Exodus 15 18

Exodus 15-18: The Journey Through the Desert
August 22, 2008

Contents
1 Exodus 15:22+ The Journey Through the Desert 2
1.1 1 Corinthians 10:1-6, 10-12 The Lessons of Israels History . . . . . 2
2 Exodus 16 The manna and the quails 3
2.1 Numbers 11 The Halts in the Desert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.2 Deuteronomy 8:3,16-17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2.3 Psalms 78:18+ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2.4 Psalms 105:40 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.5 Psalms 106:13-15 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.6 Wisdom 16:20-29 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.7 John 6: 26-58 The Discourse on the Bread of Life (Continuation) . . 7
2.8 Exodus 14:11+ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3 Exodus 17 The water from the rock 9
3.1 Exodus 17:3-7 The Water from the Rock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.2 Exodus 17:8-13 A battle against the Amalekites . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.3 Numbers 20:1-13 Moses Brings Water from the Rock . . . . . . . . 11
3.4 Exodus 14:11+ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3.5 John 7:38r . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3.6 1 Samuel 15:3+ Holy war against the Amalekites . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4 Exodus 18 The meeting of Jethro and Moses / The appointment
of judges 14
4.1 Hebrews 11:32-40 The Faith of Moses, of the Judges and of the
Prophets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4.2 Isaiah 11:1-10 The New Descendant of David / The Return of the
Exiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
4.3 Isaiah 9:2-4, 6-7 The Prince of Peace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
A List of used References 19
B Catechism of the Catholic Church 19
B.1 Exodus 15:26 (CCC 1502) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
B.2 Exodus 16:19-21 (CCC 2837) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
B.3 Exodus 16:19 (CCC 2836) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
B.4 Exodus 17:1-6 (CCC 694) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
B.5 Exodus 17:2-7 (CCC 2119) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
B.6 Exodus 17:8-13 (CCC 2577) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
B.7 1 Corinthians 10:1-11 (CCC 129) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
B.8 1 Corinthians 10:1-6 (CCC 1094) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
B.9 1 Corinthians 10:1-2 (CCC 697) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
B.10 1 Corinthians 10:2 (CCC 117) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
B.13 1 Corinthians 10:9 (CCC 2119) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
B.14 1 Corinthians 10:11 (CCC 117, CCC 128, CCC 670, CCC 2175) . . . . 24
B.15 John 6:28-58 (CCC 2835) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
B.16 Numbers 11:24-25 (CCC 1541) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
B.17 Hebrews 11:39-40 (CCC 147) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
B.18 Isaiah 11:1-9 (CCC 672) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
B.19 Isaiah 11:1,2 (CCC 712, CCC 1831, CCC 436, CCC 536, CCC 1286) . 26
B.20 Providence and secondary causes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
C Other noted links in the Navarre Bible from Google Groups 26
C.1 Luke 1:53 The Magnicat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
C.2 Mark 6:34-44 First Miracle of the Loaves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
C.3 Revelation 11:19; 12:1-6, 10 The Sounding of the Seventh Trumpet
/ The Woman Fleeing from the Dragon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
1
1 Exodus 15:22+ The Journey Through the Desert
Let us sing to the Lord, for he is gloriously magnied, the horse and his rider he hath
thrown into the sea.
Marah
1
Moses led Israel away from the Sea of Reeds, and they entered the desert of
Shur. They then travelled through the desert for three days without nding water.
2
When they reached Marah, they could not drink the Marah water because it was
bitter; this is why the place was named Marah.
3 4
The people complained to Moses
saying, What are we to drink?
5
Moses appealed to Yahweh for help, and Yahweh
showed him a piece of wood. When Moses threw it into the water, the water became
sweet.
6 7 8 9
There he laid down a statute and law for them and there he put them to the test.
10
Then he said, If you listen carefully to the voice of Yahweh your God and do what
he regards as right, if you pay attention to his commandments and keep all his laws,
I shall never inict on you any of the diseases that I inicted on the Egyptians, for I
am Yahweh your Healer.
11 12
So they came to Elim where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees; and
there they pitched camp beside the water.
1
1 Corinthians 10:3-5 And did all eat the same spiritual food, And all drank the same spiritual
drink; (and they drank of the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ.) But with
most of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the desert.
2
Genesis 16:7 And the angel of the Lord having found her, by a fountain of water in the
wilderness, which is in the way to Sur in the desert
3
Numbers 33:8 And departing from Phihahiroth, they passed through the midst of the sea into
the wilderness: and having marched three days through the desert of Etham, they camped in Mara.
4
Ruth 1:20 But she said to them: Call me not Noemi, (that is, beautiful,) but call me Mara,
(that is, bitter,) for the Almighty hath quite lled me with bitterness.
5
Exodus 14:11+ (duplicate reference)
6
2 Kings 2:21 He went out to the spring of the waters, and cast the salt into it, and said: Thus
saith the Lord: I have healed these waters, and there shall be no more in them death or barrenness.
7
Sirach 38:5 Was not bitter water made sweet with wood?
8
Ezekiel 47:8 And he said to me: These waters that issue forth toward the hillocks of sand to
the east, and go down to the plains of the desert, shall go into the sea, and shall go out, and the
waters shall be healed.
9
1 Corinthians 1:18 For the word of the cross, to them indeed that perish, is foolishness; but to
them that are saved, that is, to us, it is the power of God.
10
Joshua 24:25 Josue therefore on that day made a covenant, and set before the people com-
mandments and judgments in Sichem.
11
Deuteronomy 7:15 Yahweh will deect all illness from you; he will not aict you with those
evil plagues of Egypt which you have known, but will inict them on all who hate you.
12
Psalms 103:3 He forgives all your oences, cures all your diseases
1.1 1 Corinthians 10:1-6, 10-12 The Lessons of Israels History
[1] I want you to know, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all
passed through the sea, [2] and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the
sea, [3] and all ate the same supernatural food [4] and all drank the same supernatural
drink. For they drank them from the supernatural Rock which followed them, and
the Rock was Christ. [5] Nevertheless with most of them God was not pleased; for
they were overthrown in the wilderness.
[6] Now these things are warnings for us, not to desire evil as they did; [10] nor
grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer. [11] Now these
things happened to them as a warning, but they were written down for our instruction,
upon whom the end of the ages has come. [12] Therefore let any one who thinks that
he stands take heed lest he fall.
Commentary from the Navarre Bible: 1 Corinthians 10:1-6, 10-12 1-33.
St Paul now points to the lessons which the self-assured and proud Corinthians might
draw from certain events in the history of Israel (vv. 1-13). He focuses mainly on the
Exodus from Egypt to the Promised Land: during this journey God worked many
wonders (vv. 1-4), but because of their frequent indelity most of the Israelites died
before the journey was over (vv. 5-10); this, the Apostle concludes, should serve as a
lesson to us: if we rely too much on ourselves we run the risk of being unfaithful to
God and deserving rejection, like those Israelites (vv. 11- 13). St John Chrysostom
says that Gods gifts to the Hebrews were gures of the gifts of Baptism and the
Eucharist which we were to be given. And the punishments meted out to them are
gures of the punishment which our ingratitude will deserve; hence his reminder to
be watchful (cf. Horn, on 1 Cor, 23).
In the second part of the chapter (vv. 14-33), St Paul gives the nal part of his
reply to the question about food oered to idols, with advice as to how to act in
certain situations.
1-4. The Exodus of the Israelites was marked by many prodigies. St Paul recalls
some of theseGod leading the way by day in the form of a pillar of cloud (cf. Ex
13:21-22), the crossing of the Red Sea (cf. Ex 14:15-31); the feeding with manna (cf.
Ex 16:13-15) and the drinking water which Moses caused to ow out of a rock (cf.
Ex 17:1-7; Num 20:2-13).
St Paul sees the land and the sea as symbolizing two basic elements in Chris-
tian Baptismthe Holy Spirit and the water (cf. St Pius V Catechism, II, 2, 9).
By following Moses in the cloud and through the sea, the Israelites were some- how
linked to him, into anticipating the way the Christian is fully incorporated into Jesus
through Baptism (cf. Rom 6:3-11).
2
St Paul calls the manna and the water from the rock supernatural food and
drink because these are symbols of the Eucharist (cf. Jn 6:48-51). The Fathers,
in commenting on these verses, stress the superiority of the Eucharist over what
pregures it: Consider now which of the two foods is the more sublime [...]. The
manna came down from heaven, it [the Eucharist] is to be found higher than heaven;
the manna belonged to heaven, (the Eucharist) to the Lord of heaven; the manna
rotted away if it was kept for another day, (the Eucharist) knows no corruption
because whoever tastes it with the right dispositions will never experience corruption.
For them [the Israelites] the water sprang up from the rock; for you blood ows
from Christ. The water quenched the (Israelites) thirst for a short while; the blood
cleanses you forever. The Jews drank and were thirsty; you, once you have drunk,
can no longer feel thirst. In their case everything that happened was symbolic; in
yours it is real. If you are amazed by it and yet it was no more than a shadow,
how much more awesome must that reality be whose mere shadow amazes you (St
Ambrose, Treatise on the Mysteries, I, 8, 48).
The rock was Christ: in the Old Testament Yahweh was at times described
as the rock (cf. Deut 32:4, 15, 18: 2 Sam 22:32; 23:3; Is 17:10; etc.); as he does
elsewhere (cf., e.g.;Rom 9:33; 10:11-13; Eph 4:8). St Paul here applies to Jesus
Christ the prerogatives of Yahweh, thereby showing his divinity. Elsewhere in the
New Testament our Lord is spoken of as the cornerstone (cf. Mt 21:42; Acts 4:11;
Eph 2:20). By referring to the rock as following them St Paul may be citing
without accepting ita rabbinical legend which claimed that the rod from which the
water gushed continued to stay with the Israelites in the desert.
5-10. In spite of all the marvels God kept doing for the Israelites during the Exodus,
only a few of those who left Egypt managed to enter the Promised Land (cf. Num
26:65). St Paul lists some of the repeated indelities of the people of Israel which
brought Gods punishment upon themidolatry (cf. Ex 32), sexual immorality (cf.
Num 25), grumbling against God and Moses (cf., for example, Ex 15:23- 25; 16:2-3;
17:2-7; Num 21:4-9; 17:6-15). 11-13. The events in the history of Israel mentioned in
the Old Testament foretell things which will happen when Christ comes (cf. note on
1 Cor 10:1-4); they are also instructive for us. Here St Paul emphasizes that however
many benets God showers on us, no one should think that his eternal salvation is
assured. The greater you are, the more you must humble yourself; so you will nd
favor in the sight of the Lord (Sir 3:20); one must continually implore Gods help
and not rely on ones own strength.
At the same time St Paul recalls Gods faithfulness (cf. also Phil 1:6; 1 Thess 5:24;
2 Thess 3:3): God never allows us to be tempted beyond our strength, he always gives
us the graces we need to win out. If anyone plead human weakness to excuse himself
for not loving God, it should be explained that he who demands our love pours into
our hearts by the Holy Spirit the fervor of his love (cf. Rom 5:5); and this good
spirit our heavenly Father gives to those that ask him (cf. Lk 9:13). With reason,
therefore, did St Augustine pray: Give what thou commandest, and command what
thou pleasest (Confessions, X, 29,31 and 37). As, then, God is ever ready to help
us, especially since the death of Christ the Lord, by which the prince of this world
was cast out, there is no reason why anyone should be disheartened by the diculty
of the undertaking. To him who loves, nothing is dicult (St Pius V Catechism,
III, 1, 7).
CCC 1094 - 1 Corinthians 10:1-6 1094 It is on this harmony of the two Testa-
ments that the Paschal catechesis of the Lord is built,
13
and then, that of the Apostles
and the Fathers of the Church. This catechesis unveils what lay hidden under the
letter of the Old Testament: the mystery of Christ. It is called typological because
it reveals the newness of Christ on the basis of the gures (types) which announce
him in the deeds, words, and symbols of the rst covenant. By this re-reading in the
Spirit of Truth, starting from Christ, the gures are unveiled.
14
Thus the ood and
Noahs ark pregured salvation by Baptism,
15
as did the cloud and the crossing of
the Red Sea. Water from the rock was the gure of the spiritual gifts of Christ, and
manna in the desert pregured the Eucharist, the true bread from heaven.
16
2 Exodus 16 The manna and the quails
Setting out from Elim, the whole community of Israelites entered the desert of Sin,
lying between Elim and Sinai-on the fteenth day of the second month after they had
13
Cf. DV 14-16; Lk 24:13-49.
14
2 Corinthians 3:14-16 But their minds were hardened; for to this day, when they read the old
covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this
day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their minds; but when a man turns to the Lord the veil
is removed.
15
1 Peter 3:21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from
the body but as an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
16
John 6:32 Jesus then said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you
the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven.
1 Corinthians 10:1-6 I want you to know, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud,
and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all
ate the same supernatural food and all drank the same supernatural drink. For they drank from the
supernatural Rock which followed them, and the Rock was Christ. Nevertheless with most of them
God was not pleased; for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things are warnings for
us, not to desire evil as they did.
3
left Egypt. And the whole community of Israelites began complaining about Moses
and Aaron in the desert and said to them, Why did we not die at Yahwehs hand in
Egypt, where we used to sit round the esh pots and could eat to our hearts content!
As it is, you have led us into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death!
Yahweh then said to Moses, Look, I shall rain down bread for you from the heavens.
Each day the people must go out and collect their ration for the day; I propose to
test them in this way to see whether they will follow my law or not.
17
On the sixth
day, however, when they prepare what they have brought in, this must be twice as
much as they collect on ordinary days.
Moses and Aaron then said to the whole community of Israelites, This evening
you will know that it was Yahweh who brought you out of Egypt
18
, and tomorrow
morning you will see the glory of Yahweh, for Yahweh has heard your complaints
about him. What are we, that your complaint should be against us? Moses then
said, This evening Yahweh will give you meat to eat, and tomorrow morning bread
to your hearts content, for Yahweh has heard your complaints about him. What do
we count for? Your complaints are not against us, but against Yahweh.
19
Moses then said to Aaron, Say to the whole community of Israelites, Approach
Yahwehs presence, for he has heard your complaints. As Aaron was speaking to the
whole community of Israelites, they turned towards the desert, and there the glory of
Yahweh appeared in the cloud. Yahweh then spoke to Moses and said, I have heard
the Israelites complaints. Speak to them as follows, At twilight you will eat meat,
and in the morning you will have bread to your hearts content, and then you will
know that I am Yahweh your God.
That evening, quails ew in and covered the camp
20
, and next morning there was a
layer of dew all round the camp. When the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of
the desert was something ne and granular, as ne as hoarfrost on the ground
21
. As
17
Deuteronomy 8:2 Remember the long road by which Yahweh your God led you for forty years
in the desert, to humble you, to test you and know your inmost heartwhether you would keep his
commandments or not.
18
Psalms 81:10 I, Yahweh, am your God, who brought you here from Egypt, you have only to
open your mouth for me to ll it.
19
Luke 10:16 He that heareth you, heareth me; and he that despiseth you, despiseth me; and he
that despiseth me, despiseth him that sent me.
20
Numbers 11:31 A wind, sent by Yahweh, started blowing from the sea bringing quails which it
deposited on the camp. They lay for a distance of a days march either side of the camp, two cubits
thick on the ground.
21
Numbers 11:7-9 The manna was like coriander seed and had the appearance of bdellium. The
people went round gathering it, and ground it in a mill or crushed it with a pestle; it was then cooked
in a pot and made into pancakes. It tasted like cake made with oil. When the dew fell on the camp
at night-time, the manna fell with it.
soon as the Israelites saw this, they said to one another, What is that, not knowing
what it was. That, Moses told them, is the food which Yahweh has given you to
eat
22
. These are Yahwehs orders: Each of you must collect as much as he needs to
eat-a homer per head for each person in his tent.
The Israelites did this. They collected it, some more, some less. When they
measured out what they had collected by the homer, no one who had collected more
had too much, no one who had collected less had too little. Each had collected as
much as he needed to eat
23
.
Moses then said, No one may keep any of it for tomorrow. But some of them took
no notice of Moses and kept part of it for the following day, and it bred maggots and
smelt foul; and Moses was angry with them
24
. Morning by morning they collected it,
each man as much as he needed to eat, and once the sun grew hot, it melted away.
