Exodus 15:16 NKJV
“Fear and dread will fall on them; By the greatness of Your arm They will be as still as a stone, Till Your people pass over, O LORD, Till the people pass over Whom You have purchased.”
The mighty arm of God that protects and saves His people has never been short. From early in history, God’s greatness has stood out without any human aid, and He is still the LORD who “…shall reign forever and ever” (Exo 15:18 NKJV)! That day Pharaoh and his chariots thought they would pursue and overtake the Israelites, for example, they met their terrible and regrettable fate. Recounting what befell Pharaoh and his crew, Moses described an insightful thing to God, saying, “And in the greatness of Your excellence You have overthrown those who rose against You; You sent forth Your wrath; It consumed them like stubble” (Exo 15:7 NKJV). Hallelujah!
Moses referred to the LORD as being great in excellence, which caused Him to overthrow “those who rose against You [God].” Hallelujah! Notice, to Moses, though Pharaoh was physically pursuing Jacob’s descendants, he and his men had not come against the Israelites but God! By touching God’s set-apart people, they had risen against God Himself. Oh, who dares God and succeeds? No one; no not one. In our reference text, Moses, who had safely led God’s people to the other side of the Red Sea, spoke words that, in part, describe what happened to Pharaoh and his men, and also perhaps foretell what will happen to the devil and his cohorts in the near future:
“Fear and dread will fall on them; By the greatness of Your arm They will be as still as a stone, Till Your people pass over, O LORD, Till the people pass over Whom You have PURCHASED”, described Moses (in future tense what had already happened). Notice, according to God’s servant, there would be a people “purchased” by God, against whom no attempt of their enemy would prevail until “Your people”, God’s purchased people, would have passed over. Certainly, the only people who properly fit Moses’ description are “…the church of the Lord [Jesus] which he purchased with his own blood” (Act 20:28 ASV). Hallelujah! As it was then, so shall it be in our generation (and the ones to come) that God’s purchased people will always prevail and pass over into their divine inheritance!
Pst. Emmanuel