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At the Sea

Exodus 15:1

The Lord brought the people of Israel across the Red Sea to demonstrate His power and to manifest His love and care for His people. The "Song of the Sea" (Exodus 15) demonstrates these ideas powerfully. The key verse in the song is 15:3: "The LORD is a man of war; the LORD is His name." The Hebrew people did not engage in combat with the Egyptians; the Lord fought the battle on their behalf. He used the wind and the water to preserve Israel and the resurgent waters to destroy their enemies. His power was demonstrated to the Egyptians, as He had promised in Exodus 14:4: "I will harden Pharaoh's heart so that he will pursue them, and I will gain honor over Pharaoh and over all his army, that the Egyptians may know that I am the LORD." The response of His people was resilient faith and overwhelming gratitude (14:30, 31; 15: 2).

In addition to securing their freedom, God also released the Israelites from doubts about their freedom. They probably wondered,what if Pharaoh changes his mind? What if, while we are out here, the Egyptians track us down? Their fears were realized, but God brought His people through and eliminated their enemies so they would never again have to fear the bondage of the Egyptians.

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