Now, on the sixth day they collected twice the amount of food: two homer per
person, and all the leaders of the community came and told Moses this. Moses
replied, This is what Yahweh said, Tomorrow is a day of complete rest, a Sabbath
sacred to Yahweh. Bake what you want to bake, boil what you want to boil; put
aside what is left over, to be kept for tomorrow. So, as Moses ordered, they put it
aside for the following day, and its smell was not foul nor were there maggots in it.
Eat it today, Moses said, for today is a Sabbath for Yahweh; you will nd none in
the elds today. For six days you will collect it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath,
there will be none. On the seventh day some of the people went out to collect it, but
they found none. Yahweh then said to Moses, How much longer will you refuse to
obey my commandments and laws? Look, Yahweh has given you the Sabbath; this is
why he gives you two days food on the sixth day; each of you must stay in his place;
on the seventh day no one may leave his home. So on the seventh day the people
rested.
The House of Israel named it manna. It was like coriander seed; it was white
25
and its taste was like that of wafers made with honey.
Moses then said, These are Yahwehs orders: Fill a homer with it and preserve it
for your descendants, so that they can see the bread on which I fed you in the desert
when I brought you out of Egypt. Moses then said to Aaron, Take a jar and in
it put a full homer of manna and store it in Yahwehs presence, to be kept for your
descendants. Accordingly, Aaron stored it in front of the Testimony, to be preserved,
22
1 Corinthians 10:3 And did all eat the same spiritual food
23
2 Corinthians 8:15 As it is written: He that had much, had nothing over; and he that had
little, had no want.
24
John 6:27 Do not work for food that goes bad, but work for food that endures for eternal life,
which the Son of man will give you, for on him the Father, God himself, has set his seal.
25
Numbers 11:7 The manna was like coriander seed and had the appearance of bdellium.
4
as Yahweh had ordered Moses.
The Israelites ate manna for forty years
26
, up to the time they reached inhabited
country: they ate manna up to the time they reached the frontiers of Canaan
27
. A
homer is one-tenth of an ephah.
2.1 Numbers 11 The Halts in the Desert
Taberah Now the people began to complain, which was oensive to Yahwehs ears.
When Yahweh heard, his anger was aroused and the re of Yahweh broke out among
them; it devoured one end of the camp. The people appealed to Moses who interceded
with Yahweh and the re died down. So the place was called Taberah, because the
re of Yahweh had broken out among them.
Kibroth-ha-Taavah. The people complain The rabble who had joined the
people were feeling the pangs of hunger, and the Israelites began to weep again.
Who will give us meat to eat? they said. Think of the sh we used to eat free in
Egypt, the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic! But now we are withering
away; there is nothing wherever we look except this manna!
The manna was like coriander seed and had the appearance of bdellium. The
people went round gathering it, and ground it in a mill or crushed it with a pestle;
it was then cooked in a pot and made into pancakes. It tasted like cake made with
oil. When the dew fell on the camp at night*time, the manna fell with it.
The prayer of Moses Moses heard the people weeping, each family at the door
of its tent. Yahwehs anger was greatly aroused; Moses too found it disgraceful, and
he said to Yahweh: Why do you treat your servant so badly? In what respect have
I failed to win your favour, for you to lay the burden of all these people on me? Was
it I who conceived all these people, was I their father, for you to say to me, Carry
them in your arms, like a foster-father carrying an unweaned child, to the country
which I swore to give their fathers?
Where am I to nd meat to give all these people, pestering me with their tears and
saying, Give us meat to eat? I cannot carry all these people on my own; the weight
26
Numbers 21:5 They spoke against God and against Moses, Why did you bring us out of Egypt
to die in the desert? For there is neither food nor water here; we are sick of this meagre diet.
27
Joshua 5:10-12 (Celebration of the Passover) The Israelites pitched their camp at Gilgal and
kept the Passover there on the fourteenth day of the month, at evening, in the plain of Jericho. On
the very next day after the Passover, they ate what the land produced, unleavened bread and roasted
ears of corn. The manna stopped the day after they had eaten the produce of the land. The Israelites
from that year onwards ate the produce of Canaan and had no more manna.
is too much for me. If this is how you mean to treat me, please kill me outright! If
only I could win your favour and be spared the sight of my misery!
Yahweh replies Yahweh said to Moses, *Collect me seventy of the elders of Israel,
men you know to be the peoples elders and scribes. Bring them to the Tent of
Meeting, and let them stand beside you there.
17 I shall come down and talk to you there and shall take some of the spirit which
is on you and put it on them. Then they will bear the burden of the people with you,
and you will no longer have to bear it on your own.
18 *And say to the people, *Purify yourselves for tomorrow and you will have meat
to eat, since you have wept in Yahwehs hearing, saying: Who will give us meat to
eat? How happy we were in Egypt! Very well, Yahweh will give you meat to eat.
19 You will eat it not for one day, or two, or ve, or ten or twenty,
20 but for a whole month, until it comes out of your nostrils and sickens you, since
you have rejected Yahweh who is among you, and have wept before him saying: Why
did we ever leave Egypt?* *
21 Moses said, *The people round me number six hundred thousand foot soldiers,
and you say, *I shall give them meat to eat for a whole month*!
22 If all the ocks and herds were slaughtered, would that be enough for them? If
all the sh in the seas were collected, would that be enough for them?*
23 Yahweh said to Moses, *Is the arm of Yahweh so short? You shall see whether
the promise I have made to you comes true or not.
The spirit given to the elders Moses went out and told the people what Yahweh
had said. Then he collected seventy of the peoples elders and stationed them round
the Tent.
25 Yahweh descended in the cloud. He spoke to him and took some of the spirit
that was on him and put it on the seventy elders. When the spirit came on them
they prophesied*but only once.
26 Two men had stayed back in the camp; one was called Eldad and the other
Medad. The spirit came down on them; though they had not gone to the Tent, their
names were enrolled among the rest. These began to prophesy in the camp.
27 A young man ran to tell Moses this. *Look,* he said, *Eldad and Medad are
prophesying in the camp.*
28 Joshua son of Nun, who had served Moses since he was a boy, spoke up and
said, *My lord Moses, stop them!*
29 Moses replied, *Are you jealous on my account? If only all Yahwehs people
were prophets, and Yahweh had given them his spirit!*
5
30 Moses then went back to the camp with the elders of Israel.
The quails A wind, sent by Yahweh, started blowing from the sea bringing quails
which it deposited on the camp. They lay for a distance of a days march either side
of the camp, two cubits thick on the ground.
32 The people were up all that day and night and all the next day collecting quails:
the least gathered by anyone was ten homer; then they spread them out round the
camp.
33 The meat was still between their teeth, not even chewed, when Yahwehs anger
was aroused by the people. Yahweh struck them with a very great plague.
34 The name given to this place was Kibroth*ha*Taavah, because it was there that
they buried the people who had indulged their greed.
35 From Kibroth*ha*Taavah the people set out for Hazeroth, and at Hazeroth they
pitched camp.
2.2 Deuteronomy 8:3,16-17
He humbled you, he made you feel hunger, he fed you with manna which neither you
nor your ancestors had ever known, to make you understand that human beings live
not on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of Yahweh. who
in this waterless place brought you water out of the inty rock; who in this desert
fed you with manna unknown to your ancestors, to humble you and test you and so
make your future the happier.
Beware of thinking to yourself, My own strength and the might of my own hand
have given me the power to act like this.
2.3 Psalms 78:18+
And they tempted God in their hearts, by asking meat for their desires. And they
spoke ill of God: they said: Can God furnish a table in the wilderness? Because
he struck the rock, and the waters gushed out, and the streams overowed. Can he
also give bread, or provide a table for his people? Therefore the Lord heard, and
was angry: and a re was kindled against Jacob, and wrath came up against Israel.
Because they believed not in God: and trusted not in his salvation. And he had
commanded the clouds from above, and had opened the doors of heaven. And had
rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them the bread of heaven. Man
ate the bread of angels: he sent them provisions in abundance. He removed the south
wind from heaven: and by his power brought in the southwest wind. And he rained
upon them esh as dust: and feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea. And they
fell in the midst of their camp, round about their pavilions. So they did eat, and
were lled exceedingly, and he gave them their desire: they were not defrauded of
that which they craved. As yet their meat was in their mouth: and the wrath of
God came upon them. And he slew the fat ones amongst them, and brought down
the chosen men of Israel. In all these things they sinned still: and they believed not
for his wondrous works. And their days were consumed in vanity, and their years in
haste. When he slew them, then they sought him: and they returned, and came to
him early in the morning. And they remembered that God was their helper: and
the most high God their redeemer. And they loved him with their mouth: and with
their tongue they lied unto him: But their heart was not right with him: nor were
they counted faithful in his covenant. But he is merciful, and will forgive their sins:
and will not destroy them. And many a time did he turn away his anger: and did
not kindle all his wrath. And he remembered that they are esh: a wind that goeth
and returneth not. How often did they provoke him in the desert: and move him
to wrath in the place without water? And they turned back and tempted God: and
grieved the holy one of Israel. They remembered not his hand, in the day that he
redeemed them from the hand of him that aicted them: How he wrought his signs
in Egypt, and his wonders in the eld of Tanis. And he turned their rivers into blood,
and their showers that they might, not drink. He sent amongst them divers sores of
ies, which devoured them: and frogs which destroyed them. And he gave up their
fruits to the blast, and their labours to the locust. And he destroyed their vineyards
with hail, and their mulberry trees with hoarfrost. And he gave up their cattle to the
hail, and their stock to the re. And he sent upon them the wrath of his indignation:
indignation and wrath and trouble, which he sent by evil angels. He made a way for
a path to his anger: he spared not their souls from death, and their cattle he shut
up in death. And he killed all the rstborn in the land of Egypt: the rstfruits of
all their labour in the tabernacles of Cham. And he took away his own people as
sheep: and guided them in the wilderness like a ock. And he brought them out in
hope, and they feared not: band the sea overwhelmed their enemies. And he brought
them into the mountain of his sanctuary: the mountain which his right hand had
purchased. And he cast out the Gentiles before them: and by lot divided to them
their land by a line of distribution. And he made the tribes of Israel to dwell in
their tabernacles. Yet they tempted, and provoked the most high God: and they
kept not his testimonies. And they turned away, and kept not the covenant: even
like their fathers they were turned aside as a crooked bow. They provoked him to
anger on their hills: and moved him to jealousy with their graven things. God heard,
and despised them, and he reduced Israel exceedingly as it were to nothing. And he
put away the tabernacle of Silo, his tabernacle where he dwelt among men. And he
6
delivered their strength into captivity: and their beauty into the hands of the enemy.
And he shut up his people under the sword: and he despised his inheritance. Fire
consumed their young men: and their maidens were not lamented. Their priests fell
by the sword: and their widows did not mourn. And the Lord was awaked as one
out of sleep, and like a mighty man that hath been surfeited with wine. And he
smote his enemies on the hinder parts: he put them to an everlasting reproach. And
he rejected the tabernacle of Joseph: and chose not the tribe of Ephraim: But he
chose the tribe of Juda, mount Sion which he loved. And he built his sanctuary as
of unicorns, in the land which he founded for ever. And he chose his servant David,
and took him from the hocks of sheep: he brought him from following the ewes great
with young, To feed Jacob his servant, and Israel his inheritance. And he fed them
in the innocence of his heart: and conducted them by the skilfulness of his hands.
2.4 Psalms 105:40
They asked, and the quail came: and he lled them with the bread of heaven.
2.5 Psalms 106:13-15
They had quickly done, they forgot his works: and they waited not for his counsels.
And they coveted their desire in the desert: and they tempted God in the place
without water. And he gave them their request: and sent fulness into their souls.
2.6 Wisdom 16:20-29
Instead of this, you nourished your people with food of angels and furnished them
bread from heaven, ready to hand, untoiled-for, endowed with all delights and con-
forming to every taste. For this substance of yours revealed your sweetness toward
your children, and serving the desire of him who received it, was blended to whatever
avor each one wished. Yet snow and ice withstood re and were not melted, that
they might know that their enemies fruits Were consumed by a re that blazed in
the hail and ashed lightning in the rain. But this re, again, that the just might be
nourished, forgot even its proper strength; For your creation, serving you, its maker,
grows tense for punishment against the wicked, but is relaxed in benet for those who
trust in you. Therefore at that very time, transformed in all sorts of ways, it was
serving your all-nourishing bounty according to what they needed and desired; That
your sons whom you loved might learn, O LORD, that it is not the various kinds of
fruits that nourish man, but it is your word that preserves those who believe you!
For what was not destroyed by re, when merely warmed by a momentary sunbeam,
melted; So that men might know that one must give you thanks before the sunrise,
and turn to you at daybreak. For the hope of the ingrate melts like a wintry frost
and runs o like useless water.
2.7 John 6: 26-58 The Discourse on the Bread of Life (Continua-
tion)
Jesus answered:
In all truth I tell you,
you are looking for me
not because you have seen the signs
but because you had all the bread you wanted to eat.
Do not work for food that goes bad,
but work for food that endures for eternal life,
which the Son of man will give you,
for on him the Father, God himself, has set his seal.
Then they said to him, What must we do if we are to carry out Gods work? Jesus
gave them this answer, This is carrying out Gods work: you must believe in the
one he has sent. So they said, What sign will you yourself do, the sight of which
will make us believe in you? What work will you do? Our fathers ate manna in the
desert; as scripture says: He gave them bread from heaven to eat.
Jesus answered them:
it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven,
it is my Father who gives you the bread from heaven,
the true bread;
for the bread of God
is the bread which comes down from heaven
and gives life to the world.
Sir, they said, give us that bread always. Jesus answered them:
I am the bread of life.
No one who comes to me will ever hunger;
no one who believes in me will ever thirst.
But, as I have told you,
you can see me and still you do not believe.
7
Everyone whom the Father gives me will come to me;
I will certainly not reject anyone who comes to me,
because I have come from heaven,
not to do my own will,
but to do the will of him who sent me.
Now the will of him who sent me
is that I should lose nothing
of all that he has given to me,
but that I should raise it up on the last day.
It is my Fathers will
that whoever sees the Son and believes in him
should have eternal life,
and that I should raise that person up on the last day.
Meanwhile the Jews were complaining to each other about him, because he had said,
I am the bread that has come down from heaven. They were saying, Surely this
is Jesus son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know. How can he now say, I
have come down from heaven? Jesus said in reply to them, Stop complaining to
each other.
No one can come to me
unless drawn by the Father who sent me,
and I will raise that person up on the last day.
It is written in the prophets:
They will all be taught by God;
everyone who has listened to the Father,
and learnt from him,
comes to me.
Not that anybody has seen the Father,
except him who has his being from God:
he has seen the Father.
everyone who believes has eternal life.
I am the bread of life.
Your fathers ate manna in the desert
and they are dead;
but this is the bread which comes down from heaven,
so that a person may eat it and not die.
I am the living bread which has come down from heaven.
Anyone who eats this bread will live for ever;
and the bread that I shall give
is my esh, for the life of the world.
Then the Jews started arguing among themselves, How can this man give us his esh
to eat? Jesus replied to them:
if you do not eat the esh of the Son of man
and drink his blood,
you have no life in you.
Anyone who does eat my esh and drink my blood
has eternal life,
and I shall raise that person up on the last day.
For my esh is real food
and my blood is real drink.
Whoever eats my esh and drinks my blood
lives in me
and I live in that person.
As the living Father sent me
and I draw life from the Father,
so whoever eats me will also draw life from me.
This is the bread which has come down from heaven;
it is not like the bread our ancestors ate:
they are dead,
but anyone who eats this bread will live for ever.
Commentary from the Navarre Bible: John 6:28-35 28-34. This dialogue
between Jesus and His hearers is reminiscent of the episode of the Samaritan woman
(cf. John 4:11-15). On that occasion Jesus was speaking about water springing up to
eternal life; here, He speaks of bread coming down from Heaven to give to the world.
