Yahweh Rapha

Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah. And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” And he cried to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. There the LORD made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the LORD your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, your healer.” Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they encamped there by the water. (Exodus 15:22-27 ESV).

 

In the desert at Marah, we have another story of God’s provision and testing. With empty water sacks, standing before a pool of bitter water, the people of Israel begin to grumble. Although they complain bitterly against Moses, they are really complaining against God. Their grumbling seems very shortsighted. Only a few days earlier God had parted the Red Sea and saved them from Pharaoh’s army! (cf. Exodus 14-15.) But again, as we see in this story, God delivers his people, making the water fit to drink.

 

At Marah, the Israelites learn that God is Yahweh Rapha, “the LORD who heals.” This name comes from the Hebrew word raphe, meaning “to heal, to make healthy.” The people also learn that God expects his people to trust him in all things, and he expects them to be holy, as he is holy. Indeed, a few chapters later at Sinai, he lays out a code for holy living.

 

In the New Testament we discover an irony about Yahweh Rapha. There we learn that “the LORD who heals” suffers to heal us and to forgive our sins. In the words of the Prophet Isaiah, “He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities.” (Isaiah 53:5). These words refer to Jesus, the Son of God. “By his wounds we are healed.” Whatever healing you need today, know that our Heavenly Father is indeed the God who Heals. And, the greatest healing has already taken place, our sins have been forgiven.