Amalek attacks

Numbers 22:2-4 They were extremely afraid of the people of Israel because they were so numerous: "That horde will devour the whole region, like cattle grazing in a field."

Exodus 17 ¹From the desert of Sin, the entire people of Israel moved on from one resting place to another, according to the instructions of YHWH. When they pitched their tents in Rephidim, there was no water to drink. ²They reproached Moses. "Give us water to drink!" they said. Moses said, "Why do you blame me? Why do you test YHWH?" ³ But because the people were very thirsty there, they continued to complain. "Why did you bring us out of Egypt?" they said to Moses. "To make us and our children and our livestock die of thirst?"

Deuteronomy 25 ¹⁷Do not forget what the Amalekites did to you on your journey out of Egypt. ¹⁸When you were hungry and exhausted, they ruthlessly attacked the rear guard, where the weakest were, without any fear of God.

Judges 7:12 and Deuteronomy 1:44 The Amalekites swarmed across the plain like locusts. They had as many camels as there is sand on the beach along the sea. They came at you and pursued you like a swarm of bees.

Moses was at his wits' end. After the joy of the exodus from Egypt, the misery began. They had gone south to Mount Sinai. Moses wanted to teach the people to understand the voice of God, as he had been taught. But the people were too numerous. There were too many people, too many children, too many cows and sheep for the land. Everything was eaten bare and there was too little water.

            The Amalekites saw how the newcomers threatened their existence. They feared for their meager pastures and scarce water sources. And they also saw that the people were wandering through the desert in a disorganized manner, laden with belongings and rich in livestock. The choice was simple. Dromedary riders attacked the unsuspecting stragglers amid loud cheers. Those who defended themselves were pierced with spears, those who fled were pierced with arrows. Young men and women who tried to protect their loved ones were overpowered and taken away as slaves. The carts were plundered, the cattle driven into the desert. And before the main force of the Israelites could respond, the attackers had already disappeared behind the impassable rocks.

            Moses was stunned. Amalek was a child of Abraham, Isaac, and Esau, born to Esau's son Eliphaz and his beloved Timna. The children of Jacob were killed and robbed daily by the children of Esau. Moses had strong men walk in the rear guard, but the guards were too easily challenged and their charges too easily panicked. Fear and despondency ruled the Israelites. How long can you keep this up?

There was only one possible answer: even though the Israelites were untrained, they were strong and numerous, and they had no choice. They had to force Amalek to fight.

The trap

Exodus 17 ⁹ Then Moses said to Joshua, "Choose some men and go out to fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand." ¹⁰ Joshua did as Moses commanded him and fought against Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went to the top of the hill. ¹¹ As long as Moses held up his arm, Israel prevailed, but when he lowered his arm, Amalek prevailed. ¹² When Moses' arms grew heavy, Aaron and Hur placed a stone for him to sit on. They stood on either side of him to support his arms. This enabled his arms to remain raised until sunset. ¹³ Thus Joshua defeated the army of Amalek to the last man.

How do you attack an enemy who rides faster than you can run? Who surrounds you like swarms of bees and is gone before you can strike back? One thing is certain: where there is bait, vultures gather.

Moses had tended his goats and sheep in the Sinai for years. He knew the paths and byways of the desert. At night, he sent the young men ahead. He appointed one of them as leader, Joshua from the tribe of Ephraim. "Go four hours ahead along this road and find a hiding place at the entrance to the valley. Let us pass you by and let the Amalekites pass too. Hide and remain silent. Even if you hear our people screaming and moaning, cover your ears and do not show yourself until you hear the ram's horn. Even if it is your mother, your sister, or your grandmother bleeding to death in the sand, leave them there. Let them die."

The next morning, before sunrise, the Israelites moved on. The people had hardly slept. They were thirsty and fearful. As the sun gained strength, they grew tired. That was what the Amalekites had been waiting for. Those who lagged behind were mercilessly killed. Carts whose wheels got stuck or whose axles broke were hopelessly lost.

