Exodus 14:19-31

“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. 20 And it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these:  so that the one came not near the other all night. 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.”

Introduction

[Audio version: https://resources.ccphilly.org/detail.asp?TopicID=&Teaching=WED553]

“Exodus chapter 14, if you’ll turn there.  I think we have, if you’re interested, the DVD and the booklets that the Coldwell’s brought, out at the center booth on the way out, if you’re interested in those.  They stayed for questions and answers and stayed up late that night, so we told them we would keep them here for a few weeks to see if there was interest in them [instead, see the previous article going through Exodus 1-14, titled Exodus From Egypt].  Well, we’ll back up, we have the Egyptians having Moses and the children of Israel entrapped against the sea, verse 13 of chapter 14, “And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day:  for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.  The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.  And the LORD said unto Moses, Wherefore criest thou unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward:  but lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it:  and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.” (verses 13-16)  By the way, we may have another interesting source coming up, which I probably can’t talk much about, but would very much confirm exactly what we are looking at tonight, so if that develops, I’ll let you know about that.  It’s all I can say.  I can tell you today, but you’ll have to disappear tomorrow.  Verse 17, “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.”  God really has to harden someone’s heart to get them to go down into the ocean like this.  “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:” (verses 17-19)  So the angel of the LORD, the presence of the LORD somehow, relative to the pillar of cloud and of fire, verse 20 is interesting, “and it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these:  so that the one came not near the other all night.” Now interesting, just the picture we have here, the same pillar, it comes between God’s people and the Egyptians, on one side it is darkness, and on the other side it is light.  You know, it’s an interesting picture of some ways certainly of God’s Word, ‘Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path,’ you know, you try to share the Word of God with an unbeliever, it’s just darkness to them, it doesn’t mean anything.  How many times the leading of God, the promises of God in our lives, it is really light to us, it lights our way and it gives us hope.  And yet to the unbeliever, you’re trying to explain it to them, but because they’re blind and the eyes of their heart have been blinded by the god of this world, it is just darkness to them.  And you know, our prayers of course that people will come and the Holy Spirit has been send into the world to convict the world of sin and righteousness and of judgment, and to bring them from darkness to light, because if they end that way, it’s an eternal ending, you hope that they come, out of the darkness into the light.  [Now here is where we see some parts of the Body of Christ believe that if you’re not saved during your normal lifetime, you go into some kind of everburning hellfire, what they call “eternal separation from God” which comes from Roman Catholic dogma.  Other parts of the Body of Christ have differing beliefs about the “unsaved dead.”  To read some of these beliefs, see https://unityinchrist.com/plaintruth/battle.htm]  But on the side of this same pillar, on the side of God’s people it’s giving light, on the side of the enemy of God’s people it’s darkness.  “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.” (verses 21-22)  the Hebrew word for “wall” is used over a hundred times in the Old Testament, for the “walls” of Jericho, the “walls” of Jerusalem, the “walls” of Babylon, the “walls” of Nineveh, “the water was a wall, on the right hand and on the left hand.”  Again, we went through all of the verses last week, Psalm 78:13, Psalm 77, Isaiah 51:10, 51:15, Isaiah 63:11 and 14.  We’re going to see here it says they went into the mighty waters, they went into the great deep, they went down as an ox goeth down into the valley, so they went down.  All of the descriptions in Scripture of this scene here have nothing to do with a swamp or a pond.  [Comment:  He keeps referring to the misconception of them going through a swamp, because the Bible in Hebrew indicates in the beginning of their flight they go through the Sea of Reeds, which was a swampy area, which they actually did cross through.  This doctrinal misunderstanding is cleared up by the fact that as they crossed from the Nile Delta across over into the western shore of the Sinai desert, they crossed this Sea of Reeds, a swampy area.  But then on their journey south along the western shore of Sinai, bordering the Red Sea, they then turned east at  Abu Zenima, and heading east across the Sinai Desert to a mountain pass that led to Nuweibaa on the eastern coast of the Gulf of Aqaba.  Ron Wyatt’s expedition and scuba dives off Nuweibaa have proven this is the crossing site where Moses led the children of Israel through the Red Sea.  Coral-encrusted chariot wheels, and one gold chariot wheel were filmed by him on the seabed off the coast of Nuweibaa.  I have seen these on his dvd.  Naval charts of the Gulf of Aqaba from Nuweibaa to the Saudi coast show the deepest part of the crossing, the bottom is at over 800 feet underwater.  So the walls of water on each side of them as they marched through, at the highest would have been towering walls of water 800 feet tall!  Quite impressive, but with God, nothing’s impossible.  Be sure to buy and watch Ron Wyatt’s DVD about his investigation at Nuweibaa.  (log onto http://www.ArkDiscovery.com and order “Revealing God's Treasure.”)]  All the way through, they’re going, it says the waters “were a roaring,” they went into “the great deep, into the mighty waters, they went down as an ox going down into the valley.”  This is a remarkable, remarkable scene.  And it is rehearsed all through the history of Israel, all the way into the New Testament.  If this is a band of guys drowning in a swamp, it would probably be the last time we heard about it [there he goes with his swamp statements, which are cleared up by the actual knowledge of where they went, so I won’t mention his swamp comments again].  The water was a wall onto them, on the right hand and on their left.  “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.  And it came to pass, that in the morning watch” that’s between 3 and 6am, because this took hours, this is about 8 miles across the Gulf of Aqaba right there, and you have 2 million people, they’re going down a slope and then up on the other side, this is a long procession that took all night for them to cross, and the Egyptians, as the LORD moves behind them, and the Egyptians are able to pursue, it’s at the morning watch between 3 and 6 in the morning, and it says, interesting, that “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,” (verses 23-24) I guess so, huh?  Imagine them, it’s between 3 and 6am, may be getting light a little bit, they’re coming, walls of water on either side, following this dark cloud, and all of a sudden the LORD looks through at them, I’d get a bad feeling right about then.  He troubled the Egyptians, and look, “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.” (verse 25)  the Hebrew says “took the wheels and axles off,” they evidently started to bog down, and the horses pulled the chariots themselves off of their axles.  It’s interesting, because how many of the pictures, examining those pictures, are of the axles and the wheels [he must be referring to the same dvd of Ron Wyatt’s, where you can see those chariot wheels and axles, encrusted with coral, which preserved them over 3,000 years underwater, where they lie even today], “and took off their chariot wheels, that they drave them heavily” like sleds, “so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the face of Israel; for the LORD fighteth for them against the Egyptians.”  “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.  And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared;” so it’s just getting light, “and the Egyptians fled against it; and the LORD overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea.  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.  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.  Thus the LORD saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the sea shore.” (verses 26-30)  they saw dead bodies washed up upon the shore, I can’t imagine what this morning is like as it’s getting light, the children of Israel standing there, being able to see across to Pihahiroth [modern-day Nuweibaa],  you can see across, and more than that, to see the remnants of the Egyptians, probably some horses bodies in the surf, quiet, astounded, staggered, shaken by the power and majesty and the provision and the victory of their God.  I can’t imagine what a morning this must have been as they stood there and saw the Egyptians dead upon the shore, upon the sea shore.  “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.”  Now you would think that would make a lasting impression, don’t you?  Would it make a lasting impression on you?  That’s not a trick question, I’m curious.  You would think 9/11 would make a lasting impression on us.  You would think many things would make a lasting impression upon us.  But we’re very much in ourselves, the victims of the moment, whatever way the wind is blowing, when we’re in the circumstance, either rejoicing or complaining or we’re reveling in God’s love and his faithfulness, or we’re questioning it.  It’s either one thing going on or the other.                

