The land was darkened

Exodus 10: 12-20: “And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail hath left. And Moses stretched forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind upon the land all that day, and all that night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts. And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the coasts of Egypt: very grievous were they; before them there were no such locusts as they, neither after them shall be such. For they covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left: and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the field, through all the land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste; and he said, I have sinned against the LORD your God, and against you. Now therefore forgive, I pray thee, my sin only this once, and intreat the LORD your God, that he may take away from me this death only. And he went out from Pharaoh, and intreated the LORD. And the LORD turned a mighty strong west wind, which took away the locusts, and cast them into the Red sea; there remained not one locust in all the coasts of Egypt. But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go.”

This was the worst locust plague in the history of Egypt. Usually it is possible to see a locust plague in the distance because a large number of smaller birds of prey follow the locusts and you can see them flying above them. In this case, however, there were so many locusts that the sky was darkened. This was a portent of even greater disaster to come. The very sun god was hidden from Egypt and they could do nothing to hide from this evidence of the Lord’s great power. The locust arrived in full plague proportion in one day and, when Moses prayed, they were blown out to sea and there were none left. The Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart because the Lord gave him over to the rebellious pathway that he had already chosen and the Lord was determined to make sure that Egypt understood that He is the Lord. A person that is reproved and repeatedly ignores the warnings will suddenly be given the full consequences of that choice. (see Prov 29: 1, “He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.) Pharaoh had already chosen his own end and was soon to destroyed without any chance of escape. Even at this stage, however, there were still some Egyptians who had the chance to submit to the Lord and escape. There is always hope while there is life.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Tomorrow I will bring locusts

Exodus 10: 1-11: “And the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh: for I have hardened his heart, and the heart of his servants, that I might shew these my signs before him: And that thou mayest tell in the ears of thy son, and of thy son’s son, what things I have wrought in Egypt, and my signs which I have done among them; that ye may know how that I am the LORD. And Moses and Aaron came in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me. Else, if thou refuse to let my people go, behold, to morrow will I bring the locusts into thy coast: And they shall cover the face of the earth, that one cannot be able to see the earth: and they shall eat the residue of that which is escaped, which remaineth unto you from the hail, and shall eat every tree which groweth for you out of the field: And they shall fill thy houses, and the houses of all thy servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians; which neither thy fathers, nor thy fathers’ fathers have seen, since the day that they were upon the earth unto this day. And he turned himself, and went out from Pharaoh. And Pharaoh’s servants said unto him, How long shall this man be a snare unto us? let the men go, that they may serve the LORD their God: knowest thou not yet that Egypt is destroyed? And Moses and Aaron were brought again unto Pharaoh: and he said unto them, Go, serve the LORD your God: but who are they that shall go? And Moses said, We will go with our young and with our old, with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds will we go; for we must hold a feast unto the LORD. And he said unto them, Let the LORD be so with you, as I will let you go, and your little ones: look to it; for evil is before you. Not so: go now ye that are men, and serve the LORD; for that ye did desire. And they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.”

The hail storm destroyed some of Egypt’s crops but the next plague was even more destructive. Anyone who has been through a locust plague will understand how destructive these insects are. Before locusts are able to fly they go through a stage where they are just able to hop but then they mature and are able to fly as well. A big locust plague can go through hundreds of kilometres of land and the locusts eat almost every plant they encounter. After  locust plague the trees look like skeletons and the ground is bare for every other plant has been eaten as well. While the hail left some plants and some future for Egypt, the locust left nothing. Even the animals that had survived the hail were left to starve. There was a locust headed god called Senehem in Egypt but this god was unable to prevent the Lord from demonstrating His absolute authority over all Egypt. In fact the Lord didn’t just show Egypt that He was the Lord, and He is still the same today, He showed Israel that He is the Lord of the whole earth as well. When the locust plague flew into Egypt they were so thick that they blackened the sky as well. This plague was evidence of the Lord’s hand because there was no where outside Egypt for the locusts to hatch their eggs in the desert and grow to plague proportions. By the time the plagues were complete no one in the entire land of Egypt had any excuse not to understand that the Lord is the Lord of all the earth and no one can escape the power of His mighty hand. In fact, some of Pharaoh’s servants were afraid of the Lord and wanted to submit Him but Pharaoh would not. He wanted relief from the plague but he wanted to make sure that the Israelis came back because he told them to leave their children behind.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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That there may be hail in all the land of Egypt

