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 showed 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 15:23-26 KJV

What was the significance of Moses putting a tree in the water? How did a tree make the water sweet? In 1 Peter 2:24, Peter refers to the cross as a tree.

who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed. 1 Peter 2:24 NKJV

Photo by Maurice Ashton

In a world of hate and bitterness, Jesus died on a tree to save us from a bitter world. Sin has caused suffering and bitterness, but Jesus was lifted up on the cross to make our lives sweet again. This is a story that looks simple in itself, but like many stories of the Exodus, it points us to the cross and the salvation we have in Jesus. 

If life has made you bitter, Jesus is offering living water that can make your life sweet again.

Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” John 14:13-14 NKJV

I would like to invite you to find the sweet life through fellowship with Jesus and other believers, by finding a Christ-centered Bible-based church in your area. You can find one here.

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/how-a-bitter-life-is-made-sweet/

Daily Lesson for Wednesday 13th of August 2025

Moses was visited by Jethro, his father-in-law, who is also called Reuel (Exodus 2:18). Jethro brought with him Moses’ wife, Zipporah, and two sons, Gershom and Eliezer. When Moses heard that they were coming, he went out to welcome them.

Image © Lifeway Collection at Goodsalt.com

Jethro came because he had heard about the astonishing deliverance God had done for Israel. Moses narrated to Jethro in detail “everything the Lord had done to Pharaoh and the Egyptians for Israel’s sake and about all the hardships they had met along the way and how the Lord had saved them” (Exodus 18:8, NIV).

Jethro praised God’s kindness and extraordinary interventions on behalf of His people, declaring,

“ ‘Blessed be the Lord, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh and has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods, because in this affair they dealt arrogantly with the people’ ” (Exodus 18:10-11, ESV).

What we see here is an example of how God’s work among His people was to be a witness to the world of who the true God is and of what He can do for His people.

At the same time that Jethro learned about the true God, he himself had something to offer God’s people: wise and beneficial advice. Moses needed to organize the legal system with just and fair principles. He also needed dedicated and faithful judges, men of integrity. Jethro wisely enumerated the following qualifications: (1) men who fear God; (2) men who are trustworthy; and (3) men who hate dishonest gain. Capable people of good character had to be appointed over different units of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. In this way, Moses’ administrative load would be reduced, and he could focus on significant problems. Thus, the people would be well served.

Moses accepted Jethro’s wise counsel (Exodus 18:24) and appointed leaders to different administrative roles (see also Deuteronomy 1:9-18).

<–Tuesday Thursday–>

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/25c-07-jethro/