Exodus 14:22 (WEB)

Passage

The children of Israel went into the middle of the sea on the dry ground, and the waters were a wall to them on their right hand, and on their left.

Nearby Context

Exodus 14:20 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 one didn’t come near the other all night.

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

Exodus 14:22 The children of Israel went into the middle of the sea on the dry ground, and the waters were a wall to them on their right hand, and on their left.

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

Exodus 14:24 In the morning watch, Yahweh looked out on the Egyptian army through the pillar of fire and of cloud, and confused the Egyptian army.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "children", "israel", "went", "middle", "ground", "waters", "wall", and "right". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "children" and "israel", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 21's "Moses stretched out his hand over the..." into verse 23's "The Egyptians pursued and went in after...", so "children" and "israel" 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 "children" and "israel" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.