The longer Israel journeyed with God, the more He revealed to them His character & His ways - a progressive revelation. When He  delivered them from Egypt, Israel came to know God as Jehovah Who heard & responded to their cry for deliverance because of His covenant with Abraham (Ge 15:13 - 21; Ex 2:24; 3:7 - 8; 6:5)
 

So Israel learned as Abraham had in Genesis 22 that God was Jehovah Jireh, the LORD Who provided the sacrifice they needed to be redeemed from slavery - the Passover Lamb.
 

See column on context for additional truths about God

So clearly Israel is not at Marah by "chance" but by providence, being led by El Roi Who sees all things, even before they happen & Who as El Elyon is in total control of every detail even whether the water tastes bitter or sweet.

These same tests are allowed into our lives as believers. Will we trust Him? We must remember that the disappoints are also God's appointments & every extremity is an opportunity to see God's great & mighty deeds & to learn something about ourselves.

God had one Son without sin, but He never had sons without trials. It is not known what quality grapes yield until they come to the wine press. When we are squeezed what comes out indicates what's on the inside! When you came to "Marah" this week, what came out? Grumbling like Israel or crying out like Moses?

There is little doubt that the "healing" of the bitter waters by a tree foreshadowed another "healing" tree, the "tree" of Calvary. The Greek Septuagint translates the Hebrew for "tree" with "xulon", which is used in...
 

And not coincidentally the same Greek word (xulon) is used for the "tree of life" in Gen 2:9 & Rev 22:2,14 which also was for healing!
 

Not everyone agrees with this explanation of the tree -- in the "Shabbat Shalom" column in the Jerusalem Post (2/7/02) Rabbi Riskin writes "Clearly the tree... is a symbolic reference to Torah [The Law] as well as to perfection"

To which Paul would respond...

The test Israel faced in the wilderness is the same one believers face today: They & we have to listen to the voice of God, do what is right & obey His commandments. This is the pattern for victory when we face bitter circumstances which might otherwise bring discouragement & disillusionment. Listen to God & obey His commandments.
 

These verses show that as El Elyon, the sovereign Most High God holds the power to "put plagues" on anyone He chooses but it is always in the light of His perfect justice. He also has the mercy to heal whoever He chooses (Ps103:3, Spurgeon (1), (2) .

God tested Israel who responded by testing God & yet God still in His kindness led them to a "rest stop" of water & palm trees. God's "Elim's" are not far from the "Marah's" -- there will times of trial, but there will also be seasons of restoration. “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”

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Warren Wiersbe adds "Life is not always battles and bitter waters. God brings us to the refreshing oases from time to time, and for this we should praise Him. However, we can never claim our inheritance if we linger at Elim. We are pilgrims, not residents. Life is a combination of the bitter and the sweet, triumphs and trials. If we are following God, however, we never need fear what comes our way. And after the trial there is often a spiritual “Elim” where God refreshes us. We must accept the bitter waters with the sweet, knowing that God knows what is best for us."

So we see that from the outset many in the camp had a grumbling, murmuring spirit, reflecting the fact that they really did not trust Jehovah to deliver them out of this "tight spot".

How often we too are like Israel, having experienced Jehovah's redemption & deliverance from bondage & yet quickly shrinking back into unbelief thinking that the next trial is too big for Him to handle &/or why did He even allow it in the first place?

As the last notes of the glorious song of victory fade away...we come to the next scene...

Are you surprised that when after great victory, you experience defeat, discouragement, dissension or depression? Have you noticed how the spiritual "attacks" of the enemy (which are allowed by God) are intensified immediately after we experience spiritual victory? Be alert.

So here we find Israel, 3 days after victory & in a "no water" situation  with parched & burning. Their physical plight made it easy to forget the past mercy & provision of Jehovah which are "new every morning." When the pain comes it is easy to let your mind slip from the truth of past provisions isn't it? Israel's physical condition began to impact their spiritual joy. Nothing is more paralyzing than thirst. Place yourself in their sandals: dust & rocks everywhere, children crying, nothing but sand & more sand in your path & then on the horizon the hope of water as someone sees a palm grove. Your expectations are high. Your anticipation almost uncontrollable. You bring the cool water to your lips & spit it our because it is so bitter. All hope destroyed, what else is left but to grumble at Moses.

