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Read the Bible
THE MESSAGE
Exodus 17:7
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." But Moses said, "Why pester me? Why are you testing God ?" But the people were thirsty for water there. They complained to Moses, "Why did you take us from Egypt and drag us out here with our children and animals to die of thirst?" Moses cried out in prayer to God , "What can I do with these people? Any minute now they'll kill me!" God said to Moses, "Go on out ahead of the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel. Take the staff you used to strike the Nile. And go. I'm going to be present before you there on the rock at Horeb. You are to strike the rock. Water will gush out of it and the people will drink." Moses did what he said, with the elders of Israel right there watching. He named the place Massah (Testing-Place) and Meribah (Quarreling) because of the quarreling of the Israelites and because of their testing of God when they said, "Is God here with us, or not?"
Jump to:Bible Study Tools • Parallel Bible Verse • Bible Contextual Overview • Bible Cross-References • Gill's Bible Notes • Clarke's Bible Notes • Barnes' Bible Notes
Bible Study Resources
Concordances:
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- CondensedParallel Translations
Hebrew Names Version
He called the name of the place Massah, and Merivah, because the children of Yisra'el quarreled, and because they tested the LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us, or not?"
He called the name of the place Massah, and Merivah, because the children of Yisra'el quarreled, and because they tested the LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us, or not?"
King James Version
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord , saying, Is the Lord among us, or not?
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord , saying, Is the Lord among us, or not?
Lexham English Bible
And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah because of the quarrel of the Israelites and because of their testing Yahweh by saying, "Is Yahweh in our midst or not?"
And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah because of the quarrel of the Israelites and because of their testing Yahweh by saying, "Is Yahweh in our midst or not?"
New Century Version
He named that place Massah, because the Israelites tested the Lord when they asked, "Is the Lord with us or not?" He also named it Meribah, because they quarreled.
He named that place Massah, because the Israelites tested the Lord when they asked, "Is the Lord with us or not?" He also named it Meribah, because they quarreled.
New English Translation
He called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the contending of the Israelites and because of their testing the Lord , saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?"
He called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the contending of the Israelites and because of their testing the Lord , saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?"
Amplified Bible
He named the place [where this miracle occurred] Massah (test) and Meribah (contention) because of the quarreling of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the [patience of the] LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us, or not?"
He named the place [where this miracle occurred] Massah (test) and Meribah (contention) because of the quarreling of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the [patience of the] LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us, or not?"
New American Standard Bible
Then he named the place Massah and Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us, or not?"
Then he named the place Massah and Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us, or not?"
Geneva Bible (1587)
And he called the name of the place, Massah and Meribah, because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they had tempted the Lorde, saying, Is the Lorde among vs, or no?
And he called the name of the place, Massah and Meribah, because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they had tempted the Lorde, saying, Is the Lorde among vs, or no?
Legacy Standard Bible
So he named the place Massah and Meribah because of the contending of the sons of Israel, and because they tested Yahweh, saying, "Is Yahweh among us or not?"
So he named the place Massah and Meribah because of the contending of the sons of Israel, and because they tested Yahweh, saying, "Is Yahweh among us or not?"
Contemporary English Version
The people had complained and tested the Lord by asking, "Is the Lord really with us?" So Moses named that place Massah, which means "testing" and Meribah, which means "complaining."
The people had complained and tested the Lord by asking, "Is the Lord really with us?" So Moses named that place Massah, which means "testing" and Meribah, which means "complaining."
Complete Jewish Bible
The place was named Massah [testing] and M'rivah [quarreling] because of the quarreling of the people of Isra'el and because they tested Adonai by asking, "Is Adonai with us or not?"
The place was named Massah [testing] and M'rivah [quarreling] because of the quarreling of the people of Isra'el and because they tested Adonai by asking, "Is Adonai with us or not?"
Darby Translation
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they had tempted Jehovah, saying, Is Jehovah among us, or not?
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they had tempted Jehovah, saying, Is Jehovah among us, or not?
Easy-to-Read Version
Moses named that place Meribah and Massah, because this was the place that the Israelites turned against him and tested the Lord . The people wanted to know if the Lord was with them or not.
Moses named that place Meribah and Massah, because this was the place that the Israelites turned against him and tested the Lord . The people wanted to know if the Lord was with them or not.
English Standard Version
And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of the people of Israel, and because they tested the Lord by saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?"
And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of the people of Israel, and because they tested the Lord by saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?"
George Lamsa Translation
And he called the name of the place Nassah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of the children of Israel, and because they tested the LORD, saying, Let us see if the LORD is among us or not?
