Moses Strikes the Rock

Moses striking the rock is among the most famous and enigmatic stories in the Torah.

If striking the rock was so awful, why was it okay so many years earlier? Why didn't Moses follow G-d's simple instructions? Why did this seemingly minor offense have such severe consequences?

A common denominator in all the explanations of the “Waters of Strife” incident is the implication that whatever the problem was, that wasn’t really the problem. Basically, G‑d is getting Moses on a technicality.

One of the most infamous events in the Bible is Moses' striking the rock to bring forth water. Why did Moses do what he did? Was it a mistake or was there a reason? How can this seemingly rebellious act be understood within the context of Moses' perfect o...

Professor Herman Branover is a Russian-Israeli physicist and Jewish educator, known in the scientific community as the leading pioneer in the field of magneto­hydrodynamics. Over the years, Branover undertook to translate some of the fundamental works of ...

Are the two accounts reconcilable without psychologizing the moment? Is this simply the case of Moses, perhaps the greatest man in the history of the world, becoming vulnerable when his mortality is upon him?

G‑d's decree not to allow Moses to enter the land was not a punishment in the classic sense of the term. Moses just did not sin to a degree that should have caused him to lose the right to fulfill his life's dream for which he had worked so hard.

Miriam’s Death, The People Grumble Again, The Sin of Moses and Aaron, Aaron’s Death, The Brazen Serpent

A life sentence for jaywalking? Twenty years for chewing gum in public? Singapore notwithstanding, surely that's over the top! Well, was it so different for Moses, who is punished and denied entrance to the Promised Land for the seemingly minor infraction...

The story of Moses hitting the rock is one of the most puzzling passages in the Torah. We learn a powerful lesson from the interpretation of Nachmanides, which reminds us of the importance of being conscious of how our actions and words may be perceived. ...