God Knows What You’re Going Through (Exodus 2:15-4)

A Few Thoughts to Consider

Have you ever felt like God doesn’t understand what you’re going through?  

This was certainly something many ancient Hebrews wondered as they struggled for centuries in Egyptian captivity.

Keep in mind that in Genesis 15:13-14, God said to Abraham,

¹³ “Know this for certain: Your offspring will be resident aliens for four hundred years in a land that does not belong to them and will be enslaved and oppressed. ¹⁴ However, I will judge the nation they serve, and afterward they will go out with many possessions.”

This tells us that falling into Egyptian captivity did not catch God by surprise, and God sympathized with the pain of his people.

Exodus 2:23-25 says,

²³ “The Israelites groaned because of their difficult labor, they cried out, and their cry for help because of the difficult labor ascended to God. ²⁴ God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. ²⁵ God saw the Israelites, and God knew.”

These last two words, “God knew,” tell us something about his character. As Christopher Wright says, “God is alert to the plight of the ejected, and in his sovereign providence (even when it is hidden) God works to ensure the protection of those who will play their part in God’s story.[1] Unfortunately, it’s easy to lose sight of this reality.

After trying to take matters into his own hands, Moses escapes to the wilderness, and after forty years, he has a unique encounter with God. In keeping with a common theme of God’s presence being manifested in fire, God appears to Moses in a burning bush and says these powerful words in Exodus 3:6: “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.”

Out of common ancient Near Eastern reverence, Moses is told to remove his shoes, and Yahweh makes himself known to Moses—likely for the first time. This is a life-altering moment for Moses. After forty years of tending sheep, he finally experiences God intimately.

In return, all God asks of Moses is obedience and to use what he has in his hand—a shepherd’s staff. After throwing it on the ground, God turns this staff into a snake. This was “likely because the snake represents a sign of Egyptian royal authority (think of a pharaoh’s cobra-like headdress worn as a symbol of his authority).”^[2] Moses will use this same staff to part the waters of a sea.

This story teaches us three valuable lessons. First, God knows what we are going through. Second, God keeps his promises. And third, we delay the work of God in our lives when we take matters into our own hands. Just as God taught Moses what it meant to walk in step with him, so he does the same with us. God sees our situations, hears our prayers, and will come through in perfect timing.

A Meditation to PRAY

Praise | You are the God who sees all and knows all. I praise you for your power and authority.

Release | I release my desire to know every step you have laid out before me. I trust you to guide me.

Ask | Show me my next steps and help me walk in step with you.

Yield | I commit to trusting your timing—thank you for your provision just as I need it.

A Challenge to Act Like Christ  

The parallels between Moses and Jesus accumulate as we read Exodus. In Exodus 4:19, God tells Moses, “Return to Egypt, for all the men who wanted to kill you are dead.” This is almost identical to Matthew 2:20, where an angel of God tells Jesus’ father, Joseph, a similar message.