There, the woman was asking Jesus if He was greater than Jacob; here the people
want to know if He can compare with Moses (cf. Exodus 16:13). The Lord spoke of
Himself in a way that made Him seem superior to Moses, for Moses never dared to
say that he would give food which would never perish but would endure to eternal
life. Jesus promises much more than Moses. Moses promised a kingdom, and a land
owing with milk and honey, good health and other temporal blessings [...], plenty
for the belly, but food which perishes; whereas Christ promised food which never
perishes but which endures forever (St. Augustine, In Ioann. Evang., 25:12).
8
These people know that the mannafood which the Jews collected every day dur-
ing the journey through the wilderness (cf. Exodus 16:13) symbolized messianic
blessings; which was why they asked our Lord for a dramatic sign like the manna.
But there was no way they could suspect that the manna was a gure of a great
supernatural messianic gift which Christ was bringing to mankindthe Blessed Eu-
charist. In this dialogue and in the rst part of the discourse (verses 35-47), the main
thing Jesus is trying to do is bring them to make an act of faith in Him, so that
He can then openly reveal to them the mystery of the Blessed Eucharistthat He is
the bread which comes down from Heaven, and gives life to the world (verse 33).
Also, St. Paul explains that the manna and the other marvels which happened in the
wilderness were a clear preguring of Jesus Christ (cf. 1 Corinthians 10:3-4).
The disbelieving attitude of these Jews prevented them from accepting what Jesus
revealed. To accept the mystery of the Eucharist, faith is required, as [Pope] Paul
VI stressed: In the rst place we want to remind you that the Eucharist is a very
great mystery; strictly speaking, to use the words of sacred liturgy, it is the mystery
of faith. This is something well known to you but it is essential to the purpose of
rejecting any poisonous rationalism. Many martyrs have witnessed to it with their
blood. Distinguished Fathers and Doctors of the Church in unbroken succession have
taught and professed it. [...] We must, therefore, approach this mystery, above all,
with humble reverence, not following human arguments, which ought to be hushed,
but in steadfast adherence to divine revelation (Mysterium Fidei).
35. Going to Jesus means believing in Him, for it is through faith that we approach
our Lord. Jesus uses the metaphor of food and drink to show that He is the one who
really meets all mans noblest aspirations: How beautiful is our Catholic faith! It
provides a solution for all our anxieties, calms our minds and lls our hearts with
hope ([Blessed] J. Escriva, The Way, 582).
2.8 Exodus 14:11+
And they said to Moses: Perhaps there were no graves in Egypt, therefore thou hast
brought us to die in the wilderness: why wouldst thou do this, to lead us out of
Egypt? Is not this the word that we spoke to thee in Egypt, saying: Depart from us
that we may serve the Egyptians? for it was much better to serve them, than to die
in the wilderness. And Moses said to the people: Fear not: stand and see the great
wonders of the Lord, which he will do this day: for the Egyptians, whom you see now,
you shall see no more for ever. The Lord will ght for you, and you shall hold your
peace. And the Lord said to Moses: Why criest thou to me? Speak to the children
of Israel to go forward. But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch forth thy hand over the
sea, and divide it: that the children of Israel may go through the midst of the sea on
dry ground. And I will harden the heart of the Egyptians to pursue you: and I will be
gloried in Pharao, and in all his host, and in his chariots, and in his horsemen. And
the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall be gloried in Pharao, and
in his chariots and in his horsemen. And the angel of God, who went before the camp
of Israel, removing, went behind them: and together with him the pillar of the cloud,
leaving the forepart, Stood behind, between the Egyptians camp and the camp of
Israel: and it was a dark cloud, and enlightening the night, so that they could not
come at one another all the night. And when Moses had stretched forth his hand over
the sea, the Lord took it away by a strong and burning wind blowing all the night,
and turned it into dry ground: and the water was divided. And the children of Israel
went in through the midst of the sea dried up: for the water was as a wall on their
right hand and on their left. And the Egyptians pursuing went in after them, and all
Pharaos horses, his chariots and horsemen through the midst of the sea, And now
the morning watch was come, and behold the Lord looking upon the Egyptian army
through the pillar of re and of the cloud, slew their host. And overthrew the wheels
of the chariots, and they were carried into the deep. And the Egyptians said: Let
us ee from Israel: for the Lord ghteth for them against us. And the Lord said to
Moses: Stretch forth they hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon
the Egyptians, upon their chariots and horsemen. And when Moses had stretched
forth his hand towards the sea, it returned at the rst break of day to the former
place: and as the Egyptians were eeing away, the waters came upon them, and the
Lord shut them up in the middle of the waves. And the waters returned, and covered
the chariots and the horsemen of all the army of Pharao, who had come into the sea
after them, neither did there so much as one of them remain. But the children of
Israel marched through the midst of the sea upon dry land, and the waters were to
them as a wall on the right hand and on the left: And the Lord delivered Israel on
that day out of the hands of the Egyptians. And they saw the Egyptians dead upon
the sea shore, and the mighty hand that the Lord had used against them: and the
people feared the Lord, and they believed the Lord, and Moses his servant.
3 Exodus 17 The water from the rock
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
28
. The people took issue with Moses for this and said, Give us water
28
Numbers 33:12-14 They left the desert of Sin and encamped at Dophkah. They left Dophkah
and encamped at Alush. They left Alush and encamped at Rephidim; the people found no drinking
water there.
9
to drink.
29
Moses replied, Why take issue with me? Why do you put Yahweh to
the test?
30
3.1 Exodus 17:3-7 The Water from the Rock
[3] But the people thirsted there for water, and the people murmured against Moses,
and said, Why did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and
our cattle with thirst? [4] So Moses cried to the LORD, What shall I do with this
people? They are almost ready to stone me.
31
[5] And the LORD said to Moses,
Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel; and take in
your hand the rod with which you struck the Nile, and go. [6] Behold, I will stand
before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water shall
come out of it, that the people may drink.
32
And Moses did so, in the sight of the
elders of Israel. [7] And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah
33
,
because of the faultnding of the children of Israel
34 35 36
, and because they put the
Lord to the proof by saying, Is the LORD among us or not?
37 38 39
Commentary from the Navarre Bible: Exodus 17:3-7 17:1-7. The severity
of desert life (notably hunger and thirst) leads God to help the Israelites in various
ways, all of them full of theological implications. The miracle of the manna, which
was preceded by that of the water which Moses made drinkable (15:22-25), is followed
29
Exodus 15:24 And the people murmured against Moses, saying: What shall we drink?
30
Deuteronomy 6:16 Do not put Yahweh your God to the test as you tested him at Massah.
31
Numbers 14:10 The whole community was talking of stoning them, when the glory of Yahweh
appeared to all the Israelites, inside the Tent of Meeting,
32
1 Corinthians 10:4c And all drank the same spiritual drink; (and they drank of the spiritual
rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ.)
Note c: According to rabbinic tradition, the rock of Nb 20:8 followed Israel in the desert. For Paul
this rock symbolises the pre-existent Christ already active in Israels history.
33
Numbers 20:24 Aaron is to be gathered to his people; he will not enter the country which I
have given to the Israelites, since you both disobeyed my order at the Waters of Meribah.
34
Deuteronomy 9:22 At Taberah too and at Massah and Kibroth-ha Taavah, you provoked
Yahweh.
35
Deuteronomy 32:51 Because, with the other Israelites, you broke faith with me at the Waters
of Meribah*Kadesh in the desert of Zin, because you did not make my holiness clear to the Israelites;
36
Deuteronomy 33:8 To Levi also he said: Thy perfection, and thy doctrine be to thy holy man,
whom thou hast proved in the temptation, and judged at the waters of contradiction :
37
38
Psalms 95:8 If only you would listen to him today! Do not harden your hearts as at Meribah,
as at the time of Massah in the desert,
39
Psalms 106:32 At the waters of Meribah they so angered Yahweh, that Moses suered on their
account,
by a new work of wonder to do with water: Moses causes water to ow from a rock.
This happened at Rephidim, probably what is now Wadi Refayid, some 13 km (8
miles) from Djebel Msa.
The sons of Israels faith in God and in Moses has been strengthening little by
little; but they often doubt whether God is there at all (v. 7). They begin to mur-
mur and to seek proofs of his presence: have they been brought out of Egypt to die,
or to attain salvation? The water which Moses causes to come out of the rock is a
further sign to bolster their faith. This episode names two places- Meribah, which in
popular etymology means contention, dispute, lawsuit, and Massah, which is
proof, test, temptation. Many biblical passages recall this sin ( cf. Deut 6: 16;
9:22-24; 33:8; Ps 95:8-9), even adding that Moses himself lacked faith and struck the
rock twice (cf. Num 20:1-13; Deut: 32:51; Ps 106:32). Lack of trust in the goodness
and power of God means tempting God and it is a grave sin against faitheven more
so in the case of Moses, who had experienced Gods special love and who ought to
have given good example. When man meets some contradiction or some diculty he
cannot immediately solve, his faith may waver but he should never doubt, because
if deliberately cultivated, doubt can lead to spiritual blindness (Catechism of the
Catholic Church, 2008
40
).
There is a rabbinical tradition which says that the rock stayed with the Israelites
throughout their sojourn in the desert; St Paul refers to this legend when he says the
Rock was Christ (1 Cor 10:4). On the basis of biblical references to the wondrous
nature of waters (cf. Ps 78:15-16; 105:4; Wis 11:4-14) the Fathers saidt his episode
pregures the wonderful eects of Baptism: See the mystery: Moses is the Prophet;
the rod is the word of God; the priest touches the rock with the word of God, and
water ows, and the people of God drink (St Ambrose, De Sacra- mentis, 8, 5, 1,
3).
3.2 Exodus 17:8-13 A battle against the Amalekites
[8] Then came Amalek and fought with Israel at Rephidim. [9] And Moses said to
Joshua
41
, Choose for us men, and go out, ght with Amalek; tomorrow I will stand
40
CCC 2008 The merit of man before God in the Christian life arises from the fact that God has
freely chosen to associate man with the work of his grace. The fatherly action of God is rst on his
own initiative, and then follows mans free acting through his collaboration, so that the merit of good
works is to be attributed in the rst place to the grace of God, then to the faithful. Mans merit,
moreover, itself is due to God, for his good actions proceed in Christ, from the predispositions and
assistance given by the Holy Spirit.
41
First mention of Joshua in the Pentateuch.
Joshua 1:1-2 When Moses, servant of Yahweh, was dead, Yahweh spoke to Joshua son of Nun,
10
on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand. [10] So Joshua did as Moses
told him, and fought with Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of
the hill.
42
[11] Whenever Moses held up his hand
43
, Israel prevailed; and whenever
he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed.
44
[12] But Moses hands grew weary; so they
took a stone and put it under him, and he sat upon it, and Aaron and Hur held
up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; so his hands were
steady until the going down of the sun. [13] And Joshua mowed down Amalek and
his people with the edge of the sword.
Yahweh then said to Moses, Write this down in a book to commemorate it
45
, and
repeat it over to Joshua, for I shall blot out all memory of Amalek under heaven.
46
Moses then built an altar and named it Yahweh-Nissi meaning, Lay hold of Yahwehs
banner! Yahweh will be at war with Amalek generation after generation.
Commentary from the Navarre Bible: Exodus 17:8-13 In addition to the
shortages of food and water the Israelites also had to cope with attacks from other
groups in the desert over rights to wells and pas- tures. Their confrontation with the
Amalekites shows that the same God as alleviated their more pressing needs (hunger
and thirst) will protect them from enemy attack.
The Amalekites were an ancient people (cf. Num 24:20; Gen 14:7; 36:12, 16; Judg
1:16) who were spread all over the north of the Sinai peninsula, the Negeb, Seir
and the south of Canaan; they controlled the caravan routes between Arabia and
Moses adjutant. He said, Moses my servant is dead; go now and cross this Jordan, you and this
whole people, into the country which I am giving to them (the Israelites).
42
Exodus 24:14 He said to the elders, Wait here for us until we come back to you. You have
Aaron and Hur with you; if anyone has any matter to settle, let him go to them.
43
Psalms 44:4-7 You are my king, my God, who decreed Jacobs victories; through you we
conquered our opponents, in your name we trampled down those who rose up against us. For my
trust was not in my bow, my victory was not won by my sword; it was you who saved us from our
opponents, you who put to shame those who hate us.
44
Joshua 8:18-19 Yahweh then said to Joshua, Point the sabre in your hand at Ai; for I am
about to put the town at your mercy. Joshua pointed the sabre in his hand towards the town. No
sooner had he stretched out his hand than the men in ambush burst from their position, ran forward,
entered the town, captured it and quickly set it on re.
(Note f: Not a mere signal but a gesture eective in itself like that of Moses in Ex. 17:9,11)
45
Numbers 24:20 Balaam then looked at Amalek and declaimed his poem, as follows: Amalek,
the earliest of nations! But his posterity will perish forever.
46
Deuteronomy 25:17-19 Remember how Amalek treated you when you were on your way out
of Egypt. He met you on your way and, after you had gone by, he fell on you from the rear and cut
o the stragglers; when you were faint and weary, he had no fear of God. When Yahweh your God
has granted you peace from all the enemies surrounding you, in the country given you by Yahweh
your God to own as your heritage, you must blot out the memory of Amalek under heaven. Do not
forget.
Egypt. In the Bible they appear as a perennial enemy of Israel (cf. Deut 25:17-18; 1
Sam 15:3; 27:8, 30) until in the time of Hezekiah (1 Chron 4:41-43) the oracle about
blotting out their memory nds fulllment (v. 14). The mention of Joshua leading
the battle and of Aaron and Hur helping Moses to pray point to the fact that after
Moses political-military and religious authority will be split, with the priests taking
over the latter.
With the rod in his hand, Moses directs the battle from a distance, but his main
involvement is by interceding for his people, asking God to give them victory. The
Fathers read this episode as a gure of the action of Christ who, on the cross (sym-
bolized by the rod), won victory over the devil and death (cf. Tertullian, Adversus
Marcionem, 3, 18; St. Cyprian, Testimonia, 2, 21).
3.3 Numbers 20:1-13 Moses Brings Water from the Rock
[1] And the people of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin
in the rst month, and the people stayed in Kadesh; and Miriam died there, and was
buried there.
[2] Now there was no water for the congregation; and they assembled themselves
together against Moses and against Aaron. [3] And the people contended with Moses,
and said, Would that we had died when our brethren died 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 why have you made us come up out of Egypt, to
bring us to this evil place? It is no place for grain, or gs, 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 door of the tent of meeting, and fell on their faces. And the
glory of the LORD appeared to them, [7] and the LORD said to Moses, Take the
rod, 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;
so you shall give drink to the congregation and their cattle. [9] And Moses took the
rod from before the LORD, as he commanded him.
[10] And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he
said to them, Hear now, you rebels; shall we bring forth water for you out of this
rock? [11] And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his rod twice; and
water came forth abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their cattle. [12] And
the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, Because you did not believe in me, to sanctify
me in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into
the land which I have given them. [13] These are the waters of Meribah, where the
people of Israel contended with the LORD, and he showed himself holy among them.
11
Commentary from the Navarre Bible: Numbers 20:1-13 20:1-19. When the
spies sent to explore the land of Canaan returned to base, people of Israel were in
the desert of Paran, in Kadesh (13:26). The desert of Zin, which is referred to here,
and which is dierent from that of a very similar name (Sin) mentioned in Exodus
16:1 and 17:1, was the north-west part of the wilderness of Paran, to which the cloud
had led the Israelites from Sinai (cf. 10:12). Kadesh was not really a town but an
area containing leafy oases. It was a key point of reference for the people of Israels
route towards Canaan. From Kadesh they will leave for the plains of Moab (cf. 22:1).
Kadesh marks the end of the desert trek (cf. chaps. 33-38); from now on the land is
inhabited and the Israelites will have contact with those who live there.
As they make their way, the people encounter both external and internal diculties,
but that does not stop their advance to the promised Land, because God is their guide
and he is helping them. In this sense the people of Israel pregures the Church, for
as Israel according to the esh which wandered in the desert was already called the
Church of God (cf. Num 20:4; etc.), so too, the new Israel which advances in this
present era in search of a future and permanent city (cf. Heb 13:14), is called also
the Church of Christ (cf. Mt 16:18
47
). It is Christ indeed who had purchased it with
his own blood (cf. Acts 20:28); he has lled it with his Spirit; he has provided means
adapted to its visible and social union (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium, 9).
