Moses’s disobedience did not happen in a vacuum. He was going through a rough time. He had just buried his sister Miriam (Num. 20:1) and was facing growing opposition from the people he served. “Now there was no water for the community, and the people gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron” (Num. 20:2). You would have thought that right after Moses buried his sister, the people would have come together to support and encourage him, but they didn’t. They did not assemble for their leaders. They assembled against them.
