Monday, June 22, 2020

Exodus 14:21-31 comments: the Pharaoh and his army destroyed




Exodus 14:21 ¶  And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the LORD caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. 22  And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left. 23  And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them to the midst of the sea, even all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. 24  And it came to pass, that in the morning watch the LORD looked unto the host of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the host of the Egyptians, 25  And took off their chariot wheels, that they drave them heavily: so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the face of Israel; for the LORD fighteth for them against the Egyptians. 26  And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen. 27  And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the LORD overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. 28  And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them. 29  But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left. 30  Thus the LORD saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the sea shore. 31  And Israel saw that great work which the LORD did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the LORD, and believed the LORD, and his servant Moses.

In what had to be a terrifying picture in front of them the sea divided over the night under the influence of a strong wind, creating a dry pathway to the other side. The Israelites exited across the dry pathway that God had made with the waters standing high on either side of them. Pharaoh and his army plunged in after them furiously. One can easily imagine what happened next. The dry ground starts to become a mass of mud and chariot wheels come off. Panic sets in among the soldiers between the walls of water. Due to the time frame allowed this event clearly happened at a branch of the Red Sea that was just wide enough for this many people to make this trip in these hours.
Moses raised his rod and the waters returned on the Egyptian army and all of them including the Pharaoh himself, are drowned. This is celebrated in the Bible in many places.

Deuteronomy 11:4  And what he did unto the army of Egypt, unto their horses, and to their chariots; how he made the water of the Red sea to overflow them as they pursued after you, and how the LORD hath destroyed them unto this day;

Nehemiah 9:11  And thou didst divide the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; and their persecutors thou threwest into the deeps, as a stone into the mighty waters.

Psalm 78:53  And he led them on safely, so that they feared not: but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.

Hebrews 11:29  By faith they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned.

The best part of the mightiest army of the world’s greatest superpower is now destroyed. The leadership of Egypt is crushed with the Pharaoh following his heir, his firstborn, in death. There is now a vacuum of power in that part of the world. A human leader and his mighty army have come up against God and been vanquished in a moment in time.

2Thessalonians 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

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