20:2-13. Unlike Exodus 17:1-17, here it is Aaron who accompanies Moses, so that
both of them share in the sin of mistrusting God (cf. v. 12). The text does not say
what their sin was exactly: presumably it was because they struck the rock twice due
to lack of faith, instead of once (cf. vv. 11-12) or in the fact that they struck the rock
whereas God had told them to speak to the rock (cf. v. 8)although in Exodus 17:6
Moses was in fact told to hit it. In v. 24 we are told it was a sin of rebellion, and in
Psalm 106:32-33 it says that Moses spoke words that were rash. In Deuteronomy
1:37 and elsewhere, the punishment inicted on Moses is, however, attributed to the
peoples disobedience. At any event, the event is recounted here, just before the
narrating of the death of Aaron (as it will also be mentioned in Deuteronomy 32:51
before the account of Moses death). Here the episode is connected with two place-
namesKadesh, which means in fact holiness and which would remind people of
the holiness of God (cf. v. 13), and Meribah, which means rebellion and would
evoke Moses sin. The two names appear linked (Meri-bath-kadesh) in Deuteronomy
32:51 and Exodus 47:19.
This rock pregured Christ, according to 1 Corinthians 10:4-5. The Fathers gave
47
[OrthJBC] Matthew 16:18 And I also say to you that you are Shimon Kefa [rock] and upon
this rock I will build my Kehillah (the Community of Moshiach) and the shaarei Sheol (gates of
Sheol) shall not overpower it.
an allegorical interpretation: the rock is Jesus, and the water the grace which ows
from the open side of our Lord; the double strike stands for the two beams of the
cross. Moses stands for the Jews, because just as Moses doubted and struck the rock,
the Jewish people crucied Christ, not believing that he was the Son of God (cf. St
Augustine, Contra Faustum, 16, 15; Questiones In Heptateuchurn, 35).
3.4 Exodus 14:11+
Duplicate, already referenced above
3.5 John 7:38r
Let anyone who believes in me come and drink!
As scripture says, From his heart shall ow streams of living water.
Note: The liturgy of the feast of Shelters (Tabernacles), which formed the back-
ground of these words, included prayers for rain, the procession of Siloam and the
gathering of living water, which was then carried back to the Temple for the lustra-
tions. These rites commemorated the Mosaic water-miracle, Ex 17:1-7; cf. 1 Co 10:4,
and included readings from biblical passages foretelling lifegiving water for Zion, Ezk
47:1seq.; Zc 14:8; see Jn 4:1a.
3.6 1 Samuel 15:3+ Holy war against the Amalekites
Now therefore go, and smite Amalec, and utterly destroy all that he hath: spare him
not, nor covet any thing that is his: but slay both man and woman, child and suckling,
ox and sheep, camel and ass. So Saul commanded the people, and numbered them as
lambs: two hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand of the men of Juda. And
when Saul was come to the city of Amalec, he laid ambushes in the torrent. And Saul
said to the Cinite: Go, depart and get ye down from Amalec: lest I destroy thee with
him. For thou hast shewn kindness to all the children of Israel, when they came up
out of Egypt. And the Cinite departed from the midst of Amalec. And Saul smote
Amalec from Hevila, until thou comest to Sur, which is over against Egypt. And he
took Agag the king of Amalec alive: but all the common people he slew with the
edge of the sword. And Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the ocks of
sheep and of the herds, and the garments and the rams, and all that was beautiful,
and would not destroy them: but every thing that was vile and good for nothing,
that they destroyed. And the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying: It repenteth
me that I have made Saul king: for he hath forsaken me, and hath not executed my
12
commandments. And Samuel was grieved, and he cried unto the Lord all night. And
when Samuel rose early, to go to Saul in the morning, it was told Samuel, that Saul
was come to Carmel, and had erected for himself a triumphant arch, and returning
had passed on, and gone down to Galgal. And Samuel came to Saul, and Saul was
oering a holocaust to the Lord out of the choicest of the spoils which he had brought
from Amalec. And when Samuel was come to Saul, Saul said to him: Blessed be thou
of the Lord, I have fullled the word of the Lord. And Samuel said: What meaneth
then this bleating of the ocks, which soundeth in my ears, and the lowing of the
herds, which I hear? And Saul said: They have brought them from Amalec: for the
people spared the best of the sheep and of the herds that they might be sacriced to
the Lord thy God, but the rest we have slain. And Samuel said to Saul: Suer me,
and I will tell thee what the Lord hath said to me this night. And he said to him:
Speak. And Samuel said: When thou wast a little one in thy own eyes, wast thou
not made the head of the tribes of Israel? And the Lord anointed thee to be king
over Israel. And the Lord sent thee on the way, and said: Go, and kill the sinners
of Amalec, and thou shalt ght against them until thou hast utterly destroyed them.
Why then didst thou not hearken to the voice of the Lord: but hast turned to the
prey, and hast done evil in the eyes of the Lord. And Saul said to Samuel: Yea I have
hearkened to the voice of the Lord, and have walked in the way by which the Lord
sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalec, and Amalec I have slain. But
the people took of the spoils sheep and oxen, as the rstfruits of those things that
were slain, to oer sacrice to the Lord their God in Galgal. And Samuel said: Doth
the Lord desire holocausts and victims, and not rather that the voice of the Lord
should be obeyed? For obedience is better than sacrices: and to hearken rather
than to oer the fat of rams. Because it is like the sin of witchcraft, to rebel: and like
the crime of idolatry, to refuse to obey. Forasmuch therefore as thou hast rejected the
word of the Lord, the Lord hath also rejected thee from being king. And Saul said
to Samuel: I have sinned because I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord,
and thy words, fearing the people, and obeying their voice. But now bear, I beseech
thee, my sin, and return with me, that I may adore the Lord. And Samuel said to
Saul: I will not return with thee, because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord,
and the Lord hath rejected thee from being king over Israel. And Samuel turned
about to go away: but he laid hold upon the skirt of his mantle, and it rent. And
Samuel said to him: The Lord hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and
hath given it to thy neighbour who is better than thee. But the triumpher in Israel
will riot spare, and will not be moved to repentance: for he is not a mail that he
should repent. Then he said: I have sinned: yet honour me now before the ancients
of my people, and before Israel, and return with me, that I may adore the Lord thy
God. So Samuel turned again after Saul: and Saul adored the Lord. And Samuel
said: Bring hitherto me Agag the king of Amalec. And Agag was presented to him
very fat, and trembling. And Agag said: Doth bitter death separate in this manner?
And Samuel said: As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be
childless among women. And Samuel hewed him in pieces before the Lord in Galgal.
And Samuel departed to Ramatha: but Saul went up to his house in Gabaa. And
Samuel saw Saul no more till the day of his death: nevertheless Samuel mourned for
Saul, because the Lord repented that he had made him king over Israel.
Commentary from the Navarre Bible: 1 Samuel 15:1-35 15:1-35. The battle
against the Amalekites is the occasion for Saul to be rejected by God forever. The
episodes dealt with up to this have built up evidence of Sauls sins, particularly his
lack of trust in God. However, here his disobedience is clear to see.
This account contains echoes of earlier divine condenmnations. The Lord repents
(an anthropomorphic expression) having made Saul king (v. 11), as he earlier was
sorry for having created man (Gen 6:6); Sauls rejection of Gods plans (vv. 11, 23,
26) led to his rejection by God. Sauls access to the throne is blocked,just as the
gates of Paradise were closed on Adam (Gen 3:23-24). As in the case of Adam, Gods
punishment of Saul is severe and there will be no going back on it, for Sauls is a very
grave sin, that is, a sin of rebellion and of rejection of God and his word (v. 26).
From this point on, even though he knows that the Lord does not acknowledge his
kingship, Saul will continue to be king in name, because the sentence given against
him was told him by Samuel in secret (vv. 30-31), just as his rst anointing was done
in secret (cf. 10:1-16).
15:22-23. Samuels oracular pronouncement, given in verse form here, is one of the
oldest of its kind in the Bible. From the literary point of view it is very beautiful; and
it also provides a clear denition of obedience, which it identies with acknowledgment
of God: obedience is the most perfect form of divine worship more perfect than the
oering of sacrice; disobedience is a form of idolatry. The sentence against Saul is
harsh and unambiguous; it applies the ancient law of vengeance (an eye for an eye...),
rejection being referred to in the fault and in its sentence.
This short canticle in praise of obedience nds an echo in the Northern prophets
(Amos 5:21+ and Hos 6:6 For I desire mercy, and not sacrice; And the knowledge
of God more than burnt oerings.) and it will be updated by Jesus (Mt 9:13 Go
and learn the meaning of the words: Mercy is what pleases me, not sacrice. And
indeed I came to call not the upright, but sinners.) who gives the fullest denition
of the meaning of obedience to God and those who represent him. Obedience, and
holy obedience alone, gives us a clear view of the will of God. Superiors may make
13
mistakes, but we can never err in obeying (St Maximilian Kolbe, Letters, in The
Divine Oce, Oce of Readings, 14 August).
4 Exodus 18 The meeting of Jethro and Moses / The
appointment of judges
Jethro, priest of Midian, Moses father-in-law, had heard all about what God had
done for Moses and for Israel his people: how Yahweh had brought Israel out of
Egypt. 2 Jethro, Moses father-in-law, then took back Zipporah, Moses wife, whom
Moses had sent home, 3 with her two sons; one of them was called Gershom because,
he had said, I am an alien in a foreign land, 4 and the other called Eliezer because
My fathers God is my help and has delivered me from Pharaohs sword.
5 Then Jethro, Moses father-in-law, with Moses sons and wife, came to Moses in
the desert where he was encamped, at the mountain of God. 6 Here is your father-
in-law Jethro approaching, Moses was told, with your wife and her two sons. 7 So
Moses went out to greet his father-in-law, bowed low to him and kissed him; and
when each had asked how the other was they went into the tent. 8 Moses then told
his father-in-law all about what Yahweh had done to Pharaoh and the Egyptians
for Israels sake, and about all the hardships that they had encountered on the way,
and how Yahweh had rescued them. 9 And Jethro was delighted at all Yahwehs
goodness to Israel in having rescued them from the clutches of the Egyptians. 10
Blessed be Yahweh, Jethro exclaimed, for having rescued you from the clutches of
the Egyptians and the clutches of Pharaoh, for having rescued the people from the
grasp of the Egyptians! 11 Now I know that Yahweh is greater than all other gods.
. .
12 Jethro, Moses father-in-law, then oered a burnt oering and other sacrices to
God; and Aaron and all the elders of Israel came and ate with Moses father-in-law
in the presence of God.
48
48
Note: Deuteronomy 12:7c The Deuteronomic Code frequently emphasises the joy of the ritual
meal and of the liturgical feasts, see vv. 12, 18; Dt 16:11,14
Dt 12:12 That is where you will rejoice in the presence of Yahweh your God, you and your sons
and daughters, your serving men and women, and the Levite living in your community since he has
no share or heritage of his own among you.
Dt 12:18 You must eat these in the presence of Yahweh your God in the place Yahweh your God
chooses and there alone, you, your son and your daughter, your serving man and serving woman,
and the Levite living in your community, expressing your joy in all your labours in the presence of
Yahweh your God. As long as you live on your soil, be careful not to neglect the Levite.
Dt 16:11,12 You must rejoice in the presence of Yahweh your God, in the place where Yahweh
your God chooses to give his name a home, you, your son and your daughter, your serving men and
The appointment of judges
49
13 On the following day, Moses took his seat
to administer justice for the people, and the people were standing round him from
morning till evening. 14 Seeing all he did for the people, Moses father-in-law said to
him, Why do you do this for the people, why sit here alone with the people standing
round you from morning till evening? 15 Moses replied to his father-in-law, Because
the people come to me to consult God.
50
16 When they have a problem they come
to me, and I give a ruling between the one and the other and make Gods statutes
and laws known to them. 17 Moses father-in-law then said to him, What you are
doing is not right. 18 You will only tire yourself out, and the people with you too, for
the work is too heavy for you. You cannot do it all yourself.
51
19 Now listen to the
advice I am going to give you, and God be with you! Your task is to represent the
people to God, to lay their cases before God, 20 and to teach them the statutes and
women, the Levite living in your community, the foreigner, the orphan and the widow living among
you. Remember that you were once a slave in Egypt, and carefully observe these laws.
Dt 16:14 You must rejoice at your feast, you, your son and your daughter, your serving men and
women, the Levite, the foreigner, the orphan and the widow living in your community.
49
|| Deuteronomy 1:9-18 (The nal instructions at Horeb) And I said to you at that time: I alone
am not able to bear you: for the Lord your God hath multiplied you, and you are this day as the
stars of heaven, for multitude. (The Lord God of your fathers add to this number many thousands,
and bless you as he hath spoken.) I alone am not able to bear your business, and the charge of
you and your dierences. Let me have from among you wise and understanding men, and such
whose conversation is approved among your tribes, that I may appoint them your rulers. Then you
answered me: The thing is good which thou meanest to do. And I took out of your tribes men wise
and honourable, and appointed them rulers, tribunes, and centurions, and ocers over fties, and
over tens, who might teach you all things. And I commanded them, saying: Hear them, and judge
that which is just: whether he be one of your country, or a stranger. There shall be no dierence
of persons, you shall hear the little as well as the great: neither shall you respect any mans person,
because it is the judgment of God. And if any thing seem hard to you, refer it to me, and I will hear
it. And I commanded you all things that you were to do.
50
Exodus 33:7e (see The Tent below) i.e. to ask for divine response through the agency of
Moses who conversed with God in the Tent, see above 18:15. In later times, Yahweh was consulted
through a man of God or through a prophet, 1 K 14:5, 22:5, 8; 2 K 3:11; 8:8; etc. or by using the
sacred lots, see 1 S 2:28l; 14:41r.
Exodos 33:7-11 (The Tent) Moses used to take the Tent and pitch it outside the camp, far away
from the camp. He called it the Tent of Meeting. Anyone who wanted to consult Yahweh would go
out to the Tent of Meeting, outside the camp. Whenever Moses went out to the Tent, the people
would all stand up and every man would stand at the door of his tent and watch Moses until he went
into the Tent. And whenever Moses went into the Tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and
station itself at the entrance to the Tent, while Yahweh spoke with Moses. The people could all see
the pillar of cloud stationed at the entrance to the Tent and the people would all stand up and bow
low, each at the door of his tent. Yahweh would talk to Moses face to face, as a man talks to his
friend, and afterwards he would come back to the camp, but the young man who was his servant,
Joshua son of Nun, never left the inside of the Tent.
51
Numbers 11:14 I cannot carry all these people on my own; the weight is too much for me.
14
laws, and show them the way they ought to follow and how they ought to behave.
21 At the same time, from the people at large choose capable and God-fearing men,
men who are trustworthy and incorruptible, and put them in charge of them as heads
of thousands, hundreds, fties and tens, 22 and make them the peoples permanent
judges.
52 53
They will refer all important matters to you, but all minor matters they
will decide themselves, so making things easier for you by sharing the burden with
you. 23 If you do this-and may God so command you-you will be able to stand the
strain, and all these people will go home satised. 24 Moses took his father-in-laws
advice and did just as he said. 25 Moses chose capable men from all Israel and put
them in charge of the people as heads of thousands, hundreds, fties and tens. 26
These acted as the peoples permanent judges. They referred hard cases to Moses
but decided minor matters themselves.
27 Moses then set his father-in-law on his way, and he travelled back to his own
country.
54
4.1 Hebrews 11:32-40 The Faith of Moses, of the Judges and of
the Prophets
[32] And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak,
Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets[33] who through faith
conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, received promises, stopped the mouths of lions,
[34] quenched raging re, escaped the edge of the sword, won strength out of weakness,
became mighty in war, put foreign armies to ight. [35] Women received their dead
by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, that they might rise
again to a better life. [36] Others suered mocking and scourging, and even chains and
imprisonment. [37] They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with
the sword; they went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, aicted, ill-treated
[38] of whom the world was not worthywandering over deserts and mountains, and
52
Numbers 11:16-17 Yahweh said to Moses, Collect me seventy of the elders of Israel, men you
know to be the peoples elders and scribes. Bring them to the Tent of Meeting, and let them stand
beside you there. I shall come down and talk to you there and shall take some of the spirit which is
on you and put it on them. Then they will bear the burden of the people with you, and you will no
longer have to bear it on your own.
