I am going to share some revelation of the Torah of Yahuah that He recently shared with me. I hope it helps you as much as it did me. Thank you, O Yah! You are so merciful and gracious to all those who seek You! Amein!
And all the congregation of the children of Yisra’el set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin, according to the command of Yahuah, and camped in Rephidim. And there was no water for the people to drink.
Therefore the people strove with Mosheh, and said, “Give us water to drink.” And Mosheh said to them, “Why do you strive with me? Why do you try Yahuah?”
And the people thirsted there for water, and the people grumbled against Mosheh, and said, “Why did you bring us out of Mitsrayim, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”
Then Mosheh cried out to Yahuah, saying, “What am I to do with this people? Yet a little and they shall stone me!”
And Yahuah said to Mosheh, “Pass over before the people, and take with you some of the elders of Yisra’el. And take in your hand your rod with which you smote the river, and go.
“See, I am standing before you there on the rock in Horeb. And you shall smite the rock, and water shall come out of it, and the people shall drink.” And Mosheh did so before the eyes of the elders of Yisra’el.
And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the ‘strife’ of the children of Yisra’el, and because they ‘tried’ Yahuah, saying, “Is Yahuah in our midst or not?”
And Amaleq came and fought with Yisra’el in Rephidim.
And Mosheh said to Yahusha, “Choose for us men and go out, fight with Amaleq. Tomorrow I am stationing myself on the top of the hill with the rod of Elohim in my hand.”
And Yahusha did as Mosheh said to him, to fight with Amaleq. And Mosheh, Aharon, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.
And it came to be, when Mosheh held up his hand, that Yisra’el prevailed. And when he let down his hand, Amaleq prevailed.
But Mosheh’s hands were heavy, so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. And Aharon and Hur supported his hands, one on one side, and th other on the other side. And his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.
And Yahusha defeated Amaleq and his people with the edge of the sword.
And Yahuah said to Mosheh, “Write this for a remembrance in the book and recite it in the hearing of Yahusha, that I shall completely blot out the remembrance of Amaleq from under the heavens.”
And Mosheh built an altar and called its name, Yahuah Nissi,
for he said, “Because a hand is on the throne of Yah, Yahuah is to fight against Amaleq, from generation to generation.”
This passage is so much more than a “story” to read through and make a short comment about. I never knew about the great treasures that are here until yesterday – during Sabbath. These are the gems Father gives when we spend time and recline with Him on His Sabbath day.
We are going to uncover the gemstones one by one and little by little: some diamonds, saphires, and rubies they each are. Then we will put this treasure together at the end and look upon the marvelous beauty of it and praise His Name. All right, let’s go!
Rephidim where they camped, what does this mean? Have we ever thought about it? We should… how else would we get the understanding of what happened and learn from it? All that happened to Israel is for our example. We can choose to study it and learn or we can disregard it as some “story” and throw it aside. Let’s study.
Rephidim means “rest”, “stay”, or “resting place”
This place sounds like it would be favorable. A place of rest. The word comes from rephad which means spread 1, made 1, comfort 1; 3 1) to spread 1a) (Qal) to spread 1b) (Piel) to spread out, support.
Let us look at more form of this root.
Rephiydah which means – bottom 1; 1 1) support
raphah {raw-faw’} a primitive root; TWOT – 2198; v AV – feeble 6, fail 4, weaken 4, go 4, alone 4, idle 3, stay 3, slack 3, faint 2, forsake 2, abated 1, cease 1, misc 9; 46 1) to sink, relax, sink down, let drop, be disheartened 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to sink down 1a2) to sink, drop 1a3) to sink, relax, abate 1a4) to relax, withdraw 1b) (Niphal) idle (participle) 1c) (Piel) to let drop 1d) (Hiphil) 1d1) to let drop, abandon, relax, refrain, forsake 1d2) to let go 1d3) to refrain, let alone 1d4) to be quiet 1e) (Hithpael) to show oneself slack
rapheh {raw-feh’} from 07503; TWOT – 2198a; adj AV – weak 4; 4 1) slack
There is more form of this word that we need to look at, and that is rapha.
