to] drink.”

The Expanded Bible              Water from a Rock

The whole ·Israelite community [congregation/assembly of the sons/^T children of Israel] left the ·Desert [Wilderness] of Sin and ·traveled from place to place [journeyed by stages], as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water there for the people to drink. So the people ·quarreled with [accused; made a case against] Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.”

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Verses 1-7

The Murmuring at Massah and Meribah

And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, after their journeys, after several days' marching, on each of which they encamped for the night, Num. 33:12, according to the commandment of the Lord, and pitched in Rephidim, on the boundary of the wilderness of Sinai; and there was no water for the people to drink. Wherefore the people did chide with Moses and said, Give us water that we may drink. They deliberately challenged Moses for an explanation; they started a quarrel, they wrangled.

Syndein/Thieme                     {Verses 1-7 - Hebrews 3: 7-8 refers to this passage as does Psalms 95:8}

And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the desert of Zin/Sin {a place -NOT referring to the 'act' of sinning}, after their journeys, according to the commandment of the Jehovah/God, and pitched in Rephidim {means 'refreshments'}. And there was no water for the people to drink.

{Note: They were within the geographic will of God and it is His duty to provide! If they had doctrine, they would have understood this!}

Therefore the people did complain {a sign of reversionism} with Moses, and said, "Give us water that we may drink.".

The Voice                               The entire community of Israel traveled in stages out of the desert of Sin, just as the Eternal instructed. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water there to quench their thirst. Once again the people complained to Moses.

Israelites: Give us water to drink! We’re thirsty.

Bible Translations with an Excess of Footnotes:

Kaplan Translation                 Water from the Rock

The entire Israelite community moved on from the Sin desert, traveling according to God's instructions until they camped in Rephidim. There was no water for the people to drink. The people began to quarrel with Moses. 'Give us water to drink!' they exclaimed. The Kaplan Translation, particularly in Exodus through Deuteronomy, takes note of historic rabbinic opinions.

traveling...

Some say that this alludes to the stops in Dophkah and Alush, mentioned in Numbers 33:12,13 (Ibn Ezra; cf. Ramman).

Rephidim

This is usually thought to be Wadi Refayad, some 10 miles west of Mount Sinai (Jebal Musa) (cf. Ramban on Exodus 17:5). It is a day's journey from Sinai, and 2 days from Elim (Masa'oth Rabbi Binyamin 24). Others say that it is the upper part of the oasis of Feiran, the broad long oasis that is the most fertile part of Sinai, or alternatively, the narrow defile, el-Watiya, 27 miles beyond Feiran.

NET Bible®                             Water at Massa and Meribah

¹ The whole community² of the Israelites traveled on their journey³ from the Desert of Sin according to the Lord’s instruction, and they pitched camp in Rephidim.⁴ Now⁵ there was no water for the people to drink.⁶ So the people contended⁷ with Moses, and they said, “Give us water to drink!”⁸

^1sn This is the famous story telling how the people rebelled against Yahweh when they thirsted, saying that Moses had brought them out into the wilderness to kill them by thirst, and how Moses with the staff brought water from the rock. As a result of this the name was called Massa and Meribah because of the testing and the striving. It was a challenge to Moses’ leadership as well as a test of Yahweh’s presence. The narrative in its present form serves an important point in the argument of the book. The story turns on the gracious provision of God who can give his people water when there is none available. The narrative is structured to show how the people strove. Thus, the story intertwines God’s free flowing grace with the sad memory of Israel’s sins. The passage can be divided into three parts: the situation and the complaint (1-3), the cry and the miracle (4-6), and the commemoration by naming (7).

^2tn Or “congregation” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV).

^3tn The text says that they journeyed “according to their journeyings.” Since the verb form (and therefore the derived noun) essentially means to pull up the tent pegs and move along, this verse would be saying that they traveled by stages, or, from place to place.

