A Road Through the Sea

God did not lead his people by the short road along the sea, where there were soldiers and fighting. He took them the long way round, through the wilderness. And he did not let them walk alone. All day long a tall pillar of cloud went in front of them to show them the way, and all night long it was a pillar of fire, shining over the whole camp. The cloud never left them by day, and the fire never left them by night. So they came down to the shore of the Red Sea, and they camped there beside the water.

But back in Egypt the king had changed his mind again. He and his officers said to one another, “What have we done, letting Israel go? Who will do our work now?” So he harnessed his chariot, and six hundred of his best chariots with him, and all the horsemen of Egypt, and he thundered off across the desert after them. The children of Israel looked up — and there behind them was the whole army of Egypt, coming fast. In front of them was deep water. On either side, nowhere to go. And they were terrified, and they cried out to the Lord. And they said to Moses, “Were there no graves in Egypt? Did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness?” And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and watch what God is going to do for you today. The Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you — you only have to be still.”

Then the pillar of cloud moved. It went from the front of the camp all the way round to the back, and stood between the Egyptians and the children of Israel. On one side it was dark all night long, so that the army could not come near — and on the other side, God’s people were safe. And the Lord said to Moses, “Tell the children of Israel to break camp and go forward. And you — lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea, and split it, so that my people can walk through the middle of the sea on dry ground.” So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. And all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong wind, and the water split apart, and the sea floor became dry ground. And the children of Israel walked into the middle of the sea on the dry ground, with the water standing up like a wall on their right hand and a wall on their left. All of them — the old people, the children, the babies, the sheep, the cattle, the whole enormous crowd — walked right through the sea and came out safe on the other side.

But the Egyptians came racing in after them, chariots and horses and all, right into the middle of the sea. And in the early morning the Lord looked out at them from the pillar of fire and cloud, and their whole army was thrown into confusion. The wheels of the chariots stuck fast, and the horses could hardly pull them. And the Egyptians shouted to each other, “Let us run away from Israel — the Lord is fighting for them!” Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, and let the water come back.” And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. And as the sun came up, the water rushed back into its place and covered the chariots and the horsemen and all the army that had followed them in. Not one of them was left. But the children of Israel had walked through on dry ground. That day the Lord rescued Israel out of the hand of Egypt, and the people stood on the far shore and saw what God had done, and they were full of wonder, and they believed God, and Moses his servant.

Then Moses and all the people sang. It was the first song they ever sang as a free people, and this is how it began: “Let us sing to the Lord, for he is glorious! The horse and the rider he has thrown into the sea. He is my helper and my hiding place; he is the one who saved me. This is my God, and I will praise him — my father’s God, and I will lift him high. Who is like you, Lord, among all the gods? Who is like you — holy, and wonderful, and doing marvelous things? The Lord will be king forever, and ever, and beyond.” And Miriam, Aaron’s sister, took a little hand-drum, and all the women went out after her with drums and with dancing, and she sang back to them, “Sing to the Lord, for he is glorious! The horse and the rider he has thrown into the sea.”

Then Moses led the people on from the sea into the wilderness. They walked three whole days and found no water anywhere. At last they came to a place where there was water — but when they tasted it, it was bitter, and they could not drink it. So they called that place Bitterness. And the people grumbled at Moses and said, “What are we supposed to drink?” And Moses cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a piece of wood. Moses threw it into the water — and the water turned sweet, and everyone drank. And from there they came to a place called Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees. And they camped there beside the water, in the shade, and rested.