Topical Encyclopedia
Rephidim is a significant location mentioned in the Old Testament, particularly in the narrative of the Israelites' journey from Egypt to the Promised Land. It is primarily noted for two key events: the provision of water from the rock and the battle against the Amalekites.
Biblical References:1.
Provision of Water: The Israelites, having departed from the Wilderness of Sin, camped at Rephidim, where they found no water to drink. This led to the people quarreling with Moses and expressing their doubt and frustration. In response to their complaints, God instructed Moses to strike the rock at Horeb with his staff, resulting in water flowing out for the people to drink. This event is recorded in
Exodus 17:1-7. The place was named Massah and Meribah because of the Israelites' testing of the LORD and their contention with Moses. The Berean Standard Bible states: "The entire congregation of the Israelites left the Wilderness of Sin, moving from place to place according to the command of the LORD. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink" (
Exodus 17:1).
2.
Battle with the Amalekites: Rephidim is also the site of the first battle that the Israelites faced after their exodus from Egypt. The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. Moses instructed Joshua to choose men and go out to fight the Amalekites. During the battle, Moses stood on top of a hill with the staff of God in his hand. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites prevailed, but when he lowered them, the Amalekites gained the advantage. Aaron and Hur supported Moses' hands, ensuring the Israelites' victory. This account is found in
Exodus 17:8-16. The BSB records: "So Joshua did as Moses had instructed him and fought against the Amalekites, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill" (
Exodus 17:10).
Theological Significance:Rephidim serves as a powerful reminder of God's provision and faithfulness amidst the Israelites' journey through the wilderness. The miraculous provision of water from the rock underscores God's ability to meet the needs of His people, even in seemingly impossible situations. It also highlights the recurring theme of testing and faith, as the Israelites frequently struggled with doubt and disobedience despite witnessing God's mighty acts.
The battle against the Amalekites at Rephidim illustrates the importance of reliance on God for victory. Moses' raised hands symbolize intercession and dependence on divine power, while the support of Aaron and Hur emphasizes the necessity of community and cooperation in spiritual warfare.
Geographical and Historical Context:The exact location of Rephidim is uncertain, though it is generally believed to be situated in the Sinai Peninsula. Its proximity to Mount Horeb (Sinai) is significant, as it precedes the Israelites' arrival at Mount Sinai, where they would receive the Ten Commandments and enter into a covenant with God.
Rephidim's historical context is set during the early stages of the Israelites' wilderness wanderings, a period marked by divine guidance and miraculous interventions. The events at Rephidim are integral to understanding the challenges and growth of the Israelite community as they transitioned from slavery in Egypt to becoming a nation under God's covenant.
Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary
Rephidimbeds; places of rest
Smith's Bible Dictionary
Rephidim(Exodus 17:1,8;19:2) The name meansrests orstays , i.e. resting places. The place lies in the march of the Israelites from Egypt to Sinai. Its site is not certain, but it is perhapsWady Feiran , a rather broad valley about 25 miles fromJebel Musa (Mount Sinai). Others place it inWady es Sheikh , an eastern continuation of Feiran, and about 12 miles from Sinai. Here the Israelites fought their first battle and gained their first victory after leaving Egypt, the Amalekites having attacked them; here also the people murmured from thirst, and Moses brought water for them out of the rock. From this murmuring the place was called "Massah" and "Meribah."
ATS Bible Dictionary
RephidimAn encampment of the Israelites between the wilderness of Sin and mount Sinai, where the people murmured, and God gave them water from the rock. Here also the Amalekites attacked them, and were defeated,Exodus 17:1-16. It is thought to have been in the valley now called esh-Sheikh, a day's march northwest of Sinai, and near the western border of the Horeb group of mountains. SEESINAI.
Easton's Bible Dictionary
Supports, one of the stations of the Israelites, situated in the Wady Feiran, near its junction with the Wady esh-Sheikh. Here no water could be found for the people to drink, and in their impatience they were ready to stone Moses, as if he were the cause of their distress. At the command of God Moses smote "the rock in Horeb," and a copious stream flowed forth, enough for all the people. After this the Amalekites attacked the Israelites while they were here encamped, but they were utterly defeated (
Exodus 17:1, 8-16). They were the "first of the nations" to make war against Israel (
Numbers 24:20).
Leaving Rephidim, the Israelites advanced into the wilderness of Sinai (Exodus 19:1, 2;Numbers 33:14, 15), marching probably through the two passes of the Wady Solaf and the Wady esh-Sheikh, which converge at the entrance to the plain er-Rahah, the "desert of Sinai," which is two miles long and about half a mile broad. (seeSINAI; MERIBAH.)