Genesis 15:1-27

“Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously:  the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. 2 The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation:  he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him. 3 The LORD is a man of war:  the LORD is his name. 4 Pharaoh’s chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea:  his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red sea. 5 The depths have covered them:  they sank into the bottom as a stone. 6 Thy right hand, O LORD, is become glorious in power:  thy right hand, O LORD, hath dashed in pieces the enemy. 7 And in the greatness of thine excellency thou hast overthrown them that rose up against thee:  thou sentest forth thy wrath, which consumed them as stubble. 8 And with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were gathered together, the floods stood upright as an heap, and the depths were congealed in the heart of the sea. 9 The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; my lust shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them. 10 Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them:  they sank as lead in the mighty waters. 11 Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders? 12 Thou stretchedst out thy right hand, the earth swallowed them. 13 Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed:  thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation. 14 The people shall hear, and be afraid:  sorrow shall take hold on the inhabitants of Palestina. 15 Then the dukes of Edom shall be amazed; the mighty men of Moab, trembling shall take hold upon them; all the inhabitants of Canaan shall melt away. 16 Fear and dread shall fall upon them; by the greatness of thine arm they shall be as still as a stone; till thy people pass over, O LORD, till the people pass over, which thou hast purchased. 17 Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance, in the place, O LORD, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, in the Sanctuary, O LORD, which thy hands have established. 18 The LORD shall reign for ever and ever. 19 For the horse of Pharaoh went in with his chariots and with his horsemen into the sea, and the LORD brought again the waters of the sea upon them; but the children of Israel went on dry land in the midst of the sea. 20 And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. 21 And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. 22 So Moses brought Israel from the Red sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water. 23 And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter:  therefore the name of it was called Marah. 24 And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? 25 And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet:  there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them, 26 and said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians:  for I am the LORD that healeth thee. 27 And they came to Elim, where were twelve wells of water, and threescore and ten palm trees:  and they encamped there by the waters.”

