For a bunch of people headed to their supposed Promised Land, the Israelites sure had a lot of buyer’s remorse. It seemed like nearly every chapter of their journey had some kind of complaint about how much they missed Egypt, and the cucumbers, and the water, and the fruit.
(I did a little research, and according to my count, there are seven such episodes: Exodus 14:11-12; 16:3; 17:3; Numbers 11:4-6; 14:2-4; 20:3-5; and 21:5. So, maybe not every page, but that’s still a lot. Give it a rest, guys!)
God heard it, too. And that’s probably why Moses calls it out in Deuteronomy 11:10-12.
What’s really interesting is that he does so in one specific area: irrigation.
This was a point of pride for Ancient Egypt, and is still heralded as one of the most remarkable technological innovations of its time. Rather than moving from place to place in search of food, Egypt developed a form of basin irrigation that allowed it to collect water from the Nile when it rose, and dispense it through the farmland.
Because of this, they were able to put down roots (pun intended), stay in one place, and develop their empire.
Despite this technology, Ancient Egypt still ascribed this type of watering to their gods. Hapi was the name for both the River and its god, so this form of irrigation was not only a gift from nature, but from their idol as well. To worship one was to worship the other.
It’s possible that Moses draws on this understanding in Deuteronomy 11:12 when he tells Israel that “the eyes of the Lord your God are always on [the land].” Instead of a fake deity (that was already conquered by Jehovah, by the way) that only controls the River, the One True God cares for the entirety of the land.
Moses makes special mention of the rainfall. In contrast to Egypt, which is dry and flat, but has the Nile, Israel is a mountainous region, which makes irrigation from water sources nearly impossible.
No worry, though. Canaan “drinks water from the rain of heaven.” God will provide the water in the same way He provided the manna. If He can bring water from the rock, He can also cause it to fall from the sky.
Moses presents Israel as a contrast with Egypt, then. Egypt has very little rain and requires manpower to move water from the basins to its crops. Israel, by comparison, leaves the watering to God’s providence via rainfall. It just happens with no effort on their end.
Where would you rather live?