Exodus 9: 22-35: “And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch forth thine hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man, and upon beast, and upon every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt. And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt. So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field. Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail. And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time: the LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked. Intreat the LORD (for it is enough) that there be no more mighty thunderings and hail; and I will let you go, and ye shall stay no longer. And Moses said unto him, As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will spread abroad my hands unto the LORD; and the thunder shall cease, neither shall there be any more hail; that thou mayest know how that the earth is the LORD’S. But as for thee and thy servants, I know that ye will not yet fear the LORD God. And the flax and the barley was smitten: for the barley was in the ear, and the flax was bolled. But the wheat and the rie were not smitten: for they were not grown up. And Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread abroad his hands unto the LORD: and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not poured upon the earth. And when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders were ceased, he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, neither would he let the children of Israel go; as the LORD had spoken by Moses.”

The Lord warned Egypt about the hail so that they would have time to bring their animals inside but eventually the time of grace ran out and the hail came. There was fire mixed up with the hail so this was one fearsome storm. Surely someone who saw a storm like this would be afraid. To make this plague more precise the Lord kept the land of Goshen, where Israel lived from the hail. Israel was kept safe from some of the other plagues but there was no doubt about this plague as it was obvious that there was no hail in that part of the land. Pharaoh was afraid and called Moses to intercede on his behalf. He even admitted that he had done wrong. Even in this the Lord was gracious for He saved some of their crops even though other crops were destroyed. When the hail was gone Pharaoh changed his mind and set himself and his nation for another plague.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Gather thy cattle and all that thou hast

Exodus 9: 13-21: “And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me. For I will at this time send all my plagues upon thine heart, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people; that thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth. For now I will stretch out my hand, that I may smite thee and thy people with pestilence; and thou shalt be cut off from the earth. And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth. As yet exaltest thou thyself against my people, that thou wilt not let them go? Behold, to morrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as hath not been in Egypt since the foundation thereof even until now. Send therefore now, and gather thy cattle, and all that thou hast in the field; for upon every man and beast which shall be found in the field, and shall not be brought home, the hail shall come down upon them, and they shall die. He that feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his cattle flee into the houses: And he that regarded not the word of the LORD left his servants and his cattle in the field.”

This plague shows that the Lord had moved forward in His gracious effort the show that the Lord is the Lord and allow them to choose the protection that is implicit in that knowledge. While it is true that the Lord had sequestered Israel from some of the previous plagues, in this case everyone in Egypt could be protected from some of the consequences of the plague if they were willing to take some precautions. Previously the Egyptians were subject to the random and arbitrary actions of Pharaoh in the conflict between Egypt and the Lord but now any Egyptian could heed the warning and protect his or her own stock to protect them from the hail. This is just another aspect of the Lord’s grace. Each one of us is inextricably connected to mankind and our local community and we suffer because we live in world that has been tainted by sin (See Rom 8: 22, 23, “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.”) However, every person also has to individually live with the consequences of their individual choices. These Egyptians were given an insight into the individual God Who loves and seeks to save individuals. Nit was the sky goddess and the mother of the sun god Ra. Every evening she swallowed Ra and gave birth to him every morning. Her job was to protect the land from any destruction that came fro the sky but the Lord was more powerful than Ra.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Boils upon man and upon beast

Exodus 9: 8-12: “And the LORD said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh. And it shall become small dust in all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast, throughout all the land of Egypt. And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward heaven; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast. And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boil was upon the magicians, and upon all the Egyptians. And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had spoken unto Moses.”

Within every culture people need to be able to deal with sickness. This is a current issue as well. People with healing ability often develop a godlike aura because they can make people well again. In the old kingdom of Egypt there was a nobleman called Im-Hotep who was renowned as a healer. He was later elevated to the status of a god. The goddess Sekhmet was also know to be involved in healing. The Lord continued with His purpose of showing the Egyptians that He is the Lord by showing them that their gods of healing were unable to deal with His authority and power. Boils are painful and often occur in very painful places so this was also a significant demonstration of the Lord’s power. Not only did the boils break out on people but also on their domestic animals as well. Even the magicians suffered from the boils, so much so, that they were unable to get up and come into Pharaoh’s palace to perform their jobs. However, Pharaoh was committed to rejecting the Lord and wasn’t impressed by the Lord’s power and authority.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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The hand of the Lord is upon thy cattle