rapha – dead 7, deceased 1; 8 1) ghosts of the dead, shades, spirits
rapha’ {raw-faw’} or רפה raphah {raw-faw’} a primitive root; TWOT – 2196; v AV – heal 57, physician 5, cure 1, repaired 1, misc 3; 67 1) to heal, make healthful 1a) (Qal) to heal 1a1) of God 1a2) healer, physician (of men) 1a3) of hurts of nations involving restored favour (fig) 1a4) of individual distresses (fig) 1b) (Niphal) to be healed 1b1) literal (of persons) 1b2) of water, pottery 1b3) of national hurts (fig) 1b4) of personal distress (fig) 1c) (Piel) to heal 1c1) literal 1c2) of national defects or hurts (fig) 1d) (Hithpael) in order to get healed (infinitive)
I hope that you are now getting a picture of what this place is where we stopped to “rest.” We had been travelling on foot for many miles, after the supernatural act of Yahuah of dividing the sea of Aqaba and feeding us with quail and manna and healing us at the place of the bitter waters. So we are in a valley, a low or bottom place to camp and we are to “rest” because we are “frail and weak” and we are to be “healed” and renewed. There is also a strong component of death here as we saw from the word rapha. We see this word rapha in the noun raphaim. Rapha means “dead” and when a Hebrew word is made plural, the suffix “im” is added to the end… making the word raphaim for “dead ones”
The sick are in need of healing. The frail are in need of renewing. The dead are in need of restoration.
During this time of “rest” one of two things can happen depending on our trust in Him: healing or death.
During a time of rest, our minds may become idle along with our feet and hands. What do we begin to think about? Do we think about good and righteous things or do we begin to think about things that are unuseful for us? Past transgressions or past memories that used to please the flesh? Do we remember resentments, people that made us angry, plotting revenge, meddling, gossiping? Do we look to get into trouble with pictures, internet sites, magazines, movies. Do we gorge ourselves with food, go shopping and spend money, drink to excess, take in a movie with all sorts of abominations portrayed on screen?
All of these things come to us when we are in Rephadim. Rephadim is the valley, or low place and “can be” a place of rest and restoration.
What speaks to us during these time? Is it the spirit or the flesh? The children of Israel were to rest there at Rephadim. I cannot help but notice the “dalet” in the middle of this word. The dalet is the Hebrew letter “d” and it represents a “door” or a “window.”
Remember how rephaim is “dead ones” and when we see the dalet or “d” in the middle of that word to make Rephadim it is very intriguing. At the place of rest, there is a door. Doors swing two ways. Will we serve the spirit or will we serve the flesh during our rest, during our time at Rephadim? Will we be healed, or will we have a battle?
Well, the example of our beloved ancestors tell us what happens when we choose to serve the flesh at Rephadim, don’t they? But we have to study these things to learn from them, that is why they are there for us!
This brings me to the next thing I was shown on Sabbath day (the seventh day) I spent with my Father, Praise be to Him for His Blessing of the Sabbath. ….
Reading the verses of Exodus 17, I could not help but find it strange how in verse 7 we have Moses naming the places where these things happened based upon our actions and “striving” and “testing” our beloved Elohim, and in the very next verse (verse 8) out of the blue – we are being attacked!!! Who is attacking us here – Ameleq!
I thought… “what is this?” “Why is this placed here?” So I began to look at the word Ameleq. Now some folks will look this us and get: Ameleq – grandson of Esau and son of Eliphaz with his concubine, and people may stop there. But I was not satisfied so I continued the search.
Amalek 24, Amalekites 15; 39 Amalek = “dweller in a valley” 1) son of Eliphaz by his concubine Timnah, grandson of Esau, and progenitor of a race of people in southern Canaan 2) descendants of Amalek.
