Moses and Miriam Lead in Praise

September 29, 2024 Background Scripture: Exodus 14:21 -31; 15:1 - 21 Lesson Passage: Exodus 15:1 3, 11 - 13, 17, 18, 20, 21 There's nothing like an awe-inspiring deliverance by the Lord to evoke a praise response from His children. As far as biblical history is concerned, few deliverances compare to God delivering Israel from Pharoah and the Egyptian army at the Red Sea. After delivering Israel from four hundred years of Egyptian bondage, God purposely led Israel to the bank of the Red Sea and then provoked Pharoah to attempt to attack them. God had already demonstrated His power to Pharoah and the Egyptians prior to insisting that Pharoah release Israel from bondage in exchange for the Egyptians being relieved from the plagues. After Israel was allowed to leave Egypt, God had one more lesson to teach the Egyptians. That's when God led Israel to the bank of the Red Sea where they would appear to the Egyptians to be confused, lost, and trapped by the sea. It was a setup that allowed God to judge the sins of Pharoah. The Pharoah was worshiped as one of the gods of Egypt. If he could attack Israel in such a vulnerable situation, the Egyptians would believe that Pharoah was stronger that the God of Israel. On the other hand, Israel had no idea what God was doing or what would be the outcome of it. When the people of Israel saw Pharoah and the Egyptian army coming towards them, it provoked fear in them. They believed they were doomed, and many said so. Moses encouraged Israel to be calm and to continue trusting the Lord for their protection. He assured them that this would be the last they would ever see of Pharoah. God told Moses to stretch his hand out over the sea and divide it. Moses did as God commanded him to, and the Red Sea was divided. The water was not cutoff. Instead, it stood in two heaps as walls and the seabed between them was dried. Israel walked through the dry seabed to the other side of the sea, Although they were separated from the Egyptians by the pillar of cloud, the Egyptians pursued after them into the sea. The Egyptians knew that God was fighting for Israel when their chariots became difficult to drive. They attempted to flee back through the sea, but God told Moses to again stretch out his hand over the sea and it returned to its full force. This resulted in the Egyptians, their horses, and Pharoah drowning in the Red Sea. In the morning, Israel saw the Egyptians and their horses drowned in the sea. This evoked a reverent fear for God and respect for Moses as God's servant, Moses and the children of Israel began to testify about God's deliverance. In their overwhelming joy, words of testimony became the lyrics of the song. Many scholars believe those lyrics to be the first psalm recorded in the Bible. It is also believed that Moses was the originator of the words. If so, then it is likely that it was song in one of the African traditions of "call and response", In "call and response", the leader proclaims, or sings aloud, the lyrics and the group sing the same lyrics in response. In traditional Baptist churches it is often referred to as "Old 100's", which are song in long meter fashion. It appears that Moses might have ended his leading of the song, and then Miriam took her timbrel and began the same lyrics with the other women of Israel joining her with timbrels and dance. It was a celebration of God's deliverance in its purest and highest form. The words declared their testimony and the rejoicing in song and dance expressed their praise for God. I close by repeating what was written at the beginning of this, there's nothing like an awe-inspiring deliverance by the Lord to evoke a praise response from His children. Robert C. Hudson September 18, 2024