Story 41: The Miraculous Dividing Of The Red Sea For Is'ra-el's Passage lV

And with the blast of Thy nostrils the water were piled up,
The floods stood upright as a heap;
The deeps were congealed in the heart of the Sea.




The enemy said,
I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil;
My desire shall be satisfied upon them;
I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.




Thou didst blow with Thy wind, the sea covered them:
They sank as lead in the mighty waters.




Who is like unto thee, O Je-ho'vah, among the gods?
Who is like Thee, glorious in holiness,
Fearful in praises, doing wonders?




Thou stretchest out Thy right hand,
The earth swallowed them.




Thou in Thy loving kindness hast led the people that Thou hast
               redeemed:
Thou hast guided them in Thy strength to Thy holy habitation.




The peoples have heard, they tremble:
Pangs have taken hold on the inhabitants of Phi-lis'ti-a.




Then were the chiefs of E'dom dismayed;
The mighty men of Mo'ab, trembling taketh hold upon them:
All the inhabitants of Ca'naan are melted away.




Terror and dread falleth upon them:
By the greatness of Thine arm they are as still as stone;
Till thy people pass over that Thou hast purchased.




Thou wilt bring them in, and plant them in the mountains of Thine
               inheritance,
The place, O Je-ho'vah, which Thou hast made for Thee to dwell in,
The Sanctuary, O LORD, which Thy hands have established,
Je-ho'vah shall reign forever and ever."


   Truly, this song was put into the mouth of Mo'ses by the Spirit of God. It was not only sung to the Glory of God, but was composed and revealed unto Mo'ses by The LORD. Its grandeur and beauty surpass by far the greatest compositions of the mind of man. Its contents are descriptive, historical, and prophetic. The song speaks with equal beauty of Divine vengeance and grace, and of the deliverance of the righteous through the destruction of the wicked. It has lived through the centuries, will abide to the end of time upon earth, and will be among the most glorious hymns of Heaven. The redeemed of the LORD shall sing together around the great white throne the
               "Song of Mo'ses and the Lamb."


               "Hark, how the adoring hosts above
               With songs surround the throne
               Ten thousand thousand are their tongues,
               But all their hearts are one."








(I hope I did the songs justice in copying them.)
              

Store 41: The Miraculous Dividing Of The Red Sea For Is'ra-el's Passage lll

   During the confusion which fell upon the E'gyp-tians just before their destruction, some of them cried out, "Let us fly from the face of the Is'ra-el-ites! The LORD is fighting for them, and against us!" But their cry came too late. The hour was at hand for the LORD to complete deliverance of Is'ra-el by the destruction of her enemies. Safe and secure at last, all Is'ra-el gazed upon the terrible spectacle of destruction.
               "She saw avenging wrath in Heaven above-
               A gathering tempest-clouds of blighting woe-
               Teeming destruction on the vanquish'd foe."
   Following the mighty deliverance of Is'ra-el and the miraculous destruction of her foes, Mo'ses composed a beautiful poem which all Is'ra-el sang in praise of God. It is truly a wonderful poem, rich in color and power, and filled with beauty in every line. Stroke follows stroke with breathless haste, and future events are foretold in the same glorious fashion as deeds which had already made history.


"I will sing unto Je-ho'vah, for He hath triumphed gloriously:
The horse and his rider hath He thrown into the sea.


Je-ho'vah is my strength and song,
And He has become my salvation:
He is my God, and I will praise Him:


Je-vo'vah is a man of war: Je-ho'vah is His name.


Pha'raoh's chariots and his host hath He cast into the sea;
And his chosen captains are sunk in the Red Sea.


The depths covered them,
They went down into the depths like a stone.


Thy right hand, O Je-ho'vah, is glorious in power,
Thy right hand, O Je-ho'vah, dasheth in pieces the enemy.


And in the greatness of thine excellency Thou overthrowest them that
               rise up against Thee:
Thou sendest forth thy wrath, it consumeth them as stubble.