Exodus 9: 1-7: “Then the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me. For if thou refuse to let them go, and wilt hold them still, Behold, the hand of the LORD is upon thy cattle which is in the field, upon the horses, upon the asses, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep: there shall be a very grievous murrain. And the LORD shall sever between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt: and there shall nothing die of all that is the children’s of Israel. And the LORD appointed a set time, saying, To morrow the LORD shall do this thing in the land. And the LORD did that thing on the morrow, and all the cattle of Egypt died: but of the cattle of the children of Israel died not one. And Pharaoh sent, and, behold, there was not one of the cattle of the Israelites dead. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.”

Pharaoh worshipped Hathor who was the cow headed love goddess and the bull was a symbol of Pharaoh himself. This plague was personal attack on Pharaoh as the plague killed his own personal symbols as well as taking away the stock from the Egyptians and removing a source of their food. The Lord had shown Pharaoh and the Egyptians that they were not safe in their own land as long as they defied the Lord but now the attack was specifically intended to show them that even Pharaoh could not save himself, or his personal symbols let alone anyone else in Egypt. However, the Lord kept Israel’s cattle from the plague so they could take confidence in the fact that they were safe when they trusted in the Lord. Earlier they complained when Pharaoh increased their work load but now they had a great reason to have more confidence in the Lord and His ability to care for His people.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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A grievous swarm of flies

Exodus 8: 20-32: “And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water; and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Let my people go, that they may serve me. Else, if thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are. And I will sever in that day the land of Goshen, in which my people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall be there; to the end thou mayest know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth. And I will put a division between my people and thy people: to morrow shall this sign be. And the LORD did so; and there came a grievous swarm of flies into the house of Pharaoh, and into his servants’ houses, and into all the land of Egypt: the land was corrupted by reason of the swarm of flies. And Pharaoh called for Moses and for Aaron, and said, Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land. And Moses said, It is not meet so to do; for we shall sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians to the LORD our God: lo, shall we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, and will they not stone us? We will go three days’ journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the LORD our God, as he shall command us. And Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away: intreat for me. And Moses said, Behold, I go out from thee, and I will intreat the LORD that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, to morrow: but let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully any more in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD. And Moses went out from Pharaoh, and intreated the LORD. And the LORD did according to the word of Moses; and he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; there remained not one. And Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also, neither would he let the people go.”

‘In this plague there was, at last, a distinction between the land of Goshen, where Israel lived and the rest of the land of Egypt. The Lord showed Pharaoh that He alone controlled life and death but, in this case, He showed that life and death could be selective for whoever the Lord chose. The fly was greatly admired in Egypt for its perseverance and great warriors would be awarded a golden fly for valour in battle. However, the Lord demonstrated that perseverance was useless against the Lord. Even the brave flies were under His control but the flies were taken away at the Lord’s command as well. Pharaoh wanted to let the Israelis sacrifice in the land of Egypt but they wanted to leave the land of Egypt to worship the true God of heaven. It wasn’t appropriate for them to worship the Lord when it seemed as though they were under the control of other gods. Pharaoh hardened his heart again but the Lord showed grace again by giving them another chance to repent.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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The dust of the land

Exodus 8: 16-19: “And the LORD said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt. And they did so; for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust of the earth, and it became lice in man, and in beast; all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt. And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not: so there were lice upon man, and upon beast. Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh, This is the finger of God: and Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.”

The last plague came out of the river while this plague came from the dust. This demonstrated that there was nowhere in Egypt to hide from the Lord for there is dust everywhere. The Egyptians were very clean people but were troubled by lice so they shaved their head and body hair to keep themselves clean and in the right condition to worship their god. Moses asked Pharaoh to let the Israelis go out into the desert to worship the Lord but he refused so the Lord made it impossible for them to worship their gods for they were all unclean. In this case, too, the magicians were unable to replicate the plague giving Pharaoh a further piece of proof that he could not escape from the Lord and the reach of the Lord’s authority. However, Pharaoh remained hard hearted and the Egyptians had another chance to see that the Lord is the Lord and submit to the Lord.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Frogs covered the land of Egypt

