Bitter Waters Sweetened by Wood

(23) They came to Marah, but they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; that is why it was named Bitter. (24) And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” (25) So he cried out to The LORD, and The LORD showed him a piece of wood; he threw it into the water and the water became sweet. There [God] made for them a fixed rule; there they were put to the test. (26) [God] said, “If you will heed The LORD, your God diligently, doing what is upright in God’s sight, giving ear to God’s commandments and keeping all God’s laws, then I will not bring upon you any of the diseases that I brought upon the Egyptians, for I The LORD am your healer.”

ויורהו ה׳ עץ וישלך אל המים, “the Lord taught him about a certain kind of wood, and he tossed it into the water;” Although The Holy One Blessed be He could have sweetened the water without the wood, His style was to to perform miracles according to the standard operation of the world, which is to place sweet things within bitter things.

Rabbi Berekhyah said in the name of Rabbi Ḥiya bar Ada of Yafo, in the name of Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman: "When Israel came to Mara, what is written there? 'They came to Mara [and could not drink water from Mara, as it was bitter]' (Ex. 15:23). Moses began ruminating: 'This water, why was it created? What benefit does the world have from it? It is preferable that it would not have been created.' The Holy One blessed be He knew what he was ruminating. The Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘Do not say so. Is it not My handiwork? Is there any item in the world that was not created with a purpose? Rather, I will teach you what you should say. Say this: "Transform the bitter into sweet".’"

Another interpretation (of Exod. 15:25): AND THE LORD SHOWED HIM A TREE. What was it?

Rabbi Yehoshua says: "It was an olive tree."

Rabbi Neḥemiah says: "A willow tree."

Some say: "The roots of a fig tree."

And some say: "The roots of a pomegranate, since there is nothing as bitter as those."

But the sages say: "It was ivy wood, and there is nothing as bitter as that."

Rabbi Yishmael, son of Rabbi Yoḥanan ben Baroqah said: "See how great are the miracles of the Holy One! Those of flesh and blood cure the bitter with the sweet, but the Holy One cures the bitter with the bitter, as it is said, 'And I will heal you of your wounds, statement of The LORD" (Jer. 30:17) - by whatever means he wounds he heals."

"And the Lord showed him a tree"—Rabbi Yehoshua said: "This was a willow tree."
Rabbi Elazar of Modi'in said: "This was an olive tree, as there is nothing more bitter than an olive."
Rabbi Natan bar Yosef said: "It was a carob tree."
Some say: "Even the roots of a fig tree and the roots of a pomegranate tree."

The interpreters of allegorical teachings said: "He showed him words of Torah, which are compared to a tree, as it is stated (Proverbs 3:18), 'It is a tree of life for those who hold onto it.'"

Rabbi Yishmael, son of Rabbi Yochanan ben Beroka, said: "Come and see how different the ways of flesh and blood are from the ways of the Almighty. A human being heals bitterness with sweetness, but the One who spoke and the world came into being does not act this way. Rather, He heals bitterness with bitterness. How so? He places something consumable into something consumable to perform a miracle within a miracle."

Similarly, it is stated (2 Kings 2:21): "He went out to the source of the waters and cast salt into them and said, 'Thus says the Lord: I have healed these waters; there shall no longer be death or barrenness from them.'" But isn't salt itself a harmful substance? Yet, when it was placed in the water, the water was immediately purified. This shows that something consumable was placed into something consumable to perform a miracle within a miracle.

Likewise, it is stated (Isaiah 38:21): "And Isaiah said, 'Let them take a cake of figs and apply it to the boil, and he shall recover.'" But doesn't fresh flesh deteriorate when figs are placed on it? However, this was done to perform a miracle within a miracle.

"And he cast it into the waters, and the waters were sweetened." At that moment, the Israelites pleaded and provoked their Father in Heaven, like a child pleading before his father or like a student provoking his teacher. They said before Him: "Master of the Universe, we have sinned by complaining about the water."

"And the waters were sweetened." They were initially bitter, and they were sweetened afterward. This is according to Rabbi Yehoshua.
Rabbi Elazar of Modi'in said: "They were bitter from the beginning," as it is stated "water, water" twice (indicating the repetition of their bitterness).

"And the waters became sweet" - this was the opposite of the plague of blood in Egypt, for the waters of the Nile were sweet, and they turned bad, whereas these were bitter and became sweet.