Story 41: The Miraculous Dividing Of The Red Sea For Is'ra-el's Passage ll

   While the Is'ra-el-ites were making the journey, things back in E'gypt had taken a sudden change against them. No sooner were these hundreds of thousands of former slaves out of E'gypt than the wicked, greedy king began to think about what he had lost. He was very sorry that he had given permission for the He'brews to leave, and sent out spies to find them. It was soon reported that the Is'ra-el-ites were lost and entangled in the wilderness.
   Determined to regain the slaves whose services had been so valuable to him, Pha'raoh organized a great force to pursue and capture them. He called for his own chariot, and for six hundred chariots of his army; with many squadrons of horsemen, and with thousands of his bravest soldiers to assist in the pursuit, Pha'raoh set out to capture the people whom God had delivered.
   Soon the Is'ra-el-ites heard the rumblings of the chariot wheels as they rolled through the wilderness, and the thundering of the horses' hoofs. They knew that the heart of Pha'raoh was filled with hatred, and that he would stop not even at murder to force them back into his service. They also knew that whether they returnt to E'gypt or not, so many of them would be killed or wounded that their nation would be greatly weakened.
   The situation of the great company of Is'ra-el-ites was desperate. On either side of them huge mountains, too steep to climb; in front of them rolled the great billows of the Red Sea, while close behind them the angry E'gyp-tian king urged on with his mighty army. The Is'ra-el-ites were without weapons or military training; their enemies were too strong to meet in mortal combat; they could not level the mountains or span the sea. Lost in despair they could only bemoan their fate and complain against Mo'ses for bringing them into this dreadful predicament. They cried, "Why hast thou brought us out here into the wilderness to die? We should have preferred to remain in bondage in E'gypt."
   But God was on the side of the oppressed and distracted Is'ra-el-ites. He had led them into this perilous position, but He knew all the time how He would deliver them from it. Pha'raoh's greed and power must be so thoroughly shattered that he would never trouble them again. Is'ra-el must be taught again that God is able to solve any problem, and that for a long time to come they would have to rely upon Him. In their fear and panic the Is'ra-el-ites forgot the past mercies of the LORD, and could see nothing but their foes; in their belief they saw graves where there were none, but God had not forsaken them.
   Mo'ses prayed to the LORD in this emergency, and said to the children of Is'ra-el, "Calm your fears; be rid of your worries, for God shall deliver you." The LORD told him to lead the Is'ra-el-ites right down to the edge of the Red Sea, and then say to them, "Go forward." As Mo'ses lifted his staff toward the great, surging waters a miracle took place. The waters were suddenly divided, leaving a dry, safe highway entirely across the sea, and forming high walls of water on either side. All night long the host of Is'ra-el walked in safety through the highway which the LORD had made in the sea, and their flocks and herds were not afraid to make the crossing. The pillar of fire which had guided the Is'ra-el-ites was lifted by the LORD and placed behind them, providing light for their journey, and bringing confusion to the enemies who pursued them.
   Pha'raoh and his great army recklessly followed the Is'ra-el-ites into the great highway across the Red Sea. Here the heavy wheels of their chariots sank deep into the sand, and the E'gyp-tian forces were hindered in many other ways. As the dawn of a new day found the last of the Is'ra-el-ites climbing to safety on the other side of the sea, Mo'ses saw that the entire host of Pha'raoh was in the great lane which God had prepared for the escape of His chosen people. Mo'ses then lifted his staff toward the E'gyp-tians, and the mighty walls of water came rushing down upon them, drowning Pha'raoh and all his warriors.

Story 41: The Miraculous Dividing Of The Red Sea For Is'ra-el's Passage l

   After leaving E'gypt, the great host of the Is'ra-el-ites journeyed in an easterly direction to a place called Suc'coth, where they pitched their tents. Here the LORD directed Mo'ses to remind the people of the gratitude which they owed to the One who had so miraculously delivered them from bondage in E'gypt. Ceremonies and duties in keeping with their new freedom were now announced by the Divinely appointed leader.
   The Is'ra-el-ites were told that the eldest child in every family should be dedicated to God in a special manner, and that ever afterwards the first child born to a newly married couple should be set apart to God. In this way God established in Is'ra-el a perpetual memorial of His saving of the firstborn of the Is'ra-el-ites on the night when the eldest child in every E'gyp-tian family was taken by death. That eventful night would be kept alive in the memory of the chosen people of God forever. This requirement also taught the Is'ra-el-ites that the best of their earthly possessions were to be consecrated to the service of God; in offering sacrifices to Him, the people were to give the very best of whatever they had. In making this dedication of the firstborn to the LORD, a sacrifice of a lamb was to be offered as a reminder to Is'ra-el of the way in which their eldest children had been spared from the Angel of death in E'gypt.
   Then Mo'ses repeated the orders which he had already given in E'gypt for the establishment of the Pass'o-ver as a ceremony to be kept for all time, and warned the Is'ra-el-ites not to overlook this duty after they were settled in the land of Ca'naan. It would be impossible for them to keep the Pass'o-ver Feast during their prolonged journey through the wilderness, but it must be renewed in Ca'naan. The people were told to explain to their children the meaning of the Pass'o-ver Feast, and to do everything in their power to keep alive in the memory of future generations their wonderful deliverance from bondage in E'gypt. Among all the children of Is'ra-el the observance of the Pass'o-ver was to mark their national birthday.
   Following a brief rest at the place called Suc'coth, the Is'ra-el-ites resumed their journey toward Ca'naan. The most direct route over which they might travel was a caravan road around the northern end of an arm of the Red Sea, where there is now the Suez Canal. By taking this route they could have reached the southwest border of Ca'naan within five or six days. This route, however, would have led them through the territory held at that time by the warlike Phi-lis'tines, and it would have been impossible for Mo'ses to engage in battle while the He'brew warriors were accompanied by their wives and children, and encumbered with vast herds of cattle and flocks of sheep and large quantities of goods. The LORD also wished them to spend a year in the wilderness, where Mo'ses would be given special instructions for setting up the laws and religious rites of the nation, and for proclaiming the Divine laws which they were to observe in the Promised Land.
   For these reasons the LORD directed Mo'ses to take a rather difficult and hazardous route in a southwesterly direction through the uncharted wilderness. For some two or three days the Is'ra-el-ites moved along in an uncertain course. Fully organized into five great groups arranged according to families and tribes, but without any definite idea as to where they were going, they reached the shores of an arm of the Red Sea. They were in the midst of a broken, mountainous desert, facing the Sea at a point where it was several miles wide and much too deep to be forded. They did not know where they were going, but the LORD had guided them by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.

