Parting The Waters

 

Ever watch a magician ply their trade? They roll up their sleeves to show that nothing is hidden up their sleeve, then they wave their hands and “proof”, something appears, or more confusing, something disappears! You know without a doubt, what they did was impossible, yet there before your very eyes it happened! And you can’t explain it, and you can’t refute it. And then your level of frustration rises so high, you demand to see the illusion again. The magician shakes his head and then proceeds to outdo the previous feat of magic with something that causes your mouth to drop open.

Deep in your heart you know it’s an illusion or a slight of hand trick, but you can’t for the life of you figure it out. You use logic, you use reason, you use every device you have to explain what just happened but nothing works. You capitulate and accept that your ability to see through the ruse is moot. Some things cannot be explained, some things must be seen to be believed.

Moses was chosen by God to lead the Israelites out of bondage from Egypt. With millions of people under his leadership, Moses had an enormous task. Something this epic couldn’t happen without direct intervention by God’s hand. It has been estimated that the point where the Israelites crossed the Red Sea the water was anywhere from one half mile to one mile deep and over one mile wide. Imagine a gathering of almost five million people, assorted animals and carts, the handicapped , babies, the elderly, the sick and others all pressed against a deep sea with the Egyptian army in pursuit. Only God could possibly manage to stop the Egyptian army and part the waters. Moses held up his staff, the waters parted to dry ground.

The entire nation experienced the event personally. Can you possibly imagine the mighty Red Sea separating itself for a distance of several miles, exposing only dry ground, and a standing wall of water reaching one mile high for a distance of more than a mile! In the movie version, “The Ten Commandments”, the director, Cecil B. DeMill couldn’t possibly imagine the scale needed to convey what happened. Maybe from an airplane!