Over the past five weeks we have slowly progressed through the plagues God brought against Egypt. I pray its encouraged you, sobered you, and comforted you. God shows Himself to be who He is here, and it results in two reactions. For the Egyptians it wouldve been all fear. Watching the God of Israel do these mighty works wouldve dismayed them as all Egypt is destroyed. Seeing all they hold dear ruined wouldve undone them and put a heavy dread within them. They knew they had come to their end. But for the Israelites, I think it wouldve been a double edge. On one hand, watching God do these mighty works wouldve sobered them as well. Seeing His might, wrath, justice, and power revealed wouldve overwhelmed them certainly. But on the other hand, that God would come after Egypt so fiercely for their sake, wouldve brought them great comfort and peace. Yes Hes almighty God, but He has come out to show His might for them, to save them, and rescue them!

Church, it reminds me like a moment in C.S. Lewis Chronicles of Narnia. In The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe there is a moment when the two girls, Susan and Lucy, are playing with Aslan rolling around and wrestling in the grass after a great victory. In that moment the girls say they didnt quite know how to describe it. One moment it felt like they were playing with a soft kitten, but the next it felt like they were playing with a great thunderstorm! Such is the glory of the sobered satisfaction Israel felt watching God come rescue them.

Nine plagues have come and gone, and these nine occurred in a carefully constructed pattern, in three sets of three, serving to highlight the singular devastation of the tenth and final plague. That is where weve now arrived, at least in part. Exodus 11 is before us today. Ive divided it into three portions, that show us three wonders. See first

The Wonder of Favor (v1-3)

TheLordsaid to Moses, Yetone plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward he will let you go from here.When he lets you go, he will drive you away completely.Speak now in the hearing of the people, thatthey ask, every man of his neighbor and every woman of her neighbor, for silver and gold jewelry.And theLordgave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover, the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh's servants and in the sight of the people.

What God tells Moses in v1 are words weve been expecting.[1] Back in chapter 3 and again in chapter 6 God told Moses He would strike Pharaoh and Egypt so powerfully that Pharaoh would be compelled to let Israel go. But after nine plagues Pharaoh is still refusing. So as we hear God say in v1, one plague more I will bring we know this moment long expected has now arrived. The first nine plagues increased in their severity, one by one, and in them God caused so much destruction in Egypt that even the servants of Pharaoh cried out in despair, saying Egypt was ruined, and telling Pharaoh to give in and let the people go. But he wouldnt.

These opening verses remind us of this explicitly. In v1 we see Gods about to make one final devastating move against Egypt. In v2-3 we see two more things will happen to Israel. In v2 they will plunder the Egyptians on their way out, and in v3 they will be held in great favor by the people of Egypt. What a turn of events here! The people once enslaved and oppressed now become objects of awe as well as the new owners of many treasures. And of course it ought to be like this! God has come and shown Himself to be the God of wonders, and Moses to be His powerful servant.[2] They ought to be held in favor. But dont hear this wrongly. Yes, it says God will give them favor in the sight of the Egyptians, but the favor is more like a fearful awe than a celebrity crush. The Egyptians viewed Moses and the Israelites with awestruck wonder, because they knew when this man raises his staff, stuff happens! Stuff they had never seen before.

So they will be more than willing when Israel comes asking for their treasures. Why? Because its as if the whole nation is feeling, Enough is enough. What do they want? Gold, silver, jewelry? Give it to them and get them out of here. This isnt the Israelites stealing from the Egyptians. No, God has so shown his might that they will freely give to His people. And long ago God promised it would be like this. In Gen. 15 God told Abraham that after He punishes the nation who enslaved His people, they shall come out in freedom with great possessions (Gen. 15:13-14).

But, notice it Church, who is not mentioned in v2-3? Pharaoh. Why is he not mentioned? Because it seems that a great distance has developed between Pharaoh and the rest of the Egyptians by this point.[3] Everyone seems to realize that resistance to the God of Israel and Moses was useless, that continuing to refuse the command would only bring about Egypts sure end. Everyone knew this, everyone that is, except Pharaoh. Pharaoh was still digging in his heels. Yet here in this tenth and final plague, things will be different. What God does will be so severe that Pharaoh will not only let Israel go out of Egypt, Pharaoh will drive Israel out.

The Wonder of Judgment (v4-8)

So Moses said, Thus says theLord:About midnight I will go out in the midst of Egypt,and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who isbehind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle.There shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there has never been, nor ever will be again.But not a dog shall growlagainst any of the people of Israel, either man or beast, that you may know that theLordmakes a distinction between Egypt and Israel.Andall these your servants shall come down to me and bow down to me, saying, Get out, you and all the people who follow you. And after that I will go out. And he went out from Pharaoh in hot anger.

At this point in the chapter, there is a matter of difficulty to address. In v4-8 we see Moses speaking to Pharaoh. But, didnt their last meeting already occur? I thought we saw Pharaoh say at the end of chapter 10 that hed never see Moses face again? Well he did say that. So, what do we make of this here occurring in chapter 11? Did Moses go back into Pharaohs presence to give one more word from God? Some do think thats whats happening here, but I dont. I think whats going on is that chapter 11 is not chronological, but topical, focusing on the final plague.[4] So this dialogue between Moses and Pharaoh that occurs here, I think took place at the end of chapter 10, but Moses includes it here in chapter 11 to highlight the severity of the final plague, and to prepare the stage for the Passover, which will be introduced in chapter 12.

In v4 God is ironic. Pharaoh has said repeatedly that he will not let the people go out of Egypt, so what does God say? I will go out into Egypt Its as if the nine plagues weve seen so far have just been a prelude to this one, where God decides to step onto the scene Himself.[5] And when He goes out, nothing will ever be the same. Here the final and most terrible plague is announced, every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who isbehind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle. What God intends to do here in the death of the firstborn will bring about massive carnage.[6] Thousands will die in this one act. You could, wrongly, invent naturalistic explanations for all the other plagues. But not here. There is simply no other explanation than the God of Israel coming to strike Egypt with a final blow.

How are we to view this? Is this unfair? Is this overly cruel? Or is this not enough? We can only go so far in arriving at an answer in this, but Id think we do well to see this as justice being done for all the sins of Egypt. Early on in Exodus we saw the Pharaohs enjoyed a long pastime of enslaving and oppressing the Israelites, 400 years of it. Then a new Pharaoh arises, who raises the bar by murdering as many Hebrew baby boys as he can. Into this murderous scene God sends His deliverer, Moses, keeping him safe throughout the whole bloody affair. And then God says to Pharaoh in chapter 4, Israel is My firstborn son. Let My son go that he may worship Me. But if you refuse, I will kill your firstborn son (Ex. 4:22-23). Now this Word is coming to pass.

There is mercy mixed in with justice here to see. It was a mercy to have these firstborn children to die in the middle of the night during their sleep as opposed to another more violent manner.[7] Yes there will be wailing, but this wailing will occur in the morning when families rise and discover such devastating death. Once it was Israel crying out greatly in their suffering, now its Egypt crying out greatly in a suffering the likes of which theyve not known nor heard before, nor will ever know or hear again. All the firstborn children in this plague will die, from high up in Pharaohs palace down to the lowliest places among the servants who labored in the mills. God will be no respecter of persons here, all of Egypt is in view. Even the firstborn among the cattle are in view, because of how intimately connected the lives of cattle were to the Egyptian way of life.

Moses says more to Pharaoh here. He says not even a dog shall growlagainst any of the people of Israel, either man or beast, that you may know that theLordmakes a distinction between Egypt and Israel. This is to emphasize once again that nothing in Egypt can come against Israel any longer, not even the stray dogs, because the God of Israel has worked so powerfully. Lastly Moses tells it like it is to Pharaoh. That in the end, all his servants will come to Moses, and bowing downwill ask him and Israel to leave. At this final word, Moses walks out in hot anger.

The Wonder of Sovereignty (v9-10)

Then theLord said to Moses,Pharaoh will not listen to you, thatmy wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt. Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, and theLord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go out of his land.

Once again but not for the last time we read here of Pharaohs hard heart. Overall in Exodus we hear of his hardened heart 19 times.[8] Three times we hear it phrased as Pharaoh hardening his own heart; six times we hear it phrased as a general reference that his heart became hardened, and ten times we hear it phrased explicitly said that the Lord has, is, or will harden his heart. Many falter at this kind of language, believing God to be doing something out of bounds or unjust to Pharaoh. I can understand why many feel like this. But that misses much of whats happening here. Pharaoh is not a passive robot merely subject to a sovereign God, no. Pharaoh is an active and agreeable participant in the sins against God and His people. God was indeed sovereign over the heart of Pharaoh, but to quote our confessions of old, God is sovereign over all hearts in such a way that upholds personal responsibility and culpability. In other words, God is not making Pharaoh do something he doesnt want to do here. In his hardened sinful state, Pharaoh is happy to keep on doing what he desired to do.

Why did God do this? It tells here in v9-10. God hardened Pharaohs heart so that the plagues could happen, so the Exodus could happen, and so the Israelites could tell these stories to their kids, and grandkids, and on and on as each new generation repeats the great stories of old. Or to put differently, the God of Wonders did all these wonders for the glory of His name and the good of His people. Thats what chapter 11 is all about.

Conclusion:

So Church, I want to end with this thought: God is not just sovereign over all people, but sovereign for His people.[9]

Do you know see the difference in those two statements. We affirm the sovereignty of God, yes. There is no rogue molecule in the universe, there are no surprises to God, He never says oops, He is never caught off guard, He ordains and rules over all, amen! But the plagues push us to go further. We saw it in v4 didnt we? God Himself will go out, to bring one more plague against Egypt, why? To rescue His people! He is sovereign, yes. Church, He is sovereign for us.

The same reality applies to the very first Christmas. God made all things, made us, and all was very good until it went very wrong. We sinned and brought death into the world and into ourselves. And the ebbing and flowing of the whole OT is the prelude to the moment when God Himself walked on stage in the Person of His Son. Why did He come? To lead a new Exodus, out from the power of Satan the greater Pharaoh, and out from the cruelty of sin the greater slavery. In Christ we have redemption. This is why we call Christ Lord, because He has saved us, body and soul, from all our sins, not with silver or gold but with His precious blood, and has freed us from all the power of the devil to make us His own possession.[10]

Church, this Christmas I pray you feel the same double edge Israel felt in Exodus 11. They saw the Lords might come out against Egypt in great wonders and they all knew that God was God, that no one else was god, and that nothing is too strong or hard for this God. But they also knew God came out in great power against Egypt, for their sake.

So too in Christ. God the Son came to the world in order to come out against the world, the flesh, and the Devil, displaying His great might in signs and wonders. He overwhelmed many that were proud and arrogant, but He drew near sinners. Are any of you here today sinners, overwhelmed by sin and its wreckage in you and around you? Look to Christ! If you look to and trust in Christ, know this, the great sovereign God of wonders is for you, not against you. Though all hell break loose, you need fear no evil, because the Lord has saved you and will keep you. He has said that He is making all things new, including us.

[1] John I. Durham, Exodus - WBC (Waco TX: Word Books, 1987) 147.

[2] John D. Currid, Exodus 1-18 - EP Study Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: EP Books, 2014) 225.

[3] Douglas K. Stuart, Exodus NAC (Brentwood, TN: BH Publishing, 2006) 263.

[4] Brevard S. Childs, The Book of Exodus (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2004) 161.

[5] Durham, 150.

[6] Victor P. Hamilton, Exodus: An Exegetical Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2023) 168.

[7] Stuart, 265.

[8] Kevin DeYoung, God of Wonders, sermon on 3.20.2016, accessed via christcovenant.org, 12.5.2025.

[9] DeYoung, God of Wonders.

[10] Heidelberg Catechism, question 34.

Introduction-Advent (From Darkness to Light)

Advent is one of my favorite times of the year, but at the same time, I never grew up in a very liturgical church

-We celebrated the Christmas season and of course as every good Baptist the yearly cantata

-But when we take a moment and step back and see things from a more traditional liturgical (fancy word for order of worship) view Advent adds so much to this time of year and especially as we come to days text there is a depth of meaning of the hope that light will shine into darkness.

-Each week of advent we light another candle signifying the work of Christ and the anticipation of His coming. With each candle the light becomes greater slowly pushing back the darkness that surrounds it, until in Christmas eve evening the final candle is light and the room is bathed in the light of Christ.

Each week shows the triumph of the gospel over darkness

And this year for Advent we are actually continuing straight through our Exodus series as in it we will see the judgment of sin and the hope found in the Passover lamb. And how through the death of the first born comes redemption.

As I said though as we approach Advent we begin in Darkness and shadow a symbol of judgment and un creation and with that in mind let us turn now to the text before us:

Where we will see today both the reality of a literal and spiritual darkness has the work of Gods judgment and the grace of his light towards his own:

So first we see the Literal Darkness descend:

I. A Literal Darkness (21-23)

Exodus 10:2123 Then the Lord said to Moses, Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness to be felt. So, Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was pitch darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, but all the people of Israel had light where they lived.

We have seen now 8 plagues fall upon Egypt: (each attacking the strength of Egypt and their so-called gods)

-Blood

-Frogs

-Gnats

-Flies

-Pestilence

-Boils

-Hail

-Locus

Here we come to the final plague in the final triplet: Darkness

The Lord Commands Moses

-No Warning (Just as with the Boils and Gnats good gives no warning to Pharaoh only tells Moses to act)

SO, he does

-Illustration of darkness falling

There is a terror in this reality if you spend anytime really thinking about the suddenness and the depth of what is befalling Egypt

This is straight out of a disaster movie

-One minute there is light and calm the next darkness rolls over the land

-In this we can clearly see the supernatural reality of this moment

Purely supernatural

-Each of the others have some natural occurrence or are replicated by the magicians

-As you go back over the last eight plagues there are elements that these are natural things that happen but have been supernaturally turned up to 11 by God as a sign of his judgment

-The only other non-natural occurrence is the Nile to blood which is still replicated by the magicians.

Here there is no doubt of the source, there is no middle ground. Darkness does not fall as it does here:

-Some falsely try to give it a natural occurrence such as a strong sandstorm (but the language doesnt line up for such a reading)

-Rather in this darkness we see the undoing of creation for those not under gods protection

-An Undoing of creation (A return to darkness) a return to before creation as the light no longer shines on them they are subject to complete darkness (Genesis 1:12 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.)

-Darkness in scripture is often associated with judgment or of those outside Gods covenant

John 3:19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.

Amos 5:20 Is not the day of the Lord darkness, and not light, and gloom with no brightness in it?

-It is also an attack on their False god Ra (Who is the sun god)

-IN many dynasties of Egyptian worship Ra is the preeminent of their deities as he is the one who governs all that happens in the world being the source of light and re birth

-Here again God challenges their own false worship by showing his supreme authority over their gods.

-For whom else can cover the suns power and quench its effects

-Not only though does the light from the sun cease to sign in Egypt, but light itself seems to flee

For it was a Darkness you could feel

It Was a Dark Darkness (The Hebrew doubling adds context to the depth of this reality)

A Darkness you could Feel

-Darkness has some pretty wicked effects on the human psyche (Thus they become completely inactive)

-This darkness was paralyzing to the people

-For three days they did nothing (That is darkness)

Illustration-Touring caves in Kentucky you get to sections where the turn off the lights and you cant see your hand even if it is right in front of you.

