9. Moses went and got the stick, as the Lord had commanded.
10. He and Aaron assembled the whole community in front of the rock, and Moses said, “Listen, you rebels! Do we have to get water out of this rock for you?”
11. Then Moses raised the stick and struck the rock twice with it, and a great stream of water gushed out, and all the people and animals drank.
12. But the Lord reprimanded Moses and Aaron. He said, “Because you did not have enough faith to acknowledge my holy power before the people of Israel, you will not lead them into the land that I promised to give them.”
13. This happened at Meribah, where the people of Israel complained against the Lord and where he showed them that he was holy.
14. Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom. They said, “This message is from your kinsmen, the tribes of Israel. You know the hardships we have suffered,
15. how our ancestors went to Egypt, where we lived many years. The Egyptians ill-treated our ancestors and us,
16. and we cried to the Lord for help. He heard our cry and sent an angel, who led us out of Egypt. Now we are at Kadesh, a town at the border of your territory.
17. Please permit us to pass through your land. We and our cattle will not leave the road or go into your fields or vineyards, and we will not drink from your wells. We will stay on the main road until we are out of your territory.”
18. But the Edomites answered, “We refuse to let you pass through our country! If you try, we will march out and attack you.”
19. The people of Israel said, “We will stay on the main road, and if we or our animals drink any of your water, we will pay for it — all we want is to pass through.”