Before God parts the Red Sea, the pillar of cloud and fire separates the Egyptians from the Israelites. On one side is darkness, and on the other is light. Jesus is the light of the world, and one’s response to him determines whether one lives in spiritual darkness or in the light.

The mighty Egyptian army roars towards the Israelites, who are trapped against the Red Sea. When your back is against the wall (or the water!), God will rise up and act on your behalf, just as he did for Israel.

Some Israelites would rather return to slavery under Pharaoh than serve God in freedom in the wilderness. We’re faced with a similar choice today. 

A direct route to the promised land would have only taken 10 days, not 40 years. Why send the people through the wilderness, then? God wanted to both A) humble, and B) test his people. Would they be loyal to him or not? He does the same with us today.

As the people of God are on the road to the Promised Land, Yahweh demands the consecration of the Israelites’ firstborn and first fruits. Why? It’s a reminder that God must be first in every area of our lives, and it’s no less true today.

The terrifying, final plague descends on the Egyptians: the death of the firstborn. Was God unjust, unfair, and unnecessarily cruel in doing this? PLUS: In our Q&A mailbag segment, Cale answers a question about the darkness that descended on the land when Jesus died. Did this really happen?

As Catholics, we treasure the Catechism of the Catholic Church and beloved older versions like the famous Baltimore Catechism. Did you know that Moses basically created the very first Catechism in the book of Exodus? Plus: a listener question about whether or not Mary experienced labor pains when Jesus was born.

On today’s episode of The Exodus Series on The Faith Explained, Cale answers the question of why God institutes two separate feasts: Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. The answer? One concerns initial salvation, and the other concerns sanctification: holiness, becoming like God. “Be holy, as I am holy”, says the Lord in the Old Covenant. Jesus says, “Be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect” in the New.

The Israelites must slaughter and consume an unblemished lamb, foreshadowing the sacrifice of the sinless Lamb of God, Jesus Christ. We are likewise commanded to consume his flesh and blood sacramentally in the Eucharist.

The death of the Egyptian firstborn at the stroke of midnight means the tide has turned, and the “gods” of Egypt are decimated. Yahweh has won, and the dawn of his salvation is close at hand.