            "Keep going," Moses shouted, "or we will all die in this desert." He led them with a steady gait. But without them knowing, he led them in the wrong direction. The valley they were walking through became narrower and narrower, and the procession stretched longer and longer. The rearguard of the Israelites, where Moses had placed most of the warriors, kept the threatening dromedary riders at bay with bows and arrows. But the Amalekites shot back, and their arrows flew farther. Israelites fell left and right. Israel panicked. More and more stumbled, more and more died. The valley grew narrower and narrower. They were trapped.

Moses had the rearguard turn around and line up in battle formation. The children and the elderly had to keep the cattle calm. Miriam took charge of them. The Amalekites were now numerous and were preparing for battle. And then Moses called his brother Aaron and Hur (according to early Jewish readers, Miriam's husband). They climbed the rock face along a goat path until they were above the fighting parties. When Moses saw that all the Amalekite warriors had gathered, he sounded the ram's horn. The young men now appeared at the entrance to the valley and attacked the Amalekites from behind. Now cries of pain and anger rang out from the Amalekite army. They had nowhere to go, trapped between two rock walls and attacked from the front and rear by the Israelites. Hammer and anvil. Their dromedaries were now useless. It became a life-and-death hand-to-hand battle. The Amalekites were skilled in combat, but the Israelites were numerous and strong; and when they looked up to where Moses stood with his hands raised, they believed they could win.

Jehoshua

Exodus 33 ⁷ Moses would pitch a tent outside the camp, at a considerable distance from it, and he called it the tent of meeting. Anyone who wanted to consult YHWH would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp.

⁸ Whenever Moses went there, all the people would stand at the entrance of their tents and watch Moses until he had gone inside. ⁹ As soon as he was inside the tent, the pillar of cloud descended and remained at the entrance. Then YHWH spoke with Moses. ¹⁰ When the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the tent, each one bowed down at the entrance of his tent.

¹¹ The LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. Then Moses returned to the camp, but his young servant Joshua, the son of Nun, did not leave the tent.

Numbers 13 ¹⁶ And Moses called Hosea, the son of Nun, Joshua.

Moses took the young man to the meeting tent. Moses had furnished it like the tabernacle of Midian in Timna. He liked to go there. It reminded him of Reuel and the sacrifice of atonement that had freed him. He burned fragrant herbs and resin there. It reminded him of the burning senah, the flame in which he first understood God's call. It reminded him of Zipporah, and of Gershom and Eliezer.

            Now he was there with the young man through whom God had granted them redemption. He had a fitting name, Hosea, Hoshua, "Redemption." Moses showed him the smelting furnace he had built there. He lit the grass with coals from the altar and filled the furnace with coal and malachite. Clouds of smoke filled the tabernacle. Together with Hosea, he operated the bellows. The fire grew hotter and hotter. And Moses felt the spirit of God moving him. Hosea felt it too. It was as if they became one with the wind and with the fire. One with each other.

            Then the miracle happened: the stone dust in the furnace began to burn. The fiery copper slug shot forward through the tap hole until it curled up writhing in the hollow of the stone below. Moses scooped the incense offering onto the red-hot snake. It was done. Deep in the furnace, pure copper was born.

Moses sat down exhausted and beckoned Hosea to sit beside him. He sniffed the scents and let himself be carried away.

A little later, he asked Hosea, "Did you hear God's voice in the breath of the fire?"

"I heard the blowing, the hissing, the blowing. But I did not understand it."

Moses took his hand and looked deep into his eyes. "Hoshua is your name, 'deliverance.' And that is true, for Yahweh has delivered us through your hand. But now he delivers you; today you are reborn from the fire. You shall be called Je-Hoshua, YHWH saves."

Since then, he has been called Joshua. He kept the fire burning in the tabernacle and welcomed everyone who came to call on the name of YHWH. He was like a son to Moses.

Zipporah and her sons

Exodus 18 ¹ Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, who was a priest in Midian, heard what God had done for Moses and for Israel, how YHWH had led his people out of Egypt. ^2-5 So Jethro set out to meet Moses. He took with him Moses' wife Zipporah, whom Moses had sent back, and her two sons. (...)

When Jethro arrived with Moses' wife and sons in the desert where Moses had set up camp, near the mountain of God, ⁶ he told Moses, "I, your father-in-law Jethro, have come to visit you, with your wife and her two sons."

