As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. The terror is immediate and understandable: Egypt's full military force is visible on the horizon, and Israel is pinned against the sea. The two responses — terror and crying out to the Lord — are both recorded without judgment. The terror is human; the crying out is faith. Even in fear, Israel cries to God rather than surrendering to Pharaoh. Psalm 34:17 says the righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them. The cry at the sea is the same kind of cry that rose from Egypt in Exodus 2:23 — inarticulate distress directed toward God — and both cries are heard and answered. The prayer at the sea does not require eloquence or theological precision; it requires direction: cry to the one who can actually help.

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