-Now turn it up again to 11

-And far more terrifying than I think we can imagine

-Truly the perfect set up for the final plague (Not wasted)

So, we have seen the judgment of God through literal darkness we will now see in 24-29 the judgment of God through A spiritual darkness:

II. A Spiritual Darkness (24-29)

Exodus 10:2429 Then Pharaoh called Moses and said, Go, serve the Lord; your little ones also may go with you; only let your flocks and your herds remain behind. But Moses said, You must also let us have sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God. Our livestock also must go with us; not a hoof shall be left behind, for we must take of them to serve the Lord our God, and we do not know with what we must serve the Lord until we arrive there. But the Lord hardened Pharaohs heart, and he would not let them go. Then Pharaoh said to him, Get away from me; take care never to see my face again, for on the day you see my face you shall die. Moses said, As you say! I will not see your face again.

We see the realty that Pharaohs heart remains darkened to the reality before him:

Pharaohs continues his halfway measure of seeking a compromise

He is still seeking to make a deal to keep the people

-Moses is done with this and we now see he challenges Pharaoh

(Not only will we leave with our animals you will prove some as well)

This is a bold moment as we have seen Pharaoh time and again play with the Israelites and with Moses and each time Moses prays for Pharaoh and again Pharaoh refuse to relent or repent truly from his ways, rather we see him even in his compromises show he has no desire to change course.

The darkness is greater in him than that which he just walked through, and he doesnt even realize it

Once more the Lord seals Pharaohs heard and steadys his resolve to keep the people

-And so, we see God seal Pharaohs fate. He will see this thing through to the end

Pharaoh become enraged at Moses

(Now he threatens him, no more prayers in this moment)

He will not turn back he has put all his chips in and will not be deterred

In this moment he is done seeking prayers and restoration he is so angry with Moses, and he would rather see them Dead (Should he see them again)

-And they are cool with this Moses is equally done with the whole situation

-Its hard to watch someone continually drive themselves into destruction

-The darkness is deep within Pharaoh and as we have seen God is the one at works so that the whole of Egypt and Israel will Know that HE IS GOD!

And so, we have now seen that literal darkness that has befallen the land of Egypt in 21-23 and the Spiritual Darkness of Pharaoh in 24-29 we should go back as we move to the final point to look at the great hope in the midst of all this and it is the light of Hope in vs 23

A Light of Hope (23)

Exodus 10:23 They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, but all the people of Israel had light where they lived.

This simple verse shows the immense mercy of God in two direct ways and also as a precursor to what we see throughout the scriptures:

1st we see directly the mercy of God

The Darkness was Limited to 3 days; it is short and yet dully powerful. We saw in the first point that the dark darkness was a terrible reality, and it was a paralyzing judgment, but the reality was it was still limited, God was still merciful in his execution of judgment

Gods judgments are purposeful and direct they

2nd we see the Light of God is always upon His people

Again, God is with his people for they are of the light because God is light (not of any good that they have done, but because he is their God)

God continues to preserve his covenant people and keep them here from the judgment facing Egypt. It is another moment of God reminding them of who their God is and showing them the immensity of his mercy, love and grace towards them.

As we have seen the plagues are not just about Pharoah Knowing who God is, it is about Israel knowing who their God is, these are the moments while they seem subtle are essential moments for them to learn that He is!

So that throughout their history in the midst of hardship their descendent such as Micah can say:

Micah 7:8 Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me.

The two final aspects that we can glean from the light of hope are more forward looking as well as we see this text point us firmly forward toward the greatest day of judgment and redemption the world has ever known at calvary:

For in that place for three hours light failed as the wrath of God is poured out on himself to save us sinners:

Luke 23:4445 It was now about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour, while the suns light failed. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two.

It is no accident that the judgment of God is seen in the darkness of the day or that it held for 3 hours. These are all part of Gods divine work, pointing to the reality of Gods judgment against sin, and also His forgiveness.

Which leads to the concluding purpose and that is the truth that:

Christ Advent was meant to bring s out of the darkness

Matthew 4:1517 The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned. From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

He came preaching the truth repent and believe

-The great light shines forth into the darkness, hope for those in the shadow

-The sun has shown are we watching do we appreciate the reality or is our spiritual darkness so great we do not cherish the reality of the sun.

For he is the light of the world:

John 8:12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.

May we who have seen live in light of these truths.

May we proclaim these truths to those who do not yet know:

Acts 26:1718 delivering you from your people and from the Gentilesto whom I am sending you to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.

For we this advent season we who have experienced the light of hope in Christ, the Gospel grace shown upon us by the father who has transferred us from the kingdom of Darkness into his great kingdom of Light, may we shine bright with this wonderful hope that the light of Christ remains for those who will look and see that the baby born in the manger came to die, came to take on himself the darkness of sin and death, so that we may truly experience the light of God and life to the full.

The Plagues, part 4

Exodus 10:1-20

Introduction:

Long ago Charles Spurgeon wrote the following words, “Every believer thirsts for God, and longs to climb the hill of the Lord, seeing him face to face. We ought not rest content in the mists of the valley when the summits await us. Our soul thirsts to drink deep of this cup, yet, many saints are content to live like men in coal mines, who see not the sun; they are content to wear the miner’s garb when they might put on king’s robes; tears mar their faces when they might anoint them with heavenly oil. Rouse yourself, O believer, from your low condition! Cast away your sloth, your lethargy, your coldness, or whatever interferes with Christ. Make him the source and center of all thy soul’s delight. What has enchanted you into such folly as to remain in the mines when you may climb the heights? Live not in the lowlands of bondage but press forward to things more sublime and heavenly. Aspire to a higher, a nobler, a fuller life. It is ours in Christ, O believer, reach out for it!”

Pray with me.

Meat:

Well good morning Church, open your Bibles to Exodus 10. Four headings of bright beauty to behold today, see first…

Visit 1 (v1-6)

“Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may show these signs of mine among them, and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and of your grandson how I have dealt harshly with the Egyptians and what signs I have done among them, that you may know that I am the Lord.” So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go, that they may serve me. For if you refuse to let my people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your country, and they shall cover the face of the land, so that no one can see the land. And they shall eat what is left to you after the hail, and they shall eat every tree of yours that grows in the field, and they shall fill your houses and the houses of all your servants and of all the Egyptians, as neither your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen, from the day they came on earth to this day.’” Then he turned and went out from Pharaoh.”

As we have seen before now a few times, this eighth plague begins just as the second and fifth plague begin, with Moses coming straight into Pharaoh’s presence in his palace court with a command and a warning. In this way the eighth plague is like what we’ve seen before. But there are new things to see here as well.

First, notice the reasons God gives to Moses in v1-2. We’ve heard God say He has hardened Pharaoh’s heart before and that He’s bringing about the plagues so that Egypt may know He’s the Lord, God has said that a few times now. But see the beginning of v2? There we learn God is bringing about the plagues not just for the sake of Egypt, but for the sake of Israel. Why? So that Moses can tell his son and grandson about it. In other words, God is doing a work He wants His people to remember, so He commands Moses to tell his sons and grandsons about this. Now, we all know kids love stories, and I think adults do too if their honest enough. If you think about what makes a good story, the Exodus has all of it. An evil villain, an unlikely hero, a bitter conflict, miraculous twists and turns, a daring rescue, the triumph of good over evil, which ultimately, brings about a happy ending. The Exodus all of this. As much as kids would’ve loved this story, God’s writing this story here not just to entertain the kids but to teach them.

That’s what Exodus teaches us. It is the story of Israel’s salvation. It is a story that explains everything they needed to know. It explains who God is: that He’s the LORD, the God over all, the God of their fathers, the true King of power and glory. It explains who they are: the people of God, enslaved by Pharaoh. It explains how God rescued them: by His strong and mighty outstretched arm. It explains where they came from: out of Egypt. It explains where they’re going: into the promise land. And it explains why God rescued them: to glorify Him!

This story answers all the big questions, doesn’t it? Who is God? Who am I? Where did I come from? Where am I going? What is the meaning of life? This story is important, so important that it must not stop with Moses’ generation, it must reverberate down through the ages.

Church, I don’t want to wait till the end of the sermon to get the gospel, it’s right here at the start today, in this point! As God gave Moses and Israel a story, He’s given us a story to tell our descendants! And the story He gave us is greater than the Exodus, and in it God tells us everything we need to know! It explains who God is: our Father in heaven, full of grace and truth. It explains who we are: made by Him, in His image, but fallen in sin. It explains how God rescued us: by the Work of His beloved Son. It explains how the Son’s work is applied to us: by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. It explains where we’ve come from: sin’s cruel death and slavery. It explains where we’re going: to be with God in glory forever. And it explains why God rescued us: to glorify Him.

This story answers all the big questions too! And this story, ancient as it is, remains the story we repeat and rehearse as we gather together to worship, as it also remains the story we scatter together to spread abroad! May our children hear it from us, may their children hear it from them, and on and on and on until the dawn of the last day!

Let’s get back to Moses. He and Aaron go into Pharaoh’s court, and notice what they first say in v3? “How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me?” This is a good question. Seven plagues have come and gone; how much longer will Pharaoh stubbornly dig in his heels? God is clear in this question, either Pharaoh humble himself now, or God will humiliate him further. After this comes the plague announcement. If Pharaoh refuses to let the people go, locusts will come. So many locusts that they won’t even be able to see the ground. They will eat everything in the land left over from the hailstorm, and they will fill every house, from Pharaoh’s palace to the servants huts. Such a thing, Moses adds, has never happened nor will ever happen again in Egypt. Then notice it, directly after this Moses turns and leaves Pharaoh’s court, without allowing him a chance to respond.

This left an impression. See now v7-11…

Visit 2 (v7-11)

“Then Pharaoh's servants said to him, “How long shall this man be a snare to us? Let the men go, that they may serve the Lord their God. Do you not yet understand that Egypt is ruined?” So Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh. And he said to them, “Go, serve the Lord your God. But which ones are to go?” Moses said, “We will go with our young and our old. We will go with our sons and daughters and with our flocks and herds, for we must hold a feast to the Lord.” But he said to them, “The Lord be with you, if ever I let you and your little ones go! Look, you have some evil purpose in mind. No! Go, the men among you, and serve the Lord, for that is what you are asking.” And they were driven out from Pharaoh's presence.”

Pharaoh, remember, had already heard a question in v3 beginning with the words “How long…” and now he gets another one, this time from his own servants in v7. And what a question this is! It’s not only a call from Pharaoh’s own people to give in to Moses, but it also shows us how bad things have gotten in Egypt. They say in the end of v7 that Egypt itself is ruined. For this reason they tell Pharaoh to let Israel go, so that Moses would no longer be a snare to them. How ironic is that? The very ones who enslaved the Israelites, keeping them trapped and denying them their freedom, they’re now getting a taste of their own medicine, as they feel like Moses is holding them captive!

So Pharaoh quickly brings Moses and Aaron back in and in v8 says that he’ll let them go…but he adds a question to it, “Which ones are to go?” Moses responds in v9 saying all of them will go, their young, their old, their sons, their daughters, even their herds are to go. Pharaoh sarcastically bursts out in v10 when he hears this saying, ‘HA! The Lord would indeed be with you if I let all of you go, you clearly are up to some evil here. No, you all cannot go, only take your men.’ Apparently, Pharaoh had a very low view of women and children. To him, only men seem to matter when it comes to worship, so why should they all go? What Pharaoh doesn’t know is that all God’s people matter to God, from the least to the greatest. So Moses tells him this, that they all must go: the young, the old, the sons, the daughters, the men, and the women. Implied in Moses’ response to Pharaoh is a clear reminder that the commands of God are not open for discussion, for debate, or for negotiation. Moses rejects any conditions or limitations added to God’s Word. When God calls, commands, or declares, what He says stands, with no ifs, ands, or buts about it.

Yet, Moses doesn’t get a chance to respond to this because, very quickly, Pharaoh kicks them out of his presence without allowing any more discussion. So, we’ve seen two visits with Pharaoh so far, I think we know what’s coming next. See it in v12-15…

Lots of Locusts (v12-15)

“Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, so that they may come upon the land of Egypt and eat every plant in the land, all that the hail has left.” So Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt, and the Lord brought an east wind upon the land all that day and all that night. When it was morning, the east wind had brought the locusts. The locusts came up over all the land of Egypt and settled on the whole country of Egypt, such a dense swarm of locusts as had never been before, nor ever will be again. They covered the face of the whole land, so that the land was darkened, and they ate all the plants in the land and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Not a green thing remained, neither tree nor plant of the field, through all the land of Egypt.”

It's astonishing to me how fast the scene unfolds for us. The command comes in v12, Moses obeys in v13, and we see the results in v14-15. This eighth plague is simply devastating in scope. We know something of locusts don’t we? Each year our own locusts begin small and black, but after a few weeks they’re bigger and yellow and prehistoric looking…but they don’t really bother. They seem more scared of us than we are of them. There have been reports of locust hordes sweeping across the world throughout history. In the 1920’s locusts swept across Africa consuming everything over five million square miles, which, is a space double the size of the United States. Another report came in 2001 of a locust horde sweeping across central Asia, which was so vast the New York Times reported the infestation reached ten thousand locusts per ten square feet. Can you even imagine that?

This gives us some kind of idea what was occurring in Egypt in this plague. Perhaps that first night the Egyptians thought they’d be fine as they just heard and felt this great wind that God stirred, a strong east wind. This phrase east wind occurs a few other times in Scripture, mainly in the Psalms and the Prophets, and it’s always referring to judgment and dark and dreadful things (see Ps. 48:7, Jer. 18:17, Ezek. 19:12, Hos. 13:15, Jonah 4:8). So that night the east wind came, and in the morning the dawn brought a different story. That wind brought hordes upon hordes of locusts. v15 says they were so numerous they covered all the ground, nearly blotted out the sun, and consumed all the vegetation left alive from the hailstorm. Nothing green remained. Notice also that the phrase in v14 “such a dense swarm” in the original Hebrew is again the phrase we’ve heard before, kabed m’od, or very heavy. The locusts laid heavy on Egypt. Lesson? God has brought another plague to Egypt as heavy as Pharaoh’s hard heart.

But God was up to more than this, wasn’t He? This time the Lord set His sights on their god Senehem (the divine protector against pests) and their god Anubis (the guardian of the fields). These idols failed to do what they were supposed to do, as the God of Israel proves Himself the stronger.

This is the eighth plague.

The Same Sad Story (v16-20)

“Then Pharaoh hastily called Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you. Now therefore, forgive my sin, please, only this once, and plead with the Lord your God only to remove this death from me.” So he went out from Pharaoh and pleaded with the Lord. And the Lord turned the wind into a very strong west wind, which lifted the locusts and drove them into the Red Sea. Not a single locust was left in all the country of Egypt. But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go.”

As the passage concludes we see more of the same. Pharaoh quickly gets Moses and Aaron back in front of him, and begs for relief. The words he uses are good, he even calls this eighth plague “this death” certainly shows more urgency on Pharaoh’s part as he’s recognizing more of the gravity of the situation. But while these words would seem to give the impression of sincerity, we know Pharaoh is after redemption, only rest from a God who’s afflicting him. But Moses prays and God removes the locusts, blowing them with a west wind into the Red Sea, perhaps foreshadowing what will come of Pharaoh in the end. And Pharaoh did what Pharaoh has done each time, he didn’t let the people go.

