Then all the congregation of the children of Israel set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin, according to the commandment of the LORD, and camped in Rephidim; but there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people contended with Moses, and said, “Give us water, that we may drink.”
So Moses said to them, “Why do you contend with me? Why do you tempt the LORD?”
And the people thirsted there for water, and the people complained against Moses, and said, “Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”
So Moses cried out to the LORD, saying, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me!”
And the LORD said to Moses, “Go on before the people, and take with you some of the elders of Israel. Also take in your hand your rod with which you struck the river, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.”
Exodus 17:1-6, NKJV
Water from a rock. Many of my readers are familiar with this passage. The children of Israel are wandering through the desert and make camp in a place with no water. Of course, water is crucial to survival; the people become thirsty and do the only thing that they know to do – cry out to Moses. God commands Moses to strike the rock, and upon his obedience, water pours from the rock. God’s people are saved, and their thirst is quenched. Truly, this is a miraculous occurrence, drawing water from a rock. How miraculous is it, then, for water to enter stone and come out as fine wine?
Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”
The Gospel of John 2:6-10, NKJV
By now, my reader should recognize the truth that God has carefully chosen and presented all of the specific details in His Word. So there must be something special for us to see in the six waterpots. Let’s examine them.
These “waterpots” were made of stone. We have seen that it is often helpful to look at the first use of a word in the scripture to understand its primary significance. So to do that, we need to go all the way back to the second chapter of the Bible to get a look at the first mention of the word “stone”. The Hebrew word for stone is אֶ֥בֶן (Eben).
Now a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it parted and became four riverheads. The name of the first is Pishon; it is the one which skirts the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good. Bdellium and the onyx stone are there.
Gen 2:10-13, NKJV (italics added for emphasis)
God is describing the beautiful land of Eden. This is the very beginning of creation, where paradise is truly a reality. And וְאֶ֥בֶן הַשֹּֽׁהַם (v’eben hashoham ), the onyx stone is there.
God talks about the rivers. As mentioned earlier, water is critically important to life; it is what sustains us in our physical bodies. No wonder the rivers are mentioned; they maintain life. And there is gold. And the gold is good. Gold – it is a precious metal, beautiful, and pure. Gold has been highly valued throughout history. It is known as a symbol of wealth and royalty. There is no wonder that God mentions it. Then there’s bdellium, and the onyx stone. The onyx stone? Setting bdellium aside, what is an onyx stone, and why is it mentioned in conjunction with life sustaining water and the metal of royalty? In order to begin to understand the significance of the onyx stone, we must look further into the scripture.
Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: “Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering. From everyone who gives it willingly with his heart you shall take My offering. And this is the offering which you shall take from them: gold, silver, and bronze; blue, purple, and scarlet thread, fine linen, and goats’ hair; ram skins dyed red, badger skins, and acacia wood; oil for the light, and spices for the anointing oil and for the sweet incense; onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod and in the breastplate. And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them. According to all that I show you, that is, the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furnishings, just so you shall make it.
Ex 25:1-9, NKJV (italics added for emphasis)
…
“Then you shall take two onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel: six of their names on one stone and six names on the other stone, in order of their birth. With the work of an engraver in stone, like the engravings of a signet, you shall engrave the two stones with the names of the sons of Israel. You shall set them in settings of gold. And you shall put the two stones on the shoulders of the ephod as memorial stones for the sons of Israel. So Aaron shall bear their names before the LORD on his two shoulders as a memorial.
Ex 28:9-13, NKJV (italics added for emphasis)
In these passages, God is describing to Moses the details regarding the design of His tabernacle, and that of the High Priest’s garments. The tabernacle represents God’s dwelling among His people, and the High Priest is His representative before God’s people, and the people’s representative before Him.
For His own reasons, God chose the onyx stone, v’eben hashoham, as the stones that would rest on the High Priest’s shoulders to support the holy ephod and breastplate (see figure below).
- The High Priest’s Garments
(My appreciation for the illustration From http://thefieldistheworld.blogspot.com/2012/03/120308-exodus-28-our-great-high-priest.html)
Notice that the stones are fashioned in gold settings and placed on the shoulders of the High Priest. Why the shoulders? Because the shoulders are built to bear burdens. The scripture has many passages related to the bearing of such burdens. Let’s examine one of these passages:
So Moses took the carts and the oxen, and gave them to the Levites. Two carts and four oxen he gave to the sons of Gershon, according to their service; and four carts and eight oxen he gave to the sons of Merari, according to their service, under the authority* of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. But to the sons of Kohath he gave none, because theirs was the service of the holy things, which they carried on their shoulders.
