I’ll be standing in front of you there by a rock at Mount Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.” Moses did this while the leaders of Israel watched him.
Then each ruler will be like a shelter from the wind and a hiding place from the rain. They will be like streams on parched ground and the shade of a large rock in a weary land.
The Lord will be our mighty defender in a place surrounded by wide rivers and streams. Ships with oars won’t travel on them. Stately ships won’t sail on them.
That is why I revealed to you what would happen long ago. I told you about them before they happened. ⌞I did this⌟ so you couldn’t say, “My gods have done these things. My carved idols and my metal idols have commanded them to happen.”
They will never be hungry or thirsty, nor will the sun or the burning, hot wind strike them. The one who has compassion on them will lead them and guide them to springs.
So the Lord will comfort Zion. He will comfort all those who live among its ruins. He will make its desert like Eden. He will make its wilderness like the garden of the Lord. Joy and gladness will be found in it, thanksgiving and the sound of singing.
“That is why the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when people’s oaths will no longer be, ‘The Lord brought the people of Israel out of Egypt. As the Lord lives….’
They will cry as they return. They will pray as I bring them back. I will lead them beside streams on a level path where they will not stumble. I will be a Father to Israel, and Ephraim will be my firstborn.
He was the one who led you through that vast and dangerous desert—a thirsty and arid land, with poisonous snakes and scorpions. He was the one who made water come out of solid rock for you.