53
Isaiah 11:1-10 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow
out of his roots. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him...
54
Numbers 10:29-32 (Moses proposal to Hobab) Moses said to Hobab son of Reuel the Midianite,
his father-in-law, We are setting out for the country of which Yahweh has said: I shall give it to you.
Come with us, and we will treat you well, for Yahweh has promised good things for Israel. I will
not come with you, he replied, but shall go to my own country and kin. Do not leave us, Moses
said, for you know where we can camp in the desert, and so you will be our eyes. If you come with
us, we shall share with you whatever blessings Yahweh gives us.
in dens and caves of the earth. [39] And all these, though well attested by their faith,
did not receive what was promised [40] since God had foreseen something better for
us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.
Commentary from the Navarre Bible: Hebrews 11:32-40 32-38. Up to this
point, the passage has been recalling outstanding examples of faith from the time of
the Patriarchs down to that of Joshua (18th to 13th century B.C.). The epistle now
goes on to their exploits and suerings, wherein their faith brought them victory; the
sacred writer then mentions the testimony of faith of heroes, judges, kings, prophets
and martyrs from the time of the conquest of Palestine to that of the Maccabees
(13th to 2nd centuries B.C.). Not in any strict chronological order, he mentions only
the most important Judges (Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah), the greatest of
the kings (David) and the most famous of the early prophets (Samuel). Finally he
refers to exploits and other deeds inspired by faith and delity, without giving names.
We know from Sacred Scripture that many of these people had shortcomings and,
in some cases, committed grave sins. However, those weaknesses did not prevent
their lling key roles in Gods plans: they let themselves be used by God to apply
his policy and are therefore worthy of being proposed as examples of faith.
33-35a. Through faith (they) conquered kingdoms: a reference to the men who
conquer the promised land: Barak, who overcame the Canaanites (cf. Judg 11),
Gideon, who conquered the Midianites (cf. Judg 7), Jephthah, who conquered the
Amonnites (cf. Judg 11), Samson, who defeated the Philistines (cf. Judg 14), and
David, who succeeded in subduing all the enemies of Israel (cf. 2 Sam 5:17-25; 8:1f;
10).
Enforced justice: a reference to the authority exercised by the Judges on a tribal
basis, and by Samuel and the kings over the whole of Israel (cf. 1 Sam 12:3; 2 Sam
8:15); it can also be understood as meaning those who practised righteousness in
Gods name and made it eective, the prophets being the outstanding examples.
Received promises: the righteous of the Old Testament received an earnest of the
messianic promises in the form of the fulllment of certain prophecies made by God.
Barak defeated Sisera as God had promised (cf. Judg 4:14f); Gideon overcame the
Midianites (cf. Judg 6:14; 7:7); David brought peace to the whole land, as Nathan
had predicted (cf. 2 Sam 7:11); etc.
Stopped the mouths of lions: a reference to feats performed by Samson (cf. Jud
14:6), David (cf. 1 Sam 17:34-35), and Benaiah (cf. 2 Sam 23:20), it especially recalls
the episode of Daniel in the lions den: when thrown there by the king on account of
his faith, he told him, My God sent his angel and shut the lions mouths, and they
have not hurt me (Dan 6:22).
15
Sacred history also includes people who quenched raging re (like the three young
men in the ery furnace in Babylon: cf. Dan 3:21-94); or who escaped the edge of
the sword (as Moses did, in his ight from Pharaohs wrath: cf. Ex 18:4); or like
David, who won strength out of weakness in his victories over Goliath and Saul
(cf. 1 Sam 17:34; 18:11; 19:11). Thanks to his faith Elijah found protection from
Jezebels persecution (cf. 1 Kings 19:1f); and the Jewish people were able to escape
extermination during King Ahasuerus reign thanks to the prayer and intercession of
Esther and Mordecai (cf. Esther 3:6).
Through faith King Hezekiah was miraculously cured of mortal illness (cf. Is 38)
and Samson received his strength after becoming weak and blind (cf. Judg 15:19;
16:28-30). Faith enabled the Hebrews, under the Judges, to take on and defeat the
pagan peoples of Palestine; it led Judith to behead Holofernes and bring about the
destruction of his army; and it enabled the Maccabees to repel the foreign armies of
Antiochus (cf. 1 Mac 1:38).
Then there is the example of the widow of Zarephath, who sheltered Elijah and
had her son restored when the prophet cured him (cf. 1 Kings 17:17f). And Elisha
brought back to life the son of the Shunammite widow (cf. 2 Kings 4:33f).
All these examples show the eectiveness of faith, when it involves a persons whole
life and lifestyle, inuencing both everyday events and great exploits.
35b-36. Faith not only enables people to perform exploits and miracles: it also
enables them to persevere in doing good and to bear all kinds of moral and physical
pain, even torture and the most cruel forms of death. And so the text refers to
various sorts of suering inicted on the prophets and many other just members of
the people of Israel.
The writer may have in mind, for example, the death of Eleazar (cf. 2 Mac 6:19)
and of the seven brothers (cf. 2 Mac 7), who underwent most cruel torture during
the persecution mounted by Antiochus IV Epiphanes. The king had promised them
their lives if they gave up their faith and laws by eating forbidden meat; but they
stayed true to God and were mercilessly martyred.
However, they had unshakeable faith in the rightness of Gods judgment and in
future resurrection (2 Mac 7:19, 14, 23, 29). They desired to rise again to a better
life: they put their faith in an incomparably more valuable, more real, life than
that of a few more years on earth, which would have been the reward of apostasy.
They did not escape death, St Thomas writes, not because God was not looking
after them but so that they might obtain eternal life, which is a more excellent thing
than being set free from any present aiction or being raised up again to this life
(Commentary on Heb., 11, 5).
The example of these men and women whom faith strengthened to endure suering,
should encourage Christians to face persecution courageously and defend their faith
at all costs. Let us pray to God that we do not suer persecution, but if that does
happen, let us bear it bravely. It bets a prudent man not to ing himself lightly
into danger, but it bets a brave man to rise to the occasion when danger falls on
him (Hom. on Heb., 5).
37-38. Some righteous men were stoned for their faithZechariah, for example,
who was killed by order of King Joash (cf. 2 Chron 24:2021); Naboth, condemned
to death through the lies spread by Jezebel (cf. 1 Kings 21:13); and the prophet
Jeremiah also, according to an ancient tradition. Others were sawn in twoIsaiah,
for example, whom another Jewish tradition says was martyred by King Manasseh.
Elijah, in ight from persecution, went around dressed in skins (cf. 1 Kings 19:3);
similarly Mattathias and his sons during the war against the Seleucid kings, were
forced to hide in the mountains and had only goatskins to wear (cf. 1 Mac 2:28).
In our own time there are also people who profess their faith in God by undergoing
comparable persecution; but usually hatred of Christ and his followers takes more
subtle forms.
40. This verse is the conclusion following from all the examples provided. The
righteous of the Old Law were outstanding for their faith and endurance, but for all
that they did not have the strength that the grace of Christ bestows; Jesus remarked,
when John the Baptist was praised to him, Truly, I say to you, among those born of
women there has ansen no one greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in
the kingdom of heaven is greater than he (Mt 11:11); and he reminded his disciples
of their privileged position: Blessed are the eyes which see what you see! For I tell
you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it,
and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it (Lk 10:23-24; cf. Mt 13:16-17).
God did not deny their reward to the righteous of the Old Testament, but he
postponed it until heavens gates were opened by the death and resurrection of our
Lord. They too now enjoy eternal life and they will attain their nal perfecting
when their bodies rise in glory on the last day. God is like a good father, St John
Chrysostom comments, who says to his beloved children when they nish their work,
that he will not give them their supper until their other brothers come back also.
And you, are you annoyed because you have not received your reward? What should
Abel do, then. He was the rst to gain the victory, but remained uncrowned. And
Noah? And all those of those times who are waiting for you and for those who will
come after you? Do you not see how much better o we are? That is why he says:
God in his providence had arranged something better for us. And, in order that it
should not be thought that those people were superior to us because they received
their crown earlier, God disposed that all should be crowned at the very same time;
16
and he who won his many years earlier will be crowned along with you [...]. For if we
are all the one body, this body will the more rejoice if all are crowned at the same
time and not one by one (Hom. on Heb., 28)
4.2 Isaiah 11:1-10 The New Descendant of David / The Return of
the Exiles
There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might,
the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
or decide by what his ears hear;
but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked.
Righteousness shall be the girdle of his waist,
and faithfulness the girdle of his loins.
The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid,
and the calf and the lion and the failing together,
and a little child shall lead them.
The cow and the bear shall feed;
their young shall lie down together;
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
The sucking child shall play over the hole of the asp,
and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adders den.
They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.
The Return of the Exiles
In that day the root of Jesse shall stand as an ensign to the peoples; him
shall the nations seek, and his dwellings shall be glorious.
Commentary from the Navarre Bible: Isaiah 11:1-10 11:1-9. This passage,
which is regarded as the third Immanuel oracle, has two parts to it. The rst (vv.1-5)
announces that the shoot will spring from the stump of Jesse (Davids father) at some
future date.The second (vv. 6-9) describes the good things associated with his reign,
using imagery to do with messianic peace: creation will be restored to its state of
original justice.
The rst part is a formal announcement of the accession of a new king in the line
of Davidhumble, because he comes from a tree that has been pruned yet has all the
vitality of a tender shoot. It refers to a future king (there shall come ...) and not
the reigning monarch. The new king will be endowed with exceptional qualities that
equip him to rule, thanks to the Holy Spirit who will descend upon him. The divine
Spirit is an inner strength, a gift that God gives to key gures in salvation history
to enable them to accomplish a dicult and dangerous missionMoses (cf. Num
11:17), the judges (cf. 3:10; 6:34) and David (1 Sam 16:13). The new descendent of
David will rule over the people not in a heavy-handed way like the kings of the time,
but with a charismatic dynamism that comes from God. Six gifts of the Spirit are
mentioned, in pairs wisdom and understanding, referring to the skill and prudence
that ensure that he will judge rightly; counsel and fortitude, the characteristics of an
astute strategist like David; knowledge and the fear of the Lord, which have to do
with the religious sphere, for the king must not forget that he is Gods representative.
The second part describes very beautifully the messianic peace that will ower with
this new shoot. It paints a panorama of the harmony that reigned at the dawn of
creation, only to be broken by sin. Even among wild beasts violence will disappear.
No longer will man in his pride desire to be like God, knowing good and evil (Gen
3:5); instead he will be lled with the divine gift of the knowledge of the Lord
(v. 9). The child, mentioned twice (vv. 6, 8) is not directly connected with the
child-king of the oracle found in 9:6 or with the Immanuel (7:14); however, in the
mind of the prophet they must have had many points of contact, given the reference
to the child having a leadership role (v. 6).
The image of the shoot from the royal line who will bring peace has been in-
terpreted in Christian tradition as nding fulllment in Jesus Christ. St Thomas
Aquinas read this passage as referring to Christ, who brought about the restoration
of mankind; he points out: First, the birth of Christ the restorer, is spoken of (v.
1); then, his holiness (vv. 2-9) and his dignity (v. 10) are described (Expositio
Super lsaiam, 11). And John Paul II comments: Alluding to the coming of a myste-
17
rious personage, which the New Testament revelation will identify with Jesus, Isaiah
connects his person and mission with a particular action of the Spirit of Godthe
Spirit of the Lord.
These are the words of the prophet: There shall come forth a shoot from the
stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. And the Spirit of the Lord
shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel
and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. And his delight shall be
the fear of the Lord (Is 11:1-3). This text is important for the whole pneumatology
of the Old Testament, because it constitutes a kind of bridge between the ancient
biblical concept of spirit, understood primarily as a charismatic breath of wind,
and the Spirit as a person and as a gift, a gift for the person. The Messiah of the
lineage of David (from the stump of Jesse) is precisely that person upon whom the
Spirit of the Lord shall rest. It is obvious that in this case one cannot yet speak of
a revelation of the Paraclete. However, with this veiled reference to the gure of the
future Messiah there begins, so to speak, the path towards the full revelation of the
Holy Spirit in the unity of the Trinitarian mystery, a mystery which will nally be
manifested in the New Covenant (Dominum Et Vivicantem, 15).
A Christian reading of these words nds in them a reference to the action of the
Holy Spirit in souls; the spirits that repose in the Messiah; are stable gifts through
which the Holy Spirit acts. There are six of these gifts, according to the Hebrew text
(which the New Vulgate and the RSV follow). The Greek translation of the Septuagint
and the Vulgate divide the gift of fear into twopiety and fear of the Lord. That is
why catechesis and theology speak of there being seven gifts: The seven gifts of
the Holy Spirit are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and
fear of the Lord. They belong in their fullness to Christ, Son of David (cf. Is 11:1-2).
They complete and perfect the virtues of those who receive them. They make the
faithful docile in readily obeying divine inspirations (Catechism of the Catholic
Church, 1831
55
).
4.3 Isaiah 9:2-4, 6-7 The Prince of Peace
[2] The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a
55
1831 The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge,
piety, and fear of the Lord. They belong in their fullness to Christ, Son of David. They complete
and perfect the virtues of those who receive them. They make the faithful docile in readily obeying
divine inspirations.
Let your good spirit lead me on a level path. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are
sons of God . . . If children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ.
land of deep darkness, on them has light shined. [3] Thou has multiplied the nation,
thou hast increased its joy; they rejoice before thee as with joy at the harvest, as men
rejoice when they divide the spoil. [4] For the yoke of his burden, and the sta for
his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, thou hast broken as on the day of Midian. [6]
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his
shoulder, and his name will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Might God, Everlasting
Father, Prince of Peace. [7] Of the increase of his government and of peace there will
be no end, upon the throne of David, and over his kingdom, to establish it, and to
uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and for evermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
Commentary from the Navarre Bible: Isaiah 9:2-4, 6-7 9:1-7. At this point,
though not yet very clearly, we begin to see the gure of King Hezekiah, who, unlike
his father Ahaz, was a pious man who put all his trust in the Lord. After Galilee was
laid waste by Tiglath-pileser III of Assyria, and its population subsequently deported
(cf. 8:21-22), Hezekiah of Judah would recon- quer that region, which would recover
its splendour for a period. All this gave grounds for hope again.
This oracle may have a connexion with the Immanuel prophecy (7:1-17), and the
child with messianic prerogatives that has been born (cf. 9:6-7) could be the child
that Isaiah prophesied about (cf. 7:14). For this reason, 9:1-7 is seen as the second
oracle of the Immanuel cycle. This child that is born, the son given to us, is a
gift from God (9:6), because it is a sign that God is present among his people. The
Hebrew text attributes four qualities to the child which seem to em- brace all the
typical features of Israels illustrious forebears the wisdom of Solo- mon (cf. 1 Kings
3: Wonderful Counsellor), the prowess of David (cf. 1 Sam 7: Mighty God), the
administrative skills of Moses (cf. Ex 18:13-26) as liberator, guide and father
of the people (cf. Deut 34:10-12), (Everlasting Father), and the virtues of the early
patriarchs, who made peace pacts (cf. Gen 21:22-34; 26:15- 35; 23:6), (Prince of
peace). In the old Latin Vulgate, the translation gave six features (Admirabilis,
Consiliarius, Deus, Fortis, Pater future saeculi, Princeps pacis); these have found
their way into the liturgy. The New Vulgate has reverted to the Hebrew text. Either
way, what we have here are titles that Semite nations applied to the reigning monarch;
but, taken together, they go far beyond what betted Hezekiah or any other king
of Judah. Therefore, Christian tradition has interpreted them as being appropriate
only for Jesus. St Bernard, for example, explains the justication for these names as
follows: He is Wonderful in his birth, Counsellor in his preaching, God in his works,
Mighty in the Passion, Ever- lasting Father in the resurrection, and Prince of Peace
in eternal happiness (Sermones de diversis, 53, 1).