Amaleq – “dweller in a valley”. Hmmm. This is telling and gets us started. I then looked up some things from the TWOT and I will share the findings. The proper name Amaleq is not in the TWOT because it is of unknown derivation, but what we can always do, it look for the “primary root” of the word. This is usually three letters that make up the word, so I looked up “a” “m” and “q”.
amoq – be deep, make deep, be profound. The verb means – to sink down
emeq – valley
omeq – depth
All but one scriptural examples of amaq are severely judgmental. Isaiah 29:15 pronounces “woe on those who deeply hide their plans from Yahuah and do their deeds in the dark,” as though God does not see or know.
emeq – Vale, valley. Very common and used seventy times. Generally used as a geographical description as in “the valley of Siddim (Gen 14:3). Going down also speaks of a spiritual degradation. In Numbers 14:25 there is a bitter reminder to the sinning and rebellious Israel that at that time the Amalekites and the Canaanites were living int he valleys (enjoying the produce of the land). It was in the valleys of Canaan that agriculture was maintained. It was in the valleys that chariots could be used to the best advantage.
I will share with you another thought that came to mind. If a valley is a place of agriculture, and we are camping at Rephadim, which is a low valley, how can it be… that there is no water? Think about that for a moment. Could it be that there is truly something else going on here? Think about the implications of this for just a moment.
ameq – Deep, strange. This is an adjective that is used to mean “unintelligible” or “obscure, foreign”
amoq – Deep, deeper. This adjective occurs sixteen times in the Tanak (with seven times in Leviticus 13 speaking of the severity of leprosy). In Proverbs amoq describes a man’s speech:
Proverbs 18:4 “The words of a man’s mouth are deep waters; the fountain of wisdom is a flowing stream.”
Proverbs 20:5 “Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water, but a man of understanding draws it up.”
See how both of these proverbs speak of something deep, low, and dead (as in not moving) and compares them with the opposite which is wisdom and understanding – something higher, lofty and alive.
amoq also describes the disastrous destruction to be found in harlots:
Proverbs 22:14 “The mouth of a strange woman is a deep pit; the one denounced by Yahuah falls in there.”
Proverbs 23:27 “For a whore is a deep pit, and a strange woman is a narrow well.”
This information was incredibly explanatory for what I was seeing in the passage of Exodus 17! Something to look at here in the Hebrew letters is the root “amq” as we just did above. But with the Hebrew name Amaleq, there is an additional “l” in the middle. The Hebrew letter for “l” is “lamed”
The Lamed is the shepherd’s staff!
Do you see the first couple of images? It is the shape of a shepherd’s staff, the lamed. Now what do we think happens when we are in the valley, in the place of rest, and we begin to entertain the flesh? Does it not grab us, attack us, and cull us in with its staff and then, we find ourselves in a battle and at war – with Amaleq!
Now, there is another staff in this experience for both the children of Israel and for us. One staff pulls us up, and the other staff pulls us down. Do you see it?
verse 8: And Amaleq came and fought with Yisra’el in Rephidim.
verse 9: And Mosheh said to Yahusha, “Choose for us men and go out, fight with Amaleq. Tomorrow I am stationing myself on the top of the hill with the rod of Elohim in my hand.”
The rod of Elohim – matteh {mat-teh’} or (fem.) מטה mattah {mat-taw’} from 05186; TWOT – 1352b; n m AV – tribe 182, rod 52, staff 15, staves 1, tribe + 04294 1; 251 1) staff, branch, tribe 1a) staff, rod, shaft 1b) branch (of vine) 1c) tribe 1c1) company led by chief with staff (originally)
Our Elohim is always before us with His rod and staff to pull us up to Him and where He is if we will just rest in Him and allow Him to cull us, direct us, nudge us into the right place and thoughts.
And the peace of Elohim, which surpasses all understanding, shall guard your hearts and minds through Messiah Yahusha [the living water]. For the rest, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is righteous, whatever is clean, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good report, if there is any uprightness and if there is any praise – think on these. Philppians 4:7-8
Exodus 17:10
“And Mosheh, Aharon, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.” Now, who are these three men?