Exodus 8: 1-15: “And the LORD spake unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Let my people go, that they may serve me. And if thou refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all thy borders with frogs: And the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into thine house, and into thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and into the house of thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thine ovens, and into thy kneadingtroughs: And the frogs shall come up both on thee, and upon thy people, and upon all thy servants. And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch forth thine hand with thy rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come up upon the land of Egypt. And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt. And the magicians did so with their enchantments, and brought up frogs upon the land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, Intreat the LORD, that he may take away the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the LORD. And Moses said unto Pharaoh, Glory over me: when shall I intreat for thee, and for thy servants, and for thy people, to destroy the frogs from thee and thy houses, that they may remain in the river only? And he said, To morrow. And he said, Be it according to thy word: that thou mayest know that there is none like unto the LORD our God. And the frogs shall depart from thee, and from thy houses, and from thy servants, and from thy people; they shall remain in the river only. And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh: and Moses cried unto the LORD because of the frogs which he had brought against Pharaoh. And the LORD did according to the word of Moses; and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the villages, and out of the fields. And they gathered them together upon heaps: and the land stank. But when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart, and hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.”

The Egyptians had a frog goddess called Heqet who was associated with fertility and resurrection. The frogs came out of the Nile especially in the wet season which is associated with the coming of new life. In this case, however, Moses told Pharaoh that there would be a large plague of frogs and it would be impossible to escape from these frogs. The magicians were able to persuade Pharaoh that they had produced frogs as well, although it would be very hard to distinguish between the frogs produced by the magicians and the frogs produced by the Lord. Their action was pretty useless because they Egyptians didn’t want more frogs, they wanted less frogs. When Pharaoh promised Moses that he would let the people go and sacrifice the Lord allowed all the frogs to die. They didn’t just disappear so that the people would have a reminder of the Lord’s power and that He could make their god of life and resurrection into death.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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They shall be turned to blood

Exodus 7: 14-25: “And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaoh’s heart is hardened, he refuseth to let the people go. Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water; and thou shalt stand by the river’s brink against he come; and the rod which was turned to a serpent shalt thou take in thine hand. And thou shalt say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness: and, behold, hitherto thou wouldest not hear. Thus saith the LORD, In this thou shalt know that I am the LORD: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood. And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall lothe to drink of the water of the river. And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone. And Moses and Aaron did so, as the LORD commanded; and he lifted up the rod, and smote the waters that were in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants; and all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood. And the fish that was in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the water of the river; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt. And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments: and Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the LORD had said. And Pharaoh turned and went into his house, neither did he set his heart to this also. And all the Egyptians digged round about the river for water to drink; for they could not drink of the water of the river. And seven days were fulfilled, after that the LORD had smitten the river.”

The Egyptians believed that the river was the source of life and, in a geographical sense, it was. Egypt is in a desert and the only reason people can  live there is because the river rises in the highlands south of Egypt and brings the life giving water to the desert. Year by year the river floods and also brings fresh and rich soil to the land so that their crops can grow, the people and stock can eat and Egypt can live. On the other hand, they believed that the river was the true source of their spiritual life but the Lord showed them that this wasn’t true. Hapi was the ancient god of the Nile and he was believed to bring life and fertility. The Bible teaches that there is life in the blood (See Gen 9: 4, “But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.”). One thing is certain, blood on the ground represents death for when blood has been poured out onto the ground the life that was sustained by that blood is lost. The Lord showed Egypt that He alone is the source of life and without Him they can only expect death. The Egyptians magicians must have been extremely gifted at manufacturing lies because they were able to persuade Pharaoh that they could make water turn into blood as well. Even though the river turned into blood, the Lord was gracious and didn’t turn the underlying water table into blood so the Egyptians were able to get water and survive in the desert. This shows the Lord’s true integrity as He was showing the Egyptians that He is the Lord and not destroying them.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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It shall become a serpent

Exodus 7: 8-13: “And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, When Pharaoh shall speak unto you, saying, Shew a miracle for you: then thou shalt say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and cast it before Pharaoh, and it shall become a serpent. And Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and they did so as the LORD had commanded: and Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh, and before his servants, and it became a serpent. Then Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers: now the magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments. For they cast down every man his rod, and they became serpents: but Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods. And he hardened Pharaoh’s heart, that he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.”

