It was in the desert that God gave the children of Israel revelation of who He is. The revelation was meant to bring more intimacy with Him. Thus, the second month on the Hebrew calendar, which we entered on Friday, is linked with light. It is called Iyar or Ziv, which means radiance. The Israelites were transitioning from slavery to daughter and sonship. Their knowledge of God was only from a few stories handed down from Abraham through the generations to them. The Lord's plan was to give them several powerful demonstrations of His nature. These would reveal the secrets of His covenant with them.
God has multiple names that describe His nature. I find it significant that the first name He introduced to the Israelites was Yahweh Rapha. The introduction would take care of a current problem and unveil a plan for the future. From the Red Sea, all of Israel traveled into the Desert of Shur. They found no water until they reached Marah. But the water was undrinkable because it was bitter. When Moses cried out to the Lord, he was shown a piece of wood/tree and instructed to throw it into the water to make the water drinkable. Then the Lord explained His covenant: "If you listen carefully to the Lord your God and do what is right in His eyes, if you pay attention to His commands and keep all His decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you." (Exodus 15:26)
The Lord brought the children of Israel out of Egypt with a mighty hand. Exodus 12:37 records this: "There were about 600,000 men on foot besides women and children." Psalm 105:37 tells us, "There was not one feeble person among their tribes." (KJV) When the Israelites looked at their healthy ranks, do you think they understood that it was God who healed and strengthened them for their journey? Perhaps not, otherwise why would God need to show them that He is Yahweh Rapha, Hebrew for “The Lord Who Heals”? Rapha encompasses body, mind and soul. The word is also used to mean healing of water, land and nations. The bitter waters of Marah were completely healed after Moses threw the wood into it. In the King James Bible, the word tree is used in place of wood. The sign of the tree/wood has significance. We see that God was demonstrating His healing plan for the present and future. The Son of God would come to earth to be nailed to a tree. He would enter the waters of death, overcome them, and rise to become Living Water for us. He was "pierced for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5)
We do not have to look far to see the hand of the enemy at work. When sin entered the world the kingdom of darkness began to manifest. Diseases spread in the bodies of humankind and in the surrounding world. Romans 8:20 says, "For the creation was subjected to frustration…” Scripture explains that "creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed" because when freedom and the glory of God come to them, all creation will be liberated from its bondage to decay.
There is such a need for all humankind to have a re-introduction to Yahweh Rapha. Power for healing was demonstrated to the Israelites. It was followed by the spoken Word--"I am the Lord, who heals you!" Bitter waters were made sweet by the Lord who is the one who dispenses living water. He told the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well, "Whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:14) After His encounter with the Samaritan woman, on the third day, Jesus went to Cana in Galilee where He had turned the water into wine. He met a royal official whose son was sick in Capernaum. This man begged Jesus to heal his son. Jesus said, "Go, your son will live. The man took Jesus at his word…” (John 4:50) Sure enough, the boy was healed at the exact moment that Jesus made the declaration of healing!
Are we taking Jesus at His word? Do we believe in our hearts the words He has spoken? God loves His creation—all aspects of it! Jesus was sent to earth to heal us. He knew what we would need in this season of quarantine, sickness and chaos. He promises to "work for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purposes." (Romans 8:28) Let us use this time to reacquaint ourselves with the Lord who heals. I believe He desires to demonstrate His healing power just as He did at Marah, especially during this month of the anniversary of the introduction of His name. Let us also be like our father, Abraham, who "did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God..." (Romans 4:20) "After he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise." (Hebrew 6:20)
Joan E. Mathias