Exo 14:11 | KingComments | STEP | Pharaoh did not take account of God and someone who counts outside of God always counts wrong. It is not only Pharaoh who is the object of God’s actions. With the chase by Pharaoh, God also has in mind the education of His people. The people react in panic fear. They see no way out. That way out is not there for the eye, neither around them nor within themselves. But by faith there is a way out after all – upwards ( ). They call to the LORD, but not in true faith. They blame Moses. In their fear they make statements that do not testify of faith, but of unbelief. Forgotten are all the wonders and signs which the LORD has done in Egypt. They only see the circumstances. They do not remember what the LORD has already done for them. As soon as freedom creates difficulties, they long to return to slavery. But God knows how to use their need to give them new teaching in the way of faith. The language they use in their fear is the language of someone who has sheltered behind the blood of the Lamb, but who has no peace in his conscience regarding the power of the enemy. Someone can be a believer, but still constantly wrestle with the power of sin. As a result, such a believer becomes unhappy and miserable. This can take such strong forms that he yearns for a life in the world. There he did not experience this misery. In Romans 7 we find the New Testament counterpart of the situation in which the people find themselves here. There we hear someone speak who is born again, but has not yet experienced the fullness of salvation. That this person has been born again is shown by the fact that he enjoys “the law of God in the inner man” ( ). Such a thing can never be said of an unbeliever. The same person experiences that, although born again, he feels increasingly miserable because he fails so badly in doing good. Instead, he always does evil. Finally, he exclaims in despair: “Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death ( )?

‏ Exodus 14:11

The Fear of the People

Pharaoh did not take account of God and someone who counts outside of God always counts wrong. It is not only Pharaoh who is the object of God’s actions. With the chase by Pharaoh, God also has in mind the education of His people.

The people react in panic fear. They see no way out. That way out is not there for the eye, neither around them nor within themselves. But by faith there is a way out after all – upwards (2Cor 4:8). They call to the LORD, but not in true faith. They blame Moses. In their fear they make statements that do not testify of faith, but of unbelief.

Forgotten are all the wonders and signs which the LORD has done in Egypt. They only see the circumstances. They do not remember what the LORD has already done for them. As soon as freedom creates difficulties, they long to return to slavery. But God knows how to use their need to give them new teaching in the way of faith.

The language they use in their fear is the language of someone who has sheltered behind the blood of the Lamb, but who has no peace in his conscience regarding the power of the enemy. Someone can be a believer, but still constantly wrestle with the power of sin. As a result, such a believer becomes unhappy and miserable. This can take such strong forms that he yearns for a life in the world. There he did not experience this misery.

In Romans 7 we find the New Testament counterpart of the situation in which the people find themselves here. There we hear someone speak who is born again, but has not yet experienced the fullness of salvation. That this person has been born again is shown by the fact that he enjoys “the law of God in the inner man” (Rom 7:22). Such a thing can never be said of an unbeliever. The same person experiences that, although born again, he feels increasingly miserable because he fails so badly in doing good. Instead, he always does evil. Finally, he exclaims in despair: “Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death (Rom 7:24)?