Have you ever been discouraged? Has it ever seemed that God hasn’t kept a promise? Have you ever suffered for following God’s plan? You aren’t the first to feel this way. In Exodus 6:2-8, we find God confronting a discouraged Moses. Moses has just appeared before Pharaoh and not only did he not succeed in gaining Israel’s freedom, he actually made their working conditions worse! They now have to gather their own straw for bricks and continue the same level of productivity. Moses has upset both Pharaoh and the Israelite foremen. Moses is understandably discouraged, but God encourages Moses with divine promises of deliverance.
God first reminds Moses who He is: “I am Yahweh.” God is revealing Himself to Moses with His personal, covenant name. This is the name that represents God’s personal dealings in the affairs of the Israelites. The divine name, Yahweh, is closely related to the Hebrew word “hawyah”, meaning “to be.” He is “I AM,” the only self-existent God whose promises are bound up in His true and eternal nature. God then recalls the covenant made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to give them a great nation of descendants and the land of Canaan as a possession. God tells Moses to remind the Israelites that He is Yahweh, then He gives Abraham seven “I will” promises to give to the Israelites: I will deliver you, I will free you, I will redeem you, I will take you as my people, I will be your God, I will bring you to the land, and I will give it to you (vs. 6-8). God gives His people two, short statements for comfort “I AM” and “I will.” He is saying “I am God, and I will keep my promises!”
We now fast-forward to chapter 15. God has just given Israel victory over the Egyptians who had enslaved them for 400 years. The Israelites are now standing on the shore of the Red Sea after walking through on dry ground. Pharaoh and the Egyptian army are drowned in the sea. Israel is free for the first time in 400 years. This generation had never known anything but slavery and oppression and God has just delivered them. God has kept His promises! It is time to celebrate and that is exactly what the Israelites are doing. Chapter 15 records their victory song.
In verse 15:1, Moses and the Israelites give the reason for their praise (vs. 1); they are singing because of the victory that God has given them. Israel also recognizes that God is their salvation (vs. 2). They were not delivered by an army or their own strength, but by a miraculous act of God. Israel also does something very significant in this passage; they acknowledge Yahweh not only as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob but also as their personal Lord and God. Israel is making a public, personal, and national commitment to God! In 15:11, Israel publicly acknowledges that Yahweh is unique and exclusive: there is none other like Him. The false gods of the Egyptians are seen as weak and powerless against the backdrop of Yahweh’s majesty and holiness.
Perhaps you have been discouraged like Moses when it seemed that your best efforts had failed. Or perhaps you’ve been angry like the Israelite foremen when following God’s plan seemed to land you in more trouble than you were in to start with. These are not times to give up, but rather they are times we should recall God’s promises and remember those two phrases “I AM” and “I will.” God never changes and God never breaks a promise.
This post was originally published in the Baptist & Reflector, November 27, 2012.
Ray A. Umphrey 