Numbers 17-20
Moses' Pride

When the tribes of Israel come to Wilderness of Zen (Numbers 20), they once more complained about a lack of water and a lack of food. And, they blamed Moses. He had gone to bat for these people many times when God was prepared to destroy them and fulfill His promise through Moses. Yet, once again, the fickle people turned against Him. Moses, it seems, had had enough.

He went before the LORD and was given these instructions, "Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water. So you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give drink to the congregation and their cattle" (Numbers 20:8).

But, Moses didn't do exactly as God told him to do. Along with speaking to the rock, Moses struck the rock with his staff two times. For the benefit of the people, God still allowed the water to flow, but He spoke later to Moses, "Because you did not believe in Me, to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring the assembly into the land that I have given them" (v. 12).

Whatever Moses did wrong, God did not appreciate it. After the lesson taught to Korah and his conspirators in Numbers 16, it seems unlikely that Moses was trying to rebel against God. This passage has been used over the years to show that Moses sinned by going beyond what the LORD told him to do (God told him to speak to the rock, he spoke and hit), and I suppose there is application there. But, why did he strike the rock?

I would suggest that it might have been a matter or pride manifesting itself in hurt feelings. Moses had diligently given himself to his people and their every need. He had spent himself many times over serving them. He had proven himself to them. At this moment, he viewed their complaints as complaints against him-not against God. He may have wanted to show them how much they needed him; "...Shall we bring water out of this rock?" Perhaps he struck the rock to show just how much they had wronged him; after all, just speaking to it would not convey the full injustice they had done against him.

People who live for others and are appreciated by others can very easily fall victim to the sin of pride. There are moments when they think deep down they are deserving of more than they receive. There are times of weakness when they feel they are underappreciated. And don't think you are immune to such thoughts. Remember what we read in Numbers 12:3? "Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth."

Like rebellion, the problem with the sin of pride is its slight against God. When we are prideful, we seek to draw attention away from God and to ourselves. We do not "uphold" God as "holy in the eyes of the people." Pride may cause us to do things that He has not commanded; to expect honor when it should be given to Him.

Moses paid a price for his sin, and so will we if we give ourselves over to pride.