25 FIRST STEPS

They took the bones of Joseph along with them. Joseph had particularly instructed that his bones should be carried up when God eventually visited them so that their carrying up his bones was not only a performance of the oath their fathers had sworn to Joseph, but also an acknowledgment of the performance of God’s promise to them by Joseph that He would visit them and bring them out of the land of Egypt. Remembering this would have been an encouragement to their faith and hope that God would fulfill the other part of the promise, which was to bring them to Canaan. They might think, “Joseph’s bones must rest at last, and then so will we.” Joseph at this time may have been just a box full of dry bones (if the Egyptians had not embalmed him). This was all that remained of him in this world, but those bones could still speak, they said, “See, the time did come, now complete the journey and get me to Canaan land.”

They were blessed with specific guidance. “By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people” (21, 22). In the first stages it was enough that God directed Moses where to march: he knew the country and the road well enough; but now that they had come to the edge of the wilderness, they needed a guide. And a very good guide they had, one that was infinitely wise, kind, and faithful. The Lord went before them, the shechinah, the visible appearance of the divine Majesty. Those whom God brings into a wilderness He will not leave nor lose there, but will take care to lead them through it. We may well think it was a very great satisfaction to Moses and the Israelites to be sure that they were under divine guidance. Those needed not to fear missing their way who were led like this, nor of being lost who were directed like this, nor fear being lost in the night who were illuminated like this, nor of being robbed who were protected like this. Those who make the glory of God their end, and the Word of God their rule, the Spirit of God the guide of their affections and the providence of God the guide of their affairs, may be confident that the Lord goes before them, as truly as He went before Israel in the wilderness. We cannot know it with our senses but we live by faith in the same God.

They had visible evidences of God’s going before them. They all saw an appearance from heaven of a pillar, which in the bright day appeared as a cloud of protection, and in the dark night as a fiery light for their path. God gave them this visible demonstration of His presence, in understanding of the weakness of their faith, but blessed are those that have not seen and yet have believed God’s gracious presence with them, according to His promise. They had visible evidence of God going before them in this pillar. It led the way in that vast howling wilderness, in which there was no road, no track, no way-mark, of which they had no maps, through which they had no other guides. When this pillar went before them, they marched at the rate they could follow, and when it appointed the place of their encampment they stopped. Moving at the right time and stopping at the right time are equally important to us. God’s Wisdom eased them from care and secured them from danger, both in moving and in resting. The cloud helped them, but it teaches us. We need to learn to follow the cloud.

These miracles were constant and standing. I find verse 22 both perplexing and instructive. “Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.” This could only be true if they followed the cloud. The cloud continues to be available, but they had to follow it and stop with it. God did not remove the cloud; no, not when they traveled through inhabited or uninhabited areas, no, not when they murmured and were provoking; it never left them until it brought them to the borders of Canaan. It was a cloud which the wind could not scatter. This favor is acknowledged with thankfulness long afterwards by Nehemiah in 9:13, “Because of your great compassion you did not abandon them in the wilderness. By day the pillar of cloud did not fail to guide them on their path, nor the pillar of fire by night to shine on the way they were to take” and in Psalm 78:14, “He guided them with the cloud by day and with light from the fire all night.” By coming under this cloud, they demonstrated they were putting themselves under the divine guidance and command by the ministry of Moses. Protection draws allegiance. This cloud was the badge of God’s protection and became the bond of their allegiance. “Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings.” Cloud, wings, banner, the metaphor may change, but the meaning is clear. Every one of us can be under the shadow of God’s protection and love, even in the wilderness, especially in the wilderness!

They arrived at the edge of the wilderness, “After leaving Sukkoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert” (20). They could have marched directly south southeast to Mount Horeb, the place appointed for serving God; but, instead of going forward, they are ordered to turn short, southwest to the west side (the Egypt side) of the Red Sea. Where they were, at Etham, there was no sea in their way to obstruct their passage: but God Himself orders them into strategically a very awkward position on the west side of the Red sea. He wanted to teach them something which might give them an assurance that when His purposes were served He would without fail bring them out of those difficulties. God sometimes intentionally raises difficulties in the way of His people, that He may have the glory of subduing them, and helping His people through them. What did God design in these strange orders? Moses would have yielded though God had given him no reason; but will God hide from Moses what He is going to do? No, Moses will know that Pharaoh has a design to ruin Israel, that therefore God has a design to ruin Pharaoh and takes this way to accomplish it. Pharaoh thinks Israel was entangled in the wilderness and so would become an easy prey for him. That he might be the more apt to think so, God orders them into yet greater entanglements south to the west edge of the Red sea. By turning them so much out of their road, God amazes Pharaoh yet more, and gives him another reason to suppose that Israel would now be an easy catch. God evidently wants to get even more glory by an even more complete destruction of Pharaoh and his chariot army. All men are made for the honor of their Maker, He is honored by some, but through others He is honored on. What seems to tend to the church’s ruin is often overruled to the ruin of the church’s enemies, whose pride and malice are fed by Providence, that they may be ripened for destruction.

We see stubborn Pharaoh’s pursuit of Israel, in which, seeking this own hateful revenge, he is actually furthering the accomplishment of God’s counsels concerning him. Such a fright was Pharaoh in, when he let Israel go, that when the fright was over he either forgot, or deliberately would not acknowledge they departed with his consent. He wrongly considered it a revolt. (If we give a false description we can easily justify what we should be condemning.) Pharaoh and his officials had a good reason for letting Israel go; they had lost their firstborn sons. But they seem to have forgotten that! It bothered them that Israel had her liberty, that they had lost the profit of their labors and perhaps the sadistic pleasure from chastising them. The liberty, favor and success of God’s people is a heavy grievance to their enemies as is proven by the stories of Haman who hated the Jews in Esther’s day and the High Priest and the Sanhedrin in the apostles’ day. God can make men’s envy and rage against His people a torment to themselves as Psalm 112:10 indicates, “The wicked will see and be vexed, they will gnash their teeth and waste away; the longings of the wicked will come to nothing.” It was well done to let Israel go, and something they should have reflected on with comfort and satisfaction if they had done it from their hearts. But doing it reluctantly and only by constraint, they called themselves a thousand fools for letting the slaves go free. They wished it undone. It is absurd, foolish and criminal, for people to repent of good deeds. Their justice and charity, and even their repentance, are repented of. This also happened to the Israelites in Jeremiah’s day as Jeremiah 34:10, 11 say, “So all the officials and people who entered into this covenant agreed that they would free their male and female slaves and no longer hold them in bondage. They agreed, and set them free. But afterward they changed their minds and took back the slaves they had freed and enslaved them again.”

It is easy to imagine the rage of Pharaoh, roaring like a lion disappointed of his prey, how his proud heart hated the thought swelled with indignation, scorned to be baffled and longed to be revenged. Now all the plagues are as if they had never been. He has quite forgotten the sorrowful funerals of his firstborn, and can think of nothing but making Israel feel his resentments. God gave him up to these passions of his own heart, and so hardened it. The children of Israel went out with a high hand, that is, with a great deal of courage and bravery, triumphing in their release and resolved to break through all difficulties that lay ahead. But Pharaoh had changed his mind—again as verse 9 says, “The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon.” Those that in good earnest set their faces heaven-ward, and will live godly lives, must expect to be attacked by Satan’s temptations and terrors. He will not easily part with anyone out of his service, nor let them go without raging as is illustrated by the boy in Mark 9:26. “The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, ‘He’s dead.’”

We will soon see that, again, Moses showed his courage, tenacity and persistence.