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Israel’s Escape From Bondage
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the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the
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sea.” God would have Moses understand that He would work for His
people—that their necessity would be His opportunity. When they
should go as far as they could, he must bid them still go forward;
that he should use the rod God had given him to divide the waters.
“And I, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and
they shall follow them: and I will get Me honour upon Pharaoh,
and upon all his host, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.
And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have
gotten Me honour upon Pharaoh, upon his chariots, and upon his
horsemen. And the angel of God, which went before the camp of
Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud
went from before their face, and stood behind them: and it came
between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it
was a cloud of darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these:
so that the one came not near the other all the night.”
The Egyptians could not see the Hebrews, for the cloud of thick
darkness was before them, which cloud was all light to the Israelites.
Thus did God display His power to prove His people, whether they
would trust in Him after giving them such tokens of His care and
love for them, and to rebuke their unbelief and murmuring. “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. 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.” The
waters rose up and stood, like congealed walls, on either side while
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Israel walked in the midst of the sea on dry ground.
The Egyptian host was triumphing through that night that the
children of Israel were again in their power. They thought there was
no possibility of their escape; for before them stretched the Red Sea,
and their large armies were close behind them. In the morning, as
they came up to the sea, lo, there was a dry path, the waters were
divided, and stood like a wall upon either side, and the children of
Israel were halfway through the sea, walking on dry land. They
waited awhile to decide what course they had better pursue. They
were disappointed and enraged that, as the Hebrews were almost in