Typology: Part 4 The Red Sea and Baptism
In the New Testament, we see a connection between the crossing of the Red Sea and Christian baptism.
Paul says that just as the Children of Israel who crossed the Red Sea where ‘baptised into Moses’, so the Christian is baptised into Christ.
1 Corinthians 10 v 1-2
…that our ancestors were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.
Baptism is the antitype of the Red Sea Crossing. We are going to look at the other types related to baptism too.
Baptism and Naaman
Naaman, an Assyrian commander, contracted leprosy. His Israelite servant-girl told him that he could be healed if he went see Elisha the prophet.
Naaman visited the prophet, but he was refused an audience and told to bathe in the River Jordan seven times.
Reluctantly he did and he was healed.
Typologically speaking, the servant girl is like the Christian who tells of Christ and His power to heal. In this story, Elisha is like Christ, instructing all those who are spiritually and incurably infirm to be baptised in the waters.
Now healed, Naaman takes the soil and brings it back to Assyria, just like the Christian who, after being cleanser of sin, evangelises the Gospel to others.
This shows baptism is part of the process of Salvation.
Baptism and the River Jordan
The River Jordan is crossed many times throughout the Bible. It is typologically linked to the crossing of the Red Sea and Baptism.
The first mention of the crossing of the Jordan is made prior to the Red Sea. In Genesis 32, Jacob crosses it to meet with his estranged brother, Esau. This gives us a sense that baptism is about reconciliation.
Later, the Children of Israel cross the River Jordan and this time it parts, as did the Red Sea. The text tells us that the river parted because of a blockage upstream at Adam. Symbolically connecting the curse caused by Adam. It shows that through baptism the Children of God will enter the Promised Land.
Baptism and the Sea of Reeds
In some Bible translations, you may see a note which says that the Red Sea can be translated the Sea of Reeds or the Reed Sea.
According to the original Hebrew, the sea crossed by the Childten of Israel and the mixed multitude was Yam Suph or the Sea of Reeds, it was not the Red Sea.
It was likely this change occurred when the Septuagint translation of the Old Testament was created in 3rd Century BC. Rather than a mistake, which many theologians consider it to be, I think it was the translators helping the Greek readers to geographically understand where these events took place. The Sea of Reeds may not have been commonly known amongst the Greeks as the Red Sea was. We see this kind of updating of place names in the Bible, so why wouldn’t these translators do the same. Writing a translation for the community they were writing it for.
Baptism and the Red Sea
There are clear connections between the Red Sea crossing and baptism. The Children of Israel went through the Red Sea like how a Christian goes through the waters of baptism.
The Symbolism of the Sea of Reeds
The Sea of Reeds was an area dividing North-Eastern Egypt and the Sinai Wilderness. It consisted of several large lakes surrounded by marshes.
In Egyptian culture, the Sea of Reeds was an important element of the soul’s journey to the after-life. If someone had lived a good life, they’d be able to successfully transverse the Reed Sea and carry on living in the Field of Reeds as a spirit.
However, if they had not lived as a good Egyptian, they would be drowned in the marshes. Forever lost.
In terms of symbolism, when the Children of Israel went through the Reed Sea on dry ground, God was saying to the Egyptians that His people were dying to the Egyptian way of life and heading towards a new life in the Field of Reeds. They were better than the Egyptians who were chasing them down. Who followed them into the sea, and were trapped amongst the reeds, like immoral Egyptians.
There are many other stories which relate to baptism in the Bible. When you come to story talking about water, just think if this typologically represents baptism.