Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle. – Psalm 24:8

Today's Scripture Reading (July 13, 2025): Psalm 24

In the wake of the crossing of the Red Sea, Israel was in a celebratory mood. And why wouldn't they be? They had just watched their God do amazing things on their behalf. It all started with the removal of a barrier. Israel had to know that, at some point, they would have to cross water. What they probably didn't think was that they were going to have to make the crossing at the point of a sword. Perhaps they thought they would build rafts and slowly ferry the people, animals, and possessions across the water over a period of days or weeks. Maybe they had a different image in mind, or perhaps they had never given it a thought. But as the Egyptian military closed in on them, the reality of crossing the water and needing to do it quickly became apparent.

I have mentioned elsewhere that there is a strong rabbinic tradition that Nahshon, the leader of the Tribe of Judah, was so anxious to cross the water that he ran into the Red Sea until he was neck-deep in the water. But the people really didn't have a choice. There are two realities about Nahshon's actions. It might have been, and I think it probably was, an act of faith on the part of Nahshon. Nahshon trusted that God, through Moses, would part the water. However, the second reality was that the people had no choice. If they stayed on the West side of the Red Sea, at best, they would be returned to slavery, and at worst, they would be killed. Even if the water was not parted, Nahshon was setting the example that said that if they got into the water, they at least had a chance to survive.

Exodus tells us that the water did part, and Nahshon and the rest of Israel successfully made their crossing without any loss of life. And then, when the military followed them, the water folded back into place, barring the Egyptian army from following the people of Israel. For Israel, the water parted, leaving a path to life, but for Egypt, the Sea continued to carry only delay and death.

In response to this harrowing escape, Moses wrote a song. The song begins with these words.

"I will sing to the Lord,
    for he is highly exalted.
Both horse and driver
    he has hurled into the Sea.

"The Lord is my strength and my defense;
    he has become my salvation.
He is my God, and I will praise him,
    my father's God, and I will exalt him.
The Lord is a warrior;
    the Lord is his name.
Pharaoh's chariots and his army
    he has hurled into the Sea.
The best of Pharaoh's officers
    are drowned in the Red Sea (Exodus 15:1-4).

As David writes this Psalm, he reflects back to the Song of Moses in the wake of the Red Sea crossing. As David writes that the Lord is strong and mighty and that he is mighty in battle, he is using a stronger form of the title for God that Moses used in his song. As Moses sang, "The Lord is a warrior; the Lord is his name" (Exodus 15:3), he was laying the groundwork for David's words, "The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle" (Psalm 24:8).

Yet, he is also a God who is gentle enough that we can invite him into our lives. God isn't one or the other; he is both.  

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: 1 Chronicles 16