Gone Forever!
Opening Prayer
Lord, thank You for protecting Your people and frustrating Your enemies.
Read Exodus 14:19–31
19 Then the angel of God, who had been traveling in front of Israel’s army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, 20 coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long.
21 Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, 22 and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.
23 The Egyptians pursued them, and all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and horsemen followed them into the sea. 24 During the last watch of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion. 25 He jammed the wheels of their chariots so that they had difficulty driving. And the Egyptians said, “Let’s get away from the Israelites! The Lord is fighting for them against Egypt.”
26 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.” 27 Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were fleeing toward it, and the Lord swept them into the sea. 28 The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived.
29 But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. 30 That day the Lord saved Israel from the hands of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. 31 And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
Read Matthew 8:23–27 and remind yourself how the winds and waves obey their Creator.
In 2004 some 23 Chinese cockle pickers were drowned in Morecambe Bay, England. In this expanse of sand and quicksand the tide comes in rapidly, and they could not escape. Images of this fill my mind when I read this passage, and I imagine the terror of the people.
Some Christians and most educated unbelievers believe that God worked this miracle by using natural means, but the most important thing is not how God did it, but that he did it! What happened was no mere coincidence. God’s use of nature is evidence of his care. If these were reedy salt marshes with a soft muddy bottom connected to the main gulf of the Red Sea, then a
combination of an ebb tide and a strong wind could dry them temporarily, long enough for a lightly armed group to cross. Because of the surrounding water, the Egyptians could not sweep in from the left and right to cut them off—they had to follow behind. Heavy chariots, combined with frightened horses plunging about, possibly in a thunderstorm (Psa. 77:16–20), with clogged wheels and probably broken axles, caused the confusion and ultimately the death of the Egyptians as the waters flowed back (R. Alan Cole, Exodus, 121). For the Israelites, the sight of the dead bodies is graphically symbolic. The old way of life in slavery is gone forever; salvation and a new life are now assured. For Christians, baptism holds a similar meaning (cf. 1 Cor. 10:2).
God’s prime motive is clear: “the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord” (4,18). Pharaoh had to change his attitude towards God (Exod. 5:2). Israel, too, changes her attitude—from fear (10–12) to faith and trust (31). They are protected from the start (19,20). The morning watch (24) is the darkest hour before dawn, when reserves are low and attacks are most successful. For us, too, lying awake in the early hours can magnify our fears and anxieties, something the enemy often uses. God has our dilemma in hand, however, just as he had for Israel.
Apply
Talk to God about any fears you may have at the moment. Do you feel his protection upon you?
Closing prayer
Lord, I know that You can make a way when there is no way. Help me to gain a deeper appreciation of this eternal truth.
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