RULES:

Do you ever feel like giving up? Are you ever tired of fighting? Maybe it’s because you’re doing it in your own strength. Maybe your eyes aren’t on your banner, your ensign.

The Lord is our banner. He is the One we are to follow into battle. He will fight for us — if we let Him!

This name of God, Jehovah Nissi, is only used one time in the Old Testament. It is a fun story to read. We see it in Exodus 17:15:

And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovah-nissi

To understand the significance of this name, we have to understand what has happened up to this point.

The Israelites had been in the wilderness, and once again, there was no water. They complain to Moses, and he prays to God. God tells him to strike the rock with the rod, the same rod that he used before Pharaoh and that he held over the Red Sea. He knows that God is with Him, and he obeys.

Water immediately comes out of the rock, and Moses calls the place Massah and Meribah as a rebuke to the Israelites. He says, “And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, Is the Lord among us, or not?”

Immediately after this rebuke of the Israelites’ unbelief, they go to war with the Amalekites. Maybe some of the men fighting had increased faith remembering what the Lord had just done for them — He had given them water out of the rock through Moses’s rod. They were reminded again of the awesome power of God through the use of the rod.

They would need to remember what God could do through them as they immediately go to fight against the Amalekites. Who would win? The stronger Amalekites or the Israelites who had the rod of God?

Moses lets the people know that they could follow Jehovah Nissi into battle. He was their banner. During these time in history, armies fought under a banner or battle flag that identified their tribe or nation. Jehovah-nissi was Moses’ way of saying that the Israelites in the wilderness did not need such a flag. Holding a banner was a signal to God’s people to rally to Him. The Lord was the banner under which they fought, and He gave the victory.

In this story, we have the fun details of how every time Moses’ arms began to fall, they Israelites started to lose the battle; but every time his arms were put up, the Israelites would be winning the battle. Finally, Hur and Aaron came and held up his hands until the Israelites won the battle.

Here we see how Moses depended on God for the victory, but we also see how he had support from Aaron and Hur. We need other believers to be around us so that when our arms begin to slip, they can help hold up our arms. We need to be praying for and upholding our fellow believers when they are going through deep waters and feel like they may fall.

In next week’s lesson, I’ll share thoughts on how Amalek pictured the flesh and some more lessons we can learn from this great name of God. To close this post, I like how David Guzik applied one major lesson we can learn from Exodus 17:

Exodus 17 we see examples of God’s power and man’s effort working together. Moses struck the rock; but only God could bring the water. Joshua fought, Moses prayed, but only God gave the victory over Amalek. In it all, God received the glory. It wasn’t Israel is my banner or Moses is my banner or Joshua is my banner; rather it was Yahweh-Nissi: The-Lord-is-My-Banner.

Is He your Banner?

• Names of God (List of books I used to study for this series)
• Elohim, The Creator God (free printables)
• El Elyon, The God Most High (free printables)
• El-Roi, The God Who Sees (free printables)
• El-Shaddai, The All-Sufficient One (free printables)
• Adonai, The Lord (free printables)
• Jehovah, The Self-Existent One, Part 1
• Jehovah, The Self-Existent One, Part 2 (free printables)
• Jehovah Jireh, The Lord Will Provide, Part 1
• Jehovah Jireh, The Lord Will Provide, Part 2 (free printables)
• Jehovah-Rapha: The Lord Who Heals, Part 1
• Jehovah Rapha: The Lord Who Heals, Part 2
• Jehovah Rapha: The Lord Who Heals, Part 3 (free printables)
• Jehovah Nissi: The Lord My Banner, Part 1

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A couple of weeks ago, I shared a post about the name of God, Jehovah-Rapha.

That post shared the story of the first time we see the name Jehovah-Rapha in the Bible. We talked about how the Israelites had seen a great victory, but then murmured and complained only three days later because of the bitter waters they come across after a time of no water.

The big application from that post is that when we experience times of spiritual victory, we need to be on guard as Satan will attack. He doesn’t want us to continue to experience victory.

“Great spiritual victory is often followed by defeat, discouragement, dissension, and depression. Satan often intensifies his spiritual attack immediately after we experience spiritual victory. He always tries to snatch away our victory and attempts to dull our joy.”
Ken Hemphill

But there is more than we can learn from this great name of our great God!

Today’s post will be a little more educational about this name of God, but we will still be awed and inspired as we meditate on our God who can heal every part of us — physically, emotionally, spiritually, mentally, and more — if He wills.

Let’s look at the name itself. Where do we see this name in Scripture?

• Exodus 15:26 is the only place where this name is used, but we see the healing power of God many other places in the Old Testament.
• The Hebrew root verb raphe (“to heal”) occurs approximately 70 times in the Old Testament.

What does the name mean?

• It can be translated “Jehovah heals” or “Jehovah my Health.”
• Jehovah is also known as YHWH or “I AM.” He is The One Who Is The Self-Existent One.
• Rapha (or Rophe) means “to restore,” “to heal,” “to cure.”

This Hebrew phrase “reveals God’s ability to restore, to heal, and to cure, not only in the physical sense but also in the moral and spiritual sense.” (Nathan Stone)

How can we apply the name Jehovah-Raphe to our every day lives?

