Israel's Rebellion at the Red Sea

The children of Israel that God sent Moses to bring out of Egyptian bondage into the
Promised Land were a faithless group almost from the very beginning. Their
rebellion against God began before Mt. Sinai and even before the Red Sea crossing.
The Psalmist said, "Our fathers in Egypt did not understand your wonders; they did
not remember the multitude of your mercies, but rebelled by the sea--the Red Sea."
(Psa. 106:7 NKJV) It is a profitable study to look into the details of that rebellion and
see what can be learned from it that would be of value to us today.

When God appeared to Moses at the burning bush he introduced himself as follows:
"'I am the God of your father--the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of
Jacob.' And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God. And the Lord
said: 'I have surely seen the oppression of my people who are in Egypt, and have
heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. So I have
come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up
from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey…
Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to me, and I have
also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come now,
therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children
of Israel, out of Egypt.'" (Ex. 3:6-10 NKJV)

Moses was instructed to go to Egypt, gather the elders of the people together, tell
them of God and the mission he had sent Moses on, and specifically (for the
purposes of this article) tell them, "I (God - DS) will bring you up out of the affliction
of Egypt to … a land flowing with milk and honey." (Ex. 3:17 NKJV – see Ex. 3:13-22
for the full account)

He was also given 3 miracles or signs he was to perform before the people as proof
God had sent him to them. These signs can be found listed in Ex. 4:1-9 and
consisted of his staff being turned into a snake when thrown to the ground, his hand
placed in his cloak becoming leprous, and water from the Nile being poured on the
ground and becoming blood. The snake when picked up by the tail became a staff
again and the hand placed into the cloak after becoming leprous was returned
healthy. The Bible says, "So the people believed." (Ex. 4:31 NKJV)

However, when Moses and Aaron approached Pharaoh requesting he let the
children of Israel go it seems it made Pharaoh angry and he increased greatly the
work load on the Israelites. Furthermore, it seems some period of time went by
under these increasingly intolerable conditions to the point that even Moses began
to wonder for he says to the Lord, "Lord, why have you brought trouble on this
people? Why is it you have sent me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your
name, he has done evil to this people; neither have you delivered your people at
all." (Ex. 5:22-23 NKJV) Moses most likely still believed but did not understand.
The children of Israel were beginning to doubt. They say to Moses, "Let the Lord
look on you and judge, because you have made us abhorrent in the sight of Pharaoh
and in the sight of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us." (Ex. 5:21
NKJV) They were not seeing any exodus. One suspects this was the time referred
to in Ex. 14:12 at the Red Sea rebellion when the children of Israel seeing the
Egyptian army approaching told Moses, "Is this not the word that we told you in
Egypt, saying, 'Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians?'" (NKJV) When they
told Moses that back in Egypt there is little doubt their thinking was if it was not for
this trouble maker Moses Pharaoh would be more lenient with us. Yes, they
doubted Moses and God.

God then tells Moses, "Therefore say to the children of Israel: 'I am the Lord; I will
bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, I will rescue you from their
bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.
I will take you as my people, and I will be your God. Then you shall know that I am
the Lord your God who brings you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
And I will bring you into the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob;
and I will give it to you as a heritage: I am the Lord.' So Moses spoke thus to the
children of Israel; but they did not heed Moses, because of anguish of spirit and
cruel bondage." (Ex. 6:6-9 NKJV)

I want you to note something at this point in time. God has now told them at least
twice his intentions toward them (Ex. 3:7 and 6:6-9). Are they going to believe God
or disbelieve? It is hard to be a believer sometimes. Things are going rotten and
we can see no hope and feel God has abandoned us. We begin to doubt him. There
was light at the end of the tunnel but they could not see it and were unwilling to
believe it.

Is there a lesson here for us as regards our faith? Are we going to believe God is
with us when things get tough or are we going to forsake him and give up our faith?
The children of Israel were giving up too soon. What is the old saying - is it not that
it is always darkest before the dawn. We would do well to remember that and wait
on the Lord. His word is good. If he has said a thing it will come to pass. There are
no valid grounds for doubt.

We now enter the period of the ten plagues. All could see God working in these
events and the children of Israel had the opportunity of seeing God being on their
side as they were spared some of the plagues that fell on the Egyptians. They were
spared the plague of the flies (Ex. 8:20-30), the plague on the livestock (Ex. 9:1-7),
the plague of boils (Ex. 9:8-12), the plague of hail (Ex. 9:13-33), the plague of
locusts possibly (based on Ex. 10:6 but also see Ex. 10:14 which makes it unclear),
the plague of darkness (Ex. 10:21-29), and the plague on the firstborn males (Ex.
11). As they began to exit Egypt they also saw the pillar of cloud by day and pillar
of fire by night indicating God's presence and guidance (Ex. 13:21).
One would feel certain after seeing all of these plagues and seeing how they
themselves had been spared from most of them, God drawing a clear distinction
between the children of Israel and the Egyptians, and seeing how their own firstborn
sons were not struck down in death under the last plague that the children of Israel
would never doubt God again. They had seen and observed too much so one would
have thought. Add to that the cloud by day and pillar of fire by night, how could
you see that and doubt?

