Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 14:8-10

8 And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued after the children of Israel: and the children of Israel went out with an high hand.

9 But the Egyptians pursued after them, all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, and his horsemen, and his army, and overtook them encamping by the sea, beside Pi-hahiroth, before Baal-zephon.

10 And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the Lord.

The expression “with a high hand” means to go with a confident and bold air. It would seem that the Israelites had an attitude of now being home free, certain that all their woes had been left behind them. Thus, it must have been quite the whiplash when they suddenly saw Pharaoh in pursuit.

Verse 10 tells us that the Israelites were “sore afraid,” and it seems that they saw no hope in having a battle with the Egyptians. As mentioned yesterday, there were certainly more in the Israelite camp than there were of the Egyptian soldiers, even there were more Israelite men able to bear arms than there were of their enemy. The problem, presumably, was that they did not have any arms to bear. The Israelites would be raising fists against spears and bows. It would be a slaughter. And with the sea at their backs and no option to retreat, the Israelites were absolutely powerless.

Note, then, their immediate reaction of crying to the Lord. This was the only course that remained to them, the only avenue of hope. God had worked miracles for them before, but the stakes were higher now than ever before. This was the first time where they needed a miracle simply as a matter of basic survival. This was the first time that if God didn’t come through for them, it would be an immediate death sentence!

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 14:5-7

5 And it was told the king of Egypt that the people fled: and the heart of Pharaoh and of his servants was turned against the people, and they said, Why have we done this, that we have let Israel go from serving us?

6 And he made ready his chariot, and took his people with him:

7 And he took six hundred chosen chariots, and all the chariots of Egypt, and captains over every one of them.

Pharaoh received word that the Israelites had fled beyond the three-days-distance allotted for their sacrifices. It was clear that they were on the run, never intending to return, though as I have mentioned before, it must have been obvious to Pharaoh that this was always their intention.

Of course, even an expected insult is still an insult, and verse 5 tells us that not only did Pharaoh’s heart turn against the Israelites, but also the hearts of his people. Before, Pharaoh’s counselors had beseeched him to give in to the Israelites’ commands, and he had refused. But now all of Egypt was united in wanting revenge upon God’s chosen people. They had lost their crops, their economy, their firstborn, and they had been spoiled under false pretenses. What also might have been a factor in the Egyptian civilians’ wrath was that the battlefield would now be out in the wilderness, not in their heartland. This time the people wouldn’t be caught in the crossfire between God and their king, so perhaps that emboldened them to support a further provocation.

Thus, Pharaoh gathered his army for battle, and he, himself, rode with them. Verse 7 mentions that “he took six hundred chosen chariots, and all the chariots of Egypt.” That “and” suggests that 600 was not the total number of chariots, probably it was only the number of his personal guard, with many other chariots making up the rest of his cavalry. Also, it is to be assumed that he had many foot soldiers to further support the cavalry. Several ancient historians (Josephus, Patricides, Ezekiel) all describe a different number for this army, but averaging all of their estimates suggests that the force might have very well stood in the hundreds of thousands of men.

As mentioned earlier, the Israelite camp is estimated to have been about two million souls, but most of that was women and children, and even the men presumably did not have proper weapons to fight with, nor any advanced tools of war such as horses and chariots. Thus, Pharaoh was leaving with a force of sufficient strength that he really could kill the entire Israelite nation if he wanted. Perhaps he meant to bring a residue back to be his slaves again, or possibly he really meant to slaughter them all!

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Genesis 33:12-15

12 And he said, Let us take our journey, and let us go, and I will go before thee.

13 And he said unto him, My lord knoweth that the children are tender, and the flocks and herds with young are with me: and if men should overdrive them one day, all the flock will die.

14 Let my lord, I pray thee, pass over before his servant: and I will lead on softly, according as the cattle that goeth before me and the children be able to endure, until I come unto my lord unto Seir.

15 And Esau said, Let me now leave with thee some of the folk that are with me. And he said, What needeth it? let me find grace in the sight of my lord.

While reading this chapter I had continually wondered to myself “but why did Esau bring four hundred men in the first place?” That was an army, and Jacob’s assumption that they were being brought to destroy him seems a totally valid fear. Why would Esau have thought it was a good thing to bring them?

One possibility that occurred to me was that maybe Esau did intend to destroy his brother, but when he finally saw Jacob’s face felt his anger melt away. Or perhaps he knew he was going to forgive his brother, but he wanted to give him a good fright first. But if either of these possibilities were his true motivation, then it would surprise me that Esau then says absolutely nothing about the past offense. Instead, his behavior seems to me as though he had let go of his anger many years prior. Then I considered that he might have become something of a warlord, so accustomed to wandering around with a traveling army that he had forgotten how their appearance might frighten delicate farmers.

Reading today’s verses, though, I also realized that he might have simply brought all these men to help his brother during the last leg of the journey. It might have been meant entirely as a kindly gesture, just one that Jacob had misinterpreted. But when Esau suggests that he leave some of his men to protect the flocks, Jacob refuses. Jacob has seen for himself that he is guarded by his God, so he knows that all will be well.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Genesis 14:13-16

13 And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew; for he dwelt in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner: and these were confederate with Abram.

14 And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan.

15 And he divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus.

16 And he brought back all the goods, and also brought again his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people.

This story stirs my heart! I love the image of Abram hearing that his kin is in trouble and rushing off to the rescue. Never mind the fact that the army he is pursuing just finished laying waste to the militias of Sodom, Gomorrah, and three other cities. It doesn’t matter what the difficulty of the task is, Lot needs to be rescued, so that’s what Abram is going to do!

I’m also touched by how Lot is called Abram’s “brother” here, not his nephew. I mentioned previously how after the death of Haran (Abram’s brother and Lot’s father) that the record seemed to treat Lot as if he stood in the place of his father, and this verse further reinforces that notion. Of course I’m sure this also has to do with the customs of the time, but that does not diminish the passion Abram clearly has for this “brother” as he smites the enemy, pursues the battle all the way into another land, and doesn’t let up until he has retrieved every single thing they had taken.