When the Lord Jesus Christ was living as a man the people of His day asked Him for a sign and he said “This is an evil generation: they seek a sign; and there shall no sign be given it” (Luke 11: 29) Pharaoh was similar to those people of that day. He was not just willing to believe the evidence of God’s presence in the world, he was full of unbelief and had already shown that by enslaving Joseph’s descendants. However, the Lord was prepared to show a sign, even though Pharaoh was evil the Lord was (and still is) gracious and He was willing to give Pharaoh a sign and an opportunity to the know the Lord as the Lord. The ancient Egyptians believed that they were protected by a snake goddess. This snake was the guardian of the Pharaoh so it was appropriate for the Lord to show Pharaoh that He was in control of the god which protected Pharaoh. Pharaoh’s magicians were able to use their evil tricks to make snakes as well but the Lord’s miraculous snake ate all the other snakes and then returned to dead wood. Pharaoh was given an opportunity to see that nothing could protect Him from the Lord, he could either accept the Lord’s grace and mercy or become as dead as Aaron’s rod.

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I have made thee a god to Pharaoh

Exodus 7: 1-7: “And the LORD said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet. Thou shalt speak all that I command thee: and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he send the children of Israel out of his land. And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt. But Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you, that I may lay my hand upon Egypt, and bring forth mine armies, and my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them. And Moses and Aaron did as the LORD commanded them, so did they. And Moses was fourscore years old, and Aaron fourscore and three years old, when they spake unto Pharaoh.”

Moses complained that he was not properly prepared to do the task that the Lord sent him to do. He wondered how Pharaoh would listen to him, however, even though Moses chose to identify with Israel, he was the adopted son of a former Pharaoh’s daughter and, as such, was considered to be a god in Egyptian eyes. The Lord understood all this before He called Moses to set Israel free from slavery and this fact was instrumental in giving Moses access to Pharaoh. If any of the ordinary slaves had tried to go into Pharaoh they would have been chased out and probably killed but Moses was like a god to Pharaoh and was able to come into his palace and talk to Pharaoh face to face. Even though Moses was like a god to Pharaoh, he was still the Lord’s servant and wasn’t free to say whatever he wanted to say, he had to say what the Lord told him to say. Pharaoh had already made a choice to defy the Lord by forcing the Lord’s people to be slaves and the Lord was going to make him face the consequences of this choice.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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These be the heads of their fathers' houses

Exodus 6: 14-30: “These be the heads of their fathers’ houses: The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel; Hanoch, and Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi: these be the families of Reuben. And the sons of Simeon; Jemuel, and Jamin, and Ohad, and Jachin, and Zohar, and Shaul the son of a Canaanitish woman: these are the families of Simeon. And these are the names of the sons of Levi according to their generations; Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari: and the years of the life of Levi were an hundred thirty and seven years. The sons of Gershon; Libni, and Shimi, according to their families. And the sons of Kohath; Amram, and Izhar, and Hebron, and Uzziel: and the years of the life of Kohath were an hundred thirty and three years. And the sons of Merari; Mahali and Mushi: these are the families of Levi according to their generations. And Amram took him Jochebed his father’s sister to wife; and she bare him Aaron and Moses: and the years of the life of Amram were an hundred and thirty and seven years. And the sons of Izhar; Korah, and Nepheg, and Zichri. And the sons of Uzziel; Mishael, and Elzaphan, and Zithri. And Aaron took him Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab, sister of Naashon, to wife; and she bare him Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. And the sons of Korah; Assir, and Elkanah, and Abiasaph: these are the families of the Korhites. And Eleazar Aaron’s son took him one of the daughters of Putiel to wife; and she bare him Phinehas: these are the heads of the fathers of the Levites according to their families. These are that Aaron and Moses, to whom the LORD said, Bring out the children of Israel from the land of Egypt according to their armies. These are they which spake to Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring out the children of Israel from Egypt: these are that Moses and Aaron. And it came to pass on the day when the LORD spake unto Moses in the land of Egypt, That the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, I am the LORD: speak thou unto Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I say unto thee. And Moses said before the LORD, Behold, I am of uncircumcised lips, and how shall Pharaoh hearken unto me?”