Num 7:6-9, NKJV
In this passage, we see Moses dispositioning carts and oxen. My readers are encouraged to look into the context of this passage. For the purpose of this study, however, the only context that is necessary is that of the work of the sons of Kohath. It was their responsibility to transport the articles of furniture from the tabernacle when the Jewish people were on the move in the wilderness. This service included bearing the Ark of the Covenant itself. And they bore the load on their shoulders. In fact, there is a very interesting story relating to movement of the Ark using a cart and oxen (an unintended violation of God’s instructions), with disastrous results. To find out more, read the 2nd book of Samuel, chapter 6, verses 3-8 for the condensed story. The Ark was intended to be carried upon shoulders.
God’s express instructions were for the sons of Kohath (through Aaron) to bear the “holy things” on their shoulders. Think this through. Theirs was the duty to bear the “holy things” on their shoulders. And while they were bearing these holy things, the High Priest wore the ephod and the breastplate, which were attached to v’eben hashoham on his shoulders. And the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, the chosen people, were inscribed on the stones. In essence, the High Priest, God’s representative to His people, was bearing those very people on his shoulders. What a wonderful picture of our God carrying His chosen people. It is interesting that when Moses was completing his personal ministry on earth, just before his death, he pronounced special blessings upon the tribes of Israel; one of which, the blessing given to Benjamin (Israel’s most beloved, after Joseph), is especially meaningful:
Of Benjamin he said:
“The beloved of the Lord shall dwell in safety by Him,
Who shelters him all the day long;
And he shall dwell between His shoulders.”
Deut 33:12, NKJV (italics added for emphasis)
Benjamin would dwell between the shoulders of the Almighty, being borne by the Holy One himself. In fact, this brings yet another passage to mind:
“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’
Luke 15:4-7, NKJV (italics added for emphasis)
Maybe as you read this passage, like me, you envision one of the many paintings of our Lord and Savior, Jesus, walking with a little lamb draped over His broad, strong shoulders. He bears His holy people on His shoulders.
But this study was not originally focused on the topic of shoulders, as wonderful a study as that may be. We were focusing on stone waterpots.
We have seen from the first mention that God holds certain stones in high regard. In fact, throughout scripture, God is often likened to a Rock. God is called “my rock and my fortress”. Elsewhere, He is blessed as follows: “Blessed be my Rock…”. “He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.” “Blessed be the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle.”
Rock is strong. By context, it is steady, pure and holy. God is, indeed, my Rock. And our Rock has His holy people inscribed upon His hands, just as the names of the tribes of Israel were inscribed upon v’eben hashoham:
“See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands.”
Isa 49:16, NKJV
So stones represent God’s perfect strength and act as a medium of memorial regarding His holy ones. Now let’s examine this context surrounding the stone waterpots.
Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.”
John 2:6 and 7, NKJV
Can you see the symbolism? These waterpots were used “according to the manner of purification”. In other words, they were used to hold water used for the washing of purification. They held “holy water”. This water was used for ritual purification – meaning that it was used for “the ritual observances whereby an Israelite was formally absolved from the taint of uncleanness.” (from Smith’s Bible Dictionary) It is important to note that this water was meant for washing – not for drinking! And yet, Jesus instructed the servants to fill the pots with water and then draw some out for drinking. To Scribes and Pharisees, this would likely be viewed as heresy. Let’s look at what Jesus was doing…
The stone symbolizes the strength and purity of God – of the divine nature of our Lord. The water represents ritual purification. But salvation cannot be accomplished by ritual purification. Water can ritually wash away uncleanness, but it can never make the heart pure. There is only one thing that can do that:
Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.”
Matt 26:27-28, NKJV
We have examined this verse before. The cup of wine in this passage represented the blood of the New Covenant, which Jesus would soon execute for his holy people. Here at the wedding, Jesus was giving us a picture of Himself – fully God (the stone, and the life giving water) and fully man (there were SIX waterpots – the number of man), and where water entered the pots, wine representing the blood of the New Covenant came out.
In my last blog, I discussed the importance of wine in the Jewish wedding. The wine was used in the holy blessing over the couple. And the blending of the cups symbolizes their new life together as one. What a blessing at this particular wedding for Jesus to give them a picture of the true wine that gives eternal life!
Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.”
John 6:53-56, NKJV
Someday, in our eternal paradise, I look forward to meeting the blessed couple who partook of that first blessed and miraculous picture of Christ’s redemption!
I would like to leave my reader with one last thought about stones. In the book of Revelation, Jesus authors seven letters to seven different churches. Each church is given a report regarding what they are doing right, and what they must change. And with each letter, our Lord gives a blessing to those that overcome. Let’s examine one of these blessings…
“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.”
Rev 2:17, NKJV
Oh, may I be found worthy to receive that special stone! Selah…
May God richly bless your study of God’s perfect Word!
YouJi