Chapter 16 — ISRAEL'S ESCAPE FROM SLAVERY

The Israelites followed the directions God had given them; now they were ready for their journey. As the angel of death passed from house to house among the Egyptians, the Israelites waited for the rebellious king and his great men to tell them they could go.SRme 1.468

"At midnight the Lord killed all the first-born sons in Egypt; from the king's son, who was heir to the throne, to the son of the prisoner in the dungeon; all the first-born of the animals were also killed. That night, the king, his officials, and all the other Egyptians were awakened. There was loud crying throughout Egypt, because there was a dead son in each home in Egypt. That same night the king sent for Moses and Aaron and said, 'Get out, you and your Israelites! Leave my country; go and worship the Lord as you asked. Take your sheep, goats, and cattle, and leave. Also pray for a blessing on me.'SRme 1.469

"The Egyptians urged the people to hurry and leave the country; they said, 'We will all be dead if you don't leave.' So the people filled their baking pans with unleavened dough, wrapped them in clothing, and carried them on their shoulders. The Israelites had done as Moses had said, and had asked the Egyptians for gold and silver jewelry and for clothes. The Lord made the Egyptians respect the people and give them what they asked for. In this way the Israelites carried away the wealth of the Egyptians" (Ex. 12:29-36).SRme 1.470

About four hundred years before, the Lord had shown Abraham what would happen on this night: "The Lord said unto him, 'Your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land; they will be slaves there and will be treated cruelly for four hundred years. But I will punish the nation that enslaves them, and when they leave that foreign land, they will take great wealth with them'" (Gen 15:13, 14).SRme 1.471

"A large number of other people and many sheep, goats, and cattle also went with them" (Ex. 12:38). The Israelites left Egypt with everything they owned. They never had sold their possessions to Pharaoh, so they did not belong to the king. Jacob and his sons had taken their animals with them into Egypt. The number of the Israelites and their animals had increased greatly while they were in Egypt. When God judged the Egyptians by sending the plagues upon them, the Egyptians were anxious for the Israelites to hurry out of Egypt with everything they owned.SRme 1.472

"When the king of Egypt let the people go, God did not take them by the road that goes up the coast to Philistia, although. . .[that route] was the shortest way. God thought, 'I do not want the people to change their minds and return to Egypt when they see they are going to have to fight.' Instead, He led them in a roundabout way through the desert toward the Red Sea. The Israelites were armed for battle.SRme 1.473

"Moses took the body of Joseph with him, as Joseph had made the Israelites. . .promise to do. Joseph had said, 'When God rescues you, you must carry my body with you from this place'" (Ex. 13:17-19).SRme 1.474