• We can realize that God can heal us. God has provided the final cure for spiritual, physical, and emotional sickness in Jesus Christ. He is the only source of wholeness. Whether or not God heals us on this earth, we will be fully healed one day in heaven. He may choose to offer physical healing here on earth, and He may not; but He can and will heal the sin-sick soul that turns to Him for healing.

When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. Mark 2:17

• In times of brokenness, we can go to God’s Word and remember His promises of healing. God’s Word is our medicine.

Have mercy upon me, O Lord; for I am weak: O Lord, heal me; for my bones are vexed. My soul is also sore vexed: but thou, O Lord, how long? Return, O Lord, deliver my soul: oh save me for thy mercies’ sake. Psalm 6:2-4
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Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for thou art my praise. Jeremiah 17:14
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Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for thou art my praise. Jeremiah 30:17
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He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds. Psalm 147:3

• We can be encouraged that one day we will be free from sickness and pain.

And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. Revelation 21:4

• We need to TRUST –rely on God’s names and then wait patiently to see what He will accomplish.

TRUST = Total Reliance Under Stress and Trial (Catherine Martin)

We are going to spend one more week studying this name of God. Next week, we will see how we can follow a pattern for victory when we face bitter circumstances which might otherwise bring discouragement and disillusionment so that we don’t fail the test like the Israelites did. We’ll also see a few more references that show God is our healer, and we will see how Jesus is God by the way that He demonstrated He is Jehovah-Rapha in the New Testament.

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I can relate to the Israelite people in Exodus 15 — even though I want to say I would never be like them in the following passage.

I would like to say that my faith would stay strong as I remember what the Lord has done for me in the past. That I would not falter. That I would stay positive when hard times come. That through the hard times, I would be like Paul and Silas in the jail — praising God in the middle of the night.

That I what I hope I will do. But I know I sometimes complain about little first world problems. Like being hot. Being tired. Having a lot to do. Being upset about what someone has said to me or a child’s bad attitude. And it makes me think, “I probably would have been one of those doubting, complaining Israelites!”

Here is the story:

So Moses brought Israel from the Red sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water.  And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah.  And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? And he cried unto the Lord; and the Lord shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them, And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee. Exodus 15:22-26

In Exodus 15, the Israelite people have forgotten that the Lord provides (Jehovah-Jireh). God, just three days earlier, had delivered them from the Egyptians. He had done a miracle that allowed them cross the Red Sea on dry ground.

They had been on a cloud 9 for a day. Miriam danced and the women had danced and sang praises to God just a few verses earlier in this same chapter. And then they came to the bitter waters — and they murmur against their leader.

For three days, they had been walking through a hot dry desert. Their water has run out. Their food has run out. They are hot, hungry, thirsty, and crabby. Their children are hot, hungry, thirsty, crabby, and whiny. And they are genuinely worried. Will they survive? If they don’t get water soon, people will die!

But instead of going to the One who can provide, they complain.

Ken Hemphill in his book, Names of God, had the following quote:

“Great spiritual victory is often followed by defeat, discouragement, dissension, and depression. Satan often intensifies his spiritual attack immediately after we experience spiritual victory. He always tries to snatch away our victory and attempts to dull our joy.”
Ken Hemphill

Be on guard! Satan would love to do for you what he did for the Israelite people. He would love to create division, dissension, and distress. He wants to steal your joy. When you have a spiritual victory, get ready — because He could attack.

And if he does, what will you do? How will you respond? Will you murmur and complain? Of course, not against God! But will you murmur against the people God has placed in your life? Against the situations God has placed in your life?

Then in reality, we are murmuring against God. Because He is sovereign. He is in control, and He has allowed those people and situations in your life FOR A REASON! And He knows best.

God knew that the Israelites would end up Marah. In fact, He led them there! 

Exodus 13:21-22 shows how the Lord was leading them in the wilderness:

And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night: He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.

Our question might be, “Why?”
Why would God lead people into difficulty?
Why would He want us to experience hardship, thirst, and hunger?

• There are so many reasons, but one simple one is that if we never experience thirst, then we never desire God’s water.

• If we never experience the bitter waters, then we never experience the power of God in healing the waters.

• If we never taste the bitter, then we’ll never taste the sweetness after God heals the bitter.

• If we never have pain and sickness, then we never need a healer.

• If we don’t see our need of a Savior, then we don’t understand how Jesus, our tree, can transform our life just like the tree transformed the bitter water into sweet water.

God knows what He is doing — but will we trust Him?
How will we respond when the bitter times come into our lives?
Will we murmur and complain?
Or will we be like Moses who cried out to God?

I want to be like Moses!

Next week, I will go into the meaning of the name, Jehovah-rapha, and seeing how the name Jehovah-rapha applies to our everyday lives. I’ll share the printables also for this lesson, but I hope this week got you excited to see how God is our healer for those bitter times in our life. He has a plan, and He knows best!

You see, even in the bitter times, He is Jehovah-Jireh and He will provide. He knew the water was bitter, and He had provided years beforehand a tree to grow in that place that He would use to make the water sweet. He knows beforehand what we will need when we experience the bitter waters in our life. He will not leave us dry and thirsty. He will not fail us.

The thoughtful topics for your posts could be related to but not limited to the following topics:

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