^4sn The location is a bit of a problem. Exod 19:1-2 suggests that it is near Sinai, whereas it is normally located near Kadesh in the north. Without any details provided, M. Noth concludes that two versions came together (Exodus [OTL], 138). S. R. Driver says that the writer wrote not knowing that they were 24 miles apart (Exodus, 157). Critics have long been bothered by this passage because of the two names given at the same place. If two sources had been brought together, it is not possible now to identify them. But Noth insisted that if there were two names there were two different locations. The names Massah and Meribah occur alone in Scripture (Deut 9:22, and Num 20:1 for examples), but together in Ps 95 and in Deut 33:8. But none of these passages is a clarification of the difficulty. Most critics would argue that Massah was a secondary element that was introduced into this account, because Exod 17 focuses on Meribah. From that starting point they can diverge greatly on the interpretation, usually having something to do with a water test. But although Num 20 is parallel in several ways, there are major differences: 1) it takes place 40 years later than this, 2) the name Kadesh is joined to the name Meribah there, and 3) Moses is punished there. One must conclude that if an event could occur twice in similar ways (complaint about water would be a good candidate for such), then there is no reason a similar name could not be given.

^5tn The disjunctive vav introduces a parenthetical clause that is essential for this passage – there was no water.

^6tn Here the construction uses a genitive after the infinitive construct for the subject: “there was no water for the drinking of the people” (GKC 353-54 §115.c).

^7tn The verb וַיָּרֶב (vayyarev) is from the root רִיב (riv); it forms the basis of the name “Meribah.” The word means “strive, quarrel, be in contention” and even “litigation.” A translation “quarrel” does not appear to capture the magnitude of what is being done here. The people have a legal dispute – they are contending with Moses as if bringing a lawsuit.

^8tn The imperfect tense with the vav (ו) follows the imperative, and so it carries the nuance of the logical sequence, showing purpose or result. This may be expressed in English as “give us water so that we may drink,” but more simply with the English infinitive, “give us water to drink.”

^sn One wonders if the people thought that Moses and Aaron had water and were withholding it from the people, or whether Moses was able to get it on demand. The people should have come to Moses to ask him to pray to God for water, but their action led Moses to say that they had challenged God (B. Jacob, Exodus, 476).

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Brenner’s Mechanical Trans....and all the company of the sons of "Yisra'el ^{He turns El aside}" journeyed from the wilderness of "Sin ^{Sharp thorn}", according to their breaking camps (by) the mouth of "YHWH ^{He Is}", and they camped in "Rephiydiym ^Bottom", and the people were without water to gulp, and the people disputed with "Mosheh ^{Plucked out}" and they said, give us water and we will gulp,...

NASB                                     Water in the Rock

Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed by stages [Lit their journeyings] from the wilderness of Sin, according to the command [Lit mouth] of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water that we may drink.”

New King James Version       Water from the Rock

Then all the congregation of the children of Israel set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped in Rephidim; but there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people contended with Moses, and said, “Give us water, that we may drink.”

Niobi Study Bible                   God Gives the People Water from the Rock
And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the Wilderness of Sin after their journeys, according to the commandment of the LORD, and pitched camp in Rephidim; and there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people chided Moses and said, "Give us water that we may drink."

Young's Literal Translation     And all the company of the sons of Israel journey from the wilderness of Sin, on their journeyings, by the command of Jehovah, and encamp in Rephidim, and there is no water for the people to drink; and the people strive with Moses, and say, `Give us water, and we drink.'

The gist of this passage:     Moses continues to lead the people according to the guidance of God. When they are in Rephidim, there is no water and the people begin to complain.

1-2a

Translation: All the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed from the desert-wilderness of Sin, according to their journeys,...

