We will begin this lesson in Exodus 14:1 “And the LORD spake unto
Moses, saying,” Exodus 14:2 “Speak unto the children of Israel, that
they turn and encamp before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea,
over against Baal-zephon: before it shall ye encamp by the sea.”
“Pihahiroth” means mouth of the gorges. We know that God was
instructing Moses to tell the people to stop there before the Red Sea
so that God could be magnified in this exit from Egypt (type of the
world) to their promised land. “Migdol” is the Canaanits word for
Watchtower. We can, possibly, assume that this was an outpost to keep
watch against an invasion from this side of Egypt.
Exodus 14:3 “For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, They
[are] entangled in the land, the wilderness hath shut them in.”
We need to remember, again, that this was close to 3 million
people (by all estimates). They had changed their directions on
instructions from God, and it now appeared to Pharaoh, that they were
cornered. The Red Sea was on one side and Pharaoh saw an opportunity
to attack and destroy them, while they were trapped in these close
quarters. In all reality, God had put them in this impossible
situation, so He could save them with a miracle. We are like these
Israelites many times. We will not cry out to God, until there is an
impossible situation. Miracles only happen when there is an
impossibility with man; otherwise, it would not be a miracle. This
whole scenario was set up to glorify God, and to teach the Israelites to
depend on God. This lesson was not only hard for these Israelites to
learn, but Christians, as well. For out Christianity to work, it must
be God with the miracles in our lives. Salvation, as well as healing
can be classified as a miracle, because we do not deserve it. God
saved us, in spite of ourselves.
Exodus 14:4 “And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, that he shall
follow after them; and I will be honoured upon Pharaoh, and upon all
his host; that the Egyptians may know that I [am] the LORD. And they
did so.”
We see, here, that God was not totally through with Pharaoh. Notice,
that God had total control over this evil Pharaoh, even though Pharaoh
was lost. God hardened Pharaoh’s heart. The Pharaoh of Egypt was treated
as a god. God was about to topple this false god of Egypt. God, here,
was not just proving to these Israelites who He was, but this Scripture
said, so that the Egyptians would know. There will come a time when all
the world will know who Jesus is, and every knee will bow and every
tongue confess. Philippians 2:10 “That at the name of Jesus every knee
should bow, of [things] in heaven, and [things] in earth, and [things]
under the earth;” Philippians 2:11 “And [that] every tongue should
confess that Jesus Christ [is] Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
You see, God required total loyalty of these Israelites, as Jesus
requires total loyalty of the Christians. Notice, the last of verse 4
just simply said, “And they did so”.
Exodus 14:5 “And it was told the king of Egypt that the people
fled: and the heart of Pharaoh and of his servants was turned against
the people, and they said, Why have we done this, that we have let
Israel go from serving us?”
The shock of the loss of the firstborn had worn off, and they soon
forgot that God fights for Israel. the whole of Pharaoh’s people had,
now, become alarmed at the loss of such a vast work force (near an
estimated 600,000). They saw this, perhaps, as a terrible blow to
their economy; and even worse, it gave a signal of their weakness to
the surrounding countries. Again, here, we see God about to strike a
terrible blow, not only on the false god of Egypt, but also, on those
who worshipped this false god. Worship of a false god, then and now, will
bring the wrath of God.
Exodus 14:6 “And he made ready his chariot, and took his people
with him:”
Some estimate that Pharaoh’s army was, perhaps, about 100,000 men.
Israel had many times that many, but very few weapons, and no training
for battle. Israel would, also, be at a disadvantage, because their
children were with them. Pharaoh, possibly, wanted to scare them into
surrendering to him.
Exodus 14:7 “And he took six hundred chosen chariots, and all the
chariots of Egypt, and captains over every one of them.”
These 600 chariots were used to estimate 100,000 soldiers. Most of the soldiers were on foot.
It appears, here, that Pharaoh not only used the 600 chosen chariots, but that he used the private
citizens’ chariots, as well.
Exodus 14:8 “And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of
Egypt, and he pursued after the children of Israel: and the children
of Israel went out with an high hand.”
We see that these Israelites had not gone out of Egypt in shame;
but had left Egypt as the victor, even though God had won the victory
for them.
Exodus 14:9 “But the Egyptians pursued after them, all the horses
[and] chariots of Pharaoh, and his horsemen, and his army, and
overtook them encamping by the sea, beside Pi-hahiroth, before Baal-
zephon.”
You can see, here, clearly in verse 9, that all of Pharaoh’s army
came to get these Israelites. It was not just those with chariots.
Shure enough, they had encamped where God told Moses to take them, and
there was no place to retreat, but into the sea.
Exodus 14:10 “And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel
lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them;
and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto
the LORD.”
Speaking of soon forgetting, can you believe these Israelites
had so soon forgotten that God brought them out by the ten plagues He
brought on Egypt? Fear is not of God. Fear is the opposite of faith.
At least, they knew who to cry to for help. They cried out to God for
help.
Exodus 14:11 “And they said unto Moses, Because [there were] no
graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness?
wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of
Egypt?”
Poor Moses, they needed someone to blame, and instead of thanking
him for all of his efforts in their behalf, we find they blamed him.
This was a really cutting remark about the graves, because of their
fear of death, here, in this desert. These Israelites took a lot of
convincing. They did not share in the faith of their ancestor, Abraham.
Exodus 14:12 “[Is] not this the word that we did tell thee in
Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For [it
had been] better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should
die in the wilderness.”
There were several fallacies here. These Israelites only
complained to Moses and Aaron, when their work load had been increased.
When God brought the ten plagues, they did not complain at all to
Moses. These Israelites had all of the fight taken out of them, while
they were serving the Egyptians, and even though they had the
Egyptians outnumbered, they did not even consider fighting to keep
their freedom. They wanted deliverance, but with no effort on their
part, whatsoever. It reminds me a little of Christians, now, who sit
around and wait for God to do everything for them. We need to at least
exert ourselves a little, to let God know that we are sincere. Here,
again, we see they would rather serve the world (Egypt), than lay
their life on the line for God. the world and flesh must not be that
important to us. We must stand for God, even in the threat of death.
Exodus 14:13 “And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand
still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you
today: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen today, ye shall see them
again no more for ever.”
I see in this a message to God’s people, that our salvation is
not attainable, except through the efforts of the Lord. We see, Moses
told them not to fear; and he, also, said, stand still. We see Psalms
46:10 “Be still, and know that I [am] God: I will be exalted among the
heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.” This (Be still”) is for the
same purpose as this thirteenth verse in Exodus 14. Fear is used over
350 times in the Bible. The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom,
but all other fear is sin, because it is lack of faith. God made
these Israelites a promise. He said this would be the last time they
would bother you. This was not like the temporary relief, that they had
had from them when they left Egypt, but would be permanent; for God
would destroy them. Many things would come of this. The Egyptians who
lived back home would know not to bother Israel for fear of Israel’s
God, the Israelites would grow in confidence in God, and the other
nations, that Israel crossed on the way to the promised land, would know
that God fights Israel’s battles. There was no way to defeat Israel.
Exodus 14:14 “The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold
your peace.”
This was just another way of saying “vengeance is mine, saith the
Lord”. The battle is God’s, and the victory God wins, is ours. These
Israelites would learn more and more to depend on God alone, as they
made this pilgrimage to the promised land. We must realize in this
message, as they did; that we, too, must learn to depend on God, and Him
alone, to see us through this pilgrimage we are on here on this earth,
until we arrive safely in our promised land yonder in heaven with Jesus.