Conclusion:

Come back to v3 with me. There we heard the question, “How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me?” It was a good question for Pharaoh, it remains a good question for us. Peter tells us “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you” (1 Peter 5:5-6). Of course the question can be put in other terms. ‘How long will you continue living in your sin?’ ‘How long will you destroy yourself and those nearest you?’ ‘How long will you put off the day of repentance?’

Think of how you’d answer the question for yourself. Think of Jesus Himself, thorn crowned head and pierced hands, think of Him coming close to you, looking you in the eyes, and in His thunderous loving voice asking you, “How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me?”

Church our passage today confronts us. You may not see it today and you may not see it tomorrow, but you can count on this: everyone will either humble themselves or be humiliated before God. Maybe you’ve seen it, in your own life, or in a family member, or a close friend. It’s always tragic…the devastation of sin. The tragic thing about sin is that, sometimes, when people hit rock bottom, they keep digging. This is what sin does. It keeps persisting in folly even when the wreckage it produces is clear. Church, sin ruins you. This is how our passage confronts us.

But Church, our passage can comfort us as well, if, we humble ourselves. So hear it again. Hear God ask you today, “How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me?” As I stated at the beginning, we were made to soar on the heights of heaven, yet we are far too willing to settle for the mines below. God promises terrible things to those who refuse to humble themselves like Pharaoh. We see that here. But Church, He promises heaven to those who come to His Son. Forsake your many sins, flee to the Savior, and find shelter and rest for your soul.

Whether you’re brand new to SonRise or have been around SonRise for a while, let me briefly state what we seek to accomplish in this sermon moment each week. During the preaching portion of our services we employ and enjoy a kind of preaching called expository preaching. This means the preacher doesn’t aim to say anything new but only seeks to say what God has already said, such that the point of the passage is the point of the sermon. In this sense our aim is to be the nothing more than servers, whose task is taking the Chef’s meal and bringing it to the table without adding to it, taking away from it, or changing it in any way, shape, or form. We don’t to do this randomly but orderly, as we work through books of the Bible. So, when we come to specific passages week after week, we come to them in their own context, having already examined the verses that come before while anticipating the verses that come after. Or to put it another way, we seek to sit underneath the authority and illumination of the Scripture, rather than standing over it using the Scripture to support our own message.

This is our goal, we don’t do it perfectly, but we do aim to do it faithfully.

Today we find ourselves in Exodus 9. We’re slowly but surely making our way through the book of Exodus, and it has proved powerful. Many of you have told me over these past months how you’ve been encouraged and emboldened to fight in the midst of temptation or stand in the midst of trial because of what you’ve learned and seen of God in the book of Exodus. And that makes sense, doesn’t it? Among the many things we learn of God in Exodus, we learn how big and mighty and strong God really is. This is horrifying to God’s enemies to see, but it’s simply wonderful for God’s people to see. For in His might we His people are ever safe and secure.

Today, I pray that continues as we turn to the text now. Chapter 9 easily divides into four movements, see first…

Plague 5 – Livestock (v1-7)

“Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. For if you refuse to let them go and still hold them, behold, the hand of the Lord will fall with a very severe plague upon your livestock that are in the field, the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the herds, and the flocks. But the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing of all that belongs to the people of Israel shall die.”’” And the Lord set a time, saying, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this thing in the land.” And the next day the Lord did this thing. All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one of the livestock of the people of Israel died. And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not one of the livestock of Israel was dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.”

The pattern of the plagues remains here in the fifth plague as we see Moses doing again, what he did back in the second plague. Here in v1 Moses goes into Pharaoh’s palace with a message and a warning. And the message is clear, Pharaoh’s heard it many times. God says again in v2-3, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. For if you refuse to let them go and still hold them, behold, the hand of the Lord will fall with a very severe plague upon your livestock that are in the field, the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the herds, and the flocks.”

As must be done with each plague, let’s ask and answer some questions.

First, what was the “very severe plague” that fell on Egypt’s livestock? It is hard to know exactly what kind of plague falls on the livestock of Egypt but most believe it’s a virus or disease, that attacks livestock with a particular lethality. What we do know is this plague was severe. It says as much in v3, “very severe plague” in Hebrew is the phrase kabed m’od, which translates as very severe or very heavy. This is important to see because this word is the same word used to describe the heart of Pharaoh. In the chapters leading up to this Pharaoh’s heart has been described hard, we know that, but what we might not know is that the word used in these instances is the word kabed. So Pharaoh’s hard heart really could be his heavy heart. This not only shows us more of Pharaoh’s true condition, a heart heavy and weighed down with sin, it shows us how severe this fifth plague was. It fell heavy on Egypt’s livestock, heavy like Pharaoh’s heavy hard heart. So heavy indeed that this fifth plague marks a pivotal transition in the plagues, in that it was the first plague to not just destroy Pharaoh’s own property, it was the first plague to bring death.

Second, what’s the extent of this plague? I ask this question because v6 says all the livestock of Egypt died, and yet, more Egyptian livestock shows up in the seventh plague. So how could all the livestock be dead in the fifth plague and then show back up in the seventh plague? There’s a simple answer to this question, and it comes once again from the Hebrew words used here. The Hebrew word for “all” is a collective term, referring not to each individual animal itself, but referring to all kinds of livestock in Egypt. So, when this plague fell, I think we’re meant to take v6 as saying, all kinds of Egyptian livestock died.

Third, why does God attack the livestock? As much as their livestock dying would’ve been a blow to the Egyptian economy and way of life, the reason runs deeper. As is true in the other plagues, it’s true here as well, God is attacking their livestock to attack their gods. Numbers 33:4 describes this well when it says, “On their gods also the LORD executed judgments.” So here God is attacking the many Egyptian deities depicted with livestock imagery. There was the god of fertility Buchis, known as the sacred bull of Hermonthis and Mnevis, who was worshiped throughout Egypt. Some believed Buchis was the embodiment of the gods Ptah and Ra, or Apis, the chief god worshiped in a temple in Memphis. There was also Isis (a queen among Egyptian gods) and Hathor (the goddess of love and beauty), gods often depicted with cow horns or even with the head of a cow. These are the deities in direct view in the fifth plague, and to Egyptians they represented fertility and strength. But by attacking them, and killing the livestock representing them, you see what God is saying? He’s saying these gods are nothing and that He alone is God.

Notice once again God says He will make a distinction in this plague. While the very severe plague will fall on all kinds of Egyptian livestock v4 says not one of the livestock of Israel will die. As we saw in the fourth plague, this is the covenant blessing of belonging to the Lord. God’s enemies are struck and their animals fall in death while God’s people and their belongings, are safe. This would be humiliating to say the least, losing so much livestock while Israel’s isn’t harmed at all. Many questions would’ve been coming at Pharaoh because of this. And how would he answer? That it’s just Egyptian mad cow disease? Or just a coincidence that Israel’s livestock still thrives while theirs dies? No. God removed any excuse for Pharaoh in v5 when He says He’ll do this, not just tomorrow, but at a specific time tomorrow, leaving Pharaoh no other option on how to interpret this event. Only the hand of God could do such a thing.

Pharaoh’s response to this in v7 is both new and not new. The new thing about it is he sent out messengers (?) to check if Israel truly did not lose any livestock, and sure enough, they did not. It was as God said it would be. Do you see how ironic this action is? Pharaoh wouldn’t send out Israel from slavery, but he was eager to send out his own messengers to see if what God said would happen really happened. It’s as if Pharaoh is eagerly desiring to find any other explanation for this event, but he searches in vain. The not new thing about his response is that even after evidence abounded all around him, his heart was hardened (became heavy) and he did not let the people go.

This is the fifth plague.

Plague 6 – Boils (v8-12)

“And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from the kiln, and let Moses throw them in the air in the sight of Pharaoh. It shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and become boils breaking out in sores on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt.” So they took soot from the kiln and stood before Pharaoh. And Moses threw it in the air, and it became boils breaking out in sores on man and beast. And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils came upon the magicians and upon all the Egyptians. But the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not listen to them, as the Lord had spoken to Moses.”

Church, again we see the pattern here. Just as we saw the third plague begin with no warning, so the same occurs here in the sixth. No instructions, no visit to Pharaoh, God simply acts. Lesson? As the third plague ended the first cycle of plagues, so too now the sixth plague ends the second cycle of the plagues.

This is the shortest description of all the ten plagues. In v8-9 God instructs Moses to take soot from a nearby kiln, throw it into the air, and God will turn it into a disease that falls all throughout Egypt. Moses does this in v10, and we see the results of this in v11-12. And that’s it.

As short as it is, this sixth plague is also strange and sobering. It’s strange because it doesn’t seem to make sense at first. Why would God use soot from a kiln and turn that soot into boils and sores? I think there is some poetic justice occurring here. The kind of kiln in view here was likely one used for the baking of bricks. These were all over Egypt, since they had so many slaves working to build so many things, these kilns were very common. To all those enslaved these became a symbol of Egypt’s oppression. Yet, this is the very symbol God uses to inflict grievous wounds on all Egypt. Herein lies the sobering nature of this plague. Dust turned to disease, turned to boils and sores. But it’s probably more than that. Along with boils and sores on the skin usually comes pain and itching and a burning rash. Many attempt to identify this disease but its all speculation, it was a virus of divine origin, infectious in nature, resulting in a scabby leprous condition of the skin probably very similar to Job’s experience in Job 1-2. Whatever the virus was, it would become infamous in Israelite culture. Later on God uses this language again in Deut. 28:27 telling Israel that if they disobey Him He will smite them with “the boils of Egypt and with tumors and with the scab and with the itch, from which you cannot be healed.”

Short, strange, and sobering certainly, but let’s not forget God is up to far more in this. We saw the list of gods He attacked in the fifth plague, here God takes aim at more. Specifically here God is aiming at Sekhmet, an Egyptian goddess who was believed to be responsible for health and healing. All of Egypt, who was used to looking to Sekhmet to keep them healthy and strong now learns this god cannot care for them if the Lord brings disease on them. Again, only God is God.

In v11 there is one final mention of the magicians, and all we read of them is weakness. Once they proudly stood before Moses and Aaron doing demonic wonders, now they’re reduced to weak, sick, sore covered sorcerers. Yet, in full view of all this, Pharaoh remains hard in heart. Why? Because for the first time in the whole of the plagues so far, we read that God hardened his heart. Which tells us, God is up to far more than meets the eye here.

This is the sixth plague.

Plague 7 – Hail (v13-26)

“Then the Lord said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and present yourself before Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. For this time I will send all my plagues on you yourself, and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth. You are still exalting yourself against my people and will not let them go. Behold, about this time tomorrow I will cause very heavy hail to fall, such as never has been in Egypt from the day it was founded until now. Now therefore send, get your livestock and all that you have in the field into safe shelter, for every man and beast that is in the field and is not brought home will die when the hail falls on them.”’” Then whoever feared the word of the Lord among the servants of Pharaoh hurried his slaves and his livestock into the houses, but whoever did not pay attention to the word of the Lord left his slaves and his livestock in the field. Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, on man and beast and every plant of the field, in the land of Egypt.” Then Moses stretched out his staff toward heaven, and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the earth. And the Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt. There was hail and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very heavy hail, such as had never been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. The hail struck down everything that was in the field in all the land of Egypt, both man and beast. And the hail struck down every plant of the field and broke every tree of the field. Only in the land of Goshen, where the people of Israel were, was there no hail.”

Right on the heels of the shortest plague description, this is the longest. And with it we see a new cycle of plagues beginning. As with the first, and the fourth, here in the seventh plague Moses goes out to meet Pharaoh in the morning, he repeats the command, and announces the plague. v13 is the normal pattern we’ve seen before, but look at what God says in v14-17. He God says new things to Pharaoh, things that would’ve undone Pharaoh, and reminded Pharaoh that though he views himself as divine and the epitome of strength, he is really just a weak small, sinful man.

Here in v14-17 we find a host of riches to explore. In v14 God announces that more plagues are coming. In v15 God says He could’ve wiped them out by now, but hasn’t, and hasn’t even shown His full might yet. In v16 we see the Josh Groban ‘You Raise Me Up’ moment as we hear God say He has raised Pharaoh up for a singular purpose, to show His power, and that His name might be proclaimed in all the earth. This is such a powerful statement Paul quotes it in Romans 9 as he’s describing the sovereignty of God over all things. And God says more to Pharaoh in Exodus 9. Because Pharaoh keeps exalting himself against Israel (v17), God will send a hailstorm to Egypt (v18). Yet even here God is gracious as He warns them to hide indoors, and to bring their livestock indoors so they won’t die in v19. v20-21 tells us what we all know is true. When God’s Word goes out, what happens? Some will indeed hear and heed, they will fearing the Lord and obey His commands. Yet sadly, others won’t hear and heed the warning at all. Those who fear the Lord will find safety, those who don’t will find death.

Then we see it happen. The most severe moment yet. In v22-26 the storm begins. Moses lifts his staff toward the heavens, and thunder, hail, and fire rained down on Egypt. Think on this. I quite enjoy a good thunderstorm, especially if there is a covered front porch to watch it from. But, even then some storms get big enough where I run inside to find shelter. This storm is the stuff of legend! Booming thunder, blinding rain, hail the size of which Egypt hasn’t ever seen, and fire most likely in the form of lighting leaping down all over the place. This was devastating. Everything left outdoors, man and beast, plant and tree was destroyed. Meanwhile those in the land of Goshen are fine and free of terror.

Church, so far we’ve seen God inconvenience, attack, devastate Egypt, and even bring death to animals. But here in the seventh plague, God brings death to man. We mentioned it last week and we can mention it here again, it’s as if God is uncreating Egypt, bringing it back into disorder and chaos. The Egyptian goddesses Nut and Shu were believed to hold up the sky and be the reason why Egypt was known as the land of eternal sunshine. Yet here, God strikes, turning the land of sunshine to the land of fiery storm and death.

This is the seventh plague.

Conclusion (v27-35)

“Then Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron and said to them, “This time I have sinned; the Lord is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. Plead with the Lord, for there has been enough of God's thunder and hail. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.” Moses said to him, “As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will stretch out my hands to the Lord. The thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth is the Lord’s. But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the Lord God.” (The flax and the barley were struck down, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud. But the wheat and the emmer were not struck down, for they are late in coming up.) So Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh and stretched out his hands to the Lord, and the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain no longer poured upon the earth. But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again and hardened his heart, he and his servants. So the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people of Israel go, just as the Lord had spoken through Moses.”

The sad tale continues as we see Pharaoh give little more than a ruse for relief. We’ve seen him do this before, express a phony repentance. He expressed guilt but was glad to keep on being guilty. Church be reminded. Repentance is far more than merely saying you’re sorry. Any repentance that doesn’t lessen your desire to sin again isn’t repentance. True repentance brings about a true turning of the soul, grieving over our sin and yet gladly reaching back toward God, His ways, His Word, His people. Pharaoh isn’t repenting, he’s just sick of these plagues and wants them to stop. Moses sees through it. See that? In v30 he says I know you do not fear the Lord. This is the first time in the Bible the phrase “fear the Lord” is used. It’s certainly present before this moment, but here in v30 it’s now explicitly stated. And just as Moses said, after he left and prayed, and God removed the hailstorm, Pharaoh found relief and forsook his repentance, not letting the people go.