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
REPHIDIMref'-i-dim (rephidhim, "rests"; Rhaphidin): A station in the Wanderings, between the wilderness of Sin and the wilderness of Sinai (Exodus 17:1, 8;Exodus 19:2Numbers 33:14). The host expected to find water here; to their distress the streams were dry, and water was miraculously provided. Palmer (Desert of the Exodus, 158;) states cogent reasons for identifying Rephidim with Wady Feiran. It is the most fertile part of the peninsula, well watered, with a palm grove stretching for miles along the valley. Palmer speaks of passing through the palm grove as a "most delightful" walk; "the tall, graceful trees afforded a delicious shade, fresh water ran at our feet, and, above all, bulbuls flitted from branch to branch uttering their sweet notes." His camp was pitched at "the mouth of Wady `Aleyat, a large open space completely surrounded by steep, shelving mountains of gneiss, the fantastic cleavage of which added greatly to the beauty of the scene. Palms and tamarisks were dotted all around, and on every knoll and mountain slope were ruined houses, churches, and walls, the relics of the ancient monastic city of Paran. Behind our tents rose the majestic mass of Serbal, and beneath the rocky wall opposite ran a purling brook, only a few inches in depth, but still sufficiently cool, clear, and refreshing."
Such a place as this the Amalekites would naturally wish to preserve for themselves against an invading people. For these desert dwellers, indeed, the possession of this watered vale may well have been a matter of life and death.
If this identification is correct, then Jebel Tachuneh, "Mount of the mill," a height that rises on the North of the valley, may have been the hill from which Moses, with Aaron and Hur, viewed the battle.
W. Ewing
Strong's Hebrew
7508.Rephidim -- a place in the desert... 7507, 7508.
Rephidim. 7509 . a place in the desert. Transliteration:
Rephidim Phonetic Spelling: (ref-ee-deem') Short Definition:
Rephidim.
...Library
The Waters of Meribah
... God's answer recalls the former miracle atRephidim (Exodus 17:1-7) in the early
days of the march, when the same cries had come from lips now silent, and the...
From Egypt to Sinai.
... (3) Under the leadership of the cloud, which during all the forty years of wilderness
wandering, was their guide, they next encamped atRephidim where there...
The Wilderness.
... them with manna from Heaven, and water out of the flinty rock; and gave them the
victory over the Edomite tribe of robber Amalekites atRephidim, where Joshua...
The Wall Rebuilt.
... taught him to loathe; and Haman, taking offence, and remembering the old enmity
between the two nations, that had begun at the battle ofRephidim, promised the...
Christ the Water of Life.
... water. The first was atRephidim, in the wilderness of Sin, during the first
year of their Exodus, before they came to Mount Sinai....
Moses Striking the Rock.
... Journeying forward, they entered another wilderness, called the Desert of Sin,
and came to a place namedRephidim, where they found no water....
Jehovah
... Jehovah-nissi, ie, "The Lord my banner," was a discovery made by Moses when Amalek
came to fight with Israel inRephidim, and the Lord gave the Israelites a...
Letter Xci. From Epiphanius to Jerome.
... For know, my beloved son, that Amalek has been destroyed root and branch and that
the trophy of the cross has been set up on the hill ofRephidim....
The Unmistakable Honesty of the Writers of the Bible Attests to...
... God's intervention in giving the Israelites food to eat, which ought for ever to
have closed their murmuring mouths, they pitched inRephidim where "there was...
How Moses when He had Brought the People Out of Egypt Led
... 7. As soon as they were removed thence, they came toRephidim, being distressed
to the last degree by thirst; and while in the foregoing days they had lit on a...
Thesaurus
Rephidim (5 Occurrences)... Leaving
Rephidim, the Israelites advanced into the wilderness of Sinai (Exodus
19:1, 2; Numbers 33:14, 15), marching probably through the two passes of the
...Reph'idim (5 Occurrences)
Reph'idim.Rephidim, Reph'idim. Repiners . Multi-Version Concordance... (See RSV).
Exodus 17:8 Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel inRephidim. (See RSV)....
Pitched (101 Occurrences)
... the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, after their journeys,
according to the commandment of the LORD, and pitched inRephidim: and there...
Camped (100 Occurrences)
... of the children of Israel traveled from the wilderness of Sin, by their journeys,
according to Yahweh's commandment, and encamped inRephidim; but there was no...
Encamped (115 Occurrences)
... of the children of Israel traveled from the wilderness of Sin, by their journeys,
according to Yahweh's commandment, and encamped inRephidim; but there was no...
Alush (2 Occurrences)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary One of the places, the last beforeRephidim, at which
the Hebrews rested on their way to Sinai (Numbers 33:13, 14)....
Encamp (108 Occurrences)
... of the children of Israel traveled from the wilderness of Sin, by their journeys,
according to Yahweh's commandment, and encamped inRephidim; but there was no...
Joshua (211 Occurrences)
... all the events of the Exodus, and held the place of commander of the host of the
Israelites at their great battle against the Amalekites inRephidim (Exodus 17...
Drinking-water (4 Occurrences)
... 17:1 And the children of Israel went on from the waste land of Sin, by stages as
the Lord gave them orders, and put up their tents inRephidim: and there was...
Meribah (11 Occurrences)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary Quarrel or strife. (1.) One of the names given by Moses
to the fountain in the desert of Sin, nearRephidim, which issued from the...
Resources
What is the significance of Meribah in the Bible? | GotQuestions.orgWho were the Amalekites? | GotQuestions.orgWhat is the Wilderness of Sin? | GotQuestions.orgBible Concordance •
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