Exodus 14:5-10 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… Notice some analogies between the flight of Israel from Egypt and the progress of the sinner from the captivity of the devil. In both cases we have a debased condition of man. kind, a powerful enemy, a pursuing foe, a perilous road, a human ministry, and an omnipotent and gracious Redeemer. I. THE STATE OF ISRAEL IN EGYPT WAS A STATE OF THE UTMOST ABASEMENT. Every sinner is a slave. The wicked man serves a cruel master. He is watched on every hand; all his movements are understood: every desire or aspiration after liberty is turned into an occasion of augmented suffering. Wickedness reduces the volume and quality of manhood. Every bad thought and every wicked deed is so much taken from the completeness and dignity of human nature. II. THE ENEMY OF ISRAEL WAS POWERFUL. So with the great enemy of man. His resources are all but inexhaustible. He is not confined to one series of temptations. The diabolic genius in luring and seducing men to evil dispositions and courses is fertile beyond all parallel. He assaults us through the flesh; he insinuates ruinous ideas into the mind; he secretly touches the very fountains of life. He can touch our nature with a light hand, or he can smite us with tremendous force. III. ISRAEL WAS PURSUED — SO IS THE REDEEMED MAN. It is too frequently expected that when a man forsakes his evil ways, he will at once become an exemplary saint. It is forgotten that the devil relinquishes his hold reluctantly. Years upon years after our conversion to God we are conscious of the presence of the old nature; there are sudden uprisings of forces which we supposed to be extinct. IV. THERE IS AN OMNIPOTENT AND GRACIOUS REDEEMER. In the course of our Christian experience we are often called upon simply to stand still. Herein is shown the tender grace of the living Redeemer. We are weak, we are weary, and there is no more strength left in us; at that point He says, "Waiting shall be accounted as serving, and standing still as the progress of triumphant strength." Israel was not self-redeemed, nor are we; Jesus Christ is the angel of our redemption; trusting to His leadership, neither mountain nor sea shall keep us back from the Canaan of God. (J. Parker, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: 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? |
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