Mosheh is “the Name” or HaShem
Aharon is the Light Bringer – the Light
Hur is the pure righteousness
verse 11 “And it came to be, when Mosheh held up his hand, that Yisra’el prevailed. And when he let down his hand, Amaleq prevailed.”
When The Name (Yahuah) holds up His Hand [His Staff, Yahusha, His Strong Right Arm], we (Israel) prevails… led by our Commander Yahusha Messiah (Joshua) and without Him – Amaleq prevails. Light and Righteousness supports the holdind up of our Commander for the victory. That is why we must “think on these things.”
verse 12 “And his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.”
verse 13 “And Yahusha defeated Amaleq and his people with the edge of the sword.” What is the sword? It is the Word of God! This is what will defeat Amaleq in each of our lives. Until the going down of the sun in our lives… each of us.
We are to remember this!
In Deuteronomy, we are reminded by Elohim again to remember Amaleq: “You shall have perfect and right weight, a perfect and right measure, so that they prolong your days on the soil which Yahuah your Elohim is giving you. For all who do these, and all who do unrighteously, are an abomination to Yahuah your Elohim. Remember what Amaleq did to you on the way as you were coming out of Mitsrayim, how he met you on the way and attacked your back, all the feeble ones in your rear, when you were tired an weary. And he did not fear Elohim. Therefore it shall be, when Yahuah your Elohim has given you rest from your enemies all around, in the land which Yahuah your Elohim is giving you to possess as an inhertance, that you blot out the remembrance of Amaleq from under the heavens. Don not forget!” Deuteronomy 25:15-19
verse 14 “And Yahuah said to Mosheh, “Write this for a remembrance in the book and recite it in the hearing of Yahusha, that I shall completely blot out the remembrance of Amaleq from under the heavens.”
verse 15 “And Mosheh built an altar and called its name, Yahuah Nissi”
(nec {nace} from 05264; TWOT – 1379a; n m AV – standard 7, ensign 6, pole 2, banner 2, sail 2, sign 1; 20 1) something lifted up, standard, signal, signal pole, ensign, banner, sign, sail 1a) standard (as rallying point), signal 1b) standard (pole) 1c) ensign, signal)
The prophet Bil’am, after seeing the coming Redeemer from afar off, in his vision, pronounced a proverb against Amaleq: “He then looked on Amaleq, and he took up his proverb and said, “Amaleq was first among the nations, but his latter end is to perish forever.”
When The Holy One calls us to His Rest, His Sabbaths, to His mountain, His Nissi (standard) — look out! Remember Amaleq (the flesh) and how it wants to grab you with its staff, to cull you in, by old habits, by memories, by whatever means necessary to keep you down in the valley, the place of chaos and confusion.
Yahuah is standing right there, in front of us with His Staff and His Rod… to pull us “up” to Himself – even when we are the valley [of rest]. Dwell on righteousness, forgiveness, kindness, mercy. These things that come from His Character, will lift us up and “if you do turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My se-apart day, and shall call the Sabbath ‘a delight,’ the set-apart of Yahuah ‘esteemed’ and shall esteem it, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words, then you shall delight yourself in Yahuah. And I shall caus you to ride on the heights of the earth, and feed you with the inheritance of Ya’aqob your faither. For the mouth of Yahuah has spoken!” Isaiah 58:13-14
Remember!
In the valley, in the quiet times, in the times of rest – Amaleq will most assuredly come. He attacks from the rear. What does this mean? He comes from behind us, in the form of habits and memories, things of the ‘past’. Don’t entertain him! Place your thoughts on the Heights, the Standard, the Ensign of Yahusha!
Why are we contantly told the wicked have no rest? They are constantly fighting in battle with Amaleq. Every time the wicked attempt to rest – Amaleq is there – and they give place to it. Prepare for your quiet times of rest. Read scripture, pray, who do we need to forgive? Who do we need to show love or kindness to? Who do we need to give service to and help? There is always someone.