But Who were they really grumbling against?

Obviously Jehovah Who had led them by the "pillar of cloud by day & the pillar of fire by night". (See Shekinah glory of the LORD) It's God's fault we're in this fine mess!

"Life is a great laboratory, and each experience x-rays our hearts to reveal what we really are. The waters of Marah revealed that the Jews were worldly, thinking only of bodily satisfaction; they were walking by sight, expecting to be satisfied by the world; they were ungrateful, complaining to God when trials came their way." Wiersbe's expository outlines on the Old Testament

When we experience difficult circumstances & come to a place where disillusionment, despair,  disappointment, or bitterness fill the "wells" of our life, we need to remember that God has the power to make the bitter into sweet. And remember that our bitter circumstances are there to test us & to teach us to trust the Almighty God to meet every need (cf Php 4:19), but not every "want".

Contrast: Bitter circumstances drove Israel to grumbling & Moses to prayer. Where do they drive us?

Moses Cried to LORD (He Prayed)
He threw tree in water ( & he Obeyed what he heard)

Note the progression of water:
Too much water (Red Sea) > No water > Bitter Water

Warren Wiersbe writes

"The people went from rejoicing to complaining! It is easy to sing when the circumstances are comfortable, but it takes faith to sing when you are suffering. God tests us in the everyday experiences of life to see whether we will obey Him. He is able to change our circumstances, but He would rather change us (Php 4:10-13)."

J. Vernon McGee in his unique style wrote:

"Friend, there are many frustrations, disappointments, and sorrows in life. Your plans can be torn up like a jigsaw puzzle. You may have a little grave on a hillside somewhere. I have. May I say that we all have our Marahs. You will not bypass them. You cannot detour around them, skip over them, or tunnel under them.
God uses a branding iron. I remember West Texas, in the spring of the year when the calves were branded. As a boy I would see the branding iron put down on a little fellow. Oh, how he bellowed! It made me feel sort of sad to hear him cry. But from then on everyone knew to whom he belonged. After a calf was branded, it would not get lost. God does that for us today"

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Every complaint against our circumstances, every grumble about the weather, our job, our parents, our health, our foes, ultimately is directed against the El Elyon, God Most High Who “works all things after the counsel of His will” (Eph 1:11, Spurgeon)

This is the mistake Israel made at Marah. Because their eyes were not on Jehovah (and they literally should have been since He was there in a pillar of fire by night & smoke by day), they grumbled and blamed God's appointed leader Moses for the bitter water.

Doesn’t that sound familiar?

When God surely and wisely leads us to a “Marah experience” our response is a telltale indication of where our eyes are.

When they are not on the Lord, we grumble loudly and blame our wife, our employer, our friend, or our government.

Who have you blamed this week?

Cry out to Jehovah Rapha & then cling to the Tree He made available at Calvary.

In sum Jehovah Rapha, the Great Physician heals physical, spiritual & emotional ills. Although physical healing is important, man's greater need is for healing of relationships & our spiritual disease called sin. All around us we see the ravages of sin & the need for healing. The need today is not much different from Isaiah's time as described in (Is1:5-6) where Isaiah describes Israel as a physical body sick from head to heart to toe. How wonderful in that same chapter (Isa 1:16-20)

Isaiah gives preview of a clear prophecy that by Messiah's "scourging we are healed" (Isa53:5)

Peter reaffirms this great truth in (1Pet 2:24) - "He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed." It follows then that...
 

Truth to Remember About Illness & Healing

There is a direct correlation between sin & sickness, sickness not just of the body but of the soul. Don't misunderstand - as shown by the Scriptures below not every physical illness is a reflection of personal sin. In fact personal sin may not even be a contributing factor.  Nevertheless, because unconfessed sin is at least a possible contributor in some instances of physical illness we should be willing to ask God to search our hearts as in Psalm 139 below...
 

If sin is discovered or uncovered we should deal with it immediately. To not do so can have consequences as shown by Solomon's counsel in Proverb 28...