What happened when the tree was cast into the bitter waters?
When the tree was cast into the bitter waters, the waters were made sweet. This miracle pictures the work of the cross: just as the tree changed bitter water, so believers facing tribulations, disappointments, and sorrows should flee to the cross, where everything has been satisfied.
Les explains that Israel’s bitter waters were healed only when the tree was cast in, and immediately the waters were made sweet. He connects this to the cross: if we try to bypass the cross, we are just as hopeless as these Jews were in Egypt, because the work of the cross must be central. In our experience, when tribulations, disappointments, and sorrows come, we should race to the foot of the cross, because that is where everything has been satisfied. After that bitter experience was made sweet, Moses again led them by the cloud and the pillar of fire, the very presence of Jehovah, and brought them to an oasis with twelve wells of water and seventy palm trees—a place of rest, relaxation, and the satisfaction of their thirst.