Did Moses still think of his wife and children? Or was he so absorbed in his new role that he did not make himself heard? Zipporah heard more from the caravan drivers in the desert than from her own husband. Especially when the Amalekites around them left their tents to fight the newcomers. Her father had convinced the Kenites to stay at home. After a few weeks, stories of the defeated Amalekites began to arrive. From the camps of Amalek came cries of mourning for the young men who had been killed. Zipporah was grateful and sad at the same time. She was also afraid of the battle that was to come. Then she made a decision.

            "I want to go back to my husband," she said to her father.

            "Now? Surely he will send a messenger when he wants you back?"

            "Have you heard our neighbors crying? It may already be too late."

            Reuel looked at his daughter. "You're right, he needs you."

The guards at the Israelites' camp saw no threat in the priest with his daughter and her children. But what was he doing there?

            "I am Jethro, priest of Midian and father-in-law of Moses. I bring him his wife and sons."

            "Is our prophet married to this Midianite woman? Are her children his sons?"

The covenant

Exodus 18 ⁷Moses went out to meet his father-in-law, bowed down before him, and kissed him. After they had asked each other about their well-being, they went into the tent. ⁸Moses told his father-in-law in detail how YHWH had acted on behalf of Israel against Pharaoh and Egypt, and also what difficulties they had encountered on their journey and how YHWH had rescued them from them.

⁹Jethro rejoiced that Yahweh had done so much good for Israel and had rescued them from the hands of the Egyptians. ¹⁰ "Praise be to YHWH for delivering you from the power of the Egyptians and Pharaoh," he said, ^"for delivering the people from the oppression of the Egyptians, ¹¹ who treated you with such contempt. Now I know that YHWH is more powerful than all other gods."

¹²Moses' father-in-law Jethro brought a burnt offering and a peace offering to God, and Aaron and all the elders of Israel joined him in eating the sacrifice before God.

"Jethro rejoiced," it says. And how could he have rejoiced if Moses had not first welcomed his wife and sons with open arms? Of course he kissed her as he greeted his father-in-law, of course he took the boys in his arms and asked them how they were doing. But he looked tired, and soon all his attention was focused on the priest of Midian, the servant of YHWH.

            After the attack by Amalek, Jethro's visit was a sign from God: the Israelites were welcome in the land of Abraham. Moses immediately summoned Aaron and the seventy elders of Israel.

"We must make a covenant between Israel and Midian," he said.

            "I speak only for the Kenites," said Reuel, "we are not numerous."

            Moses looked his father-in-law straight in the eye: "You speak on behalf of YHWH!"

That evening, Zipporah waited for Moses in the tent. Her boys were fast asleep after the long journey. But she could not sleep. She waited for the man who was to be her husband again. She longed for the reassurance of his mouth, his hands on her skin—she wanted to feel his desire for her. I of my beloved, and he of me. She wanted him to make love to her, one body, one soul.

            She waited.

            "Aren't you asleep yet?" he asked when the meal was over. "Your father did a great job. I think the elders of the tribe have now felt for the first time what it is like to call upon YHWH.

            "Come here," she said, and she pulled him toward her. With a quick movement, she turned him onto the bed and sat on top of him. Her loose hair tickled him as she leaned over him to kiss him.

            "Shh," he whispered, "the boys."

            "They're sleeping more deeply than they've ever slept," she replied, and she leaned over him again.

            His strong hands enveloped her body. He laid her down beside him. Her back arched and her legs opened of their own accord to receive him. But he threw the blanket over her and lay down beside her, his powerful arm across her.

"Rest now, my love," he whispered, "rest now."

Sitting in judgment

Exodus 18 ¹³ The next day Moses judged the people. From early morning until late at night, the people stood around him.

¹⁴ When his father-in-law saw all that Moses had to do for the people, he asked, "Why are you doing this? Why do you sit alone, while the people crowd around you from morning till night?"

¹⁵ Moses answered his father-in-law, "Because the people come to me to consult God. ¹⁶ When they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide who is right and tell them what God's laws and regulations are."