The Song Of Moses

“Now as we move into this wilderness journey now, look, there’s some very, very important lessons for us.  Paul said in Romans 15:4, “For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.”  Paul says now as we look at the children of Israel in the wilderness, on the other side of the sea, and we begin to follow their journeying, that in all of that there are pictures of things that the Lord has for us and wants us to learn.  So we look at them now, chapter 15, we’re on the other side of the shore, the Egyptian army is dead, it says “Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously:  the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.” (verse 1)  Now by the way, this is the first song in the Scripture, it’s the first time “song” is used in the Scripture.  So there you have the first song in the Scripture.  The last song in the Scripture, in Revelation is also a song of Moses, I don’t know particularly what that means.  It says “they sing the song of Moses,” Revelation 15:3, “the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.  Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy:  for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.”  That’s Revelation chapter 15 verses 3 and 4, you can learn those words now.  You’ll sing that song when we stand on the other shore.  There will be a time when we stand on the other shore, and we look back and we will be amazed at God’s glory and victory, ‘who shall not glorify thy name, O Lord, when we stand on the other side of this, and we look back  [And what is “this’?  see https://unityinchrist.com/prophecies/2ndcoming_5.htm and https://unityinchrist.com/prophets/Zechariah/Zechariah4.htm].  It’s the last song in Scripture, here is the first song in Scripture, as he’s standing on the other side, looking back at God’s faithfulness and his power.  “Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously:  the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.  The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation:  he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him.” (verses 1-2)  Now I get the sense that Moses, it seems to some degree, is the song leader here, I don’t assume that they all knew the words before they get to the other side, so it seems this morning he’s teaching them this song.  You can imagine the whole congregation beginning to join in.  No doubt there were moms that had to take care of kids, no doubt there were old folks that were a little bit too tired to sing, but you got maybe 2 million people here, so imagine a choir of million, million and a half, this is a remarkable scene, they’re singing this song.  “The LORD is a man of war:  the LORD is his name.  Pharaoh’s chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea:  his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red sea.” (verses 3-4) Yam Suf, the Red Sea.  “The depths have covered them:  they sank into the bottom as a stone.  Thy right hand, O LORD, is become glorious in power:  thy right hand, O LORD, hath dashed in pieces the enemy.” (verses 5-6)  We have the LORD’s name here like 10 times in 8 verses or something, this is definitely a song about the LORD.  “And in the greatness of thine excellency thou hast overthrown them that rose up against thee:  thou sentest forth thy wrath, which consumed them as stubble.  And with the blast of thy nostrils” this is very interesting “the waters were gathered together,” the Hebrew says “with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were piled up,” “the floods stood upright as an heap,” the Hebrew word is “dammed there,” like a dam that holds back water, “and the depths were congealed in the heart of the sea.” (verses 7-8)  “congealed” that’s an interesting word, “congealed” is the same Hebrew word that was used for milk when it curdles and it turns hard, it’s the same Hebrew word that was used for water when it freezes.  So our picture here in verse 8 is, “the waters were piled up, the floods stood upright like they were dammed up, the depths were congealed, like milk is curdled and becomes solid.  The wall on the right hand and the wall on the left, some miraculous thing took place where the water, where it firmed up on either side, just what a remarkable picture this verse gives us.  “The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; my lust shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.” (verse 9)  Not me, I am not standing there thinking ‘I am going down into that,’ of course I know the story.  “Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them:  they sank as lead in the mighty waters.  Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?” (verses 10-11)  He had just obliterated all the gods of Egypt, that’s the point.  “Thou stretchedst out thy right hand, the earth swallowed them.” (verse 12)  Just what a picture, the consequences of refusing God’s deliverance.  “Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed:  thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation.” (verse 13)  Very interesting, Psalm 106 gives us the impression that it wasn’t because of anything in them, here the Psalmist writing says ‘We have sinned, with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly.  Our fathers understood not thy wonders in Egypt, they remembered not the multitude of thy mercies, but provoked him at the sea, even the Red Sea,’ and then a wonderful word, ‘nevertheless, he saved them, for his own name’s sake, that he might make his mighty power to be known.’  It says ‘We’ve sinned, just like our fathers, they didn’t understand what he was doing at the Red Sea, they provoked him, they complained,’ and that wonderful word, ‘nevertheless, he saved them for his own name’s sake.’  And when we stand around his throne we’re going to be part of “the nevertheless” denomination, the biggest one, standing there.  What a picture here, God in his grace.  “Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed:  thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation.  The people shall hear, and be afraid:  sorrow shall take hold on the inhabitants of Palestina.” (verses 13-14)  Now, because the Philistines were there, and remember back in chapter 13, the LORD said ‘I’m not going to take them directly into the Philistine area,’ ah ‘It came to pass when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near, for the LORD said ‘Perhaps the people will repent when they see war,’ and try to return to Egypt.’  So here it says, the time will come when God will bring them to the land of the Philistines.  Remember that happens, they’re going to be 40 years in the wilderness.  One of the Egyptian Pharaohs [Amenhotep-II, the very Pharaoh of the Exodus, itching for revenge, but Israel wasn’t there, they were still in the Wilderness down in Saudi Arabia] will come through the area of Canaan in a rage, wiping out city after city after city.  In fact the hieroglyphs in Egypt, they found a report that said the land of Canaan is laid waste.  Meantime, the inhabitants of Canaan hear what the God of the Israelites did to the Egyptian army, to Pharaoh [who survived, he never followed his troops into the Red Sea, he was good at leading from the rear on this one], and remember when they finally come in 40 years later, when the spies come in, Rahab the harlot says ‘We have heard about your God, we heard about what he did to the Egyptians, the Egyptians came up and whupped us, but we heard your God whupped them, then we heard what your God did to Og of Bashan and Sihon the king of the Amorites,’ which were both giants.  Og of Bashan was over 13 foot tall, and there were tribes of giants.  She said ‘We heard what you did to them, the whole land is trembling before you, the hearts of the people are melting before you.’  And God here, way back, 40 years before that, prophecies, says “The people shall hear, and be afraid:  sorrow shall take hold on the inhabitants of Palestina.  Then the dukes of Edom shall be amazed; the mighty men of Moab, trembling shall take hold upon them; all the inhabitants of Canaan shall melt away.  Fear and dread shall fall upon them; by the greatness of thine arm they shall be as still as a stone; till thy people pass over, O LORD, till the people pass over, which thou hast purchased.” (verses 14-16)  [Interesting, God mentions “pass over,” Passover, twice.]  Isn’t it interesting, the Blood of the Lamb.  “Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance, in the place, O LORD, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, in the Sanctuary, O LORD, which thy hands have established.” (verse 17)  So there’s some specific reference to Jerusalem.  Now interesting, here’s Moses, Moses is born in Egypt, Moses has never seen Canaan, he’s never seen the Promised Land, he’s never seen the city of Jabus, he’s never seen the hill that Jerusalem sits on where the Temple will be.  He’s writing of those things, but he’s never seen them.  And no doubt he longs to go to the place where Abraham, Isaac and Jacob had walked, he longs to go to this place, he’s taking the bones of Joseph back to this place, to put them in the Cave of Machpelah [although Joseph instructed them to bury him in Shechem, which Joshua would do].  He longs to go to this place where Jacob had been taken back and buried.  He’s speaking of it, but he’s never seen it.  “The LORD shall reign for ever and ever.  For the horse of Pharaoh went in with his chariots and with his horsemen into the sea, and the LORD brought again the waters of the sea upon them; but the children of Israel went on dry land in the midst of the sea.” (verses 18-19)  [Pharaoh’s horse may have gone in, but Pharaoh didn’t, this Amenhotep-II, he probably sent his general in on his horse, or it’s being poetic here.  We do know Amenhotep-II went back into Egypt with his tail tucked between his legs, humiliated.  It’s why he went into Canaan a few years later and wiped it out, hoping to wipe out Israel.  Lucky for him, Israel wasn’t there, or else God would have wiped him out for sure this time.]  “And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances.” (verse 20)  Now this is Moses’ older sister, she’s over 90 years old at this point in time, ok.  The first time in the Bible you have the word “prophetess.”  So she’s got to be pretty spry at 90 years old to go out there with a tambourine and kind of be, you know, this kind of an evening will pick up your energy, she’s probably running on adrenaline over here.  But it says “all of the women,” now we know there’s 600,000 fighting men between 20 and 50, plus women and children.  How many women?  It says all of the women of Israel go out there with timbrels, are there 200,000 gals in this dance?  I mean, this must have been quite a scene, Riverdance or whatever that is, it’s nothing compared to this, this is Red Sea Dance.  And she’s had a strange life, you know, when her little brother Moses was born, she was there, she a young girl, 9 or 10, she saw her mom put him in the ark of bulrushes and sent him out into the river, she’s followed Moses as he floated down in this little basket covered with pitch, and she watched Pharaoh’s daughter pull him out, and said ‘Do you want me to find a Hebrew woman to be nursemaid?’  She’s followed Moses all these years, now here she is with her younger brother, I think she’s pretty proud of him at this point in time, standing on the other side of the Red Sea with Egypt laid waste and the Egyptian army gone, and her little brother who was in the basket on top of everything here.  So she’s had a remarkable life, no doubt, and it says she’s a prophetess here, she’s taken God no doubt pretty seriously by this time.  It takes some of us 90 years to warm up.  “And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances.  And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.” (verses 20-21) 