Even though the Israelis were slaves in Egypt and they may have thought that the Lord had forgotten them, or at least rejected them, He still knew them all by name. This reminds us of the Lord’s words “Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.” (Is 49: 16) The Lord always works for good in the lives of those people who submit to Him and love Him, however, there are times when the Lord works to make us stronger and more ready to do what He wants so that we can learn a greater appreciation of His everlasting love. Moses was scared that Pharaoh wouldn’t listen to him but the Lord knew that Pharaoh could not resist the Lord’s will so Moses was able to go forward with confidence.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Speak unto Pharaoh

Exodus 6: 10-13: “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Go in, speak unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, that he let the children of Israel go out of his land. And Moses spake before the LORD, saying, Behold, the children of Israel have not hearkened unto me; how then shall Pharaoh hear me, who am of uncircumcised lips? And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, and gave them a charge unto the children of Israel, and unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt.”

If the Israeli slaves were unwilling to listen to the Lord when He told them that He remembered the promise that He had made 430 years before why would Pharaoh listen? The Lord’s foremost aim was to let the Egyptians know that He is the Lord. He was going to set Israel free but He was acting in grace to allow the Egyptians to come to know Him and to accept that He is the ruler of all the earth not just the God of the Hebrews. Moses didn’t understand the full plan and was concerned that Pharaoh wouldn’t listen. However, the Lord wanted to put Pharaoh, and all Egypt, in a position to make the choice for themselves so He didn’t let Moses make that decision on their behalf. The same is true today; we are called to accept the constraints of the Great Commission (see Matt 28: 19, 20, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.”, Mark 16: 15, “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” and Acts 1: 8, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”) rather than make the decision on behalf of other people. If we follow the Lord’s command in this respect then people will use the words of John 4: 42 ], later (“And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.”). Our task is to respect the integrity of our own faith rather than second guess other people and freely give ground to the enlightened when they have no empirical basis for destroying the integrity of our faith.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Now thou shalt see what I will do

Exodus 6: 1-9: “Then the LORD said unto Moses, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh: for with a strong hand shall he let them go, and with a strong hand shall he drive them out of his land. And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the LORD: And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them. And I have also established my covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage, wherein they were strangers. And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage; and I have remembered my covenant. Wherefore say unto the children of Israel, I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments: And I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God: and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God, which bringeth you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. And I will bring you in unto the land, concerning the which I did swear to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; and I will give it you for an heritage: I am the LORD. And Moses spake so unto the children of Israel: but they hearkened not unto Moses for anguish of spirit, and for cruel bondage.”

We can read about a time when King Benhadad of Syria boasted to King Ahab of Israel and told him about all the things that he was going to do to Samaria but Ahab said to Benhadad, “And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him, Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off.” (1 Kings 20: 11) There are many people, today, who boast about what they are going to achieve. In fact, there is an entire industry based on telling people that if they set their goals in the right way they they will achieve what they are boasting about. There are many people who are able to do this but, “The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole disposing thereof is of the LORD.” (Prov 16: 33) We must remember that the Lord is in final control and He will do whatever is according to His plan. However, in this case, it was the Lord’s plan to deliver Israel from Egypt and He was able to promise that He would deliver them, no matter what they thought or how much they complained. In fact, the Lord had already promised to do this 430 years before this moment (compare Gal 3: 17, “And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect.”) Whatever the Lord promises will happen but only according to His timetable and not ours.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Neither hast thou delivered thy people at all

Exodus 5: 15-23: “Then the officers of the children of Israel came and cried unto Pharaoh, saying, Wherefore dealest thou thus with thy servants? There is no straw given unto thy servants, and they say to us, Make brick: and, behold, thy servants are beaten; but the fault is in thine own people. But he said, Ye are idle, ye are idle: therefore ye say, Let us go and do sacrifice to the LORD. Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you, yet shall ye deliver the tale of bricks. And the officers of the children of Israel did see that they were in evil case, after it was said, Ye shall not minish ought from your bricks of your daily task. And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh: And they said unto them, The LORD look upon you, and judge; because ye have made our savour to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay us. And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Lord, wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? why is it that thou hast sent me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people; neither hast thou delivered thy people at all.”

