when (Pharaoh) let go...

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This reading is on Exodus 13:17-17:16.


Here are highlights:

(Ch.13)
Yahweh guides the people from Succoth to Etham, leading them with a pillar of cloud/fire.

(Ch.14)
Yahweh camps the people at Phihahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, against Baalzephon; in preparation for the parting of the Red Sea.

Pharaoh pursues the people with 600 chariots with only captains manning them.

The people panic, cry out to Yahweh and blame Moses.

Yahweh tells Moses to part the sea; the angel of Yahweh and the pillar go to the back of the camp to separate the people and Pharaoh.

Yahweh tells Moses to bring down the water on the Egyptians; Pharaoh and company die.

The people fear and believe Yahweh; they also believe Moses.

(Ch.15)
Moses sings a song of praise.

Miriam praises Yahweh with timbrel.
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The people travel 3 days without water; they arrive at Marah, where the water is bitter; the people murmur.

Yahweh shows Moses a tree that makes the water sweet.
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Yahweh gives a statute and an ordinance: If the people listen and keep His statues, He will keep the Egyptian diseases away. He is Yahweh that heals them.
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They arrive at Elim, where were 12 wells and 70 palm trees, and camp there.

(Ch.16)
The people go from Elim to Sin, half way to Sinai on the 15th of the 2nd month. They murmur for the lack of food.
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Yahweh tells the people they will have meat to eat in the evening. Quails show up at night.

Yahweh gives them bread in the morning.

The people call the bread manna.

Some people act ignorantly about following directions from God.
Moses becomes angry.

Some people go out on the 7th day when there is no manna.
God expresses grief.
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Yahweh commands a jar full of manna to be kept for the generations.

The people eat manna for 40 years.

(Ch.17)
The people go from Sin to Rephidim. They murmur for the lack of water, readying to stone Moses.

Yahweh tells Moses to strike a rock and water will come out.

The place is named Massah/Meribah.
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Amalek attack Israel. Moses tells Joshua to choose men to fight with Amalek.

Moses, Aaron, and Hur go to the top of a hill. Aaron and Hur keep Moses' arms up, and the Israel prevailed.

Joshua discomfits Amalek with the edge of the sword.
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Yahweh has Moses record that He will put out Amalek from existence.

Moses build an altar, calls it Yahweh-nissi.


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A curious thing about the usage in reference to Israel:

Usually, the people of Israel is referred to as "the children of Israel" in most of the passages, but sometimes, like in Exodus 14:30-31, 15:22, 17:8,11; they are simply "Israel." It is obvious and clear, like Exodus 15:22, that Israel does not mean one person.

The reason I bring this up is that it brought to rememberance about God, who confirms Himself as being one, and at the same time, many passages in the Bible refers to the same God in the plural.


This is curious to me since I have spent much time with some Jehovah's witnesses that insist that Jesus Christ cannot be God.


God reveals Himself and His plan through patterns and types in the Bible; for example, the sacrificing of Isaac by Abraham is a type (or pattern) for which God the Father sacrifices His one and only Son.


The above plural/singular reference to Israel, as well as the plural/singular reference to God can be called either an accident/coincidence, or it is there by design. It is hard to believe that this is an accident.

So what could it mean?
From simply reading the passage, the plural/singular type indicates equality of entity, specifically, the children of Israel.

Even in reference to God, the plural/singular type indicate the same entity, that is, Yahweh/Jehovah.

Is anyone equal with God except God Himself? Philippians 2:6 gives an answer, in reference to Christ Jesus, "who thought(thinks) it not robbery to be equal with God."


I suppose one can continue thinking it is all an accident, like the Jehovah's witnesses, or even the atheists. Mathematically, it's just too difficult to brush off things like this as such.


Go figure...


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