One final note to share, because I never saw this passage in this light before, but now I do after being shown these things. The 23rd Psalm:
Yahuah is my shepherd; I do not lack.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside still waters.
He turns back my being; He leads me in paths of righteousness for His Name’s sake.
When I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil. For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You spread before me a table in the face of my enemies;
You have anointed my head with oil; my cup runs over.
Only goodness and kindness follow me all the days of my life;
And I shall dwell in the House of Yahuah, to the length of days!
Amein! if this has touched you, please comment and share your thoughts.
10 responses to ““And they camped in Rephidim””
victoriousspirit3
April 23rd, 2012 at 10:54
Oh! How wonderful ! I too was heavily reminded of the 23rd Psalm and was going to mention it. But then I got to the end, and alas ! You noticed it. What a fabulous revelation our beloved Elohim has shown you. I am still in about the 13th chapter of Exodus in my studies, and I will re-read this again, before I tackle chapter 17. Wonderful insight. Thank you. Shalom!
P.S. what does TWOT stand for? I have seen it often, but don’t know what it means. ❤
Mary
April 23rd, 2012 at 13:15
TWOT stands for Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament edited by R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer, Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke. TWOT is a 2-volume set, dealing with the Hebrew/Aramaic words in the Old Testament that have a theological significance. It gives a short definition to every Old Testament word, but goes theologically in-depth on the words that would be necessary.
segulah
April 23rd, 2012 at 13:38
Yes, thank you so much Mary for helping with that question! And thank you to all of you for reading and commenting. I am so blessed.
segulah
April 23rd, 2012 at 13:40
It amazing, that when I was sharing these things with my husband… he also piped in and shared the 23rd Psalm even before I said that it seemed to tie in so perfectly with this passage of Torah. Then, to see you also saw it, Vicki, was another witness. Yah is so gracious!
Elsa
April 23rd, 2012 at 14:16
Beautiful insight, I enjoyed reading this. I thank our heavenly Father for you! Blessings to you!
segulah
April 23rd, 2012 at 19:31
Thank you so much my precious sister. Much blessings to you!
Floy
April 23rd, 2012 at 20:01
Thank you, Lora.
hiskingdom4u
April 25th, 2012 at 12:43
Thank you Yah and Praise You for this your beautiful daughter and this most excellent sharing of insight of Your Word and Spirit, Bless her with Your Peace that passes all understanding and Abundance of all she needs in her life to continue this Spirit filled walk and sharing her fellow believing brothers and sisters in You, I am soooo Thankful to You ABBA that You have allowed, provided the fellowship of this Your daughter, in my life. She is a faithful sister, friend, daughter to me, In Your Name Yahusha ha Messiah Amein!!!. Love you Segulah, what a wonderful and beautiful study you have presented here!! You are an encouragement and comfort to all who Love Him!
James Greene
January 29th, 2016 at 18:34
Shalom Lora, is there an easy/simple way for you to change to text color from blue to the off-white color you normally use? This bright color is causing a visual resonance that is preventing me from reading it clearly. If its too much trouble don’t worry…I’ve got plenty more of your work to read that will definitely keep me busy haha. But someone else might be having the same issue too, not sure. Thanks Lora for your faithful commitment to serving Him thru your writings! Love ya lots! James
segulah
January 31st, 2016 at 06:57
Oh dear! Thank you for letting me know! Not sure why I would do the blue, hahaha. But there it is isn’t it? The reason I have not been posting more articles is because my computer operating system is a little old and WordPress will no longer let me talk to it, LOL! I was very upset at first but as I know all things are perfect in Yah’s will for me I have accepted that perhaps He wanted me to be quiet for a minute so He could talk to me. And He has been. I am using my husbands little tablet to respond to your comments this morning. Not ideal for typing long articles though as you could imagine. As soon as I can figure out how to “select all” and change the font color… I will most surely do so. I am also thinking of putting my articles on a jump drive and perhaps going to the public library here to post them. We’ll see. Thank you again and have a blessed day!