THE DAY YOU CAME OUT OF EGYPT, OUT OF THE LAND OF
SLAVERY: It only took one night to get Israel out of Egypt -- but the Father
has been working for more than 3,500 years to get "Egypt" out of
Israel!
Exo 13:8
"From generation to generation, every man is bound to look
upon himself not otherwise than if he had himself come out of Egypt. Therefore
we are bound to thank, praise, laud, glorify, and extol, honor, bless, exalt,
and reverence Him, because He hath wrought for our fathers, AND FOR US, all
these miracles. He brought us forth from bondage into freedom, from sorrow into
joy, from mourning to a festival, from darkness to a great light, and from
slavery to redemption. Therefore let us sing before him: Halleluyah" (From
"Passover Haggadah").
Exo 13:9
A REMINDER ON YOUR FOREHEAD: "Having their Father's
name written in their foreheads" (Rev 14:1). Ct mark of beast (Rev
13:17).
Exo 13:13
FIRSTBORN DONKEY: The colt of an ass ridden by Jesus
into city: sym Gentiles (mother = Israel), redeemed by death of
Christ/Lamb.
BREAK ITS NECK: Causing it to suffer a bloodless death,
ie not an acceptable sacrifice (Tes 49:177). Cp Jer 2:23,24; Hos 8:9.
Exo 13:16
WITH HIS MIGHTY HAND: The old, infirm given strength to
walk or travel (Isa 40:29-31): Psa 105:37.
Exo 13:17
At that time in Egyptian history, and lasting for only about
200 years, there was a massive, nearly impenetrable network of fortresses
situated along the northern Sinai coastal route to Canaan. Yet these same
defenses were absent near Egypt's access to southern Sinai -- because the
Egyptians felt the southern route was certain death in the desert. Therefore,
when Moses tells the Israelites to encamp at a site that will mislead Pharaoh,
the Egyptians will conclude that the Israelites "are entangled in the land, the
wilderness has closed in on them" (Exo 14:3). This reflects a distinctly
Egyptian viewpoint that must have been common at the time: In view of the
fortresses on the northern coast, anyone seeking to flee Egypt would necessarily
make a detour south into the desert, where they might well perish.
Exo 13:18
ARMED FOR BATTLE: Heb "chamush", strong, well-armed,
from rt for "abdomen". The meaning of this word is uncertain. "By five in a
rank" (AV mg), ie in an orderly, military-like fashion. AV has "harnessed"; RSV
has "equipped for battle". Sw occurs only in Jos 1:14; 4:12.
Exo 13:19
MOSES TOOK THE BONES OF JOSEPH WITH HIM: Cp Gen 50:25;
Jos 24:32; Heb 11:22. "For 40 years those bones [would be] a source of
encouragement and a silent exhortation to those who would hear -- and his faith
had been fully vindicated. God HAD brought them out, and He HAD brought them in!
We do not follow a coffin: we know of an empty tomb, which speaks eloquently of
resurrection. We follow not a dead man's bones; we follow the living Lord Jesus
Christ, who, by his death, has brought us out. One day he will return, and by
his grace, he will bring us into the rest that remains for the people of God" (A
Harvey, Xd 138:255).
For 40 years the children of Israel carried a heavy stone
coffin through the desert, finally laying it to rest in the cave of Machpelah
with his forefathers. Every time the children of Israel picked up that coffin,
they would have been reminded of Joseph's incredible faith in a resurrection
from the dead. And what joy for him to experience his next waking moment in the
company of his beloved father Jacob, and Isaac and Abraham.