This is where I’d like to end today. With what we see in v30. The lack of the fear of God leads Pharaoh to remain in his many sins. Church, do you fear the Lord? Pharaoh saw the power of God, but did not fear the Lord. He sought relief from the storm, but lacked a true repentance. Moses knew it. God knew it. Pharaoh might’ve hid from the hail, but he didn’t humble himself before God. So Church, do you fear the Lord? Too many soften the word fear, saying it’s not really a fear it’s more of a deep respect. That’s true, but I’d encourage you to go further. To fear the Lord is to be in awe of Him, gripped by the gravity of His greatness. Ironically, only those who fear the Lord come to love the Lord, because while seeing His greatness they see His goodness in the gospel!

Silly people make the mistake of not understanding a thing can be terrible and good at the same time (Aslan!)

Church, see the plagues (!), fear the Lord, and find life.

Think for a moment about the most insignificant things you deal with every day. Maybe its sand on your floorboard, dust in your house, or a tiny gnat that you must keep waving away. These things are nothing, but they remain a nuisance. Now think about what would happen if these insignificant things were multiplied by a million? What happens when the very dust beneath your feet rises up and becomes a suffocating, inescapable swarm? Thats the terrifying reality Pharaoh faced in the third and fourth plagues. God didn't send a dragon or a tidal wave. He sent the smallest things, gnats and flies, and delivered a message that was impossible to ignore.

The text before us today is Exodus 8:16-32. As has been the case, Lord willing, today will be no different as there is much for us to glean and enjoy here. See first

Plague 3: Gnats (v16-19)

Then theLordsaid to Moses, Say to Aaron,Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the earth, so that it may become gnats in all the land of Egypt.And they did so. Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff and struck the dust of the earth, andthere were gnats on man and beast. All the dust of the earth became gnats in all the land of Egypt.Themagicians tried by their secret arts to produce gnats, but they could not. So there were gnats on man and beast.Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, This isthe finger of God. But Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as theLordhad said.

Right away we need to remember the pattern of the plagues.[1] Before the final and most devastating plague of all, the first nine plagues come in three sets of three. In each set of three the first plague begins with Moses meeting Pharaoh in the morning (plague 1, 4, and 7), the second plague begins with Moses coming into Pharaohs palace (plague 2, 5, and 8), and the third plague begins with no warning at all (plague 3, 6, and 9). This order reveals serves to highlight the last plague which stands in the place of prominent dread.

As this third plague begins in v16 what do we see? No warning, no visit with Pharaoh, no command to let the people go, the plague just begins. God instructs Moses to tell Aaron to stretch out his staff and strike the dust of the earth so that it would turn into gnats. Aaron did so in v17, and gnats covered everyone in Egypt. Lets ask some questions here.

First question, does the phrase dust of the earth stand out to you? It ought to. This is not the first time we have come across this phrase in the Bible. It first appears in Genesis 13 when God makes a great promise to Abraham. God said He would make Abrahams descendants as the dust of the earth meaning, Hell make his descendants so numerous theyll be beyond count. As glorious as that promise is back then in its context, God uses the phrase here in v16 to indicate how the gnats about to descend onto Egypt will also be beyond count. This is hard to grasp, isnt it? I mean, we know gnats. One gnat, or a few gnats arent that problematic. A simple wave of the hand and they fly away to not bother us again. Will Pharaoh be able to do that here? No way. He and everyone else in Egypt will be so surrounded by gnats that they wont be able to look down and see their feet clearly. The scope of this third plague is incredible.

Second question, were they really gnats? I ask this because of the Hebrew word here translated as gnats has some other options. Options that seem far worse than gnats. The Hebrew word is ken (pronounced kain) and it can also refer tolice or maggots. Gross right? Some of you might have been thinking, Gnats arent so bad. But lice and maggots? This third plague just turned into the stuff of nightmares. Lice beyond count, crawling all over you, biting you, laying their eggs, making you itch, sick! Or maggotsnasty, oozy, slimy things, creeping over everything and all over you? No thanks! But, it could also be gnats.

Now, you should know that here in the third plague, just like the first two plagues, many try to find a natural explanation. One notable opinion is as follows.[2] Because all the frogs have been destroyed throughout Egypt in the second plague, there necessarily would follow a surge in gnats throughout the land with no frogs to eat them. Thus, this third plague is completely understandable. Church, this is a bad interpretation of the plagues. Why? If we can point to a natural explanation, we lose the main point God is making. All the plagues are miraculous, wonders worked by God for the display of His great power and might. This is what God desires to show both Egypt and Israel.

Third question, why gnats? Remember God is up to far more than just destabilizing Egypt in the plagues, Hes attacking the gods of Egypt and showing Himself to be stronger. Here in the third and fourth plague (which well see soon) God is attacking the Egyptian deity named Khepri, the god of life who is often depicted in Egyptian religious imagery as a flying insect.[3] That God here sends a multitude of gnats and later on a multitude of flies, shows us that He is openly challenging Khepri and displaying how this god cant do a thing to stop Him. In this the Egyptians learn afresh how strong and great the God of Israel truly is.

While this is all very similar to the first two plagues, one clear difference is found in v18-19. Pharaohs magicians tried, as before, to duplicate the wonders God had done, but now they were unable to do so. For these experts in the secret arts, having to admit defeat was humiliating. Lets pause right here.

Ive said before, and Ill say it again now I think these magicians did what they were able to do because of the power of Satan. But what do we learn in their inability in the third plague? Church, learn here the limits of the Devils power.[4] Dont get me wrong, the Devil has power. He has the power to rebel, to tempt, to deceive, to accuse, to hold captive, to afflict, to oppress, to oppose, and to destroy our earthly bodies. But, think of what Satan cannot do. He cannot create, he cannot redeem, he cannot love, he cannot be humble, he cannot undo what God does, and he cannot go where he desires to go, being that he is subject to Gods sovereign pleasure. Like a dog on a leash, the Devil serves Gods designs. All his evil proves to be an instrument for bringing about things far more lovely than he ever desired.

This third plague was a defeat for Satan, as his servants could not create gnats. But the Devils greatest defeat was still far off. It would come one day though, on the best of all days, on resurrection morning. He thought he won his greatest battle when the Son of God died on the cross and entered the tomball hell rejoiced, and Satan smiled in vile pleasure seeing a dead Messiah. But the Son who died didnt stay dead, He rose from death, defeating it forever, leading forth a host of captives who come to Him in faith for salvation. In this victory the Devil was defanged.

We must remember this, Church. As Christians we dont just face hard times, struggles, and seasons of hardship in this life. We face an enemy and must contend with him. So remember, Satan is potent but not omnipotent, wise but not omniscient, present but not omnipresent. God is stronger. God can deliver us from evil. God can enable us to stand against him. And God can keep us safe in His arms. What we see here in this third plague is meant to bolster us in this fight. The Devil is limited, God is infinite. Be encouraged Churchyes were in a battle, but we fight an already defeated foe, our victory is sure, his doom is absolute.

Back to the narrative. After these magicians admitted defeat, they told Pharaoh the last thing he wanted to hear in v19, This is the finger of God. You might initially think this confession is a conversion to the God of Israel, but its not. The word they use here for God is a generic term, and it was a plural term, meaning it was a word they wouldve used to describe their own gods.[5] What are they saying then? Theyre saying a power greater than theirs has proven stronger than their magic. Theyre admitting that theyre in a spiritual battle, and that theyre losing.[6] And theyre saying these gnats are of divine origin.[7] Yet, even this confession of defeat doesnt sway Pharaoh. Due to the hardness of his heart, he remains firm in his unbelief.

Thats the third plague. Now see

Plague 4: Flies (v20-32)

Well start with v20-24, Then theLordsaid to Moses,Rise up early in the morning and present yourself to Pharaoh, as he goes out to the water, and say to him, Thus says theLord,Let my people go, that they may serve me.Or else, if you will not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies on you and your servants and your people, and into your houses. And the houses of the Egyptians shall be filled with swarms of flies, and also the ground on which they stand.But on that dayI will set apart the land of Goshen, where my people dwell, so that no swarms of flies shall be there,that you may know that I am theLordin the midst of the earth.Thus I will put a divisionbetween my people and your people. Tomorrow this sign shall happen.And theLorddid so.There came great swarms of flies into the house of Pharaoh and into his servants' houses. Throughout all the land of Egypt the land was ruined by the swarms of flies.

As v20 begins the fourth plague we see God command Moses to rise up early and go to Pharaoh as hes going out into the water. This is the same pattern as the first plague, when the Nile was turned to blood. That this fourth plague begins the same way the first plague does shows us how this fourth plague is the beginning the next cycle of plagues.[8] Pharaoh himself could very well be thinking as hes going out into the water and sees Moses approaching him, Oh boy, here we go again[9] And he would be right to think that. God isnt done. Much more is about to happen.

For the sixth time, Pharaoh hears Gods command to let His people go, or else. This time if he wont let Israel go, God will send swarms of flies on all Egypt. The word flies might really mean flies here, but the Hebrew word is general referring to all manner of biting and nonbiting insects.[10] So think flies, but think also horse flies, mosquitoes, no-see-ums, and the like. Psalm 78 gives us an idea of what these flies were like when it says in v45, God sent among them swarms of flies, which devoured them. That Psalm 78 tells us the flies devoured the Egyptians tells us these flies were of the biting variety. Which is alarming to say the least. Again, this is not just one fly or two flies, or even ten flies. God tells Pharaoh here, that just as the frogs swarmed earlier, so too these flies will now swarm and get into every nook and cranny of Egypt.

But, something new happens next in v22-23. See it? God makes a divine distinction, saying this fourth plague will not touch His people at all. The flies will cover Egypt and every Egyptian, but not one Israelite in Goshen will be bit. Why does God make such a division? Was it because Israel worked so hard to earn Gods protection? No. Israel, as weve seen and will continue to see, is a stubborn, sinful, and stiff-necked people. Why then does God make such a division here in this fourth plague? One answer we could give is that God has always been a God who makes divisions. He made divisions at the beginning in the days of creation. He made a division between male and female. He made a division between Noahs family and the rest of the world, Abrahams family and the rest of the world, and here He is making a division with the Israelites and the Egyptians.

But, why does God make this divine distinction here in the fourth plague? Answer: because of covenant. In Exodus 2 God heard their groaning and remembered His covenant In remembering the covenant, He came and acted to save His people! Covenant is the guarantee, covenant is the pledge, covenant is the assurance that God will always be God to His people, even despite His people. Deuteronomy 7 states this so well when it says, It was not because you were more in number than any other people that theLordset his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples,butit is because theLordloves you and is keepingthe oath that he swore to your fathers, that theLordhas brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.Know therefore that theLordyour God is God,the faithful Godwho keeps covenant and steadfast love (Deut. 7:7-9a).

So God made this distinction, and brought the flies onto Egypt, and see what happened in v24? the land of Egypt the land was ruined by the swarms of flies.

But thats not the end of our textsee the what happens next in v25-32, Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, Go, sacrifice to your God within the land.But Moses said, It would not be right to do so, for the offerings we shall sacrifice to theLordour God are anabomination to the Egyptians. If we sacrifice offeringsabominable to the Egyptians before their eyes, will they not stone us?We must gothree days' journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to theLordour Godas he tells us.So Pharaoh said, I will let you go to sacrifice to theLordyour God in the wilderness; only you must not go very far away.Plead for me.Then Moses said, Behold, I am going out from you and I will plead with theLordthat the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, tomorrow. Only let not Pharaohcheat again by not letting the people go to sacrifice to theLord.So Moses went out from Pharaoh and prayed to theLord.And theLorddid as Moses asked, and removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; not one remained.But Pharaohhardened his heart this time also, and did not let the people go.

Here our passage ends with Pharaoh not even bothering to call in the magicians. They failed last time, so clearly theyre no more use to Pharaoh.[11] Instead he tries to bargain with Moses, giving up some ground, offering a kind of partial obediencesaying Israel can go and perform their sacrifices to the Lord within the land. Moses calls him on this, that it would be against Egyptian law, which would be dangerous for Israel. So Pharaoh gives up even more ground and says they can go and leave Egypt, but they cant go too far away. And quickly, Pharaoh asks for Moses to pray for him. Moses is again faced with a choice. He knows Pharaoh promised this before and went back on his word, so hes certainly wondering if Pharaoh will do that again. So before leaving, Moses challenges Pharaoh asking him to not go back on his word like he did last time.

So off Moses goes to pray and God removes all the flies in Egypt in an instant. Not one remained. And Pharaoh, after seeing this, went back on his word and didnt let the people go. Why? Because he hardened his own heart against the Lord.

Thats the fourth plague

Conclusion:

Church weve seen Gods power displayed in Him using the smallest of creatures to humiliate the greatest of enemies, and by drawing a line in the sand at Goshen, proving His covenant faithfulness. The magicians looked at the gnats and confessed, This is the finger of God. In this they beheld a power they could not replicate. This power exposed the Devil as limited and finite. But the defeat of Satan was not just in the gnats, ultimately it would come in the empty tomb. So our victory is sure because our God is stronger.

But the most urgent question for us today comes from the divine distinction between Egypt and Israel. There God set His people apart. Church, this is also the reality of the New Covenant. Were a people God has rescued and redeemed and called out of darkness into His marvelous light. In a true sense were citizens of Goshen in a world that is still Egypt.

So, I askdoes your life look like Goshen, or does it look like Egypt? Is the line of distinction clear in your choices, your speech, your priorities, and your worship? Or have the flies of the world, the flesh, and the devil begun to swarm and ruin your life?

Be reminded: Gods covenant is not a suggestion; it is a declaration of ownership. He has redeemed you. He has set you apart. So, live like the people of the covenant. Live like you belong to God, because Church, you do!

[1] Robert Alter, The Hebrew Bible, vol. 1 (New York, NY: Norton, 2019) 243.

[2] Philip Graham Ryken, Exodus: Saved for Gods Glory Preaching the Word Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2015) 212.

[3] John D. Currid, Exodus 1-18 - EP Study Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: EP Books, 2014) 177.

[4] Ryken, 216-217.

[5] Currid, 175.

[6] Currid, 175.

[7] Douglas K. Stuart, Exodus NAC (Brentwood, TN: BH Publishing, 2006) 212.

[8] Currid, 176.

[9] Stuart, 214.

[10] John I. Durham, Exodus - WBC (Waco TX: Word Books, 1987) 114.

[11] Currid, 179. Also notice from this point on, the contest only seems to be between Pharaoh and Moses. With the departure of the magicians, we also see the departure of Aaron as well.

Theres a childrens song I learned of a few years ago that wonderfully describes who God is. Many of you who have grown up in the Church probably already know this song. Its called My God is So Big and its main line says, My God is so big, so strong and so mighty, theres nothing my God cannot do. The mountains are His, the valleys are His, the stars are His handiwork to. My God is so big, so strong and so mighty, theres nothing my God cannot do.

This song, as simple as it is, wonderfully describes the moment were in right now in Exodus. Today well see God begin to bring the plagues against Egypt. As He does so all of Israel and all of Egypt will learn that God is big, and mighty, and strong, and that theres nothing God cannot do.

