Pharaoh Pursues Israel

God led the people of Israel by means of a pillar of cloud and fire after they left Egypt (Ex. 13:17–22), but that was not the only way He guided them. As we see in today’s passage, He continued to speak to Moses to tell the Israelites where to travel. In Exodus 14:1–3, the Lord gives directions for the next stage of their journey, telling them to do something quite unexpected.

Instead of having the people continue east away from Egypt, the Lord tells Moses to have Israel “turn back and encamp in front of Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of Baal-zephon” (vv. 1–2). These place names do not help us precisely identify the route taken. The word “Pi-hahiroth” is usually taken to be an Egyptian term that means “salt marshes,” and there were plenty of salt marshes along Egypt’s eastern border. “Migdol” is a Semitic word meaning “watchtower,” and there was a network of Egyptian fortresses and towers along its eastern border as well, and the word does not single out any one of them. “Baal-zephon” means “Baal of the North,” so it must have been a shrine to that Canaanite deity who was worshiped in the region at many places. But even though we do not know the exact route of Israel at this time, Exodus 14:3 makes clear the effect that God intended the Israelites’ travels to have on Pharaoh: it would make him think that Israel was lost and wandering aimlessly.

The Lord wanted Pharaoh to draw that conclusion so that the king would pursue Israel one last time, enabling God to “get glory over Pharaoh and all his host” and to show the Egyptians that He is the Lord (v. 4). Once more we see that Israel’s rescue, while certainly the Lord’s desire, was not His primary aim in the exodus. Instead, the chief goal was to reveal His glory and to make Himself known in Egypt. Ultimately, what the Lord wants most is to reveal Himself to sinners, to show them that He is God and there is no other (see Isa. 45:22). He set up Pharaoh for a fall by having the Israelites wander about just after they left Egypt, and He did this to show Himself as God Almighty. John Calvin comments, “God, for the sake of magnifying His glory, set a bait to catch the tyrant, just as fish are hooked.”

Pharaoh, of course, took the bait, going forth with his army to recapture Israel (Ex. 14:5–7). Verse 5 highlights the complicity of Pharaoh’s officials. They were not merely following orders, but they agreed together that they should not have let Israel go.