And he called the name of the place Nassah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of the children of Israel, and because they tested the LORD, saying, Let us see if the LORD is among us or not?
Good News Translation
The place was named Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites complained and put the Lord to the test when they asked, "Is the Lord with us or not?"
The place was named Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites complained and put the Lord to the test when they asked, "Is the Lord with us or not?"
Christian Standard Bible®
He named the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites complained, and because they tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”
He named the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites complained, and because they tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”
Literal Translation
And one called the name of the place, Massah, and Meribah, because of the wrangling of the sons of Israel, and because of their testing of Jehovah, saying, Is Jehovah in our midst, or not?
And one called the name of the place, Massah, and Meribah, because of the wrangling of the sons of Israel, and because of their testing of Jehovah, saying, Is Jehovah in our midst, or not?
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Then was that place called Massa Meriba, because of the chydinge of the children of Israel, and because they tempted ye LORDE, and sayde: Is the LORDE amonge vs, or not?
Then was that place called Massa Meriba, because of the chydinge of the children of Israel, and because they tempted ye LORDE, and sayde: Is the LORDE amonge vs, or not?
American Standard Version
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the striving of the children of Israel, and because they tempted Jehovah, saying, Is Jehovah among us, or not?
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the striving of the children of Israel, and because they tempted Jehovah, saying, Is Jehovah among us, or not?
Bible in Basic English
And he gave that place the name Massah and Meribah, because the children of Israel were angry, and because they put the Lord to the test, saying, Is the Lord with us or not?
And he gave that place the name Massah and Meribah, because the children of Israel were angry, and because they put the Lord to the test, saying, Is the Lord with us or not?
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lorde, saying: Is the Lorde amongest vs, or not?
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lorde, saying: Is the Lorde amongest vs, or not?
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the name of the place was called Massah, and Meribah, because of the striving of the children of Israel, and because they tried the LORD, saying: 'Is the LORD among us, or not?'
And the name of the place was called Massah, and Meribah, because of the striving of the children of Israel, and because they tried the LORD, saying: 'Is the LORD among us, or not?'
King James Version (1611)
And hee called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, Is the Lord amongst vs, or not?
And hee called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, Is the Lord amongst vs, or not?
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And he called the name of that place, Temptation, and Reviling, because of the reviling of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, Is the Lord among us or not?
And he called the name of that place, Temptation, and Reviling, because of the reviling of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, Is the Lord among us or not?
English Revised Version
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the striving of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the LORD, saying, Is the LORD among us, or not?
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the striving of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the LORD, saying, Is the LORD among us, or not?
Berean Standard Bible
He named the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled, and because they tested the LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us or not?"
He named the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled, and because they tested the LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us or not?"
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
and he clepide the name of that place Temptacioun, for the chidyng of the sones of Israel, and for thei temptiden the Lord, and seiden, Whether the Lord is in vs, ether nay?
and he clepide the name of that place Temptacioun, for the chidyng of the sones of Israel, and for thei temptiden the Lord, and seiden, Whether the Lord is in vs, ether nay?
Young's Literal Translation
and he calleth the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the `strife' of the sons of Israel, and because of their `trying' Jehovah, saying, `Is Jehovah in our midst or not?'
and he calleth the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the `strife' of the sons of Israel, and because of their `trying' Jehovah, saying, `Is Jehovah in our midst or not?'
Update Bible Version
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the striving of the sons of Israel, and because they tempted Yahweh, saying, Is Yahweh among us, or not?
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the striving of the sons of Israel, and because they tempted Yahweh, saying, Is Yahweh among us, or not?
Webster's Bible Translation
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the LORD, saying, Is the LORD among us, or not?
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the LORD, saying, Is the LORD among us, or not?
World English Bible
He called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because the children of Israel quarreled, and because they tested Yahweh, saying, "Is Yahweh among us, or not?"
He called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because the children of Israel quarreled, and because they tested Yahweh, saying, "Is Yahweh among us, or not?"
New King James Version
So he called the name of the place Massah [fn] and Meribah, [fn] because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?"
So he called the name of the place Massah [fn] and Meribah, [fn] because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?"
New Living Translation
Moses named the place Massah (which means "test") and Meribah (which means "arguing") because the people of Israel argued with Moses and tested the Lord by saying, "Is the Lord here with us or not?"
Moses named the place Massah (which means "test") and Meribah (which means "arguing") because the people of Israel argued with Moses and tested the Lord by saying, "Is the Lord here with us or not?"
New Life Bible
He called the name of the place Massah and Meribah because of the arguing of the people of Israel, and because they tested the Lord, saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?"
