"This Is The Spirit of Revelation"

In a revelation to Oliver Cowdery the Lord admonished, "Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation; behold, this is the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground." Previously the Lord said, "Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart" (D&C 8:2-3).

I was shocked the first time I read this. You mean simple impressions coming into the heart and mind as feelings, and sometimes in words, are the media of the Spirit to perform an awesome miracle like parting the Red Sea? Then I went back and read the events of the parting of the waters.

The story goes like this:

"And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they turn and encamp before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, over against Baal-zephon: before it shall ye encamp by the sea" (Exodus 14:1-2).

Can you imagine if Moses were having a bad day? Being too tired, worried, unworthy, busy, stressed-out, or a multitude of other conditions could have blocked this simple instruction which could have been conveyed in feeling or actual words. What if Moses were out of tune or simply not listening to the Spirit?

But he was very obedient to this prompting and led the children of Israel to this exact spot. Pharaoh chases after them, and in just nine short verses later the people exclaim something to the effect of, "Moses, you idiot!" "Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt? Is not this the word that we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness" (vv. 11-12). Sometimes a prompting from the Spirit will test your faith.

What if Moses said, "Well, maybe you're right. Maybe that was a bad idea?" And maybe he ignores the next prompting or simply quits listening. Then the Egyptians overtake them and an ugly slaughter ensues.

Then suddenly without warning, another prompting comes: "Speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward: But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea" (vv. 15-16). So Moses does it.

The waters, which often represent chaotic, unorganized element (especially during the Creation), now stand like a solid wall--something that could stand in the presence of God. The Israelites go into the midst of the sea and so do the Egyptians. Moses has to be thinking, "I'm 0 for two now, and neither prompting has worked out the way I wanted." But then the Lord gives them a little break by driving hard the wheels of Egyptian chariots and the wheels begin to bind up on the Egyptians.

But Egyptians run hard and Israel is not out of the woods (or water) yet. This could have been a literal bloodbath! But wait, there is another prompting:

"And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen" (v. 26). The seas close on the Egyptians just as Israel runs to safety.

Jehovah, who knows the end from the beginning (see Abraham 2:8), could have spared Moses a lot of grief by simply stating the entire plan and how they would overcome each obstacle in the way. But He didn't. He let Israel learn "line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts" (2 Nephi 28:30).

And THAT is the Spirit of revelation.