Marah Is A Mandatory Course, It’s Not An Elective

“So Moses brought Israel from the Red sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water.” (verses 22)  Now the journey’s begun, ok.  There are pictures here for us, there are things to learn.  We have come through the Passover evening, all of us have our own experience, have come through the salvation experience, been washed in the Blood of the Lamb, our redemption.  We’ve been made a people, this is a nation now, they’ve come through the Red Sea, God has made them a people, separated them from Egypt, and God has done that in our lives.  And we have a journey, as in all of these pictures now, at Marah and at Elim, and Rephidim, there’s interesting pictures of the Christian experience, though they’re historical events, because we move on.  Moses just doesn’t lead them into the Wilderness, they’re following the Pillar, and they follow it for 40 years.  When the Pillar moves they move, when the Pillar camps, they camp.  And the funny thing is, the children of Israel, who were just singing the day before this, are going to be griping within three days, and blaming Moses, ‘You brought us out here to die,’ evidently Edward G. Robinson is still alive at this point in time.  And Moses is going to say ‘You see that Pillar, what do you mean I brought you out here?  Are we on the same team here?  What’s going on?’   “So Moses brought Israel” the idea is, following the Pillar, “from the Red sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water.” (verses 22)  Now we have an interesting picture here.  “And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter:  therefore the name of it was called Marah.” (verse 23) the word “Marah” means bitter.  “And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?” (verse 24)  Three days after they were singing “for he hath triumphed gloriously:  the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.”  That’s why I asked you guys, how long it would be a lasting impression, here they are now, they’re murmuring against Moses, what an interesting picture, three days journey into the wilderness, desert.  First day, no doubt they’re moving away from the Red Sea, the bodies of the Egyptians still there, they’re kind of rejoicing, humming, thinking ‘That’s a great song,’ the evening comes, they cool off.  Second day, they’re a little further in, they still got some supplies left, they’re watching the horizon, running out of water, they’re traveling through the desert, it’s getting hot.  Third day is starting to be a drag, no water.  ‘God has saved us at the Red Sea to kill us in the Wilderness,’ that’s the first conclusion a human being comes to.  And they see some kind of a well, Marah, they see this spring, they see this oasis, and you can imagine then, they’re picking up the pace, someone must say ‘There’s water,’ we don’t know, did the camels, did the livestock smell it, you can imagine some of the younger ones running ahead, the kids…you can imagine.  And as they come to it, people are falling down and scooping up water, it’s bitter, they can’t drink it.  You know, hope deferred, Solomon said, makes the heart sick, that hope, when it’s satisfied it’s like a tree of life.  So you can imagine, after three days, they’re wondering, and doubts, and all of a sudden they see something and they think ‘This will refresh me.’  Now we see, Marah is a mandatory course, it’s not an elective.  You’re all going to have Marah 101, Marah 102, all of us are going to experience this.  And we see some springs and some oasis and we think ‘If I have that, I’ll be refreshed, if I can only get married I’ll be refreshed, if I can only get that job I’ll be refreshed, if I can only get that car I’ll be refreshed, if I can only get that raise I’ll be refreshed, if I could only get into that situation,’ there’s always something, and it looks so promising, and so often when we get there and we’re immersed in it, we find out it’s bitter.  It’s not satisfying at all.  And the first thing we do is we start to doubt God, ‘Ok, this is what it’s all about, you could have just killed us in Egypt, you gotta bring us out here in the middle of nowhere to die?  It would have been simpler to leave us back there, we had fleshpots back there.’  And we’re going to see their memory is very selective all through this process.  “And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter:  therefore the name of it was called Marah.” (verse 23)  We’re not sure if it’s called Marah ahead of time, it’s from this point on.  “And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?” (verse 24)  Now try to imagine what 2 million people murmuring sounds like, that’s kind of a rumble, not just you know.  ‘The people are murmuring against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?’ they’ve already forgot chapters 14 and 15, it’s worse than that, they forgot the first half of the chapter they’re still in, chapter 15.  ‘What shall we drink?’  And Moses now, “And he cried unto the LORD;” because these are 2 million not-happy-campers, camping out there without water, complaining.  It’s very interesting “and the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet:  there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them,” (verse 25)  Look, there are people who try to say ‘Well this is kind of a water with a certain chemical in it out there, and the Bedouin who live out there know there are certain trees where you can take a branch and throw it into the water, and it sweetens the water up because it extracts all of the mineral out of the water.’  