Today we begin the plagues. There is much to see in them, and Lord willing, we will see much as we go through them. But before we begin, you should know that there is an order to them.[1] Before the final and most devastating plague of all, the first nine plagues are organized and carried out in three sets of three. In each set of three the first plague begins with Moses meeting Pharaoh in the morning (plague 1, 4, and 7), the second plague begins with Moses coming into Pharaohs palace (plague 2, 5, and 8), and the third plague begins with no warning at all (plague 3, 6, and 9). This order reveals not only the presence of order in Gods attack against Egypt, but it serves to highlight the last plague which stands in the place of prominence and singular horror.

Today well work through the first two plagues. See first

Plague 1: A Bloody Nile (7:14-25)

Then theLordsaid to Moses, Pharaoh's heart is hardened; he refuses to let the people go.Go to Pharaoh in the morning, as he is going out to the water, and stand on the bank of the Nile to meet him. Take in your handthe staff that turned into aserpent.And you shall say to him, TheLord, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you, saying, Let my people go,that they may serve me in the wilderness. But so far, you have not obeyed.Thus says theLord, By thisyou shall know that I am theLord: behold, with the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water that is in the Nile, andit shall turn into blood.The fish in the Nile shall die, and the Nile will stink, and the Egyptians willgrow weary of drinking water from the Nile.And theLordsaid to Moses, Say to Aaron, Take your staff andstretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over their rivers, their canals, and their ponds, and all their pools of water, so that they may become blood, and there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, even in vessels of wood and in vessels of stone.Moses and Aaron did as theLordcommanded. In the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants helifted up the staff and struck the water in the Nile, and all thewater in the Nile turned into blood.And the fish in the Nile died, and the Nile stank, so that the Egyptianscould not drink water from the Nile. There was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.Butthe magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret arts. SoPharaoh's heart remained hardened, and he would not listen to them, astheLordhad said.Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and he did not take even this to heart.And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the Nile.Seven full days passed after theLordhad struck the Nile.

The first plague is all about the humiliation of the Nile.[2] Why is this where God begins? God could begin here because when you attack a city and your aim is to destabilize it, a smart beginning is to cut off or pollute their water supply. This tactic was used a lot in the ancient world, but I dont think this is why God begins here. God begins here because for Egypt, the Nile is where all of life began. It was widely understood in the ancient world that the glory of Egypt was a gift of the Nile.[3] The Nile meant everything to them. It was their mode of transportation, their water supply, their food supply, their source of irrigation, and more. The Nile was such a supreme reality for the Egyptians that they came to believe the Nile was a god itself. They named this god Hapi, wrote hymns to Hapi, and worshiped and praised Hapi for being the source of their existence. Thus, God begins attacking Egypt by striking at this god, spilling its blood.[4]

It begins in v14, actually in the same place v13 ended, the hardness of Pharaohs heart. This serves not only to remind us as readers of Pharaohs sinful stubborn state, but it serves to remind Moses that hell continue to encounter rejection and refusal from Pharaoh. But regardless, God calls Moses to go out and meet Pharaoh in the morning as he is in the Nile River. Were not told why he is in the Nile, whether he is out for a morning stroll, worshipping Hapi, or bathing as we saw his daughter bathing back in chapter 2. In v15-18 God gives Moses a message for Pharaoh. Moses is to stand on the banks, staff in hand, and say to Pharaoh, that God still demands he let the people go, but because he has not obeyed so far, God will strike the Nile and turn it all to blood. By this, God says, Pharaoh will know that the Lord is God. When this occurs Moses is to tell Pharaoh three things will happen: the fish will die, the Nile will stink, and the Egyptians will weary of drinking from the Nile.

Then God gives Moses a message for Aaron in v19, instructing him to carry this out. He is to take his staff, stretch it over the waters of Egyptso that they all become blood. When he does this, notice what happens in v19? God says there shall be blood in all of Egypt even in the vessels and jars of wood and stone.

In v20-21 we see all of this take place. Moses spoke to Pharaoh as God commanded, Aaron stretched out his staff as God commanded and all the water in the Nile became blood. But did it? Perhaps there is another more scientific explanation here as to why the river turned red. Maybe there was a lot of sediment in the riverbed that time of year and it got stirred up and gave the appearance of being red, as if it were like blood.[5] Maybe there had been a lot of rain recently, and it had washed loads of red soil into the Nile, giving it a red appearance. Or maybe there was a red-tide event in the Nile where red algae blossomed giving it the look of being like blood. You should know many scholars would have us believe that there really is a natural explanation to all of this, and I could not disagree more.[6] v17, v19, and v20 do not say the waters were turned into something that looked like blood, or resembled the redness of blood, no, the text is clear, the Nile became blood. Whatever scientific difficulties arise from this occurring, we must not miss that the miraculous happened here!

What was God saying in this action? Well, see the results of it in v21. All the fish died so the Nile could no longer provide food for Egypt. It stank to all of Egypt, and the stench was so bad no one could drink it any longer, so the Nile could no longer provide drink for Egypt. To the Egyptians this wouldve been disturbing to say the least. Their god Hapi could no longer provide for them, why? Because God proved the stronger.

Yet, before we rejoice in this see v22. The magicians of Pharaoh, by their demonic secret arts, were able to turn water into blood too. But wait a minute, how did they get water at this point if all the water in Egypt, which comes from the Nile, had already turned to blood? The answer is in v24. There we see that the people were able to get clean water through digging down for it. So presumably, this is where the magicians got it. But when they turned that water into blood, Pharaoh comforted himself with the thought that whatever happened, it certainly wasnt that big of a deal because his own magicians could duplicate it. So what does he do? v23 shows us, He didnt even take it to heart. And the Nile stayed this way for seven whole days according to v25. Again, that seven is a biblical number often meaning completion, that the river stayed blood for seven full days means God gave a full defeat to their god Hapi.[7]

Thats the first plague, now see

Plague 2: Egypt Befrogged (8:1-15)

Then theLordsaid to Moses, Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, Thus says theLord, Let my people go, thatthey may serve me.But if yourefuse to let them go, behold, I will plague all your country withfrogs.The Nile shall swarm with frogs that shall come up into your house and intoyour bedroom and on your bed and into the houses of your servants and your people,and into your ovens and your kneading bowls.The frogs shall come up on you and on your people and on all your servants.And theLordsaid to Moses, Say to Aaron,Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, over the canals and over the pools, and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt!So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, andthe frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt.Butthe magicians did the same by their secret arts and made frogs come up on the land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said,Plead with theLordto take away the frogs from me and from my people, andI will let the people go to sacrifice to theLord.Moses said to Pharaoh, Be pleased to command me whenI am to plead for you and for your servants and for your people, that the frogs be cut off from you and your houses and be left only in the Nile.And he said, Tomorrow. Moses said, Be it as you say, sothat you may know thatthere is no one like theLordour God.The frogs shall go away from you and your houses and your servants and your people. They shall be left only in the Nile.So Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried to theLordabout the frogs, as he had agreed with Pharaoh.And theLorddid according to the word of Moses. The frogs died out in the houses, the courtyards, and the fields.And they gathered them together in heaps, and the land stank.But when Pharaoh saw that there was arespite, hehardened his heart and would not listen to them, as theLordhad said.

What do we see as this begins? Contrary to the first, as the second plague begins Moses doesnt visit Pharaoh in the morning, he walks straight into the palace. But like the first, here in the second plague we see that God gives Moses a message to give to Pharaoh in v1-4, and gives Moses a message for Aaron in v5.

The message for Pharaoh is the same command, followed by a warning. Let my people go, that they may serve (worship) me. If Pharaoh doesnt, see the warning? Egypt will be befrogged. This is the second plague, that Egypt will be swarm with frogs and the swarming will be comprehensive. This word swarm is the same word used back in Genesis 1:20 at creation when God said, Let the waters swarm with living creatures. Back then it was good for this to happen, but now? Im sure the kids of Egypt laughed at this at first, but after a while, frogs were simply everywhere. See v3? Frogs got into all the nooks and crannies of Egypt. Into their homes, bedrooms, beds, servants homes, ovens, and kneading bowls. In other words, there wasnt a place in Egypt where frogs were not.

Did you notice the detail given in v4? This time Pharaoh himself will be affected. In the first plague Pharaoh wasnt really impacted at all, he couldve just sent servants out to dig up fresh water for him. But this time? Frogs will be all over Egypt, including his own palace too. The sheer immensity of this is disgusting. No one will escape this. You wake up with frogs jumping all over you, you look around and see frogs all over your room, you stand up and step on more frogs, you try to ignore them but theyve filled the pantries, filled the bowls and even filled the ovens. Frogs are everywhere.

But, why frogs? Perhaps you think, frogs arent that bad. Theyre just little hoppy things, right? Sure some of them are, but even Ive seen frogs as big as my hand before, and those were hideous. Multiply that by the thousands and you get the idea. Was God doing this to simply disgust all of Egypt? No. He is up to far more. Just as before, God is striking another Egyptian deity, this time one of their gods named Hekhet, who was held to be the goddess of power and fertility, who just so happened to be depicted as having the head of a frog.[8] Here God is about to overwhelm Hekhet, to such an extent that she will be rendered powerless before Him.

In v5 we see the message God gives Moses for Aaron. Here Aaron is told what to do. As before he is told to stretch out his hand and staff over all Egypt, that frogs may come up onto all the land. The Hebrew here in v5 is humorous. It literally reads, Stretch out your hand with your rodand bring forth the frogs[9] So, Aaron does so, and the frogs come. And just as Pharaoh and all his armies will soon be covered by the waters of the Red Sea (Ex. 14:28), so too all of Egypt is covered with frogs.

But once again the magicians did the same in v7. Yet, even though they were able to duplicate this wonder Pharaoh responds in v8 with a new resolve. He surprises us here by begging for relief, asking Moses and Aaron to pray for him, that God would take away the frogs. It certainly must have proven a sore trial for Pharaoh that he would end up asking for prayer. And here right before our eyes, in the OT of all places, is an example of Gods people praying for their enemies. How deep would the temptation be for Moses and Aaron to refuse this request, knowing all Pharaoh had done against them? But pray for Pharaoh they do. Perhaps that played into Moses question in v9. There Moses asks Pharaoh when he would like them to pray and ask for the frogs to be removed. At first glance it might seem a strange thing to ask Pharaoh, but think of how brilliant it was. Moses was not just being polite, no. I think Moses wanted Pharaoh to not have a single excuse this time. By asking Pharaoh to name the date of his prayer, Pharaoh would know beyond a shadow of a doubt that the removal of the frogs was not due to anything else than God Himself.[10]

So Pharaoh answered Tomorrow and thats when Moses prayed, and thats when all the frogs died, and were to understand that the end of the plague was just as divine as the start of it.[11] So the Egyptians gathered them all up into piles, and none were left in the places they had gone to, and these piles stunk. How ironic, within a very short time Egypt went from feeling as if Israel was a stench to them, to having the Nile be a stench to them, to now having piles and piles of frogs that are a stench to them.[12] Once again, God has made a thorough defeat of their god Hekhet just as He had of Hapi.

But once again, look at v15. When Pharaoh felt relief it didnt make him thankful it made him even harder against the Lord, and he broke his promise to let the people go. This was the first time he reneged on his word, but it would not be the last.[13]

Conclusion:

We began with the childrens song today, My God is so big, so strong and so mighty, theres nothing my God cannot do. And weve seen Gods big strong might in the passage today. How he came and warred with the gods of Egypt, proving that He alone is God.

Church, if nothing else, this teaches us not to trust in other gods because they cannot save us. Sure, you might not bow down before an idol in your living room, but idols abound in our culture: money, power, sex, health, fame, comfort, peace, success, and self.

You know what God will to all these idols in the end? Hell do, to our idols, the same thing He did to the gods of Egypt. In Revelation 16 (v3-7, v13-14) we witness God pouring out seven bowls of wrath and the language He uses there is very similar to what weve seen today. As Moses and Aaron said to Pharaoh, there shall be blood and bring forth the frogs so too in the end God will war against the wicked, resulting in a bloody scene and slaying unclean spirits that look like frogs. Lesson? Only the Lord, He is God. Before God, every knee will bow.

But, before that final dayChurch, where do we look to see the power of God? Answer: we look to the gospel. Romans 1:16, For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation, to everyone who believes

Sin certainly troubles us greatly, but God is stronger still. In Christ crucified the power of sin is broken. In Christ the penalty of sin is removed, and one day at the return of Christ, the very presence of sin will be destroyed.

[1] Robert Alter, The Hebrew Bible, vol. 1 (New York, NY: Norton, 2019) 243.

[2] Douglas K. Stuart, Exodus NAC (Brentwood, TN: BH Publishing, 2006) 197.

[3] John D. Currid, Exodus 1-18 - EP Study Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: EP Books, 2014) 157-158.

[4] Currid, 158.

[5] John I. Durham, Exodus - WBC (Waco TX: Word Books, 1987) 97. See Stuart also, 201.

[6] Philip Graham Ryken, Exodus: Saved for Gods Glory Preaching the Word Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2015) 195.

[7] Currid, 164.

[8] Currid, 165-166.

[9] Currid, 167.

[10] Stuart, 208.

[11] Ryken, 208.

[12] Victor P. Hamilton, Exodus: An Exegetical Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2023) 133.

[13] Ryken, 209.

Today we come a turning point in the book of Exodus. As we concluded chapter 6 last week we saw a genealogy, and when we came to that part of the text I told you the genealogy was put there for help us as the readers pause and reflect on what weve seen and learned in the narrative so far. Now, as chapter seven begins we launch back out into the main plot. What will be the main theme and reality in view in the chapters to come? The plagues. The plagues are about to fall on Pharaoh and all Egypt. In these plagues God Himself will attack the gods of Egypt, and make it plain as day who is God and who is not. Our passage this morning, 7:1-13, prepares us for all of this. How? By giving us a preview of the contest to come, hence the title of this sermon, a prologue to the plagues.

Two headings this morning. See first

Commission (v1-7)

And theLordsaid to Moses, See, I have made you likeGod to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be yourprophet.You shall speak all that I command you, and your brother Aaron shall tell Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go out of his land.ButI will harden Pharaoh's heart, and though Imultiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt,Pharaoh will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and bring my hosts, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great acts of judgment.The Egyptiansshall know that I am theLord, when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring out the people of Israel from among them.Moses and Aaron did so; they did just as theLordcommanded them.Now Moses waseighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.

As we left Moses in the end of chapter 6, he had yet another moment of doubt as he said he was uncircumcised in lips, meaning unfit and unqualified to do what God had called him to do. God had every right to respond with severe rebuke for Moses doubting yet again, but look at what God does. God give Moses another commission, and in so doing God gives Moses divine authority by saying See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh Now be clear, Moses is not God, God is God. But God has made Moses like God to Pharaoh, and like God, Moses will speak to Pharaoh through the mouth of his prophet, Aaron.

It is helpful to remember at this point that Pharaoh considered himself to be divine, an incarnation of the gods of Egypt.[1] So when God says Moses is to be God to Pharaoh here in v1-2 God is putting Pharaoh in his place. Moses in a sense will appear before Pharaoh as no one ever has, for he will be like God to him.[2] This is indeed setting the stage for whats about to happen. This emphasizes that the Exodus conflict isnt a political struggle between nations, but a cosmic clash between the sovereign Lord and a rebellious, human king. Pharaoh might truly believe he is divine and mighty at this moment, but he'll soon learn that the One making these demands of him is mightier still.

Yet, though this is the case Pharaoh will still resist and refuse to listen to Moses. See v3? In v3, for the second time, we read of God hardening Pharaohs heart. The last time we saw this was back in chapter 4 and there the reason for God hardening Pharaohs heart was generally put, that Pharaoh would not let the people go. Now see more of the reason here in v3. God will harden Pharaohs heart, why? So God can multiply His signs and wonders in Egypt. Meaning, Pharaohs resistance is a key ingredient in setting the stage for the plagues, which will display both the great might of the true God as well as the weakness and frailty of the gods of Egypt. Again by telling this to Moses God is removing Moses resistance and giving him realistic expectations about what will happen as he goes back to speak to Pharaoh. Moses needs to know that Pharaohs rejection is part of the plan and is part of the catalyst for the plagues to come.[3]

v4-5 further describe the plagues using the phrase God laying hands on Egypt. This phrase is used often in the OT and it usually refers to hostile actions or judgment, which leads to death.[4] Here this phrase is used to speak of what God will do to Egypt. Add to this what v5 says. There Gods actions to Egypt are described as God stretching out His hand against Egypt. This language of a mighty stretched out hand was used a lot in ancient writings to refer to the power of a king or rulers strength in war. Ancient Egypt even used this phrasing to describe many of their Pharaohs, saying they were strong armed.[5]

Taking v4 and v5 together, this is quite the imagery being used isnt it? It gives us a sense of Gods fierce intent toward Egypt for oppressing His people. Perhaps, think about it like this. In a playful manner, sometimes when I play with my kids, Ill bear hug them or, wrap around them, and they try to escape or get out of my grip somehow. They try and try and try and try andwhen they cant and give up, what do they learn? They learn how strong Dad really is, yes, but they learn more. They learn how safe they are in Daddys grip, and how Dad can protect them against the bad guys. In a much more violent and strong and frightful manner, this is something of what God is saying He'll do to Egypt in v4-5. God will harden Pharaohs heart so that he wont let the people go, then God will reveal His wondrous strength as He stretches out His had and lays hold of Egypt, and then God will lead His people out into freedom.

When God does this what will the Egyptians learn? Notice the beginning of v5, The Egyptiansshall know that I am theLord What does this mean? Does it mean the Egyptians will be saved and forgiven? Does it mean the Egyptians will be redeemed and know Gods great love? No. This means all of Egypt will learn who God is, but what they learn wont encourage them or bring them rest or comfort, no. What they learn about God will terrify them. In the Exodus they shall come to know that God is God and Pharaoh is not.

See the double edge here. When God attacks in the plagues Israel will be redeemed, while Egypt will be judged. One God, doing His singular work, revealing His glory, brings about two different results. Salvation for Gods people, judgment for Gods enemies. This double edge is real. It is said, The same sun which melts wax hardens clay. We see that reality displayed for us here. This is something we need to remember. I often meet people who truly believe that when it comes to God they are unaffiliated, or neutral, as if its all a matter of personal choice. How blind we are. Becoming a Christian, and following Jesus is not a personal choice, as if one group of people decides to take up a hobby of knitting while we have decided to take up religion as a hobby. No, no, no. Church, no one is neutral when it comes to things of God. The double edge reality we see here in Exodus remains true for the gospel too. How? The same Gospel which melts some to repentance hardens others in their sins.[6]

Well, as Moses was commissioned again in v1-5, we might wonder how he responds to all of this. Will he doubt again? Will he bring more objections or complaint to the Lord? Praise God we dont see any of that. In v6 we see a refreshing sight. Moses and Aaron obey, doing all just as the Lord commanded them. In fact, for the next long while, we do not see Moses doubt or complain at all. He is 100% on board with what Gods doing. What changed? It doesnt say explicitly, but we can make an educated guess. Moses has tried and failed, and yet, God has called him to go back again. In this I think Moses has realized three things: 1) his own weakness is great, 2) the task before him is impossible, and 3) Gods call remains clear. Perhaps in these things Moses is beginning to understand that he cannot do what God has called to do in his own strength and wisdom. He must trust the Lord to do all of this through him. And so he goes back to Pharaoh courageously, not trusting in himself, but in God who has called him to go. So too Church, we can find strength and courage to obey God, to even try the impossible, not because of what we find within ourselves, but because of the God we look to in faith![7]

And lest you think doing hard things for the Lord is a young mans game, did you see v7? Moses and Aaron were both in their 80s! This affirms what we see later on in Deuteronomy, where it tells us Moses will die at 120 years old, which shows us how Moses whole life was evenly split into three 40 year segments. D.L. Moody described it best, Moses spent 40 years in Pharaohs court thinking he was somebody, 40 years in the desert learning that he was nobody, and 40 years showing what God can do with a somebody who found out he was a nobody.[8]

May we embrace such a posture as well. Look ahead now to our second heading

Contest (v8-13)

Then theLordsaid to Moses and Aaron,When Pharaoh says to you,Prove yourselves by working a miracle, then you shall say to Aaron, Take your staff and cast it down before Pharaoh, that it may become a serpent.So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as theLordcommanded. Aaron cast down his staff before Pharaoh and his servants, and it became a serpent. Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and the sorcerers, and they, themagicians of Egypt, alsodid the same by their secret arts.For each man cast down his staff, and they became serpents. But Aaron's staff swallowed up their staffs.StillPharaoh's heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them,as theLordhad said.

v8-13 is a brief moment, but in it there is contained most all of what well soon see in the plagues: the obedience of Moses and Aaron, the counterfeit miracles of Satan, the power of God, and the hardening of Pharaohs heart.[9] Here all of these themes are present as the great contest begins.

God commands Moses in v8-9, When Pharaoh asks you to prove yourselves by a miracle, throw your staff down on the ground before Pharaoh that it might become a serpent. Question: why a snake? Of all things God could have chosen, why a snake? Answer: because of what the serpent means to the Egyptians. Many historians note that Egyptians were afraid and fascinated by snakes. So many Pharaohs wore the symbol of a snake on their crown or head-dress to strike fear into others. That God turns a staff into a snake tells us He is directly challenging and assaulting Pharaohs supposed sovereignty.[10] To use a modern comparison, it would be like someone taking a bald eagle into the Oval office and wringing its neck.[11] Can you see the challenge in view in that? By doing this before Pharaoh, God begins the great contest of power.

Moses and Aaron obey in v10, cast down the staff, and it becomes a snake. Or did it? The normal word in Hebrew for snake is the word nahash but here in v10 the staff becomes a tannin. This Hebrew word tannin can also mean snake, but curiously it has other translation options as well. In Ezekiel and Jeremiah this word tannin is used to describe not just a snake but a large reptilian monster like a crocodile. Some even believe Ezekiel and Jeremiah are referring to a dragon by using this word tannin.[12] So, what did the staff become? A snake, a crocodile, a reptilian monster, a dragon? I always thought it was a simple snake, and it really might be, but the Hebrew word used here is intentionally slippery, causing us to pause and wonder if something more menacing is in view.[13] Whatever it was, it was powerful, because see what happens next.

In response to this miracle Pharaoh summons his own wise men, magicians, and sorcerers and in v11 it says they did the same by their secret arts. Pharaohs henchmen were able to reproduce the miracle, but is that the way were to interpret this? Some people believe they were able to reproduce to miracle by magic or a kind of parlor trick, illusion, or sleight of hand. Others believe they were gifted snake charmers who knew the exact nerve on a snake to make them straighten out stiff as a board. But still others believe they really did turn their own staffs into snakes because they had given themselves over to the powers of darkness. Heres what I think. Many modern scholars tend to believe trickery was used here, I disagree. All naturalistic explanations seem, at least to me, to be misleading. The whole point of this moment is the great contest of strength between the Lord and the powers of darkness. So I think Pharaohs magicians really did duplicate this feat but that they did so by demonic spells and incantations, ultimately by the power of Satan.

But look what happens in v12. See it? There was a great swallowing. When the magicians of Pharaoh duplicated the wonder, the staff turned to serpent monster from Moses and Aaron swallowed up the others. Pay attention to this phrase swallowed up. It occurs many times in the Bible from this point forward. There is a swallowing up here. Pharaoh and is armies will soon be swallowed up by the Red Sea in Exodus 15. Korah and the rebels will be swallowed up in the earth in Numbers 16. And Jonah will be swallowed up by the fish in Jonah 1. All these moments indicate a snuffing out, or a destroying. Here Pharaoh learns firsthand how much greater and stronger the Lord is, that God can destroy the supposed gods of Egypt, but that this God is the true God over all.

Church, this closing scene reminds us that there are spirituals powers and forces all around us, both good and evil. While God is stronger than them all, the spiritual powers of evil are still considered powers. In many cultures around the world families have little altars in a corner of their homes dedicated to various spirits who have plagued their family, village, or region. We saw this in Vietnam firsthand when we went there, and it was dark. But the good news was truly good to them when they heard how Christ had existed well before these spirits and had power over all the spirits and could protect them from the spirits forever. I think in v11-12 we see a glimpse of a small spiritual battle, not only showing us what God is greater, but showing us a preview of the bigger battles to come in the plagues.

Yet, v13 ends our text with a sobering note. Pharaohs heart was hard and he would not listen. This sobering final note is a warning to anyone who sees the power of God and yet refuses to bow the knee before God.[14]

Conclusion:

Id like to end by showing you the rich fulfillment of this passage. Weve seen Moses dwell with the Lord on the mountain by the burning bush and descend to save Gods people suffering in Egypt. This Moses who came down from the mountain of God was like God to Pharaoh. In a richer and greater way, one day far after this moment the eternal Son of God would descend from the presence of God to save Gods people suffering in sins of all kinds. This Son of God is far greater than Moses because He would not just appear to be like God, He would be God Himself wrapped in flesh. And this Son of God would fight greater battles, and would win them all, showing us the true power of the Lord. But in the end, many thought all was lost as death swallowed Him up on the cross.

But what happened? The greater swallowing would occur. Yes, the Son of God died in our place, bearing our sin, as our substitute on the cross, and He would enter the grave. But in His resurrection, as He walked out of the tomb death itself was swallowed up in defeat! So Paul rejoices in 1 Cor. 15 saying, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death where is your sting?

Church we began with Luthers reformation, and we end with it too. Luther once said, When the devil throws your sins in your face and says you deserve death and hell, tell him this. I know I deserve death and hell, what of it? I know One who suffered on my place, and made satisfaction for all of my many sins. His name is Jesus Christ, Son of God, and where He is one day I shall be also!

Praise God!

[1] Philip Graham Ryken, Exodus: Saved for Gods Glory Preaching the Word Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2015) 172.

[2] John I. Durham, Exodus - WBC (Waco TX: Word Books, 1987) 87.

[3] John D. Currid, Exodus 1-18 - EP Study Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: EP Books, 2014) 148.

[4] Victor P. Hamilton, Exodus: An Exegetical Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2023) 114.

[5] Hamilton, 114.

[6] This phrase is normally attributed to Charles Spurgeon.

[7] Jay Sklar, ESV Expository Commentary, vol. 1, ed. Iain Duguid, James M. Hamilton Jr., Jay Sklar (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2025) 508.

[8] D.L. Moody, quoted in Ryken, 175.

[9] Ryken, 182.

[10] Currid, 154.

[11] Ryken, 185.

[12] Durham, 91.

[13] Robert Alter, The Hebrew Bible, vol. 1 (New York, NY: Norton, 2019) 239.

[14] Ryken, 190.

Today, we open to Exodus 5:22, where Moses, fresh from faithfully delivering God's message to Pharaoh, finds himself not celebrated, but confronted by a people whose burdens have only intensified. The promised rescue has seemingly backfired, plunging Israel into deeper despair and leaving Moses questioning the God who sent him.

Have you been there? Youve boldly stepped out in faith, only to find the path ahead unexpectedly harder, met with resistance and the bitter complaints of those you sought to help? If you have been there you know how raw these moments can be. Doubt presses inGod's promises seem to unraveland we often cry out to the Lord in a confused mixture of desperation and anger.

Yet, today we dont only see Moses in this raw moment. We see God meet Moses in his distress, not with rebuke or correction, but with powerful encouragement, reminding Moses, and us, of His faithful steadfast covenant comfort.

This is where we find ourselves today. There are three headings to work through this morning, see first

Moses Confronts God (5:22-23)

Then Moses turned to theLordand said, O Lord, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me?For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not delivered your people at all.

As our text begins we see Moses turn to the Lord. Which on its own is quite encouraging, isnt it? Its always good when one turns to the Lord in the midst of suffering. Usually, people do the opposite and turn to more sin to try and drown their woes. But here Moses suffers and retreats to God.

But, ask the questionwhy does Moses turn to the Lord in v22? Is it to find rest and comfort in his suffering? No. He wants to confront God. Theres a pattern to see here. Just as the Israelites are angry and turn to Moses in their anger and confusion, so too Moses is angry and in his anger he turns to God, confronting God and expressing his own disillusionment as to why God has not yet delivered His people from slavery.[1] While Im glad to see him turn to the Lord here, even in anger, Im a bit taken back at his words to God. Not only is Moses calling God into question here, he questions why God even sent him in the first place, and notice how Moses moves well beyond even this, going as far as to accuse God of doing evil against His own people.

Moses is clearly dismayed at what has happened. He was told by God that Pharaoh would be stubborn, he was told that it would take a lot to force his hand, and he was even told that God would harden Pharaohs heart so that he would not let the people goMoses knew these things. But it did not even come into Moses mind that Pharaoh would grow crueler to Israel as a result of his speaking with him.[2] He obeyed God and the condition of the people got far worse than it had been before. Thus, Moses final words in chapter 5, you have not delivered your people at all. This lays the heart of Moses bare. Just like Israel, Moses seems to believe that Gods promised rescue would happen quickly and would happen without any setbacks or suffering. Yet here they are. Church, Moses sins in many ways here. Hes complaining, hes discontent, hes not trusting, hes unreasonably impatient with God. He thinks God is out of bounds for not doing what he thinks God should do and for not working as fast as he thinks God should work.

What does this show us? It shows us how human Moses is. That hes a sinner himself. Used by God in many mighty ways, yes, but as faithful and fruitful as Moses was, he was a deeply flawed man, in need of a Savior. Much can be learned here, both for Moses original audience, the wilderness generation, and for us ourselves. When were tempted to think Gods timing is off. When were in the midst of the swirl of anger and confusion. When the road of obedience brings suffering our way, may God give us the grace to do as Moses did and turn to Him. But rather than calling God into question, may we trust Him and cast ourselves on Him knowing how good and great He is.

So Moses has confronted God, now see that Gods response.

God Comforts Commands Moses (6:1-13)

But theLordsaid to Moses, Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and witha strong hand he willdrive them out of his land.God spoke to Moses and said to him,I am theLord.I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, asGod Almighty,but by my name theLORD I did not make myself known to them.I also established my covenant with themto give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners.Moreover,I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant.Say therefore to the people of Israel,I am theLord, andI will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, andI will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment.Iwill take you to be my people, andI will be your God, and you shall know thatI am theLordyour God, who has brought you outfrom under the burdens of the Egyptians.I will bring you intothe land that Iswore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession.I am theLord. Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but theydid not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery.

