Exodus 14:21 (ASV)

Passage

And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and Jehovah caused the sea to go [back] by a strong east wind all the night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.

Nearby Context

Exodus 14:19 And the angel of God, who went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud removed from before them, and stood behind them:

Exodus 14:20 and it came between the camp of Egypt and the camp of Israel; and there was the cloud and the darkness, yet gave it light by night: and the one came not near the other all the night.

Exodus 14:21 And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and Jehovah caused the sea to go [back] by a strong east wind all the night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.

Exodus 14:22 And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.

Exodus 14:23 And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh`s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "moses", "stretched", "hand", "over", "jehovah", "caused", "back", and "strong". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "moses" and "stretched", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "and it came between the camp of..." into verse 22's "And the children of Israel went into...", so "moses" and "stretched" belong inside that flow. In Exodus context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "moses" and "stretched" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.