Tell the Coming Generation

A Maskil^[a] of ^(A)Asaph.

The Death of Miriam

20 And the people of Israel, the whole congregation, came ^(A)into the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh. And ^(B)Miriam died there and was buried there.

The Waters of Meribah

^2 (C)Now there was no water for the congregation. ^(D)And they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. ³ And the people ^(E)quarreled with Moses and said, “Would that we had perished ^(F)when our brothers perished before the Lord! ⁴ Why have you brought the assembly of the Lord into this wilderness, that we should die here, both we and our cattle? ⁵ And ^(G)why have you made us come up out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place? It is no place for grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, and there is no water to drink.” ⁶ Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance of the tent of meeting and ^(H)fell on their faces. ^(I)And the glory of the Lord appeared to them, ⁷ and the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ^8 (J)“Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water. So ^(K)you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give drink to the congregation and their cattle.” ⁹ And Moses took the staff ^(L)from before the Lord, as he commanded him.

Moses Strikes the Rock

¹⁰ Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, ^(M)“Hear now, you rebels: shall we bring water for you out of this rock?” ¹¹ And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, ^(N)and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their livestock. ¹² And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because ^(O)you did not believe in me, ^(P)to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.” ^13 (Q)These are the waters of Meribah,^[a] where the people of Israel quarreled with the Lord, and through them he showed himself holy.

³² And we bring you the good news ^(A)that what God promised to the fathers, ^33 (B)this he has fulfilled to us their children by raising Jesus, as also it is written in the second Psalm,

³⁴ And as for the fact that he raised him from the dead, ^(D)(E)no more to return to corruption, he has spoken in this way,

³⁵ Therefore he says also in another psalm,

³⁶ For David, after he had ^(H)served the purpose of God in his own generation, ^(I)fell asleep and ^(J)was laid with his fathers and saw corruption, ³⁷ but he whom ^(K)God raised up did not see corruption. ³⁸ Let it be known to you therefore, brothers, ^(L)that through this man ^(M)forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, ³⁹ and by him ^(N)everyone who believes is freed^[a] from everything ^(O)from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses. ⁴⁰ Beware, therefore, lest what is said in the Prophets should come about: