← Back to sermon library

to exodus chapter 13 exodus chapter 
13 so last week we saw the tenth plague and the exodus proper 
and prior to the tenth plague we saw the institution of the 
passover and unleavened bread which was a central feature in 
Israel's calendar, we see that emphasized here in chapter 13 
as well. So I'll read beginning in verse 
1. Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Consecrate to me all 
the firstborn, whatever opens the womb among the children of 
Israel, both of man and beast, it is mine. And Moses said to 
the people, remember this day in which you went out of Egypt, 
out of the house of bondage, for by strength of hand the Lord 
brought you out of this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. 
On this day you are going out in the month of Abib. "'And it 
shall be when the Lord brings you "'into the land of the Canaanites, 
and the Hittites, "'and the Amorites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, 
"'which he swore to your fathers to give you, "'a land flowing 
with milk and honey, "'that you shall keep this service in this 
month. "'Seven days you shall eat unleavened 
bread, "'and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the 
Lord. "'On leavened bread shall be eaten seven days, "'and no 
leavened bread shall be seen among you, "'nor shall leaven 
be seen among you in all your quarters. "'And you shall tell 
your son in that day, saying, "'This is done because of what 
the Lord did for me "'when I came up from Egypt. It shall be as 
a sign to you on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, 
that the Lord's law may be in your mouth, for with a strong 
hand the Lord has brought you out of Egypt. You shall therefore 
keep this ordinance in its season from year to year. And it shall 
be, when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, 
as He swore to you and your fathers, and gives it to you, that you 
shall set apart to the Lord all that open the womb, that is, 
every firstborn that comes from an animal which you have. The 
males shall be the Lord's, but every firstborn of a donkey you 
shall redeem with a lamb. And if you will not redeem with 
a lamb, and if you, I'm sorry, and if you will not redeem it, 
then you shall break its neck. "'and all the firstborn of man 
among your sons "'you shall redeem. "'So it shall be, when your son 
asks you in time to come, "'saying, what is this? "'That you shall 
say to him, by strength of hand, "'the Lord brought us out of 
Egypt, "'out of the house of bondage. "'And it came to pass 
when Pharaoh was stubborn "'about letting us go, "'that the Lord 
killed all the firstborn "'in the land of Egypt, "'both the 
firstborn of man and the firstborn of beast. Therefore, I sacrifice 
to the Lord all males that open the womb, but all the firstborn 
of my sons I redeem. It shall be as a sign on your 
hand and as frontlets between your eyes, for by strength of 
hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt. Then it came to pass, 
when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God did not lead them 
by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God 
said, lest perhaps the people change their minds when they 
see war and return to Egypt. So God led the people around 
by way of the wilderness of the Red Sea. And the children of 
Israel went up in orderly ranks out of the land of Egypt. And 
Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for he had placed the 
children of Israel under solemn oath, saying, God will surely 
visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here with you. 
So they took their journey from Succoth and encamped in Etham 
at the edge of the wilderness. And the Lord went before them 
by day in a pillar of cloud to lead the way, and by night in 
a pillar of fire to give them light, so as to go by day and 
night. He did not take away the pillar 
of cloud by day or the pillar of fire by night from before 
the people. Amen. Well, we see the emphasis 
here on the consecration of the firstborn, which we'll look at 
in some detail, but it does make perfect sense. So after the death 
of the firstborn, we now see that God demands the firstborn 
of those whom he didn't kill. So in judgment, the Lord struck 
Egypt. We saw that. foretold, or prophesied, 
or stated back in chapter 4. It was the application of the 
lex talionis, or the law of retribution. In Exodus 4, verse 22, So I say 
to you, let my son go, that he may serve me. But if you refuse 
to let him go, indeed I will kill your son, your firstborn. 
So in Exodus 12, verses 29 and 30, we see that 
comes to pass. It came to pass at midnight that 
the Lord struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt from the 
firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn 
of the captive who is in the dungeon and all the firstborn 
of livestock. And then over in chapter 13, 
specifically at verse 15, what would be rehearsed to Israelite 
children in terms of God's justice or judgment upon Egypt. And it 
came to pass, when Pharaoh was stubborn about letting us go, 
that the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, 
both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of feasts. So chapter 
13 functions in a way similar to Romans chapter 12, verses 
1 and 2. After an exposition of the gospel 
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the Apostle says, I therefore 
beseech you by the mercies of God that you present your bodies 
as a living sacrifice. In other words, a response to 
the great redemptive work of God is the giving up of ourselves 
unto Him. not as if we can purchase his 
favor, but because he has saved us, we respond with gratitude, 
we respond with sacrifice, we respond with worship and praise 
and adoration. And so that motif is certainly 
present here in chapter 13. So we'll look first at the consecration 
of the firstborn in verses one and two. Secondly, the celebration 
of the feast of unleavened bread in verses three to 10. And then 
the rules concerning the consecration of the firstborn in verses 11 
to 16, clarifying that no, you're not actually going to kill your 
children. And then the last section deals 
with the reasons for an irregular route. If you look at a map, 
and you look at the way that they went, you would say, why 
didn't they just head straight east in order to get to the land 
of Canaan? Well, that's why this section 
in verses 17 to 22 is there, to underscore or to tell us why 
it was the case that they took a circuitous route in order to 
pursue their objective in going to the land of Canaan. But notice 
in the first place the command in verse one, the Lord spoke 
to Moses saying, consecrate to me, or set apart for me, or sanctify. Those words all are grounded 
in the same sort of a root concept. separate unto me all the firstborn, 
whatever opens the womb among the children of Israel, both 
of man and beast, it is mine. So the setting apart unto God 
or returning them in gratitude to God. Now the specific details 
will be explained in verses 12 and 13. Obviously God is not 
calling upon them to kill their firstborn sons, but rather they 
are to redeem those firstborn sons with the death of an animal, 
again to underscore the reality that God in the slaying of the 
Egyptian firstborn nevertheless spared the Israelite firstborn. John Gill said, if the firstborn 
of clean creatures, they were to be sacrificed. If unclean, 
to be redeemed with a price. And so the firstborn of men, 
because it was not lawful to sacrifice them. And the money 
for the redemption of them was given to the priests, the ministers 
of the Lord, and so to him. You see this again, Later in 
the book of Numbers, you see it as well in the book of Deuteronomy. So this is not unique to Exodus 
chapter 13. This mandate for the consecration 
of setting apart the firstborn. Now in terms of the actual significance, 
Stuart, I think, describes it well. He says, God here and elsewhere 
claims ownership of the firstborn of humans and animals, which 
their families were required to present to him as his property. Did he actually want to keep 
them? No, except in the rarest of instances. For example, in 
the case of Samuel, he kept Samuel according to 1 Samuel 1. Thus 
the provision in verses 13 and 15 for redeeming the firstborn 
back into the family by means of a buyback payment. His desire 
was that the Israelites recognize his right to ownership of the 
first and best. in whatever came to them in spoils 
of war, or harvests, or offspring. It is necessary and beneficial 
that human beings recognize that God is superior to them, and 
the requirement of a ritual that reminded every Israelite of this 
by insisting on receiving their firstborn from them helped create 
the spiritual attitude of submission. So it was a way to instruct them, 
it was a way to teach them, and it was a way, as well, for the 
redeemed of God to be able to return their gratitude and thanksgiving 
back to God most high. Now obviously, this happened 
in the case of the Lord Jesus Christ. In Luke's gospel, in 
chapter two, at verses 22 to 24, Joseph and Mary obeyed this. They offered up a turtle dove, 
or turtle doves, in exchange, or with reference to the redemption 
price, in order not to ultimately have to give up their son, the 
Lord Jesus Christ. So this was a mandate, consecrate 
to me all the firstborn, whatever opens the womb among the children 
of Israel, both of man and beast, it is mine. So again, the principle 
of tithing, the principle of returning something back to the 
living God as an expression of our gratitude to Him for all 
of the benefits that He confers to us. And we need to appreciate 
that's what giving is in the life of the church. We don't 
give because God needs money. God owns the cattle on a thousand 
hills. There's nothing that God doesn't 
own. But it is, again, it's an expression 
of our gratitude to God for what He has done for us. And as well, 
it's a sacrifice. And the idea of sacrifice is 
turning something over to God, realizing that it may affect 
us, or it may hurt us. But His worthiness, His altogether 
loveliness, is worthy of those gifts. And that's one of the 
lessons that I think comes out of this particular chapter, is 
the worthiness of God. The fact that God demands the 
firstborn, underscores the reality that He's worth it. we shouldn't 
be stingy when it comes to our service to God or in those gifts 
given to God. Now notice secondly the celebration 
of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. This repeats much of what we've 
already seen in chapter 12. And again I think it underscores 
the necessity of Israel's calendar. Israel's calendar was a that 
was filled with feasting, filled with joy, joyous celebration 
concerning the work of God. Certainly Israelites were supposed 
to fast, but they were also supposed to feast. And one of the things 
that they did in these times of feastings was to remember 
the great works of God. And in other words, or in a parallel 
to this, we have the Lord's Supper and the new covenant. We don't 
do that as an empty ritual. We don't do that just to sort 
of satisfy a requirement We do it because it's a means of grace. 
It's a time for us to focus our energy and our attention specifically 
on that great redemptive act of our God through his son, the 
Lord Jesus Christ. And it is a time for us to express 
our unity with one another and to communicate our love and our 
worship to the living and true God. So back to the Feast of 
Unleavened Bread. Notice in the first place, the 
necessity to remember. Amnesia produces apostasy among 
the professing people of God. Amnesia produces apostasy among 
the professing people of God. We need to remember. And then, 
or when we see how many times feasts like these are rehearsed, 
the idea is that you need to take these things seriously. 
Notice in verse three, Moses said to the people, remember 
this day in which you went out of Egypt, out of the house of 
bondage, for by strength of hand, the Lord brought you out of this 
place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. On this day, you are going out 
in the month of Abed. And so we have the day that the 
people went out from Egypt. And notice it is described as 
the house of bondage. They weren't there as a vacation. They weren't there at a resort. 
It wasn't that Egypt had wonderful sort of golf courses. They were 
in the house of bondage. And that is mentioned so that 
the children of Israel can recognize that what God most high did for 
them was to liberate and deliver them from that slavery. As well, the day the people witnessed 
the power was the day the people witnessed the power of God Most 
High. Notice, for by strength of hand, 
the Lord brought you out of this place. How do you think that 
would function for the faithful in Israel as they're about to 
embark on this journey to the promised land? They were not 
a people that were familiar with war. We'll see that's why God 
had them go on a circuitous route. But they're going into a very 
difficult situation. Remember that most of them, well 
all of them, this generation grew up in Egypt. Their parents 
grew up in Egypt. Their grandparents grew up in 
Egypt. This was all they knew. Now, 
of course, they were slaves, and they were under oppression, 
and it was a strict form of bondage, but that's all they ever knew. 
So now they're being asked to leave from this security, as 
it were, and then go out into the wilderness. Well, what Moses 
reminds them of is that you've seen the strength of hand, the 
Lord, or by the strength of hand, the Lord brought you out of this 
place. That would greatly encourage 
the saints of Christ as they move out into the wilderness. 
Again, that's one of the reasons we read our Bibles. It's one 
of the reasons why we study the book of Exodus, why we read the 
Old Testament, to see the power and the majesty and the excellence 
of God. In fact, when you go to the Psalms, 
specifically the Psalms ascribed to Asaph, Asaph was a fellow, 
now some speculate that David wrote every single one of the 
Psalms, others say no, there were others that composed them. 
You have the subscripts, Ethan the Ezraite, for instance, Moses, 
wrote Psalm 90, I think it is. And then you have these Psalms 
ascribed to Asaph. Now Asaph witnessed firsthand 
pagans come to destroy the temple of God Almighty. And God didn't 
immediately vindicate his people. He didn't immediately come to 
their rescue. In fact, in Psalm 77, Asaph says 
to God, take your hand out of your bosom and destroy them. 
And I think the idea is, is that God wasn't doing that. But you 
know where Asaph would go to encourage and stabilize his heart? 
He'd go back to the Exodus. He would go back to this great 
redemptive act of God when he stretched out his mighty hand 
and in mercy delivered Israel, but in judgment destroyed the 
Egyptians. So this would be most encouraging 
for the people of God as they embark on this wilderness wandering. And when you look at this particular 
month, Abib, it's before the exile, it's referred to as Abib. But in the post-exilic writings, 
it's referred to as Nisan. So it's the same exact month, 
the first of their calendar, and it is significant in terms 
of this great redemptive act. Now notice, not only is there 
this necessity to remember in verses three to four, but there 
is a responsibility for perpetual remembrance. In other words, 
it's not just once. And again, the emphasis in the 
Lord's Supper, as often as you eat this bread and drink this 
cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. There is 
a repetition involved in these particular ordinances for the 
encouragement of the people of God and to sustain and nurture 
our faith. And so when he goes to encourage 
them with reference to the responsibility for perpetual remembrance, he 
reminds them that they are heading to Canaan. Notice in verse 5, 
and it shall be when the Lord brings you into the land of the 
Canaanites. Same thing in verse 11, and it 
shall be when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites. 
They're not there yet. It's going to take them three 
months to get to Sinai, and then it's going to take them a whole 
lot of years to eventually get into Canaan. Remember, that period 
of time, God teaches them many lessons. God tutors them. God leads them. God ultimately 
judges the wilderness generation and cuts them off, such that 
it's the second generation that ultimately enters into the land 
of Canaan. But here, Moses is speaking in 
terms of what they will receive. So the promise of the promised 
land will encourage them. As well, notice the description 
of the promised land, which He swore to your fathers to give 
you, a land flowing with milk and honey, that you shall keep 
this service in this month. And then He grounds it in the 
oath of God that He had made to the fathers before. Notice, 
which he swore to your fathers to give you. We've been studying 
the Old Testament for however long we've been studying the 
Old Testament. And we've seen that that initial 
sort of promise was given to Abraham when he comes out of 
Ur the Chaldeans, God tells him that he will put him in a land. 
We're not quite there yet, but we're on the way. We're getting 
closer. But this is all grounded in the 
covenant promise of God to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And it comes 
up several times throughout the Pentateuch to remind the people 
of God that what is happening isn't lucky. It isn't fortuitous. 
It's not because there are great people, but it's because they 
serve a covenant God, a faithful God. And then notice the observance 
of the feast in verses six and seven, basically a rehearsal 
of what we've seen in chapter 12, and then the catechetical 
focus in verses eight to 10. The catechetical focus in verses 
eight to 10. For you younger folks with kids, 
and I guess for us older folks with grandkids, we should pay 
close attention and notice the emphasis that we find in verses 
eight to 10. and you shall tell your son in 
that day." In other words, when you're engaged in the Feast of 
Unleavened Bread, when you're celebrating the Passover, it's 
not empty ritual. You don't just sit the kids down 
and say, okay, eat your lamb, you know, wear your belt and 
your sandals and hold on to your staff. It's not that, you're 
explaining the significance of God's redemptive power that was 
manifested on that night when He executed His wrath against 
Egypt and the gods of Egypt. So notice in verse eight, you 
shall tell your son in that day saying, this is done because 
of what the Lord did for me when I came up from Egypt. In other 
words, we're doing this to honor God. We're doing this to praise 
and worship God. We're doing this to glorify God. 
You see, parents, it's not enough to just do it, but you need to 
catechize or educate or instruct your children along the way in 
terms of the significance of it. Again, I think of the Lord's 
Supper, I'm hoping that all the parents with young children are 
leaning over and telling the significance or encouraging them 
to pay attention as we rehearse the significance from the pulpit, 
and that at home perhaps you use the opportunity to encourage 
them what's going on in terms of the supper, bread and wine. 
And then notice, it's the function of the feast in verse nine. It 
says, it shall be as a sign to you on your hand and as a memorial 
between your eyes that the Lord's law may be in your mouth. For 
with a strong hand, the Lord has brought you out of Egypt. 
Now listen, what he does here and what he does in verse 16 
is metaphorical. He's not actually saying there's 
going to be a physical sign on your hand and there's going to 
be a physical memorial between your eyes and that the Lord's 
law is actually going to be in your mouth. Notice again at verse 
16, it shall be as a sign on your hand and as frontlets between 
your eyes. For by strength of hand, the 
Lord brought us out of Egypt. Now, eventually the Jews would 
develop this little system called phylacteries. They'd get little 
boxes and they'd put a few scripture verses in there, most likely 
Exodus chapter 13, and they'd wear that either on their forearm 
or on their bicep or on their forehead. But that's not what's 
happening here. This is not a command to do that. 
Make yourself little boxes, put them on your arms, wear them 
on your head, and that's, you know, to satisfy. He's saying 
the significance of unleavened bread, the significance of the 
Passover feast, the significance of eating that lamb and those 
bitter herbs, the significance of the leavened bread will be 
as if it's written on your hand. It'll be as if it's right before 
your eyes. And again, when we look at the 
supper, when we look at baptism, that's what they convey. One 
man has well described the regulative principle of worship. We preach 
the Bible, we sing the Bible, we read the Bible, we pray the 
Bible, and we see the Bible. How do we see the Bible? We see 
it in baptism, and we see it in the supper. We see the reality 
of what God does inwardly when a sinner identifies with the 
triune God, goes into that water and comes out again. We see it 
whenever we eat this bread and we drink this cup and we proclaim 
the Lord's death. We see it in a way that is strong 
and powerful and that's the emphasis here in verse nine. And then 
the mandate is for perpetual observance. You shall therefore 
keep this ordinance in its season from year to year. A part of 
Israel's calendar was the feast of unleavened bread. Now notice 
thirdly the rules concerning the consecration of the firstborn. The practice is rehearsed. Verse 
11, it shall be when the Lord brings you into the land of the 
Canaanites as he swore to you and your fathers and gives it 
to you. Again, it couldn't be any more 
conspicuous. They didn't earn this land. They 
weren't the best people. They weren't the greatest nation. 
In fact, later in the book of Deuteronomy, God through Moses 
reminds them of that. You're not where you're at. because 
you're more numerous, you're not where you're at because you're 
more righteous, you're where you're at because God swore an 
oath. And as a result of his swearing 
an oath, you are where you are at. And now notice that, verse 
12, you shall set apart to the Lord all that open the womb, 
that is, every firstborn that comes from an animal which you 
have. The males shall be the Lord's. It was to return to God 
The firstborn of the flock, or of the womb, consecrated, set 
apart, sanctified for his use. In the case of Samuel, that certainly 
was the case. Not that he was put to death, 
but that he was put into God's service. And so that's the particular 
rule. So the firstborn of clean animals 
was to be sacrificed. The firstborn of unclean animals 
was to be redeemed. Notice in verse 13, I don't think 
he's just dealing with donkeys, but donkeys as representative 
of unclean animals. But every firstborn of a donkey 
you shall redeem with a lamb. And if you will not redeem it, 
then you shall break its neck. and all the firstborn of man 
among your sons you shall redeem. So notice, you're not supposed 
to sacrifice your child. You're not supposed to put a 
knife to their throat. This consecration to the Lord 
is a confession, and as well, there is a sacrifice when you 
take an animal and you cut its throat. So what else are the 
people of Israel being tutored in? They're being taught something 
concerning substitutionary atonement. They're being taught something 
concerning an exchange, one for another. So much of what you 
have in the Old Testament, by way of typology, that points 
us forward to the Lord Jesus Christ, maybe they would not 
have gotten all of the significance at that particular point. But 
certainly, as new covenant Christians, who know who the Lamb of God 
is who takes away the sin of the world, New Covenant Christians 
who have the book of Hebrews, we can look back on this and 
say, oh yeah, that makes a lot of sense why there would be this 
exchange, why one in the place of another. when you go back 
to Genesis chapter 22 and that instance where Abraham is told 
to take Isaac up to Mount Moriah and to sacrifice him there. And 
then Isaac says, we've got the wood, we've got the fire, but 
where's the animal? And what does Abraham say to 
Isaac? The Lord will provide. Abraham walked by faith every 
step of the way in that instance. What a horrible thing. Take your 
son, your only son, the son whom you love, take him up and cut 
his throat and offer him up to God most high. And then of course 
when the angel of the Lord comes to spare Isaac, what happens? They turn around and there's 
a ram caught in the thicket and there's the lamb, or ram rather, 
that'll be sacrificed for them. So these lessons are being taught 
to Israel so that In John's gospel, in John 1, 29, when the Baptist 
says, behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the 
world, persons aren't saying, what do you mean, John? What 
are you trying to tell us? No, it's obvious what he meant. 
This was typical. It pointed forward. And they 
were taught these things in their time of wandering. So the firstborn 
of man was not, or was to be redeemed, not sacrificed. Again, John Gill, if the firstborn 
of clean creatures, if the firstborn of clean creatures, they were 
to be sacrificed. If unclean, to be redeemed with 
a price. "'And so the firstborn of men, 
"'because it was not lawful to sacrifice them. "'And the money 
for the redemption of them "'was given to the priests, the ministers 
of the Lord, "'and so to him.'" Turn to Numbers chapter 18, just 
to see that specified what in terms of redemption was paid. 
So Numbers chapter 18, this is under the duties of Levites and 
priests. So yes, the priests definitely 
benefited from this. Remember, they were supported 
by the cult. They made their living based 
on this venture. And so they were provided for 
in the law. So notice that Numbers 18, 15, 
everything that first opens the womb of all flesh, which they 
bring to the Lord, whether man or beast shall be yours. Nevertheless, 
the firstborn of man you shall surely redeem, and the firstborn 
of unclean animals you shall redeem. And those redeemed of 
the devoted things you shall redeem when one month old, according 
to your valuation, for five shekels of silver, according to the shekel 
of the sanctuary, which is 20 geras. But the firstborn of a 
cow, the firstborn of a sheep, or the firstborn of a goat you 
shall not redeem, they are holy. "'You shall sprinkle their blood 
on the altar "'and burn their fat as an offering made by fire 
"'for a sweet aroma to the Lord, "'and their flesh shall be yours, 
"'just as the wave breast and the right thigh are yours.'" 
So just a fleshing out or an indicator in terms of the redemption 
with reference to the male firstborn, or the human firstborn. Back to the passage, we see again 
this emphasis on catechism. this emphasis on instructing 
children. What do you think God's saying 
in this chapter? What do you think He's saying 
throughout the book of Deuteronomy and those references to sort 
of multi or transgenerational worship of the triune God in 
the Psalms? It is incumbent upon the people 
of God to pass this information on to their children. Children 
obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your 
father and your mother. This is the first commandment 
with promise. And then what? Fathers, do not provoke your 
children to wrath, but bring them up in what? The training 
and admonition of the Lord. Catechize them, teach them, tell 
them what the Exodus is about. Tell them what the new Exodus 
under Jesus Christ is all about. Matthew Poole commenting on verse 
14. Verse 14, so it shall be, when your son asks you in time 
to come, saying, what is this that you shall say to him? Poole 
says, which is added to teach parents in all succeeding ages 
that it is their duty to instruct their children in the word and 
works of God and in the nature and reasons of every particular 
kind or part of God's worship and service. They're not gonna 
just get it. Now certainly they're gonna get 
something when you bring them to church, schlep them to church 
every week, and that's part of it. That is a huge part of it. What better lesson can you teach 
your children than that they should be in church every Sunday? 
That is absolutely crucial. but as well at the family altar 
at home. You're instructing your children 
in the things of the Lord. And notice the content of the 
instruction in the middle of verse 14. By strength of hand, 
the Lord brought us out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 
A great lesson for our children to learn when they have the various 
issues of life that they're dealing with. Notice as well the justice 
of God in the destruction of the firstborn. 15a, and it came 
to pass when Pharaoh was stubborn about letting us go, that the 
Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the 
firstborn of man and the firstborn of beast. Therefore, I sacrifice 
to the Lord all males that open the womb, but all the firstborn 
of my sons I redeem. You see, he's telling, he's giving 
the significance, he's explaining the theology behind the actual 
rite. So it's not just the sacrament, 
but we explain it through the word of God in order to make 
sense out of what it is that is happening. And so then the 
function of the rite for the memory of the catechized in verse 
16, it shall be as a sign on your hand and as frontlets between 
your eyes for by strength of hand the Lord brought us out 
of Egypt. We should never treat lightly the sacraments of the 
church. Those are exciting things. We should always have this excitement 
when it comes time for baptism or the supper. This idea, well, 
we just do the Lord's Supper once a month because that's just 
what we do. No, that's a blessed, wonderful, privileged time for 
the church to come together as church and to corporately proclaim 
the Lord's death until he comes. So as we move through scripture, 
there is this constant emphasis on instructing the next generation. 
on teaching them the truth of the living God, so that when 
they get older, when they make that confession, when they embrace 
the Lord, they've already got that framework there, and then 
they in turn teach their children, and we continue to replicate 
this. At some point, we gotta look around and say, somebody's 
dropping the ball, because there's a lot of grown people now that 
don't know anything about the Bible or theology, and they happen 
to call themselves Christians. Where were your folks? He probably 
heard the old adage that if a Jew, you know, a boy was asked to 
recite the Ten Commandments and he couldn't do it, the dad got 
in trouble. And that's right. That kid should 
know the commandments because of dad teaching the commandments 
and because of dad in the New Covenant Church pointing our 
children to the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, notice 
finally the reasons for an irregular route in verses 17 to 22. The 
wilderness journey to Sinai begins here in chapter 13 at verse 17 
and concludes in chapter 19. They're at the base of Sinai. The people are at the end of 
chapter 19. It was always said that this 
is where they were going to go. Exodus 3 verse 1, Exodus 3 verse 
12. God tells Moses, who's in the 
area of Horeb, that you're going to bring people to this mountain 
to do service unto me. So this was where they were going 
to go. As I said, it takes three months to get from here to there. 
But notice the altered route. So verse 17 says, it came to 
pass when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God did not lead 
them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was 
near. Again, if you look at the map, 
they could have just shot across and gone up into Canaan, lickety-split. But notice the specific reason. 
For God said, lest perhaps the people change their minds, Now, 
the language is in the manner of men. God doesn't live in the 
realm of, lest perhaps. That's not God. God doesn't kind 
of wonder if this is going to happen. God doesn't kind of think 
that maybe this is written for us. It's giving us information 
as to why they took a circuitous route. And the language, again, 
is in the manner of men, lest perhaps the people change their 
minds when they see war and return to Egypt. Now they're already 
being divvied up into, you know, armies or divisions. If you look at the, where is 
it? Verse, at the end of verse 18, 
and the children of Israel went up in orderly ranks out of the 
land of Egypt. So there's already in chapter 
seven, chapter 12, and then previously back in chapter six and seven, 
reference to the armies of Israel. But that doesn't mean they were 
skilled and able warriors at this particular point. And so 
God knows that if they go and the Philistines engage them, 
the temptation or tendency is going to be for the Israelites 
to say, let's go back to Egypt. And in fact, when you move through 
the wilderness with the Israelites, you can't think this is outlandish 
because there are times and seasons where they say, boy, it'd sure 
be nice to be back in the land of Egypt where we had garlic 
and we had leeks and we had onions and we had, you know, every good 
thing that we could want. So God knows that if they have 
a skirmish with the Philistines, and they're gonna go, well, let's 
go back to Egypt. It wasn't great, but at least 
we didn't have to fight with the Philistines. At least all 
we had to do was, you know, make bricks and do these sorts of 
things that we've done for all of our lives. So this was, in 
a way, a preventative maintenance such that the route was changed 
in order for them to take that particular route. So notice verse 
18, so God led the people around by way of the wilderness of the 
Red Sea, and the children of Israel went up in orderly ranks 
out of the land of Egypt. So it was a good purpose, a good 
reason, don't go by the Philistines, they're gonna try to attack you, 
so I don't want you to go back to Egypt at this particular point. 
Verse 19 rehearses something again from the book of Genesis, 
Genesis 50, Joseph wanted his bones taken to the promised land. That was a confession of faith. 
That was an expression of faith. Joseph understood that the God 
who promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob would make good that 
promise, and that those people would one day own the nation 
of Canaan. And so this is a reminder of 
that in verse 19. So Moses took the bones of Joseph 
with him for he had placed the children of Israel under Solomon 
saying, God will surely visit you and you shall carry up my 
bones from here with you. Just like when Abraham bought 
that piece of property where he would bury Sarah. He was offered 
that property for free. He made sure he bought it. Why? Because that's our dirt. That's 
our promised gift. I want a down payment of it. 
So Joseph understood that one day his bones would ultimately 
be in the promised land. And then notice finally this 
pillar of cloud and fire. The root is given us in verse 
20, they took their journey from Sukkoth and camped in Etham at 
the edge of the wilderness. And the Lord went before them 
by day in a pillar of cloud to lead the way and by night in 
a pillar of fire to give them light, so as to go by day and 
night. He did not take away the pillar 
of cloud by day or the pillar of fire by night from before 
the people. Now, the pillar was singular. 
I don't think you're dealing with two. It's singular, and 
during the day it was cloud, and during the night it was fire. 
It was not Yahweh. It was not God. It wasn't the 
case that God happened to be a pillar of fire or a pillar 
of cloud. If you look at chapter 14 at 
verse 24, Chapter 14 at verse 24. Now it 
came to pass in the morning watch that the Lord looked down upon 
the army of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and cloud, 
and he troubled the army of the Egyptians. So God is not a burning 
bush. God is not a pillar of cloud 
or fire, but rather it is a visible representation of God's presence 
among them. It was the visible representation 
of God's presence among them. Psalm 78, in the daytime also 
he led them with the cloud and all the night with a light of 
fire. Psalm 105, verse 39, says he spread a cloud for a covering 
and fire to give light in the night. So that's what the older 
commentators at least suggest is that the cloud would have 
shielded them by day from the burning heat, and then the pillar 
of fire by night would have given them the ability to see and navigate 
their way in the wilderness. But the bottom line is that it 
underscored the presence of God among his people. And then if 
you look at chapter 14, specifically at verse 19, It says, and the 
angel of God, who went before the camp of Israel, moved and 
went behind them, and the pillar of cloud went from before them 
and stood behind them. So it came between the camp of 
the Egyptians and the camp of Israel. Thus it was a cloud and 
darkness to the one, and it gave light by night to the other, 
so that the one did not come near the other all that night. 
So you see that reference to the angel of God. For a pretty 
simple but not airtight way to understand this angel of the 
Lord in the Old Testament, typically when you have the article, that 
means the word the, and the new King James capitalizes angel, 
a lot of commentators take that as a reference to the pre-incarnate 
Christ. In other words, it's the second 
person of the Trinity who is not an angel of the Lord. There 
is that use in the Old Testament as well. So you've got what's 
called a definite article, the angel, and then you have what's 
called an indefinite article, an angel. When the indefinite 
article is used, most people don't think that's Christ. But 
when it's the definite article, and when the New King James capitalizes 
the A, as I said, many old commentators believe that that's a reference 
to the pre-incarnate Christ. Now, this is strengthened when 
you read 1 Corinthians chapter 10, because Paul tells us that 
Christ was with Israel in the wilderness. So, it's not an outlandish 
interpretation, though I'm not sure we need to interpret it 
that way each and every single time. But in conclusion, two 
lessons for us, and then a couple of observations concerning God. 
In the first place, and I tried to bring this out, the necessity 
of remembering the mighty works of God. Some of this material 
is very repetitious. You probably didn't get a lot 
tonight, wow, this is so much different. No, a lot of it has 
its tap roots in what we've already seen in chapter 12. The reason 
why it's repeated is because it's so important. We have a 
tendency to forget. We have a tendency to not recollect. We have a tendency to grow lazy 
and apathetic. And what the scripture calls 
us to is a mindfulness concerning the great works of God so that 
we can encourage our hearts and strengthen ourselves in the grace 
of God. Not us strengthening ourselves, 
but stabilizing ourselves in that love of God. And then secondly, 
the necessity of sacrificing to God. Now again, when we sacrifice, 
brethren, it's not to buy God off. It's not, hey, I'm gonna 
give God this, and then he'll give me that. I think a lot of 
people treat it that way. I mean, you've got the health, 
wealth, prosperity, weirdos basically telling you that. Give this much, 
and then you'll get this much. No, that's not how we're supposed 
to look at it. We're supposed to give because 
God calls us to. But this attitude of sacrifice, 
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you 
present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to 
God, which is your reasonable service. In other words, if Romans 
1 to 11 is true, then it is reasonable service for us to give our lives 
to God Most High. Do not be conformed to this world, 
but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove 
what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. And 
then, of course, 1 Corinthians 6. How does Paul argue against 
sexual immorality? Well, he tells us to flee sexual 
immorality. He gives a very specific reason 
as to why. In 1 Corinthians 6 at verse 18. 
Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is 
outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins 
against his own body. Or do you not know that your 
body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you 
have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought 
at a price, therefore glorify God in your body and in your 
spirit, which are God." It's that same motif. You've been 
redeemed, body and soul, by our Lord. Don't take that body and 
join it to a harlot. Don't do that. No, rather you 
are to glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are 
God's. So two practical lessons from Exodus 13 in terms of our 
responsibility to remember the mighty works of God and as well 
the necessity of sacrificing to God. we might make a sub note 
or a minor note under remembering the mighty works of God to pass 
that information on to our children, to pass that information on to 
our grandchildren, to pass that information on to those who witness 
the things that we engage in in the context of the church 
so that we can communicate to them the truth of God's word. 
And then in terms of God, His perfections, you see the power 
of God in the deliverance of His people. Moses is very much 
pointed in that respect. He never wants them to forget, 
for by strength of hand the Lord brought you out of this place. 
It is good for us to understand the omnipotence of God. It is 
good for us to know that power. Secondly, the worthiness of God 
in the consecration of the firstborn. Again, the people of Israel shouldn't 
have said, oh, wow, that's a lot, that's a big ask, God. You want 
me to give my firstborn sheep? You want me to give my, no, they 
wouldn't have done that. Again, it's a no-brainer, it's 
your reasonable service. Romans 12, one makes absolutely 
perfect sense in light of Romans 1 to 11. Exodus chapter 13 verses 
one and two makes perfect sense in light of Exodus chapter 12. 