How wonderful is Gods response! Hes not shocked or stunned or angered at all by Moses out of bounds angry prayer. He doesnt even warn Moses or correct Moses. Rather He says two things in response to Moses. First, in v1 God simply says Watch what Im about to do to Pharaoh.[3] And second, in v2-8 God reminds Moses of covenant comfort.

Dont miss that Church.

To bolster up, to increase trust, to drive home a rich assurance in Moses quaking and troubled heart, God unfolds His covenant promises. In other words, to encourage Moses God repeats the promises He made to Moses at the burning bush, and promises He made long ago. These promises remind Moses how God has not forsaken His people, but will fulfill His Word to them, in His own way and His own timing.[4] Moses learns here something everything Christian needs to learn. There is rich encouragement to be had for present difficulties in Gods covenant promises of old.[5]

See how God does this. In v2-5 God goes all the way back to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. God says He appeared to them just as He appeared to Moses. God does mention a difference though. He says He appeared to the patriarchs as El Shaddai, God Almighty, not as Yahweh like He appeared to Moses. This does not mean we never see Gods divine name back in the book of Genesis, we do see it there. Rather what God means here is that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob didnt know God as deeply as Moses knew Him. This is how divine revelation works in the OT, there is a clear progression to see. Meaning, God revealed Himself to Moses and the people of Israel in the Exodus in deeper and richer and stronger ways than He ever did with the patriarchs.[6] But God did establish His covenant with them, and promised to give them a land, and since that moment God has not been distant or aloof, He has heard the groanings of His people, He has seen their slaveryHe has remembered His covenant.

We hear this language a lot when the reality of covenant is mentioned, that God remembered His covenant. Does this mean God forgot it, and is now remembering it? No. This is how the Bible speaks of God, in faithfulness, keeping promises He made long ago. All of this is how God encourages Moses.

But see that after encouraging Moses in his own anger and confusion God, in v6-8, gives Moses words to encourage Israel in their anger and confusion. Here, just as before, God reminds His people of covenant comfort. The way God lays it out for Israel is with seven I will statements. First, God says He will bring Israel out from all their burdens in Egypt. Second, God says He will deliver them from slavery. Third, God says He will redeem them with great acts of judgment from His outstretched strong arm. Fourth, God says He will take them to Himself be His people. Fifth, God gives the heart of all covenant language here when He says He will be God to them and they shall know that He is the LORD. Sixth, God says He will bring them into the land promised long ago. And seventh, God says He will give that land to them as their own possession.

That God encourages them with rich covenant comfort here is deeply encouraging, but that He uses seven statements to do so, raises all of this to the highest degree of rich encouragement. Seven being a number in the Bible often used to communicate fullness and abundance. That God gives His people seven covenant comforts means He is giving not just a slight encouragement to His suffering people, but a full, whole, and complete encouragement. Do you see this? It means that everything Israel needs in their current troubles, is provided for in Gods Word to themand more!

Yet, look at v9, Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but theydid not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery. From the heights of beauty in v1-8, v9 plummets into cavernous depths of sin. Tragic isnt it? The best way to describe Israel in v9 is that they are broken by their suffering. At this point, I think its clear to see that Israel no longer believes theyll be freed from Pharaoh. Theyre truly overcome.

But Church, does God stop His plan to save them from Egypt because they no longer believe it? NO! God keeps going. See it next in v10-13 as He commands Moses, So theLordsaid to Moses,Go in, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the people of Israel go out of his land.But Moses said to theLord, Behold, the people of Israel havenot listened to me. How then shall Pharaoh listen to me, forI am of uncircumcised lips?But theLordspoke to Moses and Aaron and gave them a charge about the people of Israel and about Pharaoh king of Egypt: to bring the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt.

Even though Israel refused to hear and heed Gods covenantal comfort through Moses, God commands Moses to go back to Pharaoh. And Moses, predictably, complains again, groaning that if Israel wont listen to him how much more will Pharaoh not listen to him? He even says his own lips are uncircumcised. I dont think this is a call back to chapter 4 where he spoke of his speech impediment. I think by using the language of uncircumcision Moses believes he is now no longer fit or qualified for the task ahead of him.[7] Yet Gods call is clear. Despite the objections of Moses, the broken spirit of Israel, and the hatred of Pharaoh and all Egypt, the mission goes on.[8]

The Genealogy of Moses Aaron (6:14-30)

But then what happens? Do we see the plot continue to unfold as Moses goes back in for another round with Pharaoh? No, we see a genealogy. Question: why is this here?[9] Though this might seem a bit out of place to us, things like this were common in ancient Near Eastern literature. Back then genealogies didnt feel out of place or feel like an intrusion into the plot of the narrative. They were placed in positions like this intentionally to let the reader pause and reflect on all that has taken place.

Think about it in modern terms. Weve just seen Moses say, I cant go back to Pharaoh and heard God command him to go back anyway. After that command I can imagine the TV zooming in on Moses worried face, followed by a commercial break. Just as the tension rises to a high point, it breaks away before showing us the resolution. Im sure this analogy breaks down in many ways, but I do think that is how this genealogy functions at this point in our text. So Ill read through it and make a few comments on it.

These are the heads of their fathers' houses: thesons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi; these are the clans of Reuben.Thesons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman; these are the clans of Simeon.These are the names of thesons of Levi according to their generations: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari, the years of the life of Levi being 137 years.Thesons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei, by their clans.Thesons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, the years of the life of Kohath being 133 years.Thesons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites according to their generations.Amram took as his wife Jochebed his father's sister, and she bore him Aaron and Moses, the years of the life of Amram being 137 years.The sons of Izhar: Korah, Nepheg, and Zichri.Thesons of Uzziel: Mishael, Elzaphan, and Sithri.Aaron took as his wife Elisheba, the daughter ofAmminadab and the sister ofNahshon, and she bore himNadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.Thesons of Korah: Assir, Elkanah, and Abiasaph; these are the clans of the Korahites.Eleazar, Aaron's son, took as his wife one of the daughters of Putiel, andshe bore him Phinehas. These are the heads of the fathers' houses of the Levites by their clans.These are the Aaron and Mosesto whom theLordsaid: Bring out the people of Israel from the land of Egyptby their hosts.It was they who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt about bringing out the people of Israel from Egypt, this Moses and this Aaron.On the day when theLordspoke to Moses in the land of Egypt,theLord said to Moses,I am theLord;tell Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I say to you.But Moses said to theLord, Behold,I am of uncircumcised lips. How will Pharaoh listen to me?

A few items to note here. The list begins with Rueben, Simeon, Levi, Gershon, Kohath, Merari, Izhar, Uzziel, Korah, and concludes with Aarons grandson Phinehas. Each name in this list matters. Each name is part of a family that matters. And each family is part of the nation of Israel thats being formed before our very eyes. Each name brings us lessons of obedience and disobedience, like the strange fire of Nadab and Abihu, the rebellion of Korah, and the zeal of Phinehas.

Again, this genealogy is placed here to not only inform us of Moses and Aarons family lineage, but to encourage us to pause and reflect on what has happened in the narrative up to this point.

Conclusion:

With this in mind I want to end by saying this.

Exodus is a book to read, yes. Exodus is also an event to watch, yes. But Church, Exodus is a pattern to behold. What do I mean when I say Exodus is a pattern? I mean Exodus shows us what redemption looks like. In our passage today, Moses and Israel were broken and overcome in their despair and suffering. What does God do in response to this? Does He stop and give up because His people are so overcome and unable to trust Him? No, not at all. God kept going, keeps attacking Egypt, and keeps pressing against Pharaoh. In other words, God came and did what His people were unable to do for themselves, and brought His people to a place they couldnt get to by themselves. Why did God keep going despite His people? Because of covenant.

Church, this is how we were saved.

Why did God keep going despite His people? Because of covenant. This is the glorious news of the gospel. We were dead in our trespasses, unable to save ourselves. But God, rich in mercy, did not wait for us to become worthy or willing. He came to us in the person of Jesus Christ, fulfilling His covenant promise to redeem a people for Himself. In the work of Christ God did for us what we could not do for ourselves, and because of the work of Christ God will one day bring us into our promised inheritance.

Therefore Church, let us go from here not trusting in our own faithfulness, but in the faithfulness of our covenant keeping God. If you face trials this week, if your spirit is broken, and if you are tempted to despair, remember the Exodus pattern. Remember the God who delivered Israel, despite Israel is the same God who has delivered you from sin and death, and He will not let you go.

His grace is amazing, His covenant is sure.

[1] John D. Currid, Exodus 1-18 - EP Study Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: EP Books, 2014) 127.

[2] Douglas K. Stuart, Exodus NAC (Brentwood, TN: BH Publishing, 2006) 168.

[3] Victor P. Hamilton, Exodus: An Exegetical Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2023) 94.

[4] Currid, 128.

[5] Stuart, 170.

[6] Hamilton, 101-102.

[7] Currid, 136.

[8] Currid, 136.

[9] Stuart, 175.

Every now and then its good to remind ourselves what were doing here in this teaching moment called a sermon. Were in a sermon series where were going through the book of Exodus, yes. Were working through it verse by verse, yes. But, how are we approaching this book as a whole? Four ways.[1] Were approaching the book of Exodus historically, meaning were seeking to see the historical context in which these events occur. Were approaching the book of Exodus theologically, meaning were seeking to see who God is and shows Himself to be in Exodus. Were approaching the book of Exodus Christologically, meaning were seeking to see how Exodus points far on ahead of itself to the Person and Work of Jesus Christ. Lastly, were approaching the book of Exodus practically, meaning were seeking to see how Exodus, like everything else in the Bible, teaches us how to live the Christian life.

This is how were approaching the book of Exodus.

Today we come to Exodus 5:10-21. But remember whats going on in the story. Three big themes are beginning to emerge that will continue to stand out as the main themes for the next ten chapters or so.[2] First there is the demand God makes to Pharaoh to let His people go. Second, there is Pharaohs resistance to that demand which will grow in the chapters to come, even though it ebbs and flows at times. And lastly, there are the consequences Pharaoh and all of Egypt face for Pharaohs resistance to Gods commands. Its these three themes weve begun to see and will continue to see throughout many chapters ahead of us, as God and Pharaoh face off in head-to-head combat.

But at this point where we are in chapter 5, weve only seen Moses first interaction with Pharaoh, Pharaohs initial stubbornness, and Pharaoh increasing His cruelty toward Israel. And yet, we must remember, Israel is moving closer and closer towards freedom, even though their suffering is increasing in the present moment. God is saving them, yet, their discomfort grows. This is the big idea set before us today in 5:10-21.

A Cruel Yoke (v10-14)

So thetaskmasters and the foremen of the people went out and said to the people, Thus says Pharaoh, I will not give you straw.Go and get your straw yourselves wherever you can find it, but your work will not be reduced in the least.So the people were scattered throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw.Thetaskmasters were urgent, saying, Complete your work, your daily task each day, as when there was straw.And the foremen of the people of Israel, whom Pharaohstaskmasters had set over them, were beaten and were asked, Why have you not done all your task of making bricks today and yesterday, as in the past?

So after Moses and Aarons first chat with Pharaoh didnt go so well in v1-9, v10-14 shows us the result of that poor encounter. Pharaoh said to Moses and Aaron that the people are clearly far too idle if they have time to think about going out to worship their God, so he set his mind to increasing their workload by not giving them any straw to make bricks while still demanding the same daily quota of bricks. How does Pharaoh carry out this cruel measure? v10-11 show it, Pharaohs taskmasters went out to the foreman of Israel to convey the cruel message. But notice a few things about the message.[3] It begins with the phrase, Thus says Pharaoh This is not the normal way Pharaoh would speak. He does this to make a mockery of Moses and Aarons request. Back in 5:1 Aaron said, Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel so as Pharaoh rejected the Lord and His commands, he now uses the same language to ridicule God and the Israelites. Also notice what he says after this. The message of Pharaoh is, Thus says Pharaoh, Go Why is this the first word he chooses to say? Because that was the main message Moses and Aaron came with, to let the people go. Now, in arrogant mockery Pharaoh will let the people go, not to leave, but to gather up their own straw to make bricks.

This language shows us the great contest has begun between Pharaoh and the Lord. And we as readers can look back in wonder and awe because we know Pharaoh wont stand a chance in this fight. The Lord will win, were just watching it play out.

In the meantime Israel suffers in many ways. The command was clear, the same number of bricks are required, but now they wont be provided any straw to make them, which means theyll have to go out and gather their own. So off they go in v12-13, scattering all over Egypt to try and get what they need while the Egyptian taskmasters are urgently reminding them of the required task. The sense we get in v12-13 is that they cant find much straw at all and have to resort to using stubble to try and make bricks. What is this about?[4] Well, normally the straw used in brick making came from the stalks of longer crops, normally from grains and vegetables in the fields. When those were harvested they would set the stalks aside and give them to those making bricks. Thats where the straw came from. And straw was an essential part of making bricks as it would reinforce the clay and help it not fall apart when it dried. You can see this firsthand for yourself in many museums around the world that display artifacts from ancient Egypt. In some of them you can see bricks with pieces of straw sticking out of them.[5]

Stubble on the other hand, is different. Stubble was the short part of the stalk but the stubble was just above the root. It was not only a bad substitute for making bricks and holding clay together, it was incredibly hard to gather. Not only would it have to be harvest season to get it, but gathering the stubble required tedious cutting and careful pulling to not damage it in the process.

So as Israel hears this command, a few days pass and it becomes clear the quota of bricks is simply not going to be met under these harsh new conditions, which is what leads to the dreadful scene in v14. There we see the foremen of Israel are brought before the taskmasters of Egypt, and theyre beaten. Why? Because they didnt meet the quota of bricks. And as theyre being beaten the taskmasters mock them by asking a question they already know the answer to, Why have you not done all your task of making bricks today and yesterday, as in the past?

At this point the sense of crushing desperation and injustice is high for Israel.[6] Out of sheer spite and arrogant mockery, Pharaoh requires an impossible task and then beats them when theyre unable to complete it. This is a complete humiliation of Israel. One commentator described the scene in vivid detail saying, They worked out in the hot Egyptian sun all day, driven to optimum production by their taskmasters. They had no hats to protect their heads and wore nothing but thin aprons on their bodiesno one stood by to give the slaves a drink every few minutes. It does not take much imagination to conclude that the severe rigor imposed on the Hebrews resulted in many of them dying of dehydrationheat stroke and the like.[7] This comment was about their normal toil when they had straw! Can you imagine how impossible their work became when they no longer had any straw? Their enslavement was horrid enough, and now Pharaoh just made it worse.

What do we learn from this? Well we certainly learn about the historical context of the Israelites enslavement in Egypt. But we can learn more. Weve already mentioned how Moses is a type or preview of Christ, and weve rejoiced as weve seen that so far in our time in Exodus. If we pull those threads a bit further, and say that Exodus gives us a powerful picture of what it means and looks like to be enslaved by sin.[8] Just as the children of Israel were held prisoner in the house of bondage in Egypt under Pharaohs cruel thumb, so too all humanity comes into the world already incarcerated in the prison of sin. Just as the Israelites had to take orders from Pharaoh and despaired in his service, so to all sinners have a worse and crueler master in the Devil, and all in his service face the greatest despair. You see, sin is a harsh taskmaster. Many have said it because of how true it is, sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay. When you indulge in sin, you think its done, that youve satisfied the hunger, and you can move on. But the tricky part about sin is that its hunger only increases. It only grows and increases until it consumes everything in its path. The Devil promises great freedom, but he never tells you about the cost of life in his service. See, the more you give room to sin, the more he tightens his grip, and the more he tightens his grip, the more he binds the chains of sin around our necks. Satans strategy is always like Pharaohs, more bricks, less straw.

But praise God (!), just as Pharaohs cruel yoke on Israel would be broken by the Lord, so too the Devils crueler yoke on sinners is broken by Jesus as soon as that sinner turns to Christ. Jesus said, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin but if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. (John 8:34, 36) Considering how cruel Pharaohs yoke is to Israel, how wonderful is the yoke of Christ? Matthew 11:28ff, Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and my burden is light. So to all who are weary and need rest, all who feel worthless and wonder if God cares, all who sin and need a Savior: the gospel offers welcome in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Weve seen the cruel yoke of Pharaoh, now see

A Confused People (v15-21)

Then the foremen of the people of Israel came and cried to Pharaoh, Why do you treat your servants like this?No straw is given to your servants, yet they say to us, Make bricks! And behold, your servants are beaten; but the fault is in your own people.But he said, You are idle, you are idle; that is why you say, Let us go and sacrifice to theLord.Go now and work. No straw will be given you, but you must still deliver the same number of bricks.The foremen of the people of Israel saw that they were in trouble when they said, You shall by no means reduce your number of bricks, your daily task each day.They met Moses and Aaron, who were waiting for them, as they came out from Pharaoh;andthey said to them, TheLordlook on you and judge, because you have made us stink in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants, and have put a sword in their hand to kill us.

Here in v15-21 there are really two scenes. In the first we see the foremen of Israel before Pharaoh in desperation, and in the second we see the foremen of Israel before Moses and Aaron in anger. In both scenes we see Gods people in deep confusion. Well take them in turn.

As this dire situation continued to play out with the Israelites suffering at the hands of Pharaohs decree, the leaders of Israel, called the foremen here in v15, come before Pharaoh. Perhaps they believed there had been some mistake in protocol, breakdown in communication, or failure in the chain of command going on. Clearly the fault lies with these Egyptian taskmasters who refused to give straw and were beating them for not reducing the quota of bricks, and maybe Pharaoh didnt know about it.[9] Notice the words used in v15. It says they came and cried out These are familiar words. As they face moments of deep distress we see Israel doing a lot of crying out to God. They did it back in chapter 2 during their suffering, theyll do it again at the Red Sea, theyll do again it in the wilderness, and theyll do it in many more places too. But here, who are they crying out to? At the first sign of trouble, they run to Pharaoh. Theres no mention of them coming to the Lord and crying out to Him. It seems that theyve recognized Pharaoh as not the source of their problems but as the one who can give them relief. This shows their confusion.

I think this is confirmed even further in v15 when we see them identify themselves. See it? How do these foremen identify themselves in v15? Why do you treat your servants like this?Here and in the verses that follow they identify themselves like this two more times. I think this is more than mere words.[10] It seems they have a true and real devotion to Pharaoh, which is completely out of bounds. They ought to see themselves as servants of the Lord, wherever they are, whatever their condition, yet here we see their confused identity. This is one reason why the Exodus must happen, to save them from Pharaoh and from themselves, and this is one reason why God begins the Ten Commandments, not with a command, but with an assurance of their true identity. Exodus 20:2 says, I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. They must ever know the Lord as their Redeemer and know themselves as the redeemed.

But here they come before Pharaoh in bitter distress. They state the obvious in v16, and Pharaoh responds in v17 with the same reasoning hes given before, You are idlethat is why you want to go and worship, go make bricks, go back to gathering your own straw, I will not reduce your quota. In Pharaohs words the foremen of Israel learn two things. First, they learn the reason behind all their trouble is Moses and Aaron. They went and asked to be let go, Pharaoh heard that and believed the people were idle, so he stopped giving them straw and forced them to get their own. The second thing they learn is in v19, see it? At this moment they saw how dire their troubles truly were. Its like a wake-up call for them, as they realize how difficult it actually will be to be freed from Pharaohs grasp, if its possible at all.

This brings us to the second scene. The foremen go out from Pharaohs presence and, what do we see in v20? Moses and Aaron are waiting for them to see how things went. Whats this whole scene like from their perspective? Perhaps theyre hoping against hope, maybe they believe Pharaoh will realize his mistake, repent of his sins, alleviate the misery of the people, and let them go. But what happens? The foremen see Moses and Aaron on their way out and they say the following to them in v21, TheLordlook on you and judge, because you have made us stink in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants, and have put a sword in their hand to kill us.

On one hand their anger is understandable. When people are angry they always try to find someone to blame. So here Gods people in their anger blame the leaders God sent to them. And humanly speaking, they were right, Moses plan had entirely failed. Moses sought to free them and ended up increasing their sorrow and suffering. For this they are angry, and they turn that anger toward Moses and Aaron, using strong spiritual language to rebuke them, going as far as to say God will judge them for their actions!

While their anger is understandable on one hand, its entirely inexcusable on the other hand. Instead of suffering and running right back to Pharaoh, they shouldve gone straight to the Lord and pled for rescue and relief! Their current anger is a dark contrast to the worship at the end of chapter 4. Remember that? They met with Moses and Aaron, saw the signs of God, heard the words of God, they believed that God was going to come save them, and so they worshiped God! Im sure they boldly encouraged Moses and Aaron to go out and speak with Pharaoh, without even giving thought to the fact that there might be a cost. They were worshiping, but now at the first taste of increased suffering, their worship turns to anger and confusion.

Question, what is their sin is this moment? Its a common one, I wonder if you see it. You might think its anger, or doubt, or even treating Moses and Aaron so poorly. While all of those could truly be in view, I think the biggest sin of Israel here in this text, is believing God wouldnt let such bad things happen to them. Their Gods people after all, hadnt God appeared to Moses in the burning bush and called him to do all these things, and given him the signs to prove it? Hadnt God said He was going to free His people and bring them out by His strong arm? Yes! So why in the world are they suffering so much if God had promised them all of these things? Has God forgotten them? Has Moses and Aaron made all of this up? Clearly something has gone astray, because obedience to God doesnt bring this much suffering, right?

Remember the big idea here. Israel is moving closer and closer towards freedom, even though their suffering is increasing in the present moment. God is saving them, yet, their discomfort grows. For this they grow angry. Weve all heard language like this before from Christians, perhaps youve even said it yourself. Language that assumes if people come to God and obey God and love God that bad things wont happen to them. I remember hearing it when I first became a Christian, Adam, staying in the middle of Gods will for your life is the safest place to be. But Church, thats a lie. This passage reminds us that being in the exact place God intends us to be, might just be the most unsafe place to be. Yes, God commands obedience, but God never promises an easy road if we obey.

Conclusion:

Why do we think this?

I think deep down, many Christians believe that if they obey God, God will be in their debt and will give them a good life here and now. Its almost a kind of prosperity light gospel. Of course, none of us would say this out loud, but our anger in hard circumstances might just reveal it.

What then are we to do? Church, were to trust the Lord.

Wherever He calls us to go in life, even if its incredibly difficult, it is truly the best place for us to be. Amid all the hardship and pain and suffering, God will be God to us, even there! We should never assume that our obedience will bring us a life of ease.

The kingdom of darkness never rages so fiercely as when Jesus invades the world. Gods servants will face fierce opposition from the enemy and sometimes from the Church too. But Jesus continues to reign over it all. He will build His Church nonetheless. In His reign and rule, we can ever rest!

[1] Philip Graham Ryken, Exodus: Saved for Gods Glory Preaching the Word Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2015) 132.

[2] Douglas K. Stuart, Exodus NAC (Brentwood, TN: BH Publishing, 2006) 159.

[3] John D. Currid, Genesis 1:1-25:18 - EP Study Commentary (Holywell, UK: Evangelical Press, 2015) 119.

[4] Stuart, 165.

[5] Ryken, 133.

[6] Currid, 121-122.

[7] Howard Vos, quoted in Ryken, 135.

[8] Ryken, 136.

[9] Ryken, 137.

[10] Currid, 122.

I. A Bold Approach (1)

Exodus 5:1 Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.

-Ill: There is a boldness that comes from assurance, that sometimes gets us a bit ahead of ourselves

-Moses here jumps right to the end with the word of the Lord to him in Exodus 4:2223 Then you shall say to Pharaoh, Thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, Let my son go that he may serve me. If you refuse to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.

Ignoring the original commands from Exodus 3:18 And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.

A few things missing and off:

-The Elders do not appear to Join Moses and Aaron before Pharaoh (Lots of speculation)

-They begin with the Role prophetic command (Let my People go/release in Hebrew)

-There is no designated time her the Hebrew is a command of permanent release (They are released from Pharaohs hand to the Lords)

There is plenty of Debate as to whether or not Moses was in the Wrong here at the beginning but not following Gods original command or if he simply to his wires crossed with the different phases of Gods plan. but what we do see ultimately is the His encounter with the Lord combined with the worship of Gods people have embolden these two men to stand before the most powerful man in the known word and speak the words of God.

So while I would fall in to the camp of seeing Moses being Moses and getting to far a head of himself the reason he does it is quiet remarkable. He Believes God will do what God said he would do

-We are reminded of the disciples boldness to go and proclaim the gospel

-Have you ever had that kind of faith to boldly proclaim the gospel without fear but with assurance that Gods word doesnt return void

- Moses is living life high on the mountain top of God and just went for it, laying all the cards out on the table right from the start.

-Of course we have seen his excitement he has left many questions unanswered of which Pharaoh will quickly point out:

II. A Prideful Rejection (2)

Exodus 5:2 But Pharaoh said, Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.

-Pharaoh is not impressed by Moses presentation and command

-Pharaoh is quick to point out and question who is this Lord

-Israel up to this point doesnt us the name Yahweh so even here it could come across as some new foreign deity

-Pharaoh is a god unto his own mind and has no room to take any commands from a would be usurper to his own authority (Letting them go would look poorly on him)

-This Lord is of no match for his own power in his own mind (Since Israel has been enslaved for generations where has this Lord been)

-The Bold words of Moses and Arron fall on deaf ears

-Ill: Now it is quick to Look at Pharaoh and call him a fool, I want to linger on a quick application point before we move to the Purposeful response of Moses to Pharaohs words:

Pharaohs reaction should reminds us of the depths of the blindness that exist for those who do no know the Lord.

-Yes Pharaoh is a prideful king, but even we apart from Christ were just as self centered and prideful

-Our world today has created an individualized culture were each person is their own god with their own value systems (that should not be challenged) and their own set of ethics, which usually entails they are never wrong, never in the wrong, and are never to be questioned about the possibility of being wrong. And if you are amenning that statement about others be reminded you are apart of the same world.

-So Apart from the move of God no man willingly sees their need of a savior and no man hears the call of the Lord with humility and a brokenness, they must meet God and know God to be changed by God.

-And there are only 2 end results of knowing God being changed by him in repentance or broken by him in the rebellion. (Pharaoh will as we see experience the later)

-The call for Christians here is to not forget you once were a pharaoh in your own mind, but God is the one who broke through and redeemed you not yourself, He paid the price and so now you have no place to see yourself as the any type of Pharaoh but rather as the humble recipient of the grace of God who saved you. just as Israel will. We can not place ourselves above one another but rather in humility understand our place equally as recipients of Gods grace

So from the place of Pharaohs complete rejection of anything Moses just said Moses responds:

III. A Purposeful Response (3)

Exodus 5:3 Then they said, The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go a three days journey into the wilderness that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God, lest he fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword.

Now Moses Returns to the original wording of chapter 3 when he was first commissioned to go:

-Yahweh is the God of the Hebrews

-He has physically meet with them (They are not coming of their own accord or power)

-It is not a call to permanently release the people but a simple request of a three day trip to worship God

-We covered this back in chapter 3 that this was to proves the pride and hardheartedness of Pharaoh that even this simple request was too much for him (according some ancient tablets dating back into approximation of the exodus It was common in Egypt to let slaves have a break/ holidays if you will for the purpose of worship (Now ether that was a result of the exodus or common practice can be debated)

-He adds though here at the end an very interesting addendum: If we dont go free the pestilence and sword will come

-Now no where do we see God saying this to Moses about Israel but he says it often about Egypt so Moses is doing 1 of 2 things:

He is trying to leverage sympathy for Israel with Pharaoh that God would punish Israel and Pharaoh should show kindness. (Seems like a stretch)

He is saying that the us in view is both Israel and Egypt. God will rain down on them all with pestilence and the sword. (Thus giving Pharaoh a warning that judgment is coming if he doesnt listen and it will be widespread)

-Ultimately we see in Moses second response a fuller explanation to Pharaoh about who God is and what he has in store for the future should pharaoh not relent and let the people of Israel go to worship their God.

-Of course God has already revealed to Moses that they will not be released except after Pharaoh is humbled greatly and the Lose of his first born, but that doesnt equally negate God command for Moses to warn and offer the hand of repentance (in this case releasing the people and rejecting his own false sense of Lordship over them).

So even here we now have another example of Moses after being rebuffed: calmly and accurately presenting the word of God to Pharaoh.

-He isnt enraged if anything he might be a little more subdued, but he doesnt back away

-Which is still a great reminder for us that people will reject the gospel, but that doesnt negate our call to be a light in the sharing of it.

-The rejection of the message is not an excuse to cease being a messenger, especially when we unlike Moses dont know the final result of the messages proclamation

However Moses calm and polite response to Pharaohs prideful first response is now an out right and malevolent denial of the whole endeavor:

IV. A Malevolent Denial (4-9)

Exodus 5:49 But the king of Egypt said to them, Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people away from their work? Get back to your burdens. And Pharaoh said, Behold, the people of the land are now many, and you make them rest from their burdens! The same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people and their foremen, You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as in the past; let them go and gather straw for themselves. But the number of bricks that they made in the past you shall impose on them, you shall by no means reduce it, for they are idle. Therefore they cry, Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God. Let heavier work be laid on the men that they may labor at it and pay no regard to lying words.

-With Pharaohs First response we see he has no regard for God now we see has no regard for man

-Pharaoh doesnt even interact with their request he simply dismiss them as a waste of his time.

-Pharaohs heart isnt just dismiss of the word that they brought his actions indicated he is angered by them.

-He will now seek to crush this new found optimism in this Hebrew God Yahweh who claims to be worthy of his peoples worship,

Pharaohs authority is challenged by God and so in many ways pharaohs is going to show them whose god

-So he calls them lazy for wanting to take a break and worship God, if they have so much free time maybe they need to work harder.

-The goal as we see is to stomp out their faith through brutal labor showing that Pharaoh is stronger than their god.

He is no different than those today who see the experiences of the saints and are confused by the faith in the midst of hardship and the belief in that which is unseen. Od those who wish only to make life more difficult based on their misperceived reality.

1 Peter 3:1217 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be Gods will, than for doing evil.

2 Peter 3:47 They will say, Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation. For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.

In the end though Pharaohs attempts to bring Israel down into a miry pit of pain and sorrow will only lead to a greater display of the truth of who their God really is and how much more powerful he is over Pharaoh.