Exodus 13:21 - Forerunner Commentary

Exodus 13:21

Commentaries:

No entry exists in Forerunner Commentary for Exodus 13:21.

Exodus 13:20-22
Excerpted from: The Appointed Weeks of Pentecost

Working backward from the Sabbaths in the 2^nd month, and using the travel record and Israel’s camping for the Sabbath, and that they were at Succoth just after the First Day of Unleavened Bread, this camp in Etham was almost certainly over a Sabbath. More specifically, this would have been the first Sabbath since the Passover, and thus, the Sabbath within the Feast of Unleavened Bread. That should ring a bell.

Now, notice that it was at Etham, likely on the day after the Sabbath, that the LORD went before them in a pillar of cloud. It seems likely that it was the next day because they were not travelling on the Sabbath, and thus, the cloud did not need to go before them and lead the way until they started moving again the next day. What this means is that God’s visible presence with them in the cloud seems to have started on Wavesheaf Day.

That was the day when, once they were in the land, the nation waited until God was acknowledged with an offering of firstfruits before they started harvesting the barley. Deference to God came first. In the New Testament, Jesus is identified as “the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” Once He was raised and accepted by the Father, then the spiritual work could begin. But He had to go first. And here we find a parallel with God going first. He went before Israel so they could make this journey of seven weeks.

Exodus 13:20-22
Excerpted from: Our Walk With God

We did not see the word "walk" in this whole section, but it is there. The word halak is the word went in verse 21. "And the LORD went. . ." He halak-ed. What this implies is that the people halak-ed behind Him—behind the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire. God was in the pillar, and He led them forward to where they needed to go. Now, of course, this necessitates that the Israelites followed or walked behind (or halak-ed behind, if you like that even better). They went after God. They walked behind God. And this, of course, continued for forty years. He never took the pillar of fire or the pillar of cloud away, except to change them night and day—one to the other.

Exodus 13:20-22
Excerpted from: Escape From Box Canyon

We are told to walk by faith, and not by sight, but God had quite a bit of mercy on Israel. They had a visual aid that was there all the time—by day and by night, a cloud or a pillar of fire. All they had to do was look up, and their faith could be bolstered. God was in that cloud. God was in that pillar of fire. He was there with them all the time—throughout forty years of wandering. They could see Him leading—minute by minute. It says in another place that if the cloud went up, they got ready. When it moved, they moved on. When it stopped, they stopped. And they did this for forty years. All they had to do was "look up;" and God was there.

Exodus 13:19-22
Excerpted from: Unleavened Bread and the Holy Spirit (2019)

Let us put the main points in order here as they moved away. First, they sacrificed the lamb. We do that when we accept the blood of Jesus Christ. We accept that sacrifice for our sins. Second, they forsook the vast majority of their belongings. Third, they started their journey with their eyes fastened upon a pillar of fire by night and a cloud by day. This pictured them no longer following the world, but now following God, obedient to Him. And God, let me remind you again, had done virtually everything. But our part is still obedience to the very little that we must do. This combination brings us out of the world.

Exodus 13:21-22
Excerpted from: Does Doctrine Really Matter? (Part 5)

What I am developing here just ever so briefly is One establishes Himself as the people's champion, and what He wants them to do is to follow Him. So once released from their bondage, and even before the Red Sea crossing, a clear precedent was established that determined the path—the way, the direction—in which they were to march across the wilderness to the Promised Land. God gave them clear visible evidence of His presence, of His leading and guiding.

Exodus 13:21-22
Excerpted from: Building the Wall (Part One)

Do you see the picture here? That pillar of fire became a wall between the Israelites and the Egyptians who were pursuing them. It protected the Israelites on the one side, and it separated them away from those who were attacking them. So we have there two things: defense and separation.

Exodus 13:21-22
Excerpted from: The First Day of Unleavened Bread (Part 2)

Now He gave them a visible sign of His presence that they were under His watchful care.

Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Exodus 13:21:

Exodus 12:17-20
Exodus 12:40-42
Deuteronomy 30:2-4
Isaiah 4:3-6

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