Exodus 14:19-2519And 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: 20And 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 the night. 21And 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. 22And 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. 23And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them to the midst of the sea, even all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. 24And 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, 25And 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. (Exodus 14:19‑25).
THE cloud which had been before the children of Israel removed and stood behind them, and became darkness to Pharaoh and his army. Yes, the Word of God which gives light and instruction to us, is a dark book to the unsaved. They cannot see any light in its blessed pages, and they hate it because it is a book of judgment to them, just as that glory cloud spelled judgment to the Egyptian host. Then, too, it kept them separate from one another all night, and so if we walk in the light of God's Word we shall be separate from the world, all through the night of Christ's absence.
When the morning came, the children of Israel were told to go forward in the path which God had made for them through the Red Sea. The water was a wall to them on the right hand and on the left. Every step they took, they were reminded that it was only the power of God which kept them from being drowned in the Sea. NO doubt as they looked at those walls of water, they marveled at the goodness and power of God which had made a way of deliverance for them.
Perhaps the Egyptians took all this to be a natural phenomenon. They did not seem to realize that it was the power of God, and so they decided that they too would try to pass through the Sea. If Israel could do it, why could not they? This reminds us of thousands of professing Christians around us in the world today. They go to church, they are baptized, and they take the sacrament. They follow the Christian way of doing things a good deal, but there is vast difference between them and those who are truly saved, just as there was a vast difference between the Israelites and the Egyptians. It was not because the Israelites were better—not at all—but there was one thing which made all the difference. The Israelites had been sheltered by the blood, and the Egyptians had not. The Israelites were a redeemed people—the Egyptians were not. The Israelites were headed for Canaan, the Egyptians were doomed. to perish in the waters of the Red Sea. The Egyptians had no faith and no blood, and there was NO OTHER way of escape from judgment. God's way was the only way, whether the v' Egyptians thought so or not, and they ' were soon to find this out to their eternal loss. Dear sinner, we plead with you to take warning now, and find shelter under the precious blood of Christ. Soon the day will come when that which might have been for your salvation and blessing, will become the basis of your condemnation and judgment.
When the Egyptians had followed the Israelites part of the way into the sea, the Lord began to fight against them and took off their chariot wheels. The Egyptians then realized that trouble was ahead and so they decided to turn back, but this did not make things any better; it only made them worse. This is like many professing Christians today. They are willing to follow the faith of others as long as it is to their advantage to do so, but they have no living faith in their own hearts, and when trouble comes they soon turn back. They have no real love for the Lord Jesus and cannot bear any tribulation for His sake. What a "fearful looking for of judgment" is before such, far, far worse than that which overtook the retreating Egyptians.
Messages of God’s Love 5/22/1949