He called the name of the place Massah and Meribah because of the arguing of the people of Israel, and because they tested the Lord, saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?"
New Revised Standard
He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and tested the Lord , saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?"
He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and tested the Lord , saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?"
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
So he called the name of the place, Massah, and Meribah, - because of the fault-finding of the sons of Israel, and because of their putting Yahweh to the proof, saying, Is Yahweh in our midst or is he not?
So he called the name of the place, Massah, and Meribah, - because of the fault-finding of the sons of Israel, and because of their putting Yahweh to the proof, saying, Is Yahweh in our midst or is he not?
Douay-Rheims Bible
And he called the name of that place Temptation, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and for that they tempted the Lord, saying: Is the Lord amongst us or not?
And he called the name of that place Temptation, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and for that they tempted the Lord, saying: Is the Lord amongst us or not?
Revised Standard Version
And he called the name of the place Massah and Mer'ibah, because of the faultfinding of the children of Israel, and because they put the LORD to the proof by saying, "Is the LORD among us or not?"
And he called the name of the place Massah and Mer'ibah, because of the faultfinding of the children of Israel, and because they put the LORD to the proof by saying, "Is the LORD among us or not?"
New American Standard Bible (1995)
He named the place Massah and Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us, or not?"
He named the place Massah and Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us, or not?"
Contextual Overview
1Directed 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." But Moses said, "Why pester me? Why are you testing God ?" 3 But the people were thirsty for water there. They complained to Moses, "Why did you take us from Egypt and drag us out here with our children and animals to die of thirst?" 4 Moses cried out in prayer to God , "What can I do with these people? Any minute now they'll kill me!" 5 God said to Moses, "Go on out ahead of the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel. Take the staff you used to strike the Nile. And go. I'm going to be present before you there on the rock at Horeb. You are to strike the rock. Water will gush out of it and the people will drink." Moses did what he said, with the elders of Israel right there watching. He named the place Massah (Testing-Place) and Meribah (Quarreling) because of the quarreling of the Israelites and because of their testing of God when they said, "Is God here with us, or not?" Amalek came and fought Israel at Rephidim. Moses ordered Joshua: "Select some men for us and go out and fight Amalek. Tomorrow I will take my stand on top of the hill holding G od's staff." Joshua did what Moses ordered in order to fight Amalek. And Moses, Aaron, and Hur went to the top of the hill. It turned out that whenever Moses raised his hands, Israel was winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, Amalek was winning. But Moses' hands got tired. So they got a stone and set it under him. He sat on it and Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on each side. So his hands remained steady until the sun went down. Joshua defeated Amalek and its army in battle. God said to Moses, "Write this up as a reminder to Joshua, to keep it before him, because I will most certainly wipe the very memory of Amalek off the face of the Earth." Moses built an altar and named it " God My Banner." He said, Salute God 's rule! God at war with Amalek Always and forever! 7 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." But Moses said, "Why pester me? Why are you testing God ?" But the people were thirsty for water there. They complained to Moses, "Why did you take us from Egypt and drag us out here with our children and animals to die of thirst?" Moses cried out in prayer to God , "What can I do with these people? Any minute now they'll kill me!" God said to Moses, "Go on out ahead of the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel. Take the staff you used to strike the Nile. And go. I'm going to be present before you there on the rock at Horeb. You are to strike the rock. Water will gush out of it and the people will drink." Moses did what he said, with the elders of Israel right there watching. He named the place Massah (Testing-Place) and Meribah (Quarreling) because of the quarreling of the Israelites and because of their testing of God when they said, "Is God here with us, or not?"
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
Massah: i.e. Temptation, Numbers 20:13, Deuteronomy 9:22
Meribah: that is, Chiding or Strife, Exodus 17:2, Psalms 81:7
chiding: Exodus 17:2
tempted: Psalms 95:8, Hebrews 3:8, Hebrews 3:9
Is the Lord: Exodus 34:9, Deuteronomy 31:17, Joshua 22:31, Isaiah 12:6, Micah 3:11, John 1:14, Acts 7:37-39
Reciprocal: Numbers 27:14 - Meribah Deuteronomy 6:16 - tempted him Deuteronomy 33:8 - prove at Joshua 3:10 - among Psalms 78:20 - he smote Psalms 106:13 - They soon forgat Matthew 4:7 - Thou Mark 8:11 - tempting Acts 5:9 - to tempt 1 Corinthians 10:9 - tempt
Cross-References
Genesis 17:9
God continued to Abraham, "And you: You will honor my covenant, you and your descendants, generation after generation. This is the covenant that you are to honor, the covenant that pulls in all your descendants: Circumcise every male. Circumcise by cutting off the foreskin of the penis; it will be the sign of the covenant between us. Every male baby will be circumcised when he is eight days old, generation after generation—this includes house-born slaves and slaves bought from outsiders who are not blood kin. Make sure you circumcise both your own children and anyone brought in from the outside. That way my covenant will be cut into your body, a permanent mark of my permanent covenant. An uncircumcised male, one who has not had the foreskin of his penis cut off, will be cut off from his people—he has broken my covenant."