We’re talking about 2 million thirsty people, we’re not talking about a little pond, this is a miraculous situation, without any shadow of a doubt.  It says Moses cried to the LORD “and the LORD shewed him a tree,” that word “shewed” there means “to instruct,” it means “to point at,” literally, “to point the finger at, and to tell something about.”  God did something.  He didn’t create a tree, the tree had been there.  You know, when we think of Hagar in the wilderness and Ishmael is dying, and she sends him off a bowshot, and she says ‘I don’t want to watch my son die,’ it says ‘the LORD showed her a spring,’ he didn’t create it, it had been there, she just hadn’t seen it.  We think of Elisha and his servant at Dothan, and his servant is saying ‘That’s it, we’re surrounded, wake up master, we’re goners,’ and Elisha gets up and says ‘O LORD, please open this guy’s eyes,’ and as his eyes are opened he sees the fiery chariots and horses of God, and he realizes there’s more of them than there are of the bad guys here.  Well here, God opened Moses eyes to see something that had been there, that he hadn’t seen, something of this tree, whatever of course that might be specifically.  We know this, Galatians tells us this, ‘Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the Law, being made a curse for us, for it is written, Cursed is everyone who hangeth on a tree.’  We’re told this in 1^st Peter, ‘Who when he was reviled, reviled not again, when he suffered he threatened not, but committed himself to him that judges righteously, who his own self bare our sins in his body on the tree, that we being dead to sin might live to righteousness, by whose his stripes we’re healed.’  So there is something of this tree.  Some try to say ‘This is a natural branch that takes bitterness out of water, it’s not just a picture of the cross.’  I can’t buy any of that, first of all, you got 2 million people, that branch would have to be so big it would shake the earth when he threw it in the water.  This is something supernatural God is teaching them, something that he would teach us, these things are written for our learning.  Because whatever bitter experience we have in life, you and I, there’s always the cross.  You know, Romans 8:32, ‘that he who spared not his own Son, but offered him up for us all, how shall he not also with him give us all things freely.’  The logic is, if God has already given his best for us, and we’re in a relationship or a job or a financial situation, and it is bitter, we can’t say, because we were just singing ‘LORD, you’ve…gloriously, the horse and rider, you’ve redeemed us, and we have the joy of our salvation,’ and so quickly we forget and we say ‘Lord, you’ve brought us out here and there’s nothing to drink, you saved us to dehydrate us?  Is that what you really did, is that what this is all about?’  And whatever the bitter circumstances of life are, even the death of a loved one, when you throw the cross into that, you throw eternity into it, you throw salvation into it, there’s something that sweetens up even the bitterest of circumstances.  Corey ten Boom said “Jesus is not our all in all, until Jesus is all we have left.”  And so many times the circumstances of life get so bitter, and then we remember ‘Ya, there’s eternal life, there’s forgiveness, it’s on the other side,’ and we throw the cross in.  And he says something here very interesting, “there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them,” (verse 25b)  “an ordnance” is literally the Hebrew word means “privilege,” but it has to do with citizenship.  You and I here this evening, first of all, here is a principle, for you and I, that whatever bitter circumstances come to us in life, the principle is, that if we look at that in light of the cross, that we have hope when no one else has hope.  Because there are uglies out there, when you see a loved one die, and you look at that and you think ‘What does an unbeliever do, this is so painful, and so final in so many ways, how does somebody who doesn’t believe handle this?’  For you and I there’s a principle, we throw this healing tree into the bitterest circumstances of life, that’s a principle for us, it’s the logic of the cross.  [And especially if certain parts of the Body of Christ have it right about their beliefs about the “unsaved dead,” see https://unityinchrist.com/plaintruth/battle.htm]  Secondly, it says here, it’s an ordnance, and that means a privilege relative to citizenship.  As God’s children, it is a privilege for us also, because we are citizens.  Our citizenship is not of this world, we’re told in Philippians, but of heaven, and we’re waiting, and we know that our bodies shall be fashioned like unto his glorious body, it says.  It is both for you and I, a principle and a privilege to know that when God brings us to Marah he hasn’t forsaken us, there’s a lesson there.  And there isn’t anyone in this room that skips Marah, we all come to bitter circumstances, and there’s a sweetness when we sit alone and say ‘Lord, this is hard, I don’t understand, Lord, and this hurts, and I feel parched right now and dry.  But I know you gave your only Son for me, you loved me so much, you gave your Son for me Lord, and that brings sweetness Lord, even in the midst of this brokenness.’  “and there he proved them, and said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians:  for I am the LORD that healeth thee.” (verses 25c-26) LORD in this verse is Jehovah-Rafa, he’s giving one of his Divine names at that place, that place of struggle. 

