In 10:1 and 2 Paul says, “For I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea.” The words “to be ignorant” refer to the question “Do you not know?” in 9:24. The word all indicates that all the children of Israel who had enjoyed the Passover entered into the race and began running the race from the time they left the land of Rameses (Exo. 12:37).
Why did Paul say “our fathers” when most of the Corinthian believers were Greeks and not Jews? The reason may be that Paul considered God’s chosen people, both Jews and Greeks, one great family. Hence, the people of God in the Old Testament are our fathers.
Verse 1 says that all our fathers “were under the cloud.” The cloud that covered the children of Israel typifies the Spirit of God being with the New Testament believers. Immediately after the New Testament believers take Christ as their Passover (5:7), the Spirit of God comes to be with them and lead them to run the Christian race, just as the pillar of cloud came to be with the children of Israel and to lead them (Exo. 13:21-22; 14:19-20).
In verse 2 Paul says that “all were baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea.” The children of Israel’s passing through the Red Sea (Exo. 14:21-30) typifies the baptism of the New Testament believers (Rom. 6:4).
The children of Israel were baptized unto Moses to begin the holy race for the fulfilling of God’s purpose, that is, to enter into the good land and build the temple so that God may have a kingdom with an expression of Himself on the earth. This typifies the New Testament believers being baptized into Christ (Gal. 3:27) that God may have His kingdom with the church as His expression on the earth.
In the cloud signifies in the Spirit, and in the sea means in the water. The New Testament believers are baptized in the water and in the Spirit (Matt. 3:11; Acts 1:5; 1 Cor. 12:13).
According to Paul’s allegorization of the Bible, to cross the Red Sea is to be baptized. He even says that the children of Israel were baptized unto Moses. Moses, no doubt, should be regarded as a type of Christ. They were baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and we are baptized unto Christ in the Spirit and in water. When we were baptized, both the Spirit and the water were around us. The cloud signifies the Spirit; this is related to life. The sea signifies the water of death. Hence, baptism is a matter of both life and death. It involves putting the old creation to death so that we may be generated in life.
In verse 3 Paul goes on to say, “And all ate the same spiritual food.” This refers to manna (Exo. 16:14-18), which typifies Christ as our daily life supply (John 6:31-35) for the Christian journey. We believers should all eat the same spiritual food, not eating anything other than Christ.
In verse 4 Paul says, “And all drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank of a spiritual rock which followed them, and the rock was Christ.” The spiritual drink here refers to the living water that flowed out of the cleft rock (Exo. 17:6), which typifies the Spirit as our all-inclusive drink (John 7:37-39; 1 Cor. 12:13). For our race, we should all drink the same spiritual drink, not drinking anything other than the all-inclusive Spirit.
Literally, the Greek words rendered “a spiritual rock which followed” are “a spiritual following rock.” The rock that was smitten and cleft to flow out the living water for God’s chosen people (Exo. 17:6) was a physical rock. Yet the apostle calls it a spiritual rock because it typifies Christ smitten and cleft by God to flow out the water of life (John 19:34) to satisfy the thirst of His believers. Hence, the apostle says the rock was Christ. Because it was a spiritual rock signifying Christ, it was able to follow the children of Israel. This indicates that Christ as the real rock is following His believers.
Paul was bold to tell us that the physical rock of Exodus 17:6 was a spiritual rock and that this rock was Christ. Those who study the Word primarily in a mental way would never expound the Bible in such a way. They would never call a physical rock a spiritual rock. Was the rock in Exodus 17 physical or spiritual? In actuality it was physical. However, we need to have a spiritual view of this physical rock and see through the physical into the spiritual. Yes, the rock was physical, but Paul viewed it according to his spiritual sight. Thus, in his eyes it was a spiritual rock. This is the proper way to read the Bible. It is not to change the Bible; it is to go beyond the black and white letters and touch the spirit. Because Paul did this regarding the physical rock, to him that rock was Christ. He was not cautious, and he did not say that the rock typifies Christ. He declared boldly that the rock was Christ, that it was a spiritual rock following the people. What we have here is the utterance of a man who is filled with the Spirit and who has the view of the Spirit. We also need to have a spiritual view when we read the Word.