Difficult by Design: Exodus 14:5-7, 10-14, 21-29 - 19th Sunday after Pentecost
When there’s an emergency, time is of the essence. Every second can mean the difference between life and death. The quicker the rescue, the greater the odds of survival. The Old Testament Book of Exodus tells the story of God’s rescue of his chosen people from slavery in Egypt. This could be, however, the slowest rescue in history. For 430 years, the Israelites groaned beneath the yoke of slavery—and God was not unaware. The last eighty of those years marked the beginning of God’s rescue plan with the birth of Moses. It wasn’t until Moses was 80 years old that God appeared in the burning bush and sent him to Pharoah, demanding that he “let my people go.” Pharoah refuses, and the plagues unfold over the course of about a year until the tenth one, down all the Egyptian first-born males and livestock. Pharoah finally lets them go, and the Israelites set out. But Pharoah changes his mind, and his armies go after him. Parting of the Red Sea by Iforce on flickr. CC0 1.0 In toda...
