By Paulette Phiri
19 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. 20 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.
Exodus 14:19-20 (NKJV)
When I was younger, I used to love watching Big Daddy wrestling matches with Giant Haystacks on the TV. Huge men mountains that could, with ease, at least in my 5-year-old brain, keep me safe from the monsters under my bed at night.
The children of Israel had something (and someone) much more effective on their side. They had their very own bodyguard as their rear guard. The rear guard, in military terms, is a squad of soldiers that are purposely positioned behind a group to protect it from attack especially during a time of retreat in battle.
Stationed between the Children of Israel and the Egyptian army were the Angel of God and the pillar of cloud which moved from the front to behind the camp becoming their personal bodyguards, their defence, and their rear guard. What an awesome sight and assurance this must have been for the children of Israel, and confidence for us today.
Remember that God the Father promises to be with us and be the rear guard in situations where all appears to be dark. Let us have the assurance, it may mean destruction for those that come against God's faithful people.
Ask – Why do you think both the cloud and the Angel of God moved to the rear of the camp?
Seek – What assurance has the Holy Spirit revealed to you about a situation in your life?
Knock – What dark areas in our life do we need to offer to God that He alone can bring light to?
(Upper Photo by Nik Shuliahin on Unsplash)
(Inner Photo by Pawel Czerwinski on Unsplash)
