We are moving into chapter fourteen of Exodus with our word for today. כָּבֵד weigh heavily upon, be heavy, be weighty, be burdensome, be honored, to have glory bestowed upon. It is used 114 times in the Old Testament, three times in our chapter. A good example of the basic idea of our word of being heavy is back in chapter five when we saw how Pharaoh treated the Hebrew people. Exodus 5:7-9 You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as in the past; let them go and gather straw for themselves. But the number of bricks that they made in the past you shall impose on them, you shall by no means reduce it, for they are idle... תִּכְבַּ֧ד Let heavier work be laid on the men that they may labor at it...We find our word also used in the sense of something weighing heavily on someone like guilt from sin. Psalm 32:4 For day and night your hand תִּכְבַּ֥ד was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Our word is also used in the sense to have glory bestowed upon. Deuteronomy 5:16 כַּבֵּ֤ד Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the Lord your God is giving you. Proverbs 3:9 כַּבֵּ֣ד Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops. Psalm 50:23 The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice יְֽכַ֫בְּדָ֥נְנִי glorifies me. This is how our word is used in our chapter today.
Exodus 14:1-4, 15-18 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell the people of Israel to turn back and encamp...by the sea. For Pharaoh will say of the people of Israel, ‘They are wandering in the land; the wilderness has shut them in.’ And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them, וְאִכָּבְדָ֤ה and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord.” And they did so…The Lord said to Moses...Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground...The Egyptians so that they shall go in after them, and וְאִכָּבְדָ֤ה I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when בְּהִכָּבְדִ֣י I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.” The miraculous showing of God’s power in this event of parting the red sea is probably the second greatest to that of the resurrection of Christ from the dead. We will look at this more in the days to come. This event designed to glorify God by baiting Pharaoh into a trap reminds me of Proverb 14:12 There is a way that appears to be right to a man, but in the end it leads to death. We have already looked at the whole God hardening Pharaoh’s heart thing with several of our words. For today I find it interesting that the greatest power on earth at that time Egypt under their King is led into a trap and destroyed. This happened all because Pharaoh was thinking like a man that is he was not relying on God’s wisdom actually far from it. Instead of blessing God’s people he cursed them and made life difficult for them. So God finally took him completely out. Throughout the Bible we see that God knows how to rescue his people from evil and destroy those who are against him and his people. This is said well in Psalm 50:14-15 Sacrifice thank offerings to God...call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you וּֽתְכַבְּדֵֽנִי will glorify me. I’ll close with a couple more uses from Psalm 86. Psalm 86:9-12 All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, Lord; they will וִֽיכַבְּד֣וּ bring glory to your name. For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God. Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; וַאֲכַבְּדָ֖ה I will glorify your name forever.