Story 40: Is'ra-el Freed By The Final Plague Upon E'gypt lll

   Mo'ses also instructed the elders of Is'ra-el to establish an annual feast to be observed by all future generations as a memorial of the wonderful deliverance from E'gypt. The feast was to be called "Pass'o-ver," and we shall learn more about it in other stories.
   Mo'ses had not told Pha'raoh just when the last dreadful plague was to strike the land of E'gypt, but had merely said that it would come at midnight. Days had passed since his last warning to the wicked king, so before long Pha'raoh began to think that the terrible hour would not come. Soon all E'gypt began to feel safe; weeks went by, and still there was no sign from Heaven.
   Then, on the night of the 14th of the month called Ni'san, a sudden cry of anguish filled the land at midnight. The Angel of death swept over the land, smiting every family of E'gypt. The words which Mo'ses had spoken to Pha'raoh had now all come true, for not a single home escaped.
               "Twas dark-that dreary witching hour of night,
               When restless spirits stole in mortal sight,
               And grim spectres stalked their dreary round."
   The whole land rose up in one mighty shout for the deliverance of Is'ra-el at once, for the people feared still greater calamities if Pha'raoh still defied the LORD. So Pha'raoh sent for Mo'ses and Aa'ron, and in the darkness of this night of grief told them to take all the Is'ra-el-ites out of the land at once. With the Is'ra-el-ites went their wives and children, their flocks and herds and all other possessions, and Pha'raoh advised the E'gyp-tians to supply them with whatever they might need for the journey.
   Under the direction of Mo'ses the Is'ra-el-ites had been thoroughly organized by families and by tribes. Six hundred thousand men capable of bearing arms marched out of the land, and with the old men, women, and children, the number reached to nearly three million. The children of Is'ra-el carried with them enormous quantities of food and worldly goods, treasures of gold, silver, and jewels, and drove before them great flocks of sheep and herds of cattle.
   At last the children of Is'ra-el were free from the land of bondage, released by order of the king after ten successive plagues had crushed his proud, hard-hearted spirit. From the seventy souls which had migrated to this land two hundred and fifteen years before, there had now sprung up a mighty host of nearly three million. They were now strong in numbers, skilled in the arts and science of civilization, and increased in wisdom and experience to the point where they could safely begin their national history as the chosen people of God.
   Although forty years of hardship took place before they finally settled in the land of Ca'naan, they were free at last from E'gypt, never to return. Long years of discipline and vital instruction from the LORD lay ahead before they would be fully prepared to set up all the national institutions of a great people, but they were on their way.
               "Already she is on her august way,
               And marching to her final goal."
  
              

