Cheerleading Affects the Outcome Written August 26, 2024   Welcome back to IT'S IN THE BIBLE.  I'm Brother Billy. Our guest on today's program is one of the heroes of the bloody battle of Rephidim.  Not only that, but he was also the grandfather of Bezalel, the man who later would oversee the construction of the Tabernacle and the Ark of the Covenant.  Exodus 31:1-11 ~  Ladies and gentlemen, it's my pleasure to introduce Hur, son of Caleb.  1 Chronicles 2:19-20 ~ Thank you, Brother Billy.  I'm glad to learn that people of your time still remember Rephidim, which means “place of rest.” Well, I must admit, Hur, we don't speak of it often.  But IT'S IN THE BIBLE. After our people had escaped Egypt, the Lord directed us to travel to Rephidim.  It was supposed to be an oasis in the desert of Sinai.  But when we arrived, it was only a low spot in the sand.  There was no drinking water for us and our animals.  We feared that God had forsaken the Israelites! Moses was your leader then, am I correct? He was, along with his brother Aaron.  I was privileged to be their assistant.  But we feared for our lives when the people found no water.  They threatened to stone us.  “Why,” they demanded, “have you brought us out of Egypt with our children and our herds to let us die of thirst?  Is God with us or not?”  Exodus 17:1-4 ~ So what did Moses do? He led some of us a little farther on, searching for the spring that our faith told us had to exist somewhere.  We turned over rocks and dug holes in the dry sand.  Finally, in Horeb, we found a likely-looking stone. Moses hit a crack in the rock with his staff, and water came pouring out.  Not much, but enough. He named the place Meribah or “dispute,” because the people had disputed God's faithfulness, and Massah or “test,” because they had put God to the test.  Exodus 17:5-7 ~ We don't often retell this story, because it depicts God's chosen people doubting Him.  That's a sin. Indeed. So how long did you stay at Rephidim? We were encamped there for only a few days before the Amalekites came and attacked us.  Exodus 17:8 ~ I'm not sure I'm familiar with Amalekites. There aren't any left.  Our general Joshua repulsed the attack and eliminated them.  Afterwards Moses told him, “Write this down.  I am resolved to blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.  I swear that the Lord is at war with Amalek, generation after generation!”  Exodus 17:14-16 ~ Oh, wait a moment, Hur.  In the book of Genesis, I do find a reference to a man called Amalek.  Genesis 36:10-12 ~He was a grandson of Esau, who was Jacob's twin. That's right.  We Israelites are descended from Jacob, also called Israel.  Therefore the Amalekites descended from his brother Esau were always fated to be our enemies. And it appears that even though Joshua wiped out the Amalekites, their name lived on as a generic pejorative for a detested foreigner.  That word must have been like "illegal alien" or "communist" in my day.  Several centuries later, one Amalekite even killed King Saul.  IT'S IN THE BIBLE.  2 Samuel 1:5-16 ~ “King” Saul?  Israel had a king? That was long after your time, Hur.  But you mentioned Joshua.  He was your military chief? That's right.  Moses was getting old by then, and he never led us in battle himself.  He told Joshua to pick out some men and march out the next afternoon to fight against Amalek. And Moses stayed behind to watch? He and Aaron and I climbed a nearby hill.  Moses was still carrying his staff, and he raised both his arms over his head to cheer on our soldiers. That sounds like the signal our generation knows as "touchdown!" The tide of battle kept shifting back and forth.  Moses noticed that as long as his hands were raised, Israel had the advantage.  But when he lowered his hands, the advantage passed to Amalek.  Unfortunately, his body started to fail him.  He couldn't keep his arms raised for long, and we began to lose the fight. Couldn't you prop him up somehow? That's just what we did!  We carried a stone over for him to sit on, which brought his arms down low enough that Aaron and I could grasp them.  Aaron held up his left arm, and I did the same on the right side.  With our help, Moses kept his hands steady.  We were able to hold this pose until sunset, and Joshua defeated Amalek and put its people to the sword.  Oh, it was a marvelously bloody scene!  Exodus 17:9-13 ~ Praise the all-merciful God! Of course, we all have known, ever since the Garden of Eden, that nothing happens without a reason. That's still true.  God is in control of everything, which means there is no such thing as a coincidence. What do you mean by “coincidence?” Two unrelated things that happen without one being the cause and the other the effect.  But there are no coincidences.  In this case, Moses's cheerleading obviously was the cause and his people's victory was the effect. Clearly, his blessed hands and his divine staff contained magic powers. Another miracle.  IT'S IN THE BIBLE.   Click here for the list of IT'S IN THE BIBLE interviews.