MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.— Exodus 14:29-31
THE SALVATION OF THE GOOD
I. That the good are saved while in the very midst of agencies which might be hostile to them. “But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea.” Thus the Israelites were saved while they were surrounded by the waters of the Red Sea. Their situation was perilous, yet it was sate. The waters were made into a wall of protection. And so the good are saved in this world, even while they are surrounded by sinful men, by influences and maxims which are naturally prejudicial to their moral safety. They are saved in the waters. God makes safe paths in this wicked world for the good to walk in; He makes even the adverse influences of life to minister to the defence of His people. The Israelites were not drowned even though they were surrounded by the waters; the good need not be lost because they are encompassed by sin. Religion enables a man to walk circumspectly in the midst of moral perils, and to go where duty leads. The salvation of God does not take men out of the difficult circumstances of life, but guides through them.
II. That the good are saved notwithstanding all the hindrances and enemies which may pursue them. “Thus the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the seashore.” The Israelites had many enemies to their deliverance; they had by Divine aid to overcome many obstacles. And every man has many impediments to his salvation by the grace of God,—he has a carnal mind, a corrupt heart, a wicked companionship, and even the temporal circumstances of life may conspire against him, yet all these shall be overcome by the help of God, as were the Egyptians. The salvation of God is co-extensive with all hindrances and with all enemies,—it gives a man to see all his past sins dead upon the seashore of a new life.
III. That the good are inspired by their salvation with trustful and reverent feelings toward God. “And Israel saw that great work which the Lord did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the Lord, and believed the Lord, and His servant Moses.” Thus salvation of the soul is a great work, because sin is great, because mercy is great, and because the enemies overcome are great. God is its Author; He only can destroy the Egyptian of sin. Salvation inspires reverence. It awakens trust. It animates with a respect for the ministers of God; the people believed Moses. This is the end of God’s dealings with men, to increase all good duties within them to Himself. Let us never distrust God, or wrong His ministers. Thus we see that the Red Sea which threatened destruction to the Israelites proved the greatest benefit to them. And the pain of correction of sin ends in the joy of salvation. LESSONS:—
1. That the way of salvation is opened up by Christ as was the path to the Red Sea.
2. That men may be saved from all their moral enemies.
3. That the salvation of God should beget reverence and trust within the soul.
4. Are you saved?
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON THE VERSES
Exodus 14:29-31. The divided sea is a type of baptism, and, consequently, of all that which is requisite to purify the soul from sin. The Red Sea of the Redeemer’s blood is the abyss into which the sins of believers are so deeply plunged that, if sought for, they can never be found; the sea which swallows up and overwhelms Satan with all his host, and the old man, and quickens in us a new man, who after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. This precious blood of Christ, who offered Himself to God by the Holy Spirit, is that which alone perfectly cleanses our consciences from dead works to serve the living God. Not, indeed, as indispensably necessary as this blood, and the vivifying Spirit inseparably united with it, yet serviceable for the purification from sin, and the mortification of corrupt nature, are the various trials which are not wanting to the true Christian. (Krummacher.)
ILLUSTRATIONS
BY
REV. WM. ADAMSON
Pharaoh’s body! Exodus 14:30. At dawn, the surf-beaten shore was strewn with the carcases of Egypt’s chivalry. Among them lay the corpse of the proud and stubborn monarch—a prey to the hosts of vultures that darkened the air, and to the motley groups of wild beasts that lined the shores. The Egyptians considered this as the greatest of all misfortunes; and it was supposed that the soul could find no rest until the body was interred. The ancient poets frequently represented these souls as visiting their friends on earth to announce where their bodies were to be searched for that they might be buried. In Egypt these burials were associated with remarkable ceremonies; but were such for Pharaoh? Apparently, the Israelites took the golden ornaments and jewellery, as well as the richly wrought weapons of the dead; so that Pharaoh’s body would share the fate of the others. The jackals of the desert and the vultures of the air—symbolised by the jackal and vulture-headed colossal stone gods of Thebes—would soon devour them. Near Thebes, the Lybian hills for nearly five miles have been converted into a labyrinth of sepulchres, where all the kings lie in glory—every one in his own house. Among them is the tomb of Pharaoh, the wide extent of whose dominion, at the time of his destruction in the Red Sea, is indicated by five lines of tribute bearers—offering gifts of ivory, apes, leopards, skins, gold, and other valuables. On it are sculptured pictures of masons at work upon monstrous sphinxes—no doubt captive workmen, perhaps Israelite slaves—masses of masonry
“Which now are turned to dust,
And overgrown with black oblivious rust.”
—Spenser.
Deliverance! Exodus 14:31. Mr. Bower says that temptations resemble the rocks which rest their jagged sides above the waves when it is low water. No vessel dares come near them. But after a while the tide comes sweeping into the bay, and buries the rocks under a flood of water, so that the largest ships may ride in safety above their teeth of death—as well as the lightest skiff. No doubt Israel thought their difficulties of deliverance very great—incapable on being surmounted; but when the sea of God’s Providence swept in upon the land of Egypt, they were borne high above the jagged rocks towards the haven where He would have them be. Therefore—
“Man’s wisdom is to seek
His strength in God alone;
For e’en an angel would be weak
Who trusted in his own.”
—Cowper.