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Moses and The Parting of the Red Sea
Exodus 13-14
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In our last story, we learned how Pharaoh finally agreed to let the people go. God chose not to lead the people through the land of the Philistines, because if they saw a war they might want to return to Egypt..instead God decided to lead the people through the Red sea. And Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, and the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, and by night in a pillar of fire so that they could travel by day and by night.
And when they came to the Red Sea, the Pharoah thought that they were trapped by the sea, and so he followed after them, as God knew he would, and this was the plan of God. And Pharaoh took 600 chariots, and he went after the people of Israel, and came upon them camping by the sea.
And when Pharaoh drew close, the people were very frightened, and they cried out to the LORD and they said to Moses that it would be better for them to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.
But Moses said these great words "Fear not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will show you today, and you will see the Egyptians no more. The LORD shall fight for you, and you shall be quiet." And so the angel of God went behind the people of Israel, so that it was between the Egyptians and the people of Israel, and it was a cloud of darkness to the Egyptians, but it gave light to the people of Israel.
And then the LORD told Moses to lift up his rod and stretch out his hand over the sea, and the LORD made a strong east wind blow, and the water of the sea divided all night long, till in the morning the bottom of the sea was dry ground, and the people of Israel went down onto the dry ground, and there was a wall of water on their right side, and on their left side.
And the Egyptians came after them to the middle of the sea, the horses, the chariots, and the horsemen. And God made the wheels come off the chariots, and so the Egyptians decided to run from the children of Israel because they knew that the LORD fought for Israel.
And so the LORD told Moses to stretch out his hand again, so that the water would come back upon the horses, the chariots, and the horsemen. And so Moses did that, and the water returned and every horse, and every horseman drowned.
And so this is how the LORD saved Israel that day, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the shore, and they knew the great work the Lord had done, and they feared the LORD, and believed the LORD and they believed Moses.
Memory Verse: Exodus 14:13 "...fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD....."
Questions:
1. Why didn't God lead the people through the land of the Philistines?
2. How did God protect the people when they were camping by the sea?
3. How did the Red sea part?
4. Why couldn't the Egyptians escape from the sea?
5. How did the events of the day affect the Israelites?
Answers:
1. Because if the people saw war, they would want to return to Egypt.
2. The pillar before them went behind them, and to the Egyptians it was
darkness, but to the Israelites it was light.
3. Moses held his rod out over the water, and the LORD made the sea to go
back by a strong east wind until the water was divided and there was dry land.
4. Because God made the wheels come off the chariots
5. They feared the Lord, and they believed the LORD, and they believed Moses.
Vicki C. Gross/Sept.'02