We begin this verse with the wâw consecutive (a connective which often moves action along in narrative) followed by the Qal imperfect of nâçaʿ (נָסַע) [pronounced naw-SAHĢ]. The imperfect is commonly used in verbs which move the narrative along. Nâçaʿ means, to pull up [stakes], to pull out, to break camp and move out, to set out, to journey, to march, to depart; to bend a bow. Strong’s #5265 BDB #652. So the Israelites are simply uprooting themselves from being camped out and they are moving forward.

Throughout this study, I use the NKJV, and we are going to compare the NKJV and the ESV with regards to how they translate two words. After the Wilderness of Sin, the NKJV translates the next two words as, on their journey. The first word is lâmed (לְ) [pronounced l^e], which means, to, for, towards, in regards to. No Strong’s # BDB #510. You will note that it has no Strong’s #. This is because there are a few words in the Hebrew which are not really considered words. This is more of a prefix than a word; but it has all of the characteristics of a word for us who read English.

The lâmed preposition is followed by the masculine plural noun maçça‛ (מַסַּע) [pronounced mahs-SAH], which means, a pulling up [of stakes]; breaking camp; setting out; travels, journeys, journeying; stages. It is related to the verb found earlier in this verse, translated by the NKJV as set out. Affixed to the word is the 3^rd person masculine plural suffix. The NKJV translates this on their journey. The English Standard Version translates these two words, by stages. The ESV translation of v.1a is, All the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by stages,... You will note that the NKJV treats this plural noun as if singular; and the ESV leaves out the possessive suffix.

In my mostly literal translation, I translated this as All the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed from the desert-wilderness of Sin, according to their journeys,... This preserves the word order, the plural noun and the suffix (the Literal Standard Version (the LSV) does nearly the same thing as I do).

Nonetheless, the ESV may have better preserved the meaning. Their translation, By stages, means that the Israelites would move a bit, traveling for most of a day, and then make camp and stay for awhile. We don't know if they would remain at any one place overnight, for a few days, a week or a month, but keep in mind that we have a city all moving here where babies are being born, children and women are a part of the movement, so it does not move very quickly. This city moves by stages.

All that we are dealing with here is a simple move from point A to point B (or, in this case, from point S to point R). However, actually, there are 3 places where the people camped between the wilderness of Sin and Rephidim. These places are also named in Num. 33:12–14. They would move, then camp, move then camp, move then camp. Or, as the ESV puts it, Israel moved....by stages...

It is Numbers 33 which indicates to us that the bulk of Exodus is in chronological order. See Numbers 33 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

The word Sin is unrelated to our word sin. It is a proper noun, better transliterated Siyn or Ciyn. It means, thorn, clay. Strong’s #5512 BDB #695.

In the previous chapter, the people complained to Moses about not having bread or meat to eat. When tested, the people will complain to Moses.

Translation: ...by the command of Y^ehowah.

God guided the sons of Israel through the desert, which was the case throughout their time in the deserts between Midian, Egypt and Canaan.

So that there is no misunderstanding, the Hebrew people are not wandering in the desert, confused or lost. No one is lost—Moses, who was brought up with the training to read and understand maps and geography—was never confused about where they were or where they were going. Moses guided them as per God’s guidance. At this point, they are moving in a rather linear direction.

There is nothing hidden or mysterious about their movement. Recall that there is a pillar of fire in the evening and a pillar of cloud in the daytime. Although this region did receive some rainfall, a cloud pillar was unusual; and when it moved, Israel moved.

When it says that Israel traveled according to the mouth of Y^ehowah, this is a simply a metonymy of the mouth which is a reference to, what the mouth says (this is also an anthropomorphism, as God does not have a mouth). Many translations render this, by the command of Jehovah. Similar phrasing can also be found in Num. 3:16, 39 20:24 27:14 Deut. 1:26, 43. Recall that Moses is very well-educated, so we will find literary flourishes throughout his writings.

Exodus 17:1a-b All the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed from the desert-wilderness of Sin, according to their journeys, by the command of Y^ehowah. (Kukis mostly literal translation)