Thursday
Thursday
The Exodus from Egypt
When the Israelites saw the great power the LORD displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and put their trust in him.
Exodus 14:31
After the Israelites had made their escape, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds. “What have we done?” they asked themselves, realizing that they had lost the valuable slave labor of the Israelites. So Pharaoh marshaled his army, and they went in hot pursuit of the fugitives. Hemmed in by desert, water, and mountain, the Israelites saw the approaching Egyptians and were terrified. “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die?” they cried to Moses (v. 11). But Moses, with sublime confidence in God, replied, “The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still” (v. 14).
Israel’s actual deliverance from the pursuing Egyptian army is described in graphic detail. Twice, at the command of God, Moses lifted his rod and stretched out his hand over the sea. On the first occasion it was night, the sea was driven back by a strong east wind, and the Israelites went through, but the Egyptians were thrown into confusion. The second time it was daybreak, the water resumed its place, and the Egyptians were drowned, but the Israelites went through to safety.
Israel never forgot the exodus. It was a signal display of Yahweh’s power and mercy in saving them from their enemies and in establishing them as his special people. Moses sang of it. So did his sister Miriam, with tambourines and dancing. Indeed, it became a major theme of Israel’s public worship:
I will sing to the LORD,
for he is highly exalted.
The horse and its rider
he has hurled into the sea.
The LORD is my strength and my song;
he has become my salvation.
Exodus 15:1–2
We find it easy to translate this into Christian language, for we celebrate an even greater victory (Jesus Christ’s) and an even greater redemption (from sin and death).
For further reading: Psalms 106:7–12; 114