And he made ready his chariot ,.... Which he usually rode in when he went forth to war; for this seems to be a military chariot, and not for show or grandeur; and this was got ready not by himself, as Jarchi, but rather by his orders, as Aben Ezra: and took his people with him ; the Greek version reads, "all his people"; not all his subjects, but his soldiers; at least a great number, and especially his cavalry. read more
Verse 6 6.And he made ready his chariot. Moses briefly describes the warlike preparation of Pharaoh, not only to magnify the greatness of God’s power in delivering the people, but also to show with what violent and obstinate audacity the wicked go forwards, when they give way to their depraved and criminal lusts. Just now the Egyptians were almost frightened to death, and cried out that all was over with them; scarcely has a day passed, when they collect a powerful army as if their forces were... read more
Trial and Judgment. I. GOD LEADS INTO TRIAL BUT ASSURES Or VICTORY . 1 . The command to turn and. shut themselves in between the wilderness and the sea. God leads us where troubles will assail us. Jesus was driven of the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. 2 . The circumstances of God's people are taken advantage of by their foes. Pharaoh imagined his time had now come. Earthly foes may strike at such a time; Satan surely will 3 . The result... read more
Israel stricken with terror by reason of a deliverance not yet completed. It is plain that the Israelites, going out of Egypt. in such circumstances as they did, must have gone out in a state of great exhilaration, almost beside themselves with joy at such a complete reversal of all their past experiences at the hands of Pharaoh. Moreover we are assured in Exodus 14:8 that they went out with a high hand. The power of God for the deliverance of Israel was manifested in great fulness. What... read more
The pursuit "It was told the King of Egypt that the people fled," etc. Consider:— I. THE MOTIVES OF THE PURSUIT . The motives were various. 1 . Pharaoh had already repented of having let the people go ( Exodus 14:5 ). Their departure was a sore humiliation to him. Wounded pride was aggravated by the sense of material loss. "As serfs and bondagers, the Israelites were invaluable, and to let them go was to annihilate the half of Egypt's industry" (Hamilton). Pharaoh and... read more
He made ready his chariot . The Egyptian monarchs, from the time of the eighteenth dynasty, always went out to war in a chariot. The chariots were, like the Greek and the Assyrian, open behind, and consisted of a semicircular standing-beard of wood, from which rose in a graceful curve the antyx or rim to the height of about two feet and a half above the standing-beard. The chariot had two wheels and a pole, and was drawn by two horses. It ordinarily contained two men only, the warrior and... read more
Final triumph over Egypt (13:17-14:31)When they left Egypt, the Israelites did not go by way of the Mediterranean coast, as this was well defended by the Egyptians and war would certainly have resulted. Instead they went east towards the Red Sea (17-18). (A literal translation for the name of this stretch of water is Sea of Reeds. It was not the 200 kilometre wide sea that we today call the Red Sea, but probably an extension of the Red Sea’s north-western arm, the Gulf of Suez. It seems to have... read more
And . Note the Polysyndeton ( App-6 ) in Exodus 14:6 and Exodus 14:7 . read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Exodus 14:1-9
We have here, I. Instructions given to Moses concerning Israel's motions and encampments, which were so very surprising that if Moses had not express orders about them before they would scarcely have been persuaded to follow the pillar of cloud and fire. That therefore there might be no scruple nor dissatisfaction about it, Moses is told before, 1. Whither they must go, Exod. 14:1, 2. They had got to the edge of the wilderness (Exod. 13:20), and a stage or two more would have brought them to... read more