18
Because these names are applied to Jesus, the short-term conquest of Galilee by
Hezekiah is seen as being only an announcement of the denitive salvation brought
about by Christ. In the Gospels we nd echoes of this oracle in a number of passages
that refer to Jesus. When Luke narrates the Annunciation by the angel to Mary (Lk
1:31-33) we hear that the son that she will conceive and give birth to will receive
the throne of his father David and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever;
and of his kingdom there shall be no end (Lk 1:32b-33; cf. Is 9:7). And in the
account about the shepherds of Bethlehem, they are told that to you is born this
day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord . . . (Lk 2:11-12; cf. Is
9:6). St Matthew sees the beginning of Jesus ministry in Galilee (Mt 4:12-17) as the
fulllment of this Isaian oracle (cf. Is 9:1): the lands that in the prophets time were
laid waste and saw ethnic cleansing and transplantation were the rst to receive the
light of salvation from the Messiah.
A List of used References
The New Jerusalem Bible (Nihil Obstat/Imprimatur)
ISBN: 0232516502
URL: http://www.catholic.org/bible/
Catechism of the Catholic Church (Nihil Obstat/Imprimatur)
ISBN: 0860123278
URL: http://www.kofc.org/publications/cis/catechism/index.cfm
(with footnotes and citations)
URL: http://www.scborromeo.org/search.htm
The Navarre Bible Series (Nihil Obstat/Imprimatur)
Available in print for the entire Bible, initiated by St. Josemara Escriva
URL: http://groups.google.com.au/ Keyword: navarre Exodus 16
Douay-Rheims Bible, Challoner Revision
Sword module version 1.1 - http://www.e-sword.net/
THE HOLY BIBLE TRANSLATED FROM THE LATIN VULGATE DILI-
GENTLY COMPARED WITH THE HEBREW, GREEK, AND OTHER
EDITIONS IN DIVERS LANGUAGES THE OLD TESTAMENT FIRST
PUBLISHED BY THE ENGLISH COLLEGE AT DOUAY, A.D. 1609 AND
THE NEW TESTAMENT FIRST PUBLISHED BY THE ENGLISH COL-
LEGE AT RHEIMS, A.D. 1582 WITH ANNOTATIONS, REFERENCES,
AND AN HISTORICAL AND CHRONOLOGICAL INDEX
THE WHOLE REVISED AND DILIGENTLY COMPARED WITH THE
LATIN VULGATE BY BISHOP RICHARD CHALLONER, A.D. 1749-
1752 PUBLISHED WITH THE APPROBATION OF HIS EMINENCE
JAMES CARDINAL GIBBONS ARCHBISHOP OF BALTIMORE
URL: http://www.drbo.org/
B Catechism of the Catholic Church
B.1 Exodus 15:26 (CCC 1502)
CCC 1502 The man of the Old Testament lives his sickness in the presence of God.
It is before God that he laments his illness, and it is of God, Master of life and death,
that he implores healing.
56
Illness becomes a way to conversion; Gods forgiveness
initiates the healing.
57
It is the experience of Israel that illness is mysteriously linked
to sin and evil, and that faithfulness to God according to his law restores life: For
I am the Lord, your healer.
58
The prophet intuits that suering can also have a
redemptive meaning for the sins of others.
59
Finally Isaiah announces that God will
usher in a time for Zion when he will pardon every oense and heal every illness.
60
B.2 Exodus 16:19-21 (CCC 2837)
2837 Daily (epiousios) occurs nowhere else in the New Testament. Taken in a
temporal sense, this word is a pedagogical repetition of this day, to conrm us
in trust without reservation. Taken in the qualitative sense, it signies what is
56
Cf. Ps 6:3; 38; Isa 38.
57
Cf. Ps 32:5; 38:5; 39:9, 12; 107:20; cf. Mk 2:5-12.
58
Ex 15:26
59
Isaiah 53:11 he shall see the fruit of the travail of his soul and be satised; by his knowledge
shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous; and he shall bear their
iniquities.
60
Isaiah 33:24 And no inhabitant will say, I am sick; the people who dwell there will be forgiven
their iniquity.
19
necessary for life, and more broadly every good thing sucient for subsistence. Taken
literally (epi-ousios: super-essential), it refers directly to the Bread of Life, the
Body of Christ, the medicine of immortality, without which we have no life within
us. Finally in this connection, its heavenly meaning is evident: this day is the Day
of the Lord, the day of the feast of the kingdom, anticipated in the Eucharist that
is already the foretaste of the kingdom to come. For this reason it is tting for the
Eucharistic liturgy to be celebrated each day.
The Eucharist is our daily bread. The power belonging to this divine
food makes it a bond of union. Its eect is then understood as unity, so that,
gathered into his Body and made members of him, we may become what we
receive. . . . This also is our daily bread: the readings you hear each day
in church and the hymns you hear and sing. All these are necessities for our
pilgrimage.
The Father in heaven urges us, as children of heaven, to ask for the bread
of heaven. [Christ] himself is the bread who, sown in the Virgin, raised up in
the esh, kneaded in the Passion, baked in the oven of the tomb, reserved in
churches, brought to altars, furnishes the faithful each day with food from
heaven.
B.3 Exodus 16:19 (CCC 2836)
2836 This day is also an expression of trust taught us by the Lord, which we would
never have presumed to invent. Since it refers above all to his Word and to the Body
of his Son, this today is not only that of our mortal time, but also the today of
God.
If you receive the bread each day, each day is today for you. If Christ is
yours today, he rises for you every day. How can this be? You are my Son,
today I have begotten you. Therefore, today is when Christ rises.
B.4 Exodus 17:1-6 (CCC 694)
694 Water. The symbolism of water signies the Holy Spirits action in Baptism,
since after the invocation of the Holy Spirit it becomes the ecacious sacramental
sign of new birth: just as the gestation of our rst birth took place in water, so the
water of Baptism truly signies that our birth into the divine life is given to us in the
Holy Spirit. As by one Spirit we were all baptized, so we are also made to drink
of one Spirit.
61
Thus the Spirit is also personally the living water welling up from
Christ crucied
62
as its source and welling up in us to eternal life.
63
B.5 Exodus 17:2-7 (CCC 2119)
2119 Tempting God consists in putting his goodness and almighty power to the test
by word or deed. Thus Satan tried to induce Jesus to throw himself down from
the Temple and, by this gesture, force God to act.
64
Jesus opposed Satan with the
61
1 Corinthians 12:13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one bodyJews or Greeks,
slaves or freeand all were made to drink of one Spirit.
62
John 19:34 But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out
blood and water.
1 John 5:8 There are three witnesses, the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree.
63
John 4:10-14 Jesus answered her, If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying
to you, Give me a drink, you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.
The woman said to him, Sir, you have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep; where do you
get that living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from
it himself, and his sons, and his cattle? Jesus said to her, Every one who drinks of this water will
thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst; the water that I
shall give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.
John 7:38 He who believes in me, as the scripture has said, Out of his heart shall ow rivers of
living water.
Exodus 17:1-6 All the congregation of the people 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 found fault with Moses, and said, Give us water
to drink. And Moses said to them, Why do you nd fault with me? Why do you put the Lord to
the proof? But the people thirsted there for water, and the people murmured against Moses, and
said, Why did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst?
So Moses cried to the Lord, What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.
And the Lord said to Moses, Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel;
and take in your hand the rod with which you struck the Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before
you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, that
the people may drink. And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel.
Isaiah 55:1 Ho, every one who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy
and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Zechariah 14:8 On that day living waters shall ow out from Jerusalem, half of them to the
eastern sea and half of them to the western sea; it shall continue in summer as in winter.
1 Corinthians 10:4 and all drank the same supernatural drink. For they drank from the super-
natural Rock which followed them, and the Rock was Christ.
Revelation 21:6 And he said to me, It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning
and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the fountain of the water of life without payment.
Revelation 22:17 The Spirit and the Bride say, Come. And let him who hears say, Come.
And let him who is thirsty come, let him who desires take the water of life without price.
64
Luke 4:9 And he took him to Jerusalem, and set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said
to him, If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here.
20
word of God: You shall not put the LORD your God to the test.
65
The challenge
contained in such tempting of God wounds the respect and trust we owe our Creator
and Lord. It always harbors doubt about his love, his providence, and his power.
66
B.6 Exodus 17:8-13 (CCC 2577)
2577 From this intimacy with the faithful God, slow to anger and abounding in
steadfast love, Moses drew strength and determination for his intercession. He does
not pray for himself but for the people whom God made his own. Moses already
intercedes for them during the battle with the Amalekites and prays to obtain healing
for Miriam. But it is chiey after their apostasy that Moses stands in the breach
before God in order to save the people. The arguments of his prayer - for intercession
is also a mysterious battle - will inspire the boldness of the great intercessors among
the Jewish people and in the Church: God is love; he is therefore righteous and
faithful; he cannot contradict himself; he must remember his marvelous deeds, since
his glory is at stake, and he cannot forsake this people that bears his name.
B.7 1 Corinthians 10:1-11 (CCC 129)
CCC 129 Christians therefore read the Old Testament in the light of Christ crucied
and risen. Such typological reading discloses the inexhaustible content of the Old
Testament; but it must not make us forget that the Old Testament retains its own
intrinsic value as Revelation rearmed by our Lord himself.
67
Besides, the New
65
66
1 Corinthians 10:9 We must not put the Lord to the test, as some of them did and were
destroyed by serpents.
Exodus 17:2-7 Therefore the people found fault with Moses, and said, Give us water to drink.
And Moses said to them, Why do you nd fault with me? Why do you put the Lord to the proof?
But the people thirsted there for water, and the people murmured against Moses, and said, Why
did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst? So Moses
cried to the Lord, What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me. And the
Lord said to Moses, Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel; and
take in your hand the rod with which you struck the Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before you
there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, that the
people may drink. And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. And he called the name
of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the faultnding of the children of Israel, and because
they put the Lord to the proof by saying, Is the Lord among us or not?
Psalm 95:9 when your fathers tested me, and put me to the proof, though they had seen my
work.
67
Mark 12:29-31 Jesus answered, The rst is, Hear, O Israel: The Lord, our God, the Lord is
one; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all
your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
Testament has to be read in the light of the Old. Early Christian catechesis made
constant use of the Old Testament.
68
As an old saying put it, the New Testament
lies hidden in the Old and the Old Testament is unveiled in the New.
69
1094 It is on this harmony of the two Testaments that the Paschal catechesis of the
Lord is built,
70
and then, that of the Apostles and the Fathers of the Church. This
catechesis unveils what lay hidden under the letter of the Old Testament: the mystery
of Christ. It is called typological because it reveals the newness of Christ on the
basis of the gures (types) which announce him in the deeds, words, and symbols
of the rst covenant. By this re-reading in the Spirit of Truth, starting from Christ,
the gures are unveiled.
71
Thus the ood and Noahs ark pregured salvation by
There is no other commandment greater than these.
68
1 Corinthians 5:6-8 Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the
whole lump? Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened.
For Christ, our paschal lamb, has been sacriced. Let us, therefore, celebrate the festival, not with
the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but wit h the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
God was not pleased; for they were overthrown in the wilderness.
Now these things are warnings for us, not to desire evil as they did. Do not be idolaters as some of
them were; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to dance. We must
not indulge in immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. We
must not put the Lord to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by serpents; nor grumble,
as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer. Now these things happened to them as a
warning, but they were written down for our instruction, upon whom the end of the ages has come.
69
Dei verbum 16
God, the inspirer and author of both Testaments, wisely arranged that the New Testament be
hidden in the Old and the Old be made manifest in the New. (2) For, though Christ established the
new covenant in His blood (see Luke 22:20; 1 Cor. 11:25), still the books of the Old Testament with
all their parts, caught up into the proclamation of the Gospel, (3) acquire and show forth their full
meaning in the New Testament (see Matt. 5:17; Luke 24:27; Rom. 16:25-26; 2 Cor. 14:16) and in
turn shed light on it and explain it.
ENDNOTES:
2. St. Augustine, Quest. in Hept. 2,73: PL 34,623. 3. St. Irenaeus, Against Heretics III,
21,3: PG 7,950; (Same as 25,1: Harvey 2, p. 115). St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Catech. 4,35; PG
33,497. Theodore of Mopsuestia, In Soph. 1,4-6: PG 66, 452D-453A.
70
Cf. DV 14-16; Lk 24:13-49.
71
2 Corinthians 3:14-16 But their minds were hardened; for to this day, when they read the old
covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this
day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their minds; but when a man turns to the Lord the veil
21
Baptism,
72
as did the cloud and the crossing of the Red Sea. Water from the rock
was the gure of the spiritual gifts of Christ, and manna in the desert pregured the
Eucharist, the true bread from heaven.
73
697 Cloud and light. These two images occur together in the manifestations of the
Holy Spirit. In the theophanies of the Old Testament, the cloud, now obscure, now
luminous, reveals the living and saving God, while veiling the transcendence of his
glory - with Moses on Mount Sinai
74
, at the tent of meeting
75
, and during the wan-
dering in the desert
76
, and with Solomon at the dedication of the Temple.
77
In the
Holy Spirit, Christ fullls these gures. The Spirit comes upon the Virgin Mary and
overshadows her, so that she might conceive and give birth to Jesus.
78
On the
mountain of Transguration, the Spirit in the cloud came and overshadowed Jesus,
is removed.
72
the body but as an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
73
John 6:32 Jesus then said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you
the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven.
God was not pleased; for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things are warnings for
us, not to desire evil as they did.
74
Cf. Ex 24:15-18.
75
Exodus 33:9-10 When Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at
the door of the tent, and the Lord would speak with Moses. And when all the people saw the pillar
of cloud standing at the door of the tent, all the people would rise up and worship, every man at his
tent door.
76
Exodus 40:36-38 Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over
the tabernacle, the people of Israel would go onward; but if the cloud was not taken up, then they
did not go onward till the day that it was taken up. For throughout all their journeys the cloud of
the Lord was upon the tabernacle by day, and re was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of
Israel.
and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.
77
1 Kings 8:10-12 And when the priests came out of the holy place, a cloud lled the house of
the Lord, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the
Lord lled the house of the Lord. Then Solomon said, The Lord has set the sun in the heavens, but
has said that he would dwell in thick darkness.
78
Luke 1:35 And the angel said to her, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of
the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of
God.
Moses and Elijah, Peter, James and John, and a voice came out of the cloud, saying,
This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!
79
Finally, the cloud took Jesus out of
the sight of the disciples on the day of his ascension and will reveal him as Son of
man in glory on the day of his nal coming.
80
B.10 1 Corinthians 10:2 (CCC 117)
117 The spiritual sense. Thanks to the unity of Gods plan, not only the text of
Scripture but also the realities and events about which it speaks can be signs.
(1) The allegorical sense. We can acquire a more profound understanding of events
by recognizing their signicance in Christ; thus the crossing of the Red Sea is a sign
or type of Christs victory and also of Christian Baptism.
81
(2) The moral sense. The events reported in Scripture ought to lead us to act
justly. As St. Paul says, they were written for our instruction.
82
79
Luke 9:34-35 As he said this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were afraid as
they entered the cloud. And a voice came out of the cloud, This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to
him!
80
Acts 1:9 And when he had said this, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud
took him out of their sight.
Luke 21:27 And then they will see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
81
1 Corinthians 10:2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea
82
1 Corinthians 10:11 Now these things happened to them as a warning, but they were written
down for our instruction, upon whom the end of the ages has come.
Hebrews 3-4:11 Therefore, holy brethren, who share in a heavenly call, consider Jesus, the apostle
and high priest of our confession. He was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was
faithful in Gods house. Yet Jesus has been counted worthy of as much more glory than Moses as
the builder of a house has more honor than the house. (For every house is built by someone, but the
builder of all things is God.) Now Moses was faithful in all Gods house as a servant, to testify to
the things that were to be spoken later, but Christ was faithful over Gods house as a son. And we
are his house if we hold fast our condence and pride in our hope.
Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, Today, when you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts
as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness, where your fathers put me to the test
and saw my works for forty years. Therefore I was provoked with that generation, and said, They
always go astray in their hearts; they have not known my ways. As I swore in my wrath, They shall
never enter my rest. Take care, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart,
leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called
today, that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we share in Christ, if
only we hold our rst condence rm to the end, while it is said, Today, when you hear his voice, do
not harden your hearts as in the rebellion. Who were they that heard and yet were rebellious? Was
it not all those who left Egypt under the leadership of Moses? And with whom was he provoked for
forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? And to whom
did he swear that they should never enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? So we see
that were unable to enter because of unbelief.
Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest remains, let us fear lest any of you be judged
22
(3) The anagogical sense (Greek: anagoge, leading). We can view realities and
events in terms of their eternal signicance, leading us toward our true homeland:
thus the Church on earth is a sign of the heavenly Jerusalem.
83
to have failed to reach it. For good news came to us just as to them; but the message which they
heard did not benet them, because it did not meet with faith in the hearers. For we who have
believed enter that rest, as he has said, As I swore in my wrath, They shall never enter my rest,
although his works were nished from the foundation of the world. For he has somewhere spoken
of the seventh day in this way, And God rested on the seventh day from all his works. And again
in this place he said, They shall never enter my rest. Since therefore it remains for some to enter
it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he
sets a certain day, Today, saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted,
Today, when you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts. For if Joshua had given them rest,
God would not speak later of another day. So then, there remains a sabbath rest for the people of
God; for whoever enters Gods rest also ceases from his labors as God did from his. Let us therefore
strive to enter that rest, that no one fall by the same sort of disobedience.
83
Revelation 21:1-22:5 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the rst heaven and the
rst earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem,
coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband; and I heard a
great voice from the throne saying, Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with
them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them; and he will wipe away every
tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain
any more, for the former things have passed away.
And he who sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. Also he said, Write this,
for these words are trustworthy and true. And he said to me, It is done! I am the Alpha and the
Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water without price from the fountain
of the water of life. He who conquers shall have this heritage, and I will be his God and he shall be
my son. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the polluted, as for murderers, fornicators, sorcerers,
idolaters, and all liars, their lot shall be in the lake that burns with re and brimstone, which is the
second death.
Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues, and
spoke to me, saying, Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb. And in the Spirit he
carried me away to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down
out of heaven from God, having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper,
clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on
the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed; on the east three gates,
on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. And the wall of the
city had twelve foundations, and on them the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
And he who talked to me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls.
The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its breadth; and he measured the city with his rod,
twelve thousand stadia; its length and breadth and height are equal. He also measured its wall, a
hundred and forty-four cubits by a mans measure, that is, an angels. The wall was built of jasper,
while the city was pure gold, clear as glass. The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned
with every jewel; the rst was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the
fth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth
chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twefth amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls,
each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, transparent as
694 Water. The symbolism of water signies the Holy Spirits action in Baptism,
since after the invocation of the Holy Spirit it becomes the ecacious sacramental
sign of new birth: just as the gestation of our rst birth took place in water, so the
water of Baptism truly signies that our birth into the divine life is given to us in the
Holy Spirit. As by one Spirit we were all baptized, so we are also made to drink
of one Spirit.
84
Thus the Spirit is also personally the living water welling up from
Christ crucied
85
as its source and welling up in us to eternal life.
86
glass.
And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb. And the
city has no need of sun or moon to shine upon it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the
Lamb. By its light shall the nations walk; and the kings of the earth shall bring their glory into it,
and its gates shall never be shut by dayand there shall be no night there; they shall bring into it
the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean shall enter it, nor anyone who practices
abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lambs book of life.
Then he showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, owing from the throne of God
and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree
of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree were for
healing of the nations. There shall be no more anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the
Lamb shall be in it, and his servants shall worship him; they shall see his face, and his name shall
be on their foreheads. And night shall be no more; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord
God will be their light, and they shall reign for ever and ever.
84
1 Corinthians 12:13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one bodyJews or Greeks,
slaves or freeand all were made to drink of one Spirit.
85
John 19:34 But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out
blood and water.
1 John 5:8 There are three witnesses, the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree.
86
John 4:10-14 Jesus answered her, If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying
to you, Give me a drink, you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.
The woman said to him, Sir, you have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep; where do you
get that living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from
it himself, and his sons, and his cattle? Jesus said to her, Every one who drinks of this water will
thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst; the water that I
shall give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.
John 7:38 He who believes in me, as the scripture has said, Out of his heart shall ow rivers of
living water.
Exodus 17:1-6 All the congregation of the people 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 found fault with Moses, and said, Give us water
to drink. And Moses said to them, Why do you nd fault with me? Why do you put the Lord to
the proof? But the people thirsted there for water, and the people murmured against Moses, and
said, Why did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst?
So Moses cried to the Lord, What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.
And the Lord said to Moses, Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel;
23
128 The Church, as early as apostolic times,
87
and then constantly in her Tradition,
has illuminated the unity of the divine plan in the two Testaments through typol-
ogy, which discerns in Gods works of the Old Covenant pregurations of what he
accomplished in the fullness of time in the person of his incarnate Son.
2119 Tempting God consists in putting his goodness and almighty power to the test
by word or deed. Thus Satan tried to induce Jesus to throw himself down from
the Temple and, by this gesture, force God to act.
88
Jesus opposed Satan with the
word of God: You shall not put the LORD your God to the test.
89
The challenge
contained in such tempting of God wounds the respect and trust we owe our Creator
and Lord. It always harbors doubt about his love, his providence, and his power.
90
and take in your hand the rod with which you struck the Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before
you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, that
the people may drink. And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel.
Isaiah 55:1 Ho, every one who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy
and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Zechariah 14:8 On that day living waters shall ow out from Jerusalem, half of them to the
eastern sea and half of them to the western sea; it shall continue in summer as in winter.
1 Corinthians 10:4 and all drank the same supernatural drink. For they drank from the super-
natural Rock which followed them, and the Rock was Christ.
Revelation 21:6 And he said to me, It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning
and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the fountain of the water of life without payment.
Revelation 22:17 The Spirit and the Bride say, Come. And let him who hears say, Come.
And let him who is thirsty come, let him who desires take the water of life without price.
87
1 Corinthians 10:6 Now these things are warnings for us, not to desire evil as they did.
Hebrews 10:1 For since the shadow of the law has but a shadow of the good things to come
instead of the true form of these realities, itcan never, by the same sacrices which are continually
oered year after year, make perfect those who draw near.
the body but as an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ
88
Luke 4:9 And he took him to Jerusalem, and set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said
to him, If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here.
89
90
1 Corinthians 10:9 We must not put the Lord to the test, as some of them did and were
destroyed by serpents.
Exodus 17:2-7 Therefore the people found fault with Moses, and said, Give us water to drink.
And Moses said to them, Why do you nd fault with me? Why do you put the Lord to the proof?
But the people thirsted there for water, and the people murmured against Moses, and said, Why
did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst? So Moses
cried to the Lord, What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me. And the
B.14 1 Corinthians 10:11 (CCC 117, CCC 128, CCC 670, CCC
2175)
CCC 117 (See above)
CCC 128 (See above)
670 Since the Ascension Gods plan has entered into its fullment. We are already
at the last hour.
91
Already the nal age of the world is with us, and the renewal of
the world is irrevocably under way; it is even now anticipated in a certain real way, for
the Church on earth is endowed already with a sanctity that is real but imperfect.
92
Christs kingdom already manifests its presence through the miraculous signs that
attend its proclamation by the Church.
93
B.15 John 6:28-58 (CCC 2835)
2835 This petition, with the responsibility it involves, also applies to another hunger
from which men are perishing: Man does not live by bread alone, but . . . by every
Lord said to Moses, Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel; and
take in your hand the rod with which you struck the Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before you
there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, that the
people may drink. And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. And he called the name
of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the faultnding of the children of Israel, and because
they put the Lord to the proof by saying, Is the Lord among us or not?
Psalm 95:9 when your fathers tested me, and put me to the proof, though they had seen my
work.
91
1 John 2:18 Children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so
now many antichrists have come; therefore we know that it is the last hour.
1 Peter 4:7 The end of all things is at hand; therefore keep sane and sober for your prayers.
92
Lumen gentium 48 para 3: Already the nal age of the world has come upon us (242) and
the renovation of the world is irrevocably decreed and is already anticipated in some kind of a real
way; for the Church already on this earth is signed with a sanctity which is real although imperfect.
However, until there shall be new heavens and a new earth in which justice dwells,(243) the pilgrim
Church in her sacraments and institutions, which pertain to this present time, has the appearance
of this world which is passing and she herself dwells among creatures who groan and travail in pain
until now and await the revelation of the sons of God.(244)
NOTES
242 Cf 1 Cor. 10. 11. 243 Cf. 2. Pet. 3, 13. 244 Cf. Rom. 8, 19-22.
1 Corinthians 10:11 Now these things happened to them as a warning, but they were written
down for our instruction, upon whom the end of the ages has come.
93
Mark 16:17-18 And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast
out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly
thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.
Mark 16:20 And they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them
and conrmed the message by the signs that attended it. Amen.
24
word that proceeds from the mouth of God,
94
that is, by the Word he speaks and
the Spirit he breathes forth. Christians must make every eort to proclaim the good
news to the poor. There is a famine on earth, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst
for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD.
95
For this reason the specically
Christian sense of this fourth petition concerns the Bread of Life: The Word of God
accepted in faith, the Body of Christ received in the Eucharist.
96
B.16 Numbers 11:24-25 (CCC 1541)
1541 The liturgy of the Church, however, sees in the priesthood of Aaron and the
service of the Levites, as in the institution of the seventy elders,
97
a preguring of the
ordained ministry of the New Covenant. Thus in the Latin Rite the Church prays in
the consecratory preface of the ordination of bishops:
God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, . . . by your gracious word
you have established the plan of your Church.
From the beginning, you chose the descendants of Abraham to be your
holy nation. You established rulers and priests and did not leave your sanc-
tuary without ministers to serve you....
98
B.17 Hebrews 11:39-40 (CCC 147)
147 The Old Testament is rich in witnesses to this faith. The Letter to the Hebrews
proclaims its eulogy of the exemplary faith of the ancestors who received divine
approval.
99
Yet God had foreseen something better for us: the grace of believing
94
Deuteronomy 8:3 And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you
did not know, nor did your fathers know; that he might make you know that man does not live by
bread alone, but that man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord.
Matthew 4:4 But he replied, Scripture says: Human beings live not on bread alone but on every
word that comes from the mouth of God.
95
Amos 8:11 Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord God, when I will send a famine on
the land; not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord.
96
Cf. Jn 6:26-58.
97
Numbers 11:24-25 So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord; and he
gathered seventy men of the elders of the people, and placed them round about the tent. Then the
Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the spirit that was upon him and
put it upon the seventy elders; and when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But they did
so no more.
98
Roman Pontical, Ordination of Bishops 26, Prayer of Consecration.
99
Hebrews 11:2 For by it the men of old received divine approval.
Hebrews 11:39 And all these, though well attested by their faith, did not receive what was
promised
in his Son Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.
100
B.18 Isaiah 11:1-9 (CCC 672)
672 Before his Ascension Christ armed that the hour had not yet come for the
glorious establishment of the messianic kingdom awaited by Israel
101
which, according
to the prophets, was to bring all men the denitive order of justice, love and peace.
102
According to the Lord, the present time is the time of the Spirit and of witness, but
also a time still marked by distress and the trial of evil which does not spare the
Church
103
and ushers in the struggles of the last days. It is a time of waiting and
watching.
104
100
Hebrews 11:40 since God had forseen something better for us, that apart from us they should
not be made perfect.
Hebrews 12:2 looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was
set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne
of God.
101
Acts 1:6-7 So when they had come together, they asked him, Lord, will you at this time
restore the kingdom to Israel? He said to them, It is not for you to know times or seasons which
the Father has xed by his own authority. . . .
102
Isaiah 11:1-9 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse...
103
Acts 1:8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall
be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth.
1 Corinthians 7:26 I think that in view of the present distress it is well for a person to remain as
he is.
Ephesians 5:16 making the most of the time, because the days are evil.
1 Peter 4:17 For the time has come for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it
begins with us, what will be the end of those who do not obey the Gospel of God?
104
Matthew 25:1 Then the kingdom of heaven shall be compared to ten maidens who took their
lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.
Matthew 25:13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.
Mark 13:33-37 Take heed, watch; for you do not know when the time will come. It is like a
man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work,
and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. Watch thereforefor you do not know when the
master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morninglest
he come suddenly and nd you asleep. And what I say to you I say to all: Watch.
1 John 2:18 Children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now
many antichrists have come; therefore we know that it is the last hour.
John 4:3 and every spirit which does not confess Jesus is not of God. This is the spirit of
antichrist, of which you heard that it was coming, and now it is in the world already.
1 Timothy 4:1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith
by giving heed to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons.
25
B.19 Isaiah 11:1,2 (CCC 712, CCC 1831, CCC 436, CCC 536, CCC
1286)
B.20 Providence and secondary causes
CCC 306 God is the sovereign master of his plan. But to carry it out he also makes
use of his creatures co-operation. This use is not a sign of weakness, but rather a
token of almighty Gods greatness and goodness. For God grants his creatures not
only their existence, but also the dignity of acting on their own, of being causes and
principles for each other, and thus of co-operating in the accomplishment of his plan.
CCC 307 To human beings God even gives the power of freely sharing in his
providence by entrusting them with the responsibility of subduing the earth and
having dominion over it.
105
God thus enables men to be intelligent and free causes in
order to complete the work of creation, to perfect its harmony for their own good and
that of their neighbours. Though often unconscious collaborators with Gods will,
they can also enter deliberately into the divine plan by their actions, their prayers and
their suerings.
106
They then fully become Gods fellow workers and co-workers
for his kingdom.
107
CCC 308 The truth that God is at work in all the actions of his creatures is
inseparable from faith in God the Creator. God is the rst cause who operates in and
through secondary causes: For God is at work in you, both to will and to work for his
good pleasure.
108
Far from diminishing the creatures dignity, this truth enhances
it. Drawn from nothingness by Gods power, wisdom and goodness, it can do nothing
105
Genesis 1:26-28 Then God said, Let us make man in our own image, after our likeness; and
let them have dominion over the sh of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle,
and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth. So God created
man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And
God blessed them, Be fruitful and multiply, and ll the earth and subdue it; and have dominion
over the sh of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the
earth.
106
Colossians 1:24 Now I rejoice in my suerings for your sake, and in my esh I complete what
is lacking in Christs aictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church
107
1 Corinthians 3:9 For we are Gods fellow workers; you are Gods eld, Gods building.
1 Thessalonians 3:2 and we sent Timothy, our brother and Gods servant in the gospel of Christ,
to establish you in your faith and to exhort you
Colossians 4:11 These are the only men of the circumcision among my fellow workers for the
kingdom of God, and they have been a comfort to me.
108
Philippians 2:13 For it is God who worketh in you, both to will and to accomplish, according
to his good will.
1 Corinthians 12:6 and there are varieties of working, but it is the same God who inspires them
all in every one.
if it is cut o from its origin, for without a Creator the creature vanishes.
109
Still
less can a creature attain its ultimate end without the help of Gods grace.
110
C Other noted links in the Navarre Bible from Google
Groups
C.1 Luke 1:53 The Magnicat
[46] And Mary said, My soul magnies the Lord, [47] and my spirit rejoices in God
my Savior, [48] for He has regarded the low estate of His handmaiden. For behold,
henceforth all generations will call me blessed; [49] for He who is mighty has done
great things for me, and holy is His name. [50] And His mercy is on those who fear
Him from generation to generation. [51] He has shown strength with His arm, He
has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts, [52] He has put down the
mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of low degree; [53] He has lled the
hungry with good things, and the rich He has sent empty away. [54] He has helped
His servant Israel, in remembrance of His mercy, [55] as He spoke to our fathers, to
Abraham and to his posterity for ever.
[56] And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her home.
Commentary from the Navarre Bible: Luke 1:53 This form of Divine Provi-
dence has been experienced countless times over the course of history. For example,
God nourished the people of Israel with manna during their forty years in the wilder-
ness (Exodus 16:4-35); similarly, His angel brought food to Elijah (1 Kings 19:5-8),
and to Daniel in the lions den (Daniel 14:31-40); and the widow of Sarepta was given
a supply of oil which miraculously never ran out (1 Kings 17:8). So, too, the Blessed
Virgins yearning for holiness was fullled by the Incarnation of the Word.