Always On The Other Side Of All Our Marah’s There’s An Elim

Look, the next verse says “And they came to Elim, where were twelve wells of water, and threescore and ten palm trees:  and they encamped there by the waters.” (verse 27) and the Pillar parks, they’re there for about three weeks.  Always, on the other side of all of our Marah’s there is an Elim.  Elim is a place of rest, Elim is a place where there are 70 palm trees and 12 springs of water, lush and beautiful.  Those things are always on the other side of a Marah, always one lesson past it.  In fact, those who try to map some of this journey out say every day’s journey after this had springs, I forget how long.  But God brought them to Marrah, he led them that way.  They had to learn many things about Egypt before they were delivered from Egypt.  They had to learn lessons of the Passover night, they had to learn lessons at the Red Sea, that when God boxes you in and it seems like this can’t be God’s leading, here I am, I’m panicked, I’m in a situation, there’s no escape, it seems like everything’s going to blow apart, this is the end of everything.  No, you followed the Pillar, you’ve been obedient, you’re not there because of sin, you’re there because of obedience, you’re not at Marrah because you’ve sinned, you’re at Marrah because you followed the Lord.  No doubt there are lessons disobedience, but there’s [also] lessons of instruction.  And they’re at Marrah not because they disobeyed or sinned, but because they have followed hard after the LORD, and he has taken them to a place where there’s bitterness, that he might remind them and teach them, and give them a statute and an ordnance in regards to his sweetness, what he’s all about, and that he is, ‘I am the LORD that healeth thee, none of the things that came on Egypt are going to come on you.’  And then on to Elim, this wonderful place of palm trees, springs of water.  The Bedouins in Israel have a saying, ‘Yam Asul, Yam Basul,’ Yam is day, Asul is honey, Basul is onion.  It’s saying Honey day, Onion day, how you interpret that, ‘Some days are like honey, some days are like onions.’  That would make a great T-Shirt, Yam Asul, Yam Basul, Some days are like honey, some days are like onions.’  And I like onions, they aren’t all that bad.  The LORD leading, look, as we head into the next chapter, we’re going to find them there saying ‘We have nothing to eat,’ here they were saying ‘We have nothing to drink, God brought us out here to dehydrate us,’ now they’re going to say ‘God brought us out here to starve us,’ ‘first we got nothing to drink, then we have nothing to eat.’  Jesus said ‘Therefore I say unto you, take no thought, no anxious thought for your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor yet for your body what you shall put on, is not life more than meat and the body more than raiment, consider the fowls of the air, consider the lilies of the field, take no anxious thought.’  (Matthew 6)  Jesus says that attitude of ‘Oh no, what are we gonna drink, what are we gonna eat,’ comes from worry, comes from anxiety, it comes from mistrust.  And Jesus addresses those very issues.  But we don’t just learn by precept, God brings us to a place where the lesson becomes real to us, as it’s incorporated into our lives.  Hey look, all the way along we’re getting ready for the biggest lesson, when we breathe our last in this world, and we step into glory, we step into the other side.  You know, that’s the final lesson, we talk about it, we joke about it, but the truth is, now I’m hoping to get Raptured, ok, I’m an optimist, if you’re a post tribulationist, you’re a pessimist, you believe that and hope I’m right all the time, I know, I know who you are [see https://www.unityinchrist.com/Prophets_Prophecy.html where this very subject is discussed.  And let me say this, if those crazy religious Israelis build the 3^rd temple somewhere in Jerusalem, and the 1^st Seal of Revelation 6 is opened, the Beast and False Prophet make their appearance leading a revitalized United States of Europe, brokering a 7-year peace treaty in the Middle East, then we’ll know the Rapture doctrine taught by so many evangelicals is flat out wrong, in error.  We’re very close to those events occurring right now].  If we get Raptured I’ll be right forever, if we don’t I can change my perspective.  Look, if we have to lay there, and we have to breathe that last breath, you know, that’s the final test.  But all of the other things he’s taken us to, all of the Marrah’s, all of the Elim’s, all of the Red Seas, all of the places he’s taken us to in life and shown himself faithful, faithful, faithful, faithful, powerful, supernatural, loving, forgiving, redeeming, all of those things add up to his grace to carry us across that last breath.  He puts us in boot camp, he doesn’t just put us there out of shape spiritually, wimpy, he grows us up, he’s raising children all the time, teaching them to be men and women of faith, all of us.  He loves us, we’re his kids.  He never takes us into a bitter experience to dehydrate us, he never takes us…in the wilderness, he’s paid for us with the blood of his Son, he has great things for us.  Let’s have the musicians come, we’ll sing a last song, and hey look, if you’re here tonight and you don’t know this God, here’s the dark side, we’re on the side of his presence where the light shines, and he enables us to see these things.  People who are on the dark side, every bitter experience, there’s suicidal thoughts, there’s despair, there’s depression, every time you’re in a circumstance that seems it’s unfair, you think even if God is there, there’s some great Court in the sky called “Unfairness,” I’m gonna bring them there to the bench some day, and he’s gonna answer for this kind of thing.  People who don’t know the Lord, how do they face these things in life?  And if you’re here tonight and that’s you, look, we’re talking about a loving God, we’re talking about a forgiving God, we’re talking about someone who sent his own Son [to die for you], you know nothing of despair compared to what he knows.  You know nothing of sorrow compared to what he knows, you know nothing of pain and sacrifice compared to what he knows, he gave his only Son to die in your place, so that you can have forgiveness, not church, not religion, life, reality.  And if you don’t have that, I encourage you at the end of the evening, we’ll be up here afterwards, make your way up here, we’d love to give you a Bible, we’d love to pray for you, we’d love to see you accept Christ as your Saviour.  The rest of you, read ahead, if the Lord tarries, there’s more lessons, next week we’re going to get to Manna.  You guys know what Manna is?  What is it?  Ya, it’s What is it?  The word Manna means What is it? I tried to tell you, I wasn’t answering a question, I was telling you, What is it? you know.  That’s what the Hebrew word Manna means, What is it?  I said ‘You know what Manna is?’ you said, ‘Ah,’ you gave me all these answers.  Got me all mixed up now.  Read ahead, and then to Rephidim where the rock is struck and the water comes out, a picture of the Holy Spirit, there are remarkable pictures and lessons for our lives, so read the next two or three chapters, let’s stand, let’s pray, let’s lift our voices and hearts to the Lord…[transcript of a connective expository sermon on Exodus 14:19-31 and Exodus 15:1-27, given by Pastor Joe Focht, Calvary Chapel of Philadelphia, 13500 Philmont Avenue, Philadelphia, PA  19116]