Even though the Lord was working to save Israel from slavery in Egypt, they were more interested in looking at their immediate situation. There is an old saying that it is always darkest before the dawn and this was the case here as well. Pharaoh didn’t want to lose his slaves so he made them work harder so that they would not have enough time to think about anything other than working for him and give up all their ideas of going away to offer sacrifices to their God when he believed that he was a god and they should be worshipping him. The Israelis had already been told that the Lord would set them free but they were only thinking in the short term rather than trusting the Lord for their long term security. Moses was so upset that he even complained to the Lord as well telling the Lord that He had done nothing to deliver them from slavery after all the promises. It is much easier to look at our present situation and lose focus on the big picture if we don’t keep our focus on the Lord Jesus Christ (compare Is 26: 3, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” and Heb 12: 2, “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”)

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Get you straw where ye can find it

Exodus 5: 10-14: “And the taskmasters of the people went out, and their officers, and they spake to the people, saying, Thus saith Pharaoh, I will not give you straw. Go ye, get you straw where ye can find it: yet not ought of your work shall be diminished. So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble instead of straw. And the taskmasters hasted them, saying, Fulfil your works, your daily tasks, as when there was straw. And the officers of the children of Israel, which Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and demanded, Wherefore have ye not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and to day, as heretofore?”

Pharaoh was so determined to show that he was more powerful than the Lord that he decided to punish the Israelis for the request that Moses made. There are many people who defy the Lord and try to show that He is unable to do what He wants to do. The major problem is that the Lords will happens whether we like it or not. Before the world was created the Lord had established a sure principle: actions always have consequences (compare Gal 6: 7, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.”). We may even try to make laws that separate action and consequence but we will never be able to escape the inevitability of the Lord’s Divine processes. Not only did the Lord define that basic principle, He also preplanned the way to allow sinners to come back to God, sinners who chose to ignore His gracious love. He sent His only begotten Son the be the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. Israel suffered in the short term but Pharaoh eventually went to the place that he chose when he refused to accept that the Lord is the Lord.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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The God of the Hebrews

Exodus 5: 3-9: “And they said, The God of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days’ journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the LORD our God; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword. And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works? get you unto your burdens. And Pharaoh said, Behold, the people of the land now are many, and ye make them rest from their burdens. And Pharaoh commanded the same day the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying, Ye shall no more give the people straw to make brick, as heretofore: let them go and gather straw for themselves. And the tale of the bricks, which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon them; ye shall not diminish ought thereof: for they be idle; therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our God. Let there more work be laid upon the men, that they may labour therein; and let them not regard vain words.”

The first time that we read about Hebrews in the Bible is in Gen 14: 13 (“And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew;”). This means that Moses was referring back to Abraham when he mentions the Hebrews. This also means that the Lord was reminding Moses of the promise that He made to Abram (Gen 15 : 12-16, “And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him. And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age. But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.”). The only thing that is completely certain in life is that the Lord will keep His promises and the Lord was careful to remind Moses that He remembered His promises and that He would keep them in His own time in His own way with absolute integrity. Even though the Hebrews were slaves, they still belonged to the Lord and the Lord would make sure that they were under His will and not the will of the Egyptians. The Lord wanted His people to worship Him and gave Pharaoh a choice, “either let My people worship me, or suffer the consequences of going against My will.” Pharaoh decided to test the Lord and suffered the consequences. (compare Prov 16: 25, “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.”) It seemed right to Pharaoh to defy the Lord and Pharaoh died. This reminds us “ For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Rom 6: 23) The choice today is stark: believe and have life or reject and face eternal death and separation from the Lord.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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I know not the Lord

Exodus 5: 1, 2: “And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness. And Pharaoh said, Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go.”

There is a parable in Matthew 21 :28-31 where the Lord talks about a man who had two sons. He asked both of them to work in his vineyard one said “yes” and didn’t go while the other said “no” but did go. The son who said “no” but went to the vineyard did what his father asked. This is also true of Moses, he gave excuses and tried to avoid doing the job that the Lord called him to do but, eventually, he went into Pharaoh’s palace and made the request that the Lord had asked him to make. Moses obeyed the Lord because he did what the Lord told him to do. There have been so many people throughout the ages who have professed to be the Lord’s servants but they don’t do what the Lord tells them to do, they redefine the Lord’s word and then do whatever they want to do. Pharaoh knew Moses because Moses had grown up in the same household as he had but when Moses came he refused to listen to the Lord. Some people might suggest that the Lord is unjust here because Pharaoh worshipped the gods of the Egyptians and didn’t know the Lord. The apostle Paul shows that to be a lie (see Rom 1: 19-21, “Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.”) When the Lord told Moses to say that “I am hath sent me” (Ex 3: 14) He was letting Pharaoh know that the Lord is the God who made everything and Whose glory is displayed every day and every night. Pharaoh spoke about the Lord with a foolish heart and he reaped the rewards of the choice that he had made.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Zipporah took a sharp stone

