<Ex 14> 1 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon. 3 Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.’ 4 And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.” So the Israelites did this.

5 When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, “What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!” 6 So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him. 7 He took six hundred of the best chariots, along with all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them. 8 The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly. 9 The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon.

10 As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. 11 They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? 12 Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!”

13 Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

God setting a trap.

• Trap for enemies; test/training for His people.
• Hemmed in by desert and sea: A place of sure doom?
• Doubt God’s wisdom?
• Sinners’ hearts can be so hardened: Remember painful consequences only for awhile but sinful desires soon come back strongly.
• Egyptians expected easy victory  downright defeat  God got all glory

Our former master will also not let us go easily.

• We were once obedient slaves and useful to Satan, why would he give us up easily?
• May not show himself directly, but uses all kinds of avenues to woo us back.
• Strikes especially when he sees us “confused”.

Our response in the face of the enemy’s pursuit.

• <Ex 14:13-14> “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today…you need only to be still.”

1) “Do not be afraid” (not fear, but faith).

• Will despair when sight instead of faith takes over us.
• We tend to grumble and let present troubles erase God’s past faithful grace.
• God never promised us a comfortable, easy way, but He promised to show His glory and save us.
• Will God go through so much trouble to redeem us only to abandon us?
• Desperation >>> Dependence on God.

2) Stand firm and be still.

• One of the hardest things to do is to be still.
• Charles Spurgeon: “I dare say you will think it a very easy thing to stand still, but it is one of the postures which a Christian soldier learns not without years of teaching. I find that marching and quick marching are much easier to God’s warriors than standing still… To stand at ease in the midst of tribulation shows a veteran spirit, long experience, and much Divine Grace.”
• Be still and watch God fight for you.
• Of course, we are not to stand still forever.
• Acting impulsively can lead to foolish decisions and regrettable actions.
• Being silent in prayer will never be a waste of time.