Story 40: Is'ra-el Freed By The Final Plague Upon E'gypt ll

   Mo'ses was given full directions by The LORD concerning the things to be done by the people in this crisis. Careful instructions were given for the preparations to be made for their departure, and the plan and conditions necessary for their deliverance from the death plague soon to sweep over the land were fully outlined.
   During the course of the nine plagues sent upon E'gypt, and during the increased hardships which Pha'raoh forced upon the Is'ra-el-ites, a great many of the E'gyp-tians had lost sympathy with the king to a large extent, and some of them had begun to look with favor upon the Is'ra-el-ites. The special care which God had shown for Is'ra-el convinced many of the people that the He'brews were a chosen race, and Mo'ses had become a great religious hero in the eyes of many. The E'gyp-tians had also grown weary of their own sufferings brought on by the stubborn conduct of the king, and there was great indignation over his continued persecution of the people whom he hated to his own ruin.
   Partly from sympathy for the oppressed He'brews, and partly in the hope of winning their favor and that of their God, the E'gyp-tians brought them many valuable presents. They brought them gold and silver and jewels, and all manner of other precious things. God's favor was now upon Is'ra-el in a most remarkable manner, while a stream of grace from Heaven flowed through the land:
               "It did through wild and
                  rock-bound valleys run,
               like glittering dew drops
                  in the morning sun."
   Mo'ses and Aa'ron then went among the children of Is'ra-el in the land of Go'shen and told them what to do to escape the plague of death. Every household was to take a lamb, less than one year old and without blemish; after keeping it in the house for four days they were to kill it, and then to sprinkle the blood upon the upper door posts. This was to be a sacrificial offering to God, and for this reason the lamb to be offered must not be lame or blind or sick, or imperfect in any way.
   Just as the Angel of death would strike every home in E'gypt at the same hour, so every family of Is'ra-el was to offer the sacrificial lamb at the same hour. The blood was to be sprinkled upon the door pasts with a spray of hyssop (a lovely herb which grew in rocky places) as a sign of faith and humility. When the Angel of death saw the blood upon the door posts of a home, he would pass over that house, thus sparing a family the life of its firstborn.
   The Pass'o-ver lamb was to be eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs, tokens of the bitterness from which Is'ra-el was to be redeemed, and of the sincerity of their faith and obedience. In preparing for their departure from E'gypt their hearts must be pure and upright, in perfect harmony with the law of God.
   In eating the flesh of the Pass'o-ver lamb the Is'ra-el-ites were to be fully dressed and ready for a hasty flight. They were required to wear clothing strong enough for hard work and travel in the wilderness, to wear stout shoes or sandals, and to hold in their hands the staff which they used for guiding their flocks and herds. All their belongings were to be packed and ready for quick removal, and the sheep and cattle were to be gathered so that they could be driven away at once on the journey out of E'gypt.

Story 40: Is'ra-el Freed By The Final Plague Upon E'gypt l

   After Pha'raoh had made his threat against the life of Mo'ses, the prophet of God lingered for a short time with the king in order to tell him what course the LORD would now follow. During these tragic moments in the presence of the great king, The LORD spoke secretly to Mo'ses. He said that this was to be the last meeting between Pha'raoh and Mo'ses, and that He would visit the land with a final plague which would force the cruel king to let the Is'ra-el-ites leave his country.
   Mo'ses said to Pha'raoh: "The LORD'S mercy has now reached its limit. For weeks and months He has been patient, showing mercy time after time. True, He has brought calamities of increasing severity upon the land, but has offered to show mercy whenever you obey His command and let Is'ra-el depart. While His patience with you has been exhausted, He still has further means of punishment. There shall be one more curse sent upon the land which shall bring you to your knees. About midnight, within a few days, the LORD will send the Angel of death throughout the land of E'gypt, and the oldest child in every home shall suddenly die; there shall also be taken the oldest of all the cattle and sheep and other animals still left from previous plagues."
   The last plague upon E'gypt was to be so terrible that not even the hard-hearted Pha'raoh could fail to be moved by it. Without being ill, the oldest child in every family and in every home was to be taken by death. The Pha'raohs of E'gypt had slain the male children of Is'ra-el during a long period of persecution, and now the LORD was to cause the death of the firstborn in every E'gyp-tian home. This fatal blow was to reach every family, the highest as well as the lowest. The royal prince who expected to take Pha'raoh's place upon the throne was doomed to sudden death, and the oldest child in the home of the lowest peasant was to suffer the same fate. From the palace to the dungeon, from the splendid home of the rich to the tent of the poorest of the land-through every family in E'gypt this plague was to travel; and at the stroke of midnight all through the land death would come to every firstborn child.
   Mo'ses then went on to say to Pha'raoh , "But against the children of Is'ra-el shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast; that ye may know that the LORD doth put a difference between the E'gyp-tians and Is'ra-el." God's chosen people were to be sheltered by the protecting wings of the Great God of Heaven and of earth. The pestilence which was to walk through the darkness of the night should not come near them. While the oldest child of the wicked lay still in death, all the children of the good would be unharmed. At the time when the lamentations of the E'gyp-tians were rending the midnight air of the whole country, the hearts of the righteous would be filled with peace, hope, and joy.
   But Pha'raoh remained stubborn and unrelenting, and Mo'ses left him to carry out the instructions of God in preparing all Is'ra-el for the great tragedy that was to befall the E'gyp-tians, and for the birth of an Is'ra-el-ite nation. The children of Is'ra-el had been spared from the nine previous calamities inflicted upon the people of E'gypt, but there were certain Divine instructions which they must carefully follow if they were to escape this final plague. Is'ra-el was facing an extremely important crisis, a supreme moment in the history of their formation as a free, united people, and great issues depended upon the promptness and wisdom with which they obeyed the LORD'S command.