Chapter 8
Exodus 13-14
“In our last chapter,” began Mother the next evening, “the children of Israel were beginning their journey out of Egypt. But before allowing them to proceed further, the Lord gave some very special instructions to Moses, showing His claims upon them. He always wants His people to know that they do not belong to themselves but that they really and truly belong to Him.
“One thing God wanted them to always remember was that He brought them out of the house of bondage or slavery in Egypt. Then He wanted them to know that they could not have done it by their own strength, but that it was by the strength of the hand of the Lord that they were brought forth.
“They were always to remember this day that they came out in the first month of the year, which they called Abib. This was to start a new year for them. When God redeems His people, there must be a new beginning. The Lord in the New Testament has told us that we must be born again.
“The Lord told them that He was going to bring them into a land that flowed with milk and honey, which meant that everything there would be very plentiful. There were other people living in that land at the time, but they were very wicked and God was going to take the land away from them and give it to the children of Israel.
“There was one very important thing that He wanted Moses to tell them. It was that the first-born of their children belonged to Him; also the first-born of their cattle and all other beasts belonged to Him.
“Some of the first-born of their beasts could be redeemed and some could not. You will remember that when we were studying in Genesis about the animals which went into the ark, some of them were called clean and some unclean. It was the clean animals Noah used when he built the altar and made an offering unto the Lord. The cattle and sheep were called clean and the horse and the ass were unclean. Those animals which were unclean could not be eaten.
“He told Moses here that they had to redeem the first-born of an ass or they would have to kill it. Since man is a fallen creature, he is classed with the unclean animals and so the first-born child had to be redeemed also.
“They were to tell their children about all these things and how the Lord slew the first-born of those in Egypt who had not put the blood on the door.
“Now we shall think of the Israelites on their way, outside of Egypt traveling toward the land the Lord had promised to give them. Do you remember a very faithful servant of God who died and was buried in Egypt hundreds of years before; who believed that someday God would surely bring His people out of Egypt and give them the land of Canaan?”
“Was it Joseph, Mamma?” asked Sophy.
“Yes, Sophy. Joseph had made his brethren promise that they would carry up his bones when they left Egypt, and bury them in Canaan; and it tells us that Moses did so.
“Now the Lord had chosen Moses to lead them out of Egypt and they marched toward the Red Sea. He did not lead them by the short route through the land of the Philistines, because He feared they would be discouraged by the wars there. He chose to lead them through ‘the wilderness’ by the way of the Red Sea, which was a much longer route.
“The Lord Himself went before them in a pillar of a cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. Their first camp was set up by the Red Sea. Can you by faith see all their tents set up there and think how safe they must have felt since now they were slaves no longer but a free people? But, what a great surprise it was to them to suddenly see a great army of Egyptians with chariots and horsemen pursuing them! Of course, it was their enemy and how frightened they became! But Moses told them, ‘Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord.’ For God had a purpose in this and had promised to help His people. Therefore the cloud which was in front of them changed its position and now stood between the two armies thus hiding the Israelites from the eyes of the Egyptians. And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Tell the people to go forward.’”
“But wasn’t the Red Sea in front of them, Mother?” exclaimed Arthur.
“Yes, Arthur, it was; but God told Moses to lift up his rod over the sea and divide it, which he did, and the waves of the sea rose like a high wall on either side and the Israelites walked through on dry land. Their animals and all their possessions were taken across. And the Egyptians foolishly thought they could do the same, so they went in after them even to the middle of the sea, even all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots and his horsemen. But the Lord troubled the host of the Egyptians so that they had great difficulty. The wheels came off their chariots, and they said, ‘Let us flee from the face of Israel; for the Lord fighteth for them against the Egyptians.’”
“Did the Egyptians turn back then?” again questioned Arthur.
“They wished they could have, Arthur, but it was too late, for God commanded Moses to stretch his hand once more over the sea; and the water returned and drowned all the Egyptians and swallowed up their chariots and horsemen—not one was left alive.
“It is a dreadful thing not to be on God’s side, for He is a holy judge who will either save poor sinners or destroy them. This was an occasion for rejoicing for God’s people when in the morning as they stood on the banks of the Red Sea they saw their enemies dead on the seashore. So they feared the Lord and believed Him and His servant Moses.”