109
Gaudium et spes 36 para 3: But if the expression, the independence of temporal aairs, is taken
to mean that created things do not depend on God, and that man can use them without any reference
to their Creator, anyone who acknowledges God will see how false such a meaning is. For without
the Creator the creature would disappear. For their part, however, all believers of whatever religion
always hear His revealing voice in the discourse of creatures. When God is forgotten, however, the
creature itself grows unintelligible.
110
Matthew 19:26 But Jesus looked at them and said to them, With men this is impossible, but
with God all things are possible.
John 15:5 I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that
bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
John 14:13 Whatever you ask in my name, I will do it, that the Father may be gloried in the
Son
26
God nourished the chosen people with His Law and the preaching of His prophets,
but the rest of mankind was left hungry for His word, a hunger now satised by
the Incarnation. This gift of God will be accepted by the humble; the self-sucient,
having no desire for the good things of God, will not partake of them (cf. St. Basil,
In Psalmos Homiliae, on Psalm 33).
C.2 Mark 6:34-44 First Miracle of the Loaves
[34] As he (Jesus) landed he saw a great throng, and he had compassion on them,
because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many
things. [35] And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, This is a
lonely place, and the hour is now late; [36] send them away, to go into the country
and villages round about and buy themselves something to eat. [37] But he answered
them, You give them something to eat. And they said to him, Shall we go and
buy two hundred denarii worth of bread, and give it to them to eat? [38] And he
said to them, How many loaves have you? Go and see. And when they had found
out, they said, Five, and two sh. [39] Then he commanded them all to sit down by
companies upon the green grass. [40] So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and
by fties. [41] And taking the ve loaves and the two sh he looked up to heaven,
and blessed, and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples to set before the
people; and he divided the two sh among them all. [42] And they all ate and were
satised. [43] And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the sh.
[44] And those who ate the loaves were ve thousand men.
Commentary from the Navarre Bible: Mark 6:34-44 34. Our Lord had
planned a period of rest, for himself and his disciples, from the pressures of the
apostolate (Mk 6:31-32). And he has to change his plans because so many people
come, eager to hear him speak. Not only is he not annoyed with them: he feels
compassion on seeing their spiritual need. My people are destroyed for lack of
knowledge (Hos 4:6). They need instruction and our Lord wants to meet this need
by preaching to them. Jesus is moved by hunger and sorrow, but what moves him
most is ignorance (J. Escriva, Christ Is Passing By, 109).
37. A denarius was what an artisan earned for a normal days work. The disciples
must, therefore, have thought it little less than impossible to fulll the Masters
command, because they would not have had this much money.
41. This miracle is a gure of the Holy Eucharist: Christ performed it shortly before
promising that sacrament (cf. Jn 6:1), and the Fathers have always so interpreted
it. In this miracle Jesus shows his supernatural power and his love for menthe same
power and love as make it possible for Christs one and only body to be present in
the eucharistic species to nourish the faithful down the centuries. In the words of the
sequence composed by St Thomas Aquinas for the Mass of Corpus Christi: Sumit
unus, sumunt mille, quantum isti, tantum ille, nec sumptus consumitur (Be one or
be a thousand fed, they eat alike that living bread which, still received, neer wastes
away).
This gesture of our Lordlooking up to heavenis recalled in the Roman canon of
the Mass: Et elevatis oculis in caelum, ad Te Deum Patrem suum omnipotentem
(and looking up to heaven, to you, his almighty Father). At this point in the Mass
we are preparing to be present at a miracle greater than that of the multiplication of
the loavesthe changing of bread into his own body, oered as food for all men.
42. Christ wanted the left-overs to be collected (cf. Jn 6:12) to teach us not to
waste things God gives us, and also to have them as a tangible proof of the miracle.
The collecting of the leftovers is a way of showing us the value of little things
done out of love for Godorderliness, cleanliness, nishing things completely. It also
reminds the sensitive believer of the extreme care that must be taken of the eucharistic
species. Also, the generous scale of the miracle is an expression of the largesse of the
messianic times. The Fathers recall that Moses distributed the manna for each to eat
as much as he needed but some left part of it for the next day and it bred worms (Ex
16:16-20). Elijah gave the widow just enough to meet her needs (1 Kings 17:13-16).
Jesus, on the other hand, gives generously and abundantly.
C.3 Revelation 11:19; 12:1-6, 10 The Sounding of the Seventh
Trumpet / The Woman Fleeing from the Dragon
[19] Then Gods temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen
within his temple; and there were ashes of lightning, loud noises, peals of thunder,
an earthquake, and heavy hail.
[1] And a great portent appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with
the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars; [2] she was with
child and she cried out in her pangs of birth, in anguish for delivery [3] And another
portent appeared in heaven; behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten
horns, and seven diadems upon his heads. [4] His tail swept down a third of the stars
of heaven, and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who
was about to bear a child, that he might devour her child when she brought it forth;
[5] she brought forth a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of
iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, [6] and the woman ed
into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which to be nourished
for one thousand two hundred and sixty days.
[10] And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, Now the salvation and the power
27
and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser
of our brethren has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our
God.
Commentary from the Navarre Bible: Revelation 11:19; 12:1-6, 10 19.
The seer introduces the heavenly temple (the location par excellence of Gods pres-
ence), paralleling the earlier mention of the temple of Jerusalem (cf. 11:1-2). The
opening of the temple and the sight of the Ark of the Covenant show that the mes-
sianic era has come to an end and Gods work of salvation has been completed. The
ark was the symbol of Israels election and salvation and of Gods presence in the
midst of his people. According to a Jewish tradition, reported in 2 Maccabees 2:4-8,
Jeremiah placed the ark in a secret hiding place prior to the destruction of Jerusalem,
and it would be seen again when the Messiah carne. The author of the Apocalypse
uses this to assure us that God has not forgotten his covenant: he has sealed it
denitively in heaven, where the ark is located.
Many early commentators interpreted the ark as a reference to Christs sacred
humanity, and St Bede explains that just as the manna was kept in the original ark,
so Christs divinity lies hidden in his sacred body (cf. Explanatio Apocalypsis, 11,
19).
The heavenly covenant is the new and eternal one made by Jesus Christ (cf. Mt
26:26-29 and par.) which will be revealed to all at his second coming when the Church
will triumph, as the Apocalypse goes on to describe. The presence of the ark in the
heavenly temple symbolizes the sublimity of the messianic kingdom, which exceeds
anything man could create. The vigilant and active expectation of the coming of
the Kingdom is also the expectation of a nally perfect justice for the living and the
dead, for people of all times and places, a justice which Jesus Christ, installed as
supreme Judge, will establish (cf. Mt 24:29-44, 46; Acts 10:42; 2 Cor 5: 10). This
promise, which surpasses all human possibilities, directly concerns our life in this
world. For true justice must include everyone; it must explain the immense load of
suering borne by all generations. In fact, without the resurrection of the dead and
the Lords judgment, there is no justice in the full sense of the term. The promise
of the resurrection is freely made to meet the desire for true justice dwelling in the
human heart (SCDF, Libertatis Conscientia, 60).
The thunder and lightning which accompany the appearance of the ark are rem-
iniscent of the way God made his presence felt on Sinai; they reveal Gods mighty
intervention (cf. Rev 4:5; 8:5) which is now accompanied by the chastisement of the
wicked, symbolized by the earthquake and hailstones (cf. Ex 9: 13-35).
1-17. We are now introduced to the contenders in the eschatological battles which
mark the nal confrontation between God and his adversary, the devil. The author
uses three portents to describe the leading gures involved, and the war itself. The
rst is the woman and her ospring, including the Messiah (12:1-2); the second is the
dragon, who will later transfer his power to the beasts (12:3); the third, the seven
angels with the seven bowls (15:1).
Three successive confrontations with the dragon are described1) that of the Mes-
siah to whom the woman gives birth (12:1-6); 2) that of St Michael and his angels
(12:7-12); and 3) that of the woman and the rest of her ospring (12:13-17) These
confrontations should not be seen as being in chronological order. They are more like
three distinct pictures placed side by side because they are closely connected: in each
the same enemy, the devil, does battle with Gods plans and with those whom God
uses to carry them out.
1-2. The mysterious gure of the woman has been interpreted ever since the time
of the Fathers of the Church as referring to the ancient people of Israel, or the Church
of Jesus Christ, or the Blessed Virgin. The text supports all of these interpretations
but in none do all the details t. The woman can stand for the people of Israel, for it
is from that people that the Messiah comes, and Isaiah compares Israel to a woman
with child, who writhes and cries out in her pangs when she is near her time (Is
26:17).
She can also stand for the Church, whose children strive to overcome evil and to
bear witness to Jesus Christ (cf. v. 17). Following this interpretation St Gregory
wrote: The sun stands for the light of
truth, and the moon for the transitoriness of temporal things; the holy Church
is clothed like the sun because she is protected by the splendor of supernatural
truth, and she has the moon under her feet because she is above all earthly things
(Moralia, 34, 12).
The passage can also refer to the Virgin Mary because it was she who truly and
historically gave birth to the Messiah, Jesus Christ our Lord (cf. v. 5). St Bernard
comments: The sun contains permanent color and splendor; whereas the moons
brightness is unpredictable and changeable, for it never stays the same. It is quite
right, then, for Mary to be depicted as clothed with the sun, for she entered the
profundity of divine wisdom much further than one can possibly conceive (De B.
Virgine, 2).
In his account of the Annunciation, St Luke sees Mary as representing the faithful
remnant of Israel; the angel greets her with the greeting given in Zephaniah 3:15
to the daughter of Zion (cf. notes on Lk 1:26- 31). St Paul in Galatians 4:4 sees a
woman as the symbol of the Church, our mother; and non-canonical Jewish literature
contemporary with the Book of Revelation quite often personies the community as
28
a woman. So, the inspired text of the Apocalypse is open to interpreting this woman
as a direct reference to the Blessed Virgin who, as mother, shares in the pain of
Calvary (cf. Lk 2:35) and who was earlier prophesied in Isaiah 7:14 as a sign (cf.
Mt 1:22-23). At the same time the woman can be interpreted as standing for the
people of God, the Church, whom the gure of Mary represents.
The Second Vatican Council has solemnly taught that Mary is a type or symbol
of the Church, for in the mystery of the Church, which is itself rightly called mother
and virgin, the Blessed Virgin stands out in eminent and singular fashion as exemplar
both of virgin and mother. Through her faith and obedience she gave birth on
earth to the very Son of the Father, not through the knowledge of man but by the
overshadowing of the Holy Spirit, in the manner of a new Eve who placed her faith,
not in the serpent of old but in Gods messenger, without wavering in doubt. The
Son whom she brought forth is he whom God placed as the rst-born among many
brethren (cf. Rom 8:29), that is, the faithful, in whose generation and formation she
cooperates with a mothers love (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium, 63).
The description of the woman indicates her heavenly glory, and the twelve stars
of her victorious crown symbolize the people of Godthe twelve patriarchs (cf. Gen
37:9) and the twelve apostles. And so, independently of the chronological aspects of
the text, the Church sees in this heavenly woman the Blessed Virgin, taken up body
and soul into heavenly glory, when her earthly life was over, and exalted by the Lord
as Queen over all things, that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the
Lord of lords (cf. Rev 19:16) and conqueror of sin and death (Lumen Gentium,
59). The Blessed Virgin is indeed the great sign, for, as St Bonaventure says, God
could have made none greater. He could have made a greater world and a greater
heaven; but not a woman greater than his own mother (Speculum, 8).
3-4. In his description of the devil (cf. v. 9), St John uses symbols taken from
the Old Testament. The dragon or serpent comes from Genesis 3:1-24, a passage
which underlies all the latter half of this book. Its red color and seven heads with
seven diadems show that it is bringing its full force to bear to wage this war. The
ten horns in Daniel 7:7 stand for the kings who are Israels enemies; in Daniel a horn
is also mentioned to refer to Antiochus IV Epiphanes, of whom Daniel also says (to
emphasize the greatness of Antiochus victories) that it cast stars down from heaven
onto the earth (cf. Dan 8:10). Satan drags other angels along with him, as the
text later recounts (Rev 12:9). All these symbols, then, are designed to convey the
enormous power of Satan. The devil is described as a serpent, St Cyprian writes,
because he moves silently and seems peaceable and comes by easy ways and is so
astute and so deceptive [...] that he tries to have night taken for day, poison taken for
medicine. So, by deceptions of this kind, he tries to destroy truth by cunning. That
is why he passes himself o as an angel of light (De Unitate Ecclesiae, I-III).
After the fall of our rst parents war broke out between the serpent and his seed
and the woman and hers: I will put enmity between you and the woman, between
your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel (Gen
3:15). Jesus Christ is the womans descendant who will obtain victory over the devil
(cf. Mk 1:23-26; Lk 4:31-37; etc.). That is why the power of evil concentrates all his
energy on destroying Christ (cf. Mt 2:13-18) or to deecting him from his mission
(cf. Mt 4:1-11 and par.). By relating this enmity to the beginnings of the human
race St. John paints a very vivid picture.
5. The birth of Jesus Christ brings into operation the divine plan announced by
the prophets (cf. Is 66:7) and by the Psalms (cf. Ps 2:9), and marks the rst step
in ultimate victory over the devil. Jesus life on earth, culminating in his passion,
resurrection and ascension into heaven, was the key factor in achieving this victory.
St John emphasizes the triumph of Christ as victor, who, as the Church confesses,
sits at the right hand of the Father (Nicene- Constantinopolitan Creed).
6. The gure of the woman reminds us of the Church, the people of God. Israel
took refuge in the wilderness to escape from Pharaoh, and the Church does the same
after the victory of Christ. The wilderness stands for solitude and intimate union
with God. In the wilderness God took personal care of his people, setting them free
from their enemies (cf. Ex 17:8-16) and nourishing them with quail and manna (cf.
Ex 16:1-36). The Church is given similar protection against the powers of hell (cf.
Mt 16:18) and Christ nourishes it with his body and his word all the while it makes
its pilgrimage through the ages; it has a hard time (like Israel in the wilderness) but
there will be an end to it: it will take one thousand two hundred and sixty days (cf.
notes on 11:3).
Although the woman, in this verse, seems to refer directly to the Church, she also
in some way stands for the particular woman who gave birth to the Messiah, the
Blessed Virgin. As no other creature has done, Mary has enjoyed a very unique
type of union with God and very special protection from the powers of evil, death
included. Thus, as the Second Vatican Council teaches, in the meantime [while the
Church makes its pilgrim way on earth], the Mother of Jesus in the glory which she
possesses in body and soul in heaven is the image and beginning of the Church as it
is to be perfected in the world to come. Likewise she shines forth on earth, until the
day of the Lord shall come (cf. 2 Pet 3:10), a sign of certain hope and comfort to the
pilgrim people of God (Lumen Gentium, 68).
10-12. With the ascension of Christ into heaven the Kingdom of God is established
and so all those who dwell in heaven break out into a song of joy. The devil has been
deprived of his power over man in the sense that the redemptive action of Christ
29
and mans faith enable man to escape from the world of sin. The text expresses this
joyful truth by saying that there is now no place for the accuser, Satan whose name
means and whom the Old Testament teaches to be the accuser of men before God:
cf. Job 1:6-12; 2:1-10). Given what God meant creation to be, Satan could claim as
his victory anyone who, through sinning, disgured the image and likeness of God
that was in him. However, once the Redemption has taken place, Satan no longer has
power to do this, for, as St John writes, if any one does sin, we have an advocate with
the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the expiation for our sins, and not
for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world (Jn 2:1-2). Also, on ascending
into heaven, Christ sent us the Holy Spirit as Intercessor and Advocate, especially
when man, that is, mankind, nd themselves before the judgment of condemnation
by that accuser about whom the Book of Revelation says that he accuses them day
and night before our God (John Paul II, Dominum Et Vivicantem, 67).
Although Satan has lost this power to act in the world, he still has time left,
between the resurrection of our Lord and the end of history, to put obstacles in
mans way and frustrate Christs action. And so he works ever more frenetically, as
he sees time run out, in his eort to distance everyone and society itself from the
plans and commandments of God.
The author of the Book of Revelation uses this celestial chant to warn the Church
of the onset of danger as the End approaches.
30

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Exodus 15-18: The Journey Through the Desert

August 22, 2008

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