NOTES for Exo 17:1-16
All the stories about Israel's testing in the wilderness are built according to this pattern: unforeseen difficulties arise, and the same central question arises again: "Is the Lord among us or not?" Then come the Lord's indignation at their lack of faith, miraculous signs, and salvation or punishment from God.
The paradox is that the "right," affirmative answer, "God is with us," can testify to fanaticism and spiritual complacency just as much as to real faith. But the question asked of oneself and of one another, "Is the Lord with us or not?" can truly put everything in its place. Here, in the wilderness, faith ceases to be a habit or an ideology; it becomes what it should be: a search, a hope, a striving toward God.