Daily Devotional · Exodus 14:13–22
Stand Firm and See
Reflection
It seemed like a tactical disaster. Israel was pinned between the Red Sea and Pharaoh's chariots. The people were terrified and furious: "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die?" Moses' response was one of the great statements of faith in Scripture: "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. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still." Stand firm. Be still. Two commands that require enormous trust when armies are behind you and water is ahead. Then God gave Moses an unexpected command: lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea. Movement was required — stretch out your hand. But the result was entirely God's: He drove back the sea with a strong east wind all night. The Israelites walked through on dry ground with walls of water on their right and left. The Egyptian army followed — and the sea closed. The generation that had been born in slavery walked out as a free nation on the other side. No human strategy created this. It required only faith, stillness, and a stretched-out hand.
Background
The crossing of the Red Sea (or Sea of Reeds) became the defining salvation event of the Old Testament — the equivalent of the resurrection in the New Testament. The prophets repeatedly call Israel back to remember it. The New Testament uses it as an image of baptism (1 Corinthians 10:1–2), passing through water from death to new life.
Truth
When you are between the impossible and the terrifying, God's instruction is often the same as Moses': stand firm, be still, and watch. The battle belongs to Him. Your job is not to solve it but to keep your eyes open.
Application
What impossible situation are you trying to solve by your own effort right now? Name it. Then practice stillness: sit quietly for five minutes, tell God you are handing the army behind you and the sea in front of you to Him, and wait.