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Now here is where we see some parts of the Body of Christ believe that if you’re not saved during your normal lifetime, you go into some kind of everburning hellfire, what they call “eternal separation from God” which comes from Roman Catholic dogma.  Other parts of the Body of Christ have differing beliefs about the “unsaved dead.”  To read some of these beliefs, see https://unityinchrist.com/plaintruth/battle.htm

Naval charts of the Gulf of Aqaba from Nuweibaa to the Saudi coast show the deepest part of the crossing, the bottom is at over 800 feet underwater.  So the walls of water on each side of them as they marched through, at the highest would have been towering walls of water 800 feet tall!  Quite impressive, but with God, nothing’s impossible.  Be sure to buy and watch Ron Wyatt’s DVD about his investigation at Nuweibaa.  Log onto http://www.ArkDiscovery.com and order “Revealing God's Treasure.”

Let me say this, if those crazy religious Israelis build the 3^rd temple somewhere in Jerusalem, and the 1^st Seal of Revelation 6 is opened, the Beast and False Prophet make their appearance leading a revitalized United States of Europe, brokering a 7-year peace treaty in the Middle East, then we’ll know the Rapture doctrine taught by so many evangelicals is flat out wrong, in error.  We’re very close to those events occurring right now.  This article discusses that, see:  https://www.unityinchrist.com/Prophets_Prophecy.html

“You’ll sing that song when we stand on the other shore.  There will be a time when we stand on the other shore, and we look back and we will be amazed at God’s glory and victory, “who shall not glorify thy name, O Lord, when we stand on the other side of this, and we look back”  And what is “this”?  see https://unityinchrist.com/prophecies/2ndcoming_5.htm and https://unityinchrist.com/prophets/Zechariah/Zechariah4.htm

Audio version: https://resources.ccphilly.org/detail.asp?TopicID=&Teaching=WED553