Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the people of Israel to turn back and
encamp in front of Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of
Baal-zephon; you shall encamp facing it, by the sea. 3 For Pharaoh will say of the people of Israel,
‘They are wandering in the land; the wilderness has shut them in.’ 4 And I will harden
Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and
all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord.” And they did
so.
5 When
the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the mind of Pharaoh and
his servants was changed toward the people, and they said, “What is this we have
done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?” 6 So he made ready his chariot and took his army
with him, 7 and took
six hundred chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers
over all of them. 8 And
the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the people
of Israel while the people of Israel were going out defiantly. 9 The Egyptians pursued
them, all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and
overtook them encamped at the sea, by Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon.
10 When
Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the
Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of
Israel cried out to the Lord. 11 They
said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken
us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out
of Egypt? 12 Is not
this what we said to you in Egypt: ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the
Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to
die in the wilderness.” 13 And
Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the
Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today,
you shall never see again. 14 The
Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”
15 The
Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go
forward. 16 Lift up
your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people
of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. 17 And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so
that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his
host, his chariots, and his horsemen. 18 And
the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gotten glory over
Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”
19 Then
the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind
them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, 20 coming between the
host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness.
And it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night.
21 Then
Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back by a
strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were
divided. 22 And the
people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being
a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. 23 The Egyptians pursued and went in after them
into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his
horsemen. 24 And in
the morning watch the Lord in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down on
the Egyptian forces and threw the Egyptian forces into a panic, 25 clogging their
chariot wheels so that they drove heavily. And the Egyptians said, “Let us flee
from before Israel, for the Lord fights for them against the Egyptians.”
26 Then
the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the water may
come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.” 27 So Moses stretched
out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal course when the
morning appeared. And as the Egyptians fled into it, the Lord threw the Egyptians
into the midst of the sea. 28 The
waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen; of all the host of
Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea, not one of them remained. 29 But the people of
Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on
their right hand and on their left.
30 Thus
the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw
the Egyptians dead on the seashore. 31 Israel
saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people
feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses.
I always seem to forget the details. The Pillar of cloud and
the Pillar of Fire moves around the people of Israel and even the Egyptians.
The Lord continues to instruct his people to walk right into traps. The one
that really struck me this time was the all Night wind to make sure the sea
turned to dry ground.
After the Ten Plagues in Egypt Pharaoh finally let God’s
people go. He allowed them to leave the land of Egypt. God continued to harden
Pharaoh’s heart after leading the Israelites to this place near the Red (Reed)
Sea. Pharaoh sent his chariots, horsemen, and army after his run away slaves.
He sent them there and they were held off all night, by fire and a cloud.
It was early in the morning when God had Moses lead his
people across the dry land into the sea. They had walls of water on their left
and on their right. Through these waters they go from the land of death and
Pharaoh’s army to Life and the future hope of the promise land. God does great
things in the morning. Every Sunday morning, God continues to do great things
by forgiving people of their sins and offering them new life and salvation.
Remember it is in the Morning the women go to the tomb.
OTA: Exodus 14:10-13, 21-31
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