Right here we can learn another lesson that becomes very obvious. Great works of
God, great miracles, in and of themselves do not by themselves necessarily create a
lasting faith. For a time they may strike awe and wonder into a person and for a
time make a believer out of him/her but how long is it going to last? With all Jesus'
signs that he performed the Bible says, "Although he had done so many signs
before them, they did not believe in him." (John 12:37 NKJV) Yet, the purpose of
signs (miracles) is to create faith, "And truly Jesus did many other signs in the
presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written
that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you
may have life in His name." (John 20:30-31 NKJV) Faith is ultimately a free choice
man makes miracles or no miracles.

To abbreviate the story and get to the Red Sea rebellion for which we have been
setting the stage most are aware that after the death of the Egyptian's firstborn
sons that the Israelites were allowed to leave Egypt – almost kicked out – but
Pharaoh changed his mind and chased after them. We know that upon reaching the
Red Sea the children of Israel looked back and saw the Egyptian army closing in on
them and panic set in. Here is what the Bible says happened.

"And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold,
the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid, and the children of
Israel cried out to the Lord. Then they said to Moses, 'Because there were no
graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you
so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt? Is this not the word that we told you
in Egypt, saying, 'Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians'? For it would have
been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the
wilderness.'" (Ex. 14:10-12 NKJV)

This is what the Psalmist called the rebellion by the sea in Psalms 106:7. Yes, they
cried out to the Lord but it seems they had little to no faith he would come to their
rescue. This then is yet another lesson for you and me today. Why call on the Lord
if we do not believe he will answer us? James says of asking for wisdom, "ask in
faith, with no doubting" (James 1:6 NKJV) and then says of the man who asks with
doubting "let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord."
(James 1:7 NKJV) Jesus taught the disciples to pray believing (Mark 11:24). He said
just 2 verses above in this Mark passage, "Have faith in God." (Mark 11:22 NKJV)
I can see why the children of Israel were scared. No man had yet dreamed God
would split the Red Sea in two parts. Such was unheard of. They saw no escape.
Perhaps that ought to be a reminder to you and me that a time such as that in our
own lives is the very time to pray and trust in God for deliverance from our trouble
for he is the only with power to save under such circumstances. There was not a
man alive with power to save them from the wrath of the Egyptians, only God could
save them yet they did not believe he would.

They did not believe yet they had his word to them that they were going to be taken
to a land of milk and honey, statements he made to them that we have already
referenced earlier in the article. If they believed God they knew he would intervene.
Does God lie? They did not trust him.

It seems they were on the verge on waving a white flag and trying to make peace
with the Egyptians and return to slavery. They feared for their lives so that would
have seemed as a bargain to them. They were ready to give up on God.

Here is another lesson we can get out of this. God does things in his own time. He
could have shown them the way of escape before he did so they would not have
panicked. Was he testing them? Who can say? Whether God meant it to be or not
no man can say but one can say it ended up being a test of faith whether
intentional or not – one they failed. Man's job before God is to trust and obey and
be patient. If you really trust God, really have faith, patience will come easier for
you know God will be there for you in time.

I think the final lesson for me, at least for the purposes of this article, is never look
back and doubt. Our life with God is not about looking behind us but about going
forward in faith. Peter said, "For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the
world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again
entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the
beginning. For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of
righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered
to them." (2 Peter 2:20-21 NKJV)

The children of Israel were ready to go back if they could do so in safety. They
wished they had never left. Peter would call that kind of thing for the Christian as
being like a sow having been washed returning to wallow in the mire. (2 Peter 2:22)
Jesus said, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the
kingdom of God." (Luke 9:62 NKJV)

We have need not to imitate the children of Israel as at the rebellion at the Red Sea
but the need to "imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises"
(Heb. 6:12 NKJV) for we too have been given promise of a promised land, our own
land flowing with milk and honey. We have need of endurance so that after we
have done the will of God we may receive the promise. (Heb. 10:36 NKJV) So, don't
let the Christian look back and begin to doubt and waver and question God. Let us
not rebel at our own Red Sea but do as God told Moses to do when he said to him,
"Tell the children of Israel to go forward." (Ex. 14:15 NKJV) God knows the direction
to the Promised Land and it is forward, not backwards.