¹⁷ "What you are doing is not wise," said his father-in-law, ¹⁸ "you will wear yourself out, and the people who come to you will wear themselves out too. This is too heavy a burden for you; you cannot bear it alone. ¹⁹Listen, I will give you some good advice, and may God be with you. You must represent the people before God and bring their disputes before Him. ²⁰Imprint His laws and regulations on them and teach them which path to follow and which duties to fulfill. ²¹ But in addition, find among the people a number of decisive, pious men who are trustworthy and cannot be bribed, and give them authority over groups of a thousand, a hundred, fifty, and ten. ²² They can judge the people at all times. They will bring important disputes to you, but they will decide minor disputes themselves. They will lighten your burden by sharing it with you. ²³If you do this, and if God wills it, you will be able to endure, and all these people will be satisfied and go to their tents.

The days were wonderful. Just as she had done for her father in the past, Zipporah now wrote down the laws for Moses. When people brought their disputes to him, he asked her what rule he had applied in previous cases. And if the case was new, they would go together to the tent to listen to the voice of YHWH. If God told them both the same thing, Moses knew for sure that it was God's voice.

            Moses used the book of God's laws, written in the unique script of Sinai (Zipporah called it an "alphabet"), to instruct the judges. And he said:

Deuteronomy 1 ¹⁶... "Hear both parties and render a just decision, whether between two compatriots or when a stranger is involved. ¹⁷Judge without partiality, hearing the poor as well as the rich. Let no one intimidate you, for you speak justice on behalf of God. If something is too difficult for you, bring it to me and I will consider it."

The days were wonderful, but the nights became increasingly lonely for Zipporah. Moses was tired and fell asleep quickly. But she lay next to him, staring into the darkness.

*      *      *

Suggestions for reading groups

• Check in with the group and with yourself, seek stillness/humility.
• First share the story. Confronted with the refugees from Egypt, there are two different reactions: the Amalekites go into battle with the newcomers and the Kenites offer a peace treaty and good advice. Moses responds to the first group with a battle plan and to the second with a celebration in which he gives Jethro the leading role as priest. What did you read?
• Encourage, comfort, inspire. How do you respond to newcomers in your neighborhood or at work (or in your faith community), or—if you are the newcomer—to the reactions of the people who already work or live there? Do you see people as opportunities or threats? Are you willing to fight? Are you willing to work together and honor the other person in the process? How do you turn opponents into allies?

Reflecting on Exodus 5-18, when change becomes inevitable

Here we read the background to the exodus: the confrontation between Moses and the determined Pharaoh, the ten increasingly severe plagues of Egypt, and the spectacular escape. The first miraculous signs seem like a tragicomic chain reaction in which everything that can go wrong does go wrong.* Then natural disasters follow (hailstorms and locusts), causing famine in Egypt, after which everything becomes dark (because of the locusts?) and the firstborn children of Egypt die (because of disease?), including Pharaoh's son. The Israelites in the land of Goshen (which was drier and suitable for shepherds) escape this.
The book of Exodus interprets this story not as a series of natural disasters, but as a spiritual struggle between Pharaoh, who increasingly reveals himself to be the tyrant that he is, and the people, who experience how radically different the choice for freedom (and serving YHWH) actually is and how much opposition it provokes. And the role of God himself is not only encouraging but also demanding and threatening.

• Encourage, comfort, exhort. What do you think of the plagues you have read about? See what associations they evoke with "plagues" in your own life. Have you ever tried to step 'out of the system' yourself, or have you seen others do so? Have you seen resistance from those at the top of the pyramid? Do you know people who have made a radical choice for their faith or their calling, or have you ever done so yourself? Have you or they experienced (spiritual) struggle or liberation in the process? What role did (your faith in) God play in this?
• Leave room for silence and contemplation. Perhaps you will "see" or "hear" something from "God." Like Moses and Zipporah, do you dare to enter into conversation with that voice? What answer wells up within you? How do you test that answer?

* (1) The overflowing Nile water was red because of the clay that had been washed away by torrential rains in Ethiopia, and the fish died in this murky water; (2) the frogs multiplied in the remaining pools, but when they dried up, they moved into the houses; (3) the mosquitoes multiplied in the stagnant warm water, and (4) the biting flies in the rotting fish and frogs, which (5) bit the cattle and made them sick, as well as (6) the people.