Exodus 14:24

Hebrew Bible

23 The Egyptians chased them and followed them into the middle of the sea—all the horses of Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen. 24 In the morning watch the Lord looked down on the Egyptian army through the pillar of fire and cloud, and he threw the Egyptian army into a panic. 25 He jammed the wheels of their chariots so that they had difficulty driving, and the Egyptians said, “Let’s flee from Israel, for the Lord fights for them against Egypt!”

Judges 4:15

Hebrew Bible

14 Deborah said to Barak, “Spring into action, for this is the day the Lord is handing Sisera over to you! Has the Lord not taken the lead?” So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with 10,000 men following him. 15 The Lord caused Sisera to panic28, all his chariotry, and all his army with the edge of the sword. Sisera jumped out of his chariot and ran away on foot. 16 Now Barak chased the chariots and the army all the way to Harosheth Haggoyim. Sisera’s whole army died by the edge of the sword; not even one survived!

 Notes and References

"... One especially common way the Old Testament portrays God killing large groups of people is through his role as divine warrior.’ This image of God is one of the most pervasive and unsettling in the Old Testament. One of the most striking examples of God’s warring is recorded in the first half of the book of Exodus, as God decimates Egypt through a series of ten plagues before drowning the Egyptian army in the Red Sea. As the Israelites are trapped between the Egyptian army and the Red Sea, God fights on their behalf ... In various ways, this passage highlights God’s very active involvement in warfare. God is not portrayed as sitting up in the heavens sending down divine directives while the Israelites slog it out on the field of battle. Rather, God is the one who reportedly “threw the Egyptian army into panic ... clogged their chariot wheels ... [and] tossed the Egyptians into the sea.” According to this text, God is directly responsible for exterminating the Egyptians. It is God who obliterates the Egyptian army by drowning countless Egyptian soldiers. And as their lifeless bodies wash up on shore, Israel takes no credit for the victory but praises God for being “a warrior.” ..."

Seibert, Eric A. Disturbing Divine Behavior: Troubling Old Testament Images of God (pp. 22-23) Fortress Press, 2009

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