Ex 14:13-14 Stand Still
Sometimes the Best action to take is take no action
Do not fret because of those who are evil
or be envious of those who do wrong;
2 for like the grass they will soon wither,
like green plants they will soon die away.
3 Trust in the LORD and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
4 Take delight in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the LORD;
trust in him and he will do this:
6 He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,
your vindication like the noonday sun.
7 Be still before the LORD
and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
when they carry out their wicked schemes.
14:13–14 In contrast to the majority of Israelites, Moses had understood the meaning of God’s earlier promise of protection (14:2–4)—and had not only understood it but believed it. This speech of Moses represents perhaps his finest hour yet in the leadership of Israel. He urged calm, commanded simple, patient waiting (but not total inaction; see below), reassured the people that what seemed to them a certainty that they would die in the wilderness (v. 12) was in fact the last, hopeless gasp of Egyptian hubris, and explained to them the most basic tenet of Old Testament holy war: God fights for his people and—no matter how undertrained, ill-equipped, poorly organized, or outclassed they might be—eliminated their foes.
From the point of view of God’s attributes, Moses’ speech alludes to five: (1) God is a dispeller of fear, a comforter of those who are afraid. (2) God is a deliverer from distress. (3) God invites and expects his people to trust in him (“Stand firm … you need only to be still”). (4) God removes danger. (5) God is a warrior against the forces of evil. The timing and application of these attributes are under God’s control, not man’s, but Moses could offer strong assurances to the Israelites in this instance because of what God had already said through him to them in regard to his plan to humiliate Egypt yet again, a last time.
A better translation of vv. 13–14 would be: “Don’t be afraid. Stay where you are and see the LORD’s salvation, which he will provide for you today. Because you have seen the Egyptians today, you will never see them again. The LORD will fight for you. You do not need to do anything.” Of particular note is the translation of the last sentence of v. 13. The modern English versions usually render this in the manner of the NIV, “The Egyptians you see today you will never see again,” but that is not in fact the meaning. The meaning is that of our translation. What Moses was saying was, in effect: “You should be glad you are seeing the Egyptian army coming at you. Because you have seen the Egyptians, it means that God’s prediction that he will trick them and trap them is about to be fulfilled. If you didn’t see them, now that would be cause for worry because then God’s prediction to us would not be coming true.”