Continuing a chronological Bible study:
(Exodus 10:1) And the LORD said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the
hearts of his servants, that I may show these signs of Mine before him, (2) And that you may tell in the hearing of your son and your son’s son what things I have done in Egypt, and My signs which I have done among them, that you may know that I am the LORD.”
The Lord told Moses to go back before Pharaoh once again. I've explored the thought before that God could have changed Pharaoh's heart at any time or could have destroyed him and removed him as an obstacle at any time, but He told Moses at this time that He allowed Pharaoh's heart to remain hardened, as well as the hearts of his servants, so that He might have further opportunities to show His signs and wonders. God further told Moses that because of all these miraculous things He had done in Egypt, Moses would have a story to pass down so that future generations would know that He was the one true eternal Lord and