This is a no-brainer response. We acknowledge the worthiness 
of God. And then third, the presence 
of God among his people. Verses 20 to 22 are beautiful. They took their journey from 
Sukkoth and camped in Etham at the edge of the wilderness. And 
the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead 
the way. They weren't on their own. They 
weren't going this on their own. You know how many times they 
grumbled and complained when they were in the wilderness? 
And in Deuteronomy chapter 1, God reminds them through Moses, 
I was carrying you through the wilderness. They did not see 
his power and his might. So the Lord went before them 
by day in a pillar of cloud to lead the way, and by night in 
a pillar of fire to give them light, so as to go by day and 
night. So the presence of God, and then 
we saw the text in chapter 14, the protection of God in verses 
19 and 20. "'The angel of God who went before 
the camp of Israel "'moved and went behind them, "'and the pillar 
of cloud went from before them "'and stood behind them. "'So 
it came between the camp of the Egyptians "'and the camp of Israel. 
"'Thus it was a cloud and darkness to the one, "'and it gave light 
by night to the other, "'so that the one did not come near the 
other "'all that night.'" So God's presence, not only his 
presence, but also his protection for his people as they enter 
into a difficult scenario and a situation that he ultimately 
does carry them through to bring them safely to the promised land. Well, let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank you for your word and we thank you for the lessons 
that we see concerning our great God in Exodus chapter 13. I pray that you would help us 
to remember these works certainly the redeeming work of our Lord 
Jesus on the cross, but all the Old Testament as well and everything 
that typified that work and all the good things the Bible tells 
us about your power and your might and your glory. Help us, 
Lord God, and not only as individuals, but as parents and as grandparents, 
as adults, help us to pass this information on to the next generation. We know they are just prevailed 
upon in so many ways by so many temptations in such a godless 
world. So help us by your grace and 
for your glory to teach them and to pass these good truths 
onto them and to exhort them to flee to Christ for salvation. 
Thank you for this time that we can gather together. Thank 
you for your presence among your people in the Old Testament. 
And thank you for your presence among us now. And we pray through 
Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. Any questions or comments? Peter teaches us the same thing, 
saying that he clears up our pure minds by way of remembrance. 
You know, when God's people journeyed through the wilderness, it was 
obvious that they got short of that. They should have seen everything 
God had done for them and not murmured and grumbled, but they 
didn't. So it shows us, you know, of how susceptible we are to 
forget the goodness and strength of God. And then sometimes we 
judge them, but we do it even worse. Because we have their 
story plus the whole New Testament. So yeah, we're doubly messed 
up. Does it seem kind of odd that 
we talk with the other group to avoid war, and yet at the 
end of the day, they still freak out. They thought war against 
the land would just as easily take over. Well, I think there 
was preparation. I mean, they have 40 years being 
prepared so that when they went into Canaan, they were supposed 
to win. Supposed to know they would win. 
Yeah, I think that the whole time as they wander, they're 
being taught and tutored. Again, Deuteronomy 131, God says, 
I carry you through the wilderness. They didn't interpret it that 
way. They didn't see it that way. I mean, just like with us 
raising our children, sometimes we have to do hard things that 
they don't necessarily like. But we ultimately know it's for 
their good. And someday they'll say, yeah, I know you did that 
for my good, right? So yeah, I mean, when you look 
at every, it's like John said, every time you read the Old Testament, 
I mean, they whine incessantly. But again, we do, too. And we have their story, plus 
our story, plus the admonition from Paul. I don't think Paul 
is writing in a vacuum in what it means to do all things without 
disputing or complaining. I think that probably the mindset 
is this is typical for the people of God. It is. Yeah, we tend to whine. How much later was it? that they 
ended up at Cayden essentially the first time. And then we're 
like, oh, we can't do this. And then he sends them to the 
little island. That was in Numbers 13. Numbers 13 and 14, they send 
the spies out to recon the land. And then they said, no, we can't 
do it. And then that generation is destroyed. Yeah. Yeah, it's interesting, because 
there were 12 spies. And two of the spies said, let's 
go. Joshua and Caleb. Caleb said, 
let's go at once. But who did the congregation 
listen to? They listened to the whiners. 
It's pretty typical. I mean, you read Numbers 13 and 
14, you don't go, wow, I can't believe it. No, you can believe 
it because that's pretty much our pattern. We listen to the 
whiners too. You know, good land. There happens 
to be some big people there, but it's a good land. So Joshua 
and Caleb focus on the goodness of the land and the promise of 
God, because they already knew this was gifted to them. So Joshua 
and Caleb are like, God's on our side. We can deal with the 
big people. But of course, the ten spies said, well, you know, 
it's not that great of a land. And there are these giants. So 
of course, everybody gravitates to that. So, you know, it's pretty 
clear. When you're saying they said 
the land wasn't that great, is it almost like? Well, no. Initially, 
the report wasn't great. But it gets less and less great 
as they ponder the threat. Almost like this isn't what he 
meant. Well, they just thought, is it 
worth going to battle against these giants for land that's said it's great. But then if 
it's great, that means we have to deal with these giants. We 
don't really want to deal with these giants. So it's not that great 
after all. So there's this back and forth 
amongst them.