The Crossing of the Red Sea (Exodus 14:1-21)

The Book of Exodus says that after the Israelites had left Egypt, they made their way through the desert. There were hundreds and thousands of them on the move. God was their guide, leading them on their journey by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire at night.

In a few days, they arrived at the Red Sea and set up camp. Meanwhile, Pharaoh had second thoughts about letting the Israelites go and set off after them, with an army of horses and chariots. When the Israelites saw the Egyptian army approaching, they were terrified. But Moses encouraged them, assuring them that God himself would fight for them.

The pillar of cloud that had gone ahead of the Israelites then moved behind them. Since the cloud was dark, it prevented the Egyptians from seeing or reaching the Israelites. At God’s command, Moses stretched forth his staff over the sea. A great wind arose and the waters divided, rising as walls to the right and left, leaving a channel of dry ground in between.

During the night, the Israelites walked over the sea bed and safely reached the other side. In the morning, the Egyptians gave chase and tried to follow by the same route. However, God told Moses to stretch forth his staff again and the divided waters reunited. Pharaoh and his whole army were engulfed by the waves ― and not a single one of them survived.

Exodus 12:38-39 says that various foreigners also left Egypt with the Israelites. This means that God saved not only the Israelites through the Red Sea, but people from other nations too. From a Christian perspective, this was as a prophetic sign of things to come, in terms of Christ’s plan to save the whole human race.

The miraculous rescue of the Israelites through the Red Sea was later celebrated as a sign of God’s goodness towards his people (Psalm 78:13,52-53; 136:13-15). In the New Testament, the Crossing of the Red Sea is described as a symbol of baptism, since people were saved through the water (1 Corinthians 10:1-2).

We see an example of this here, in this bronze relief on the font of Buckfast Abbey, in Devon. The scene pictures a haloed Moses leading the Hebrews through the parted waters. Moses is shown carrying his miraculous staff and the Ten Commandments, while his brother Aaron is included in the middle holding his flowery staff and a basket of the sacred manna.

The entire font is a reproduction of the famous medieval example from Hildesheim Cathedral, in Germany. The Buckfast version was cast for the baptistery of the newly rebuilt abbey between 1931-1932. It was made in Aachen, Germany, by Bernhard Witte, a German goldsmith who produced a variety of metalwork for the Abbey.

The miracle is pictured on the side of the font, alongside other biblical scenes that relate to the mystery of baptism, such as Joshua crossing the Jordan. The accompanying Latin inscription underlines the link with the sacrament, saying: “By sea, by Moses, their race fled from Egypt. Through Christ, in baptism, we flee from the darkness of vice.”

See the full image:

And the font as a whole within the baptistery:

Where to find this work of art
Buckfast Abbey, Buckfastleigh

Read the relevant passage
Exodus 14:1-21

On a similiar theme

• From the Old Testament: The font also features the story of Joshua crossing the Jordan as a mystic sign of the Sacrament of Baptism.
• From the New Testament: The gospel stories of Christ calming the Tempest and walking on water also speak to God’s power over the sea.