Exodus 4: 24-31: “And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him. Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me. So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision. And the LORD said to Aaron, Go into the wilderness to meet Moses. And he went, and met him in the mount of God, and kissed him. And Moses told Aaron all the words of the LORD who had sent him, and all the signs which he had commanded him. And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel: And Aaron spake all the words which the LORD had spoken unto Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people. And the people believed: and when they heard that the LORD had visited the children of Israel, and that he had looked upon their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshipped.”

The Lord made a contract with Abram when he was ninety years old(see Gen 17: 4-6, “As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.”). This contract involved God making Abram’s descendants into many nations, however, Abraham’s descendants had to be circumcised as his part of the contract. If a man was not circumcised then he would forfeit his place as part of the contracted people. The Lord called Moses to set Israel free but Moses had not kept his part of the contract by circumcising his own son. The Lord reminded Moses of the importance of keeping his part of the contract but his wife understood the message and made sure that everything was complete. (If anyone wants to serve the Lord today they have to understand that it is essential to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as their own personal Saviour and trust nothing else.) As Moses came back to Egypt, the Lord told his brother Aaron to meet him because Moses told the Lord he needed someone to speak for him. They met the Israeli leaders and these leaders worshipped the Lord because they were suffering as slaves and longed for freedom. However, when things got hard later they forgot about that suffering and suggested that they would have been better off in Egypt (see Num 11: 5, 6 “We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick: But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.” for example).

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Moses returned to Jethro

Exodus 4: 18-23: “And Moses went and returned to Jethro his father in law, and said unto him, Let me go, I pray thee, and return unto my brethren which are in Egypt, and see whether they be yet alive. And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace. And the LORD said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt: for all the men are dead which sought thy life. And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took the rod of God in his hand. And the LORD said unto Moses, When thou goest to return into Egypt, see that thou do all those wonders before Pharaoh, which I have put in thine hand: but I will harden his heart, that he shall not let the people go. And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn: And I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me: and if thou refuse to let him go, behold, I will slay thy son, even thy firstborn.”

Even though the Lord called Moses to go and deliver Israel from slavery in Egypt, it was important for him to see his father in law first. Moses was employed by Jethro at that stage of his life and it was proper that he inform him that he was leaving his employment. Earlier, Jacob has left his father in law without telling him and there was a lot of trouble. The Lord had to intervene to save Jacob from Laban’s anger. In this case, Jethro understood what Moses wanted to do and he gave his blessing for Moses to leave. After a proper farewell, Moses set out with his family to go to Egypt. He took the rod that the Lord was going to use to show that the Lord was superior to the gods of the Egyptians. It is always a good idea for a person who wants to serve the Lord to be properly prepared to do the job that the Lord has called them to do. Egypt had treated Israel badly after Joseph, the Israelite, had saved Egypt now it was time for them to reap what they had sown.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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I am not eloquent

Exodus 4: 10-17: “And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue. And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man’s mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD? Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say. And he said, O my Lord, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send. And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses, and he said, Is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, behold, he cometh forth to meet thee: and when he seeth thee, he will be glad in his heart. And thou shalt speak unto him, and put words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do. And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people: and he shall be, even he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of God. And thou shalt take this rod in thine hand, wherewith thou shalt do signs.”

When the Lord calls someone, he equips them for the task. The Lord called Moses but Moses looked for an excuse not to do the task. He claimed that he was not good at speaking in public and, therefore, would be sure to fail in the task he was given. However, God made Moses and his mouth. The Lord knows the end from the beginning and He knew what He would call Moses do long before Moses was born. It would be inconsistent to assume that the Lord would plan for someone to do a task that that person was unable to do. Moses continued to demur so the Lord told him that his brother would do the speaking and be given some of the credit for the work that Moses would do. Later Moses was called the meekest man in all the earth (Num 12: 3 “(Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)”) because he learnt more about the majesty of the Lord but at this stage he was still too proud to submit to the Lord’s will. The Lord, however, is able to work in spite of our weakness and sin and He still sent Moses to set Israel free even though Moses needed some help.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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