The Red Sea

Exodus 13:1 - 15:27

The Israelites finally get to march out of Egypt..."armed for battle" (Ex 13:18)
It has started to strike me that there was something going on in their "bondage" that was different than what we think of as typical slavery. I can't picture Civil War era slaves picking up and marching out 'armed for battle'...and having to have waited for permission to do so.

Although they ARE armed for battle God doesn't lead them through Philistine territory because God said, "If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt." (Ex:13:17)
Instaed He takes them on a route designed both to protect and to lure Pharaoh to chase them.
(Ex14:2)
"Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. Pharaoh will think,'The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.'"

As they're back up against the sea and they see the Egyptian army coming the Israelites cried out:
"Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die?What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn't we say to you in Egypt, 'Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians'? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!" (Ex14:11 - 12)

Now THIS bit leads me to believe that their bondage was not complete depraved oppression. Apparently the evidence of the ten plagues is a distant memory, the huge pillar of smoke/fire that has been leading them isn't proof enough, they're willing to go back to slavery. ( It also serves as evidence that God was going to use the Red Sea incident to prove himself further. The plagues proved He could defeat the Egyptian 'gods' and now He is going to prove he can beat them on the human plane as well.)

Exodus 14:15 - 16 cracks me up:
The the Lord said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the ater so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground."
Sheesh...come on Moses...get a move on!!!
So at this point does Moses smack his forehead?
"Doh!! Of course..I forgot the magic water splitting dry ground making stick!!!

The next bit we know...the Israelites make it across on dry ground, wall of water on either side, and the Egyptians get drowned. I wonder if Moses felt any sense of remorse when he stretched out his staff over the sea and drowned all of Pharaoh's army?

In any case the Israelites whoop it up. The celebratory song in Ex 15 has a bit of a neener neener neener tone to it. And THIS bit seems to be evidence that their bondage WAS oppressive.
Whichever is true the people now seem ready to trust God, and Moses leadership.

At least for the moment...