Neville Goddard on Exodus 17:1-7 - Mystical Bible Interpretation

Read Exodus 17 in context

Scripture Focus

1And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, after their journeys, according to the commandment of the LORD, and pitched in Rephidim: and there was no water for the people to drink.

2Wherefore the people did chide with Moses, and said, Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said unto them, Why chide ye with me? wherefore do ye tempt the LORD?

3And the people thirsted there for water; and the people murmured against Moses, and said, Wherefore is this that thou hast brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst?

4And Moses cried unto the LORD, saying, What shall I do unto this people? they be almost ready to stone me.

5And the LORD said unto Moses, Go on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel; and thy rod, wherewith thou smotest the river, take in thine hand, and go.

6Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

7And 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?

Exodus 17:1-7

Biblical Context

Thirst and complaint surface as the Israelites' crisis at Rephidim, signaling an inner lack of trust. God reveals that water comes from the rock of consciousness when faith is steady.

Neville's Inner Vision

Thirst in the desert is not a demand for physical water, but a signal that your awareness still believes in lack. See the rock as your unshakable I AM, and the rod as the living instrument of your attention. When you step onto that rock with the elders of your higher self and strike with a belief that rests in God, water pours forth from within—living, sustaining, immediate. The crowd’s murmuring mirrors your thoughts that question, 'Is the LORD among us?' Yet the answer is found not by leaving the wilderness but by becoming fully conscious of the Presence you already are. The miracle is internal: a shift of state from fear and complaint to confident expectancy, recognizing that the LORD is indeed within, ready to provide as you affirm and feel the truth of I AM here and now.

Practice This Now

Imaginative act: For five minutes, close your eyes and declare, 'I AM' is the rock of my consciousness and the source of all water. Feel the sensation of living water rising within as you rest in that awareness.