God continued to Abraham, "And you: You will honor my covenant, you and your descendants, generation after generation. This is the covenant that you are to honor, the covenant that pulls in all your descendants: Circumcise every male. Circumcise by cutting off the foreskin of the penis; it will be the sign of the covenant between us. Every male baby will be circumcised when he is eight days old, generation after generation—this includes house-born slaves and slaves bought from outsiders who are not blood kin. Make sure you circumcise both your own children and anyone brought in from the outside. That way my covenant will be cut into your body, a permanent mark of my permanent covenant. An uncircumcised male, one who has not had the foreskin of his penis cut off, will be cut off from his people—he has broken my covenant."
Genesis 17:17
Abraham fell flat on his face. And then he laughed, thinking, "Can a hundred-year-old man father a son? And can Sarah, at ninety years, have a baby?"
Abraham fell flat on his face. And then he laughed, thinking, "Can a hundred-year-old man father a son? And can Sarah, at ninety years, have a baby?"
Genesis 28:13
Then God was right before him, saying, "I am God , the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. I'm giving the ground on which you are sleeping to you and to your descendants. Your descendants will be as the dust of the Earth; they'll stretch from west to east and from north to south. All the families of the Earth will bless themselves in you and your descendants. Yes. I'll stay with you, I'll protect you wherever you go, and I'll bring you back to this very ground. I'll stick with you until I've done everything I promised you."
Then God was right before him, saying, "I am God , the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. I'm giving the ground on which you are sleeping to you and to your descendants. Your descendants will be as the dust of the Earth; they'll stretch from west to east and from north to south. All the families of the Earth will bless themselves in you and your descendants. Yes. I'll stay with you, I'll protect you wherever you go, and I'll bring you back to this very ground. I'll stick with you until I've done everything I promised you."
Exodus 3:6
Then he said, "I am the God of your father: The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob." Moses hid his face, afraid to look at God.
Then he said, "I am the God of your father: The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob." Moses hid his face, afraid to look at God.
Exodus 3:15
God continued with Moses: "This is what you're to say to the Israelites: ‘ God , the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob sent me to you.' This has always been my name, and this is how I always will be known.
God continued with Moses: "This is what you're to say to the Israelites: ‘ God , the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob sent me to you.' This has always been my name, and this is how I always will be known.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah,.... The former signifies "temptation", and the latter "contention": the reason of which names being given by Moses, or whoever was the name of the place, follows: "because of the chiding of the children of Israel"; that was the reason why it was called by the last name, Meribah, because here, the Israelites chid and contended with Moses, and used him opprobriously:
and because they tempted the Lord; therefore it had the former name of Massah:
saying, is the Lord among us or not? as if they should say, if we perish through thirst, the Lord is not among us, nor takes any care of us; nor was it he that brought us out of Egypt, but Moses; nor is he in the pillar of cloud and fire, as is said; but if he works a miracle, and gives us water, for us, our children, and cattle, then it will appear he is among us; and thus they tempted the Lord, though without this they had full proof, by many instances, that he was among them, and even in a very extraordinary manner.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
Massah ...Meribah - See the margin. On the importance of this lesson see our Lordâs words, Matthew 4:7.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Exodus 17:7. He called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah — ××¡× Massah signifies temptation or trial; and ×ר××× Meribah, contention or litigation. From 1 Corinthians 10:4, we learn that this rock was a type of Christ, and their drinking of it is represented as their being made partakers of the grace and mercy of God through Christ Jesus; and yet many who drank fell and perished in the wilderness in the very act of disobedience! Reader, be not high minded, but fear!
On the smiting of the rock by the rod of Moses, Mr. Ainsworth has the following pious note: "This rock signified Christ, and is therefore called a spiritual Rock, 1 Corinthians 10:4. He being smitten with Moses's rod, and bearing the curse of the law for our sins, and by the preaching of the Gospel crucified among his people, Galatians 3:1, from him floweth the spiritual drink wherewith all believing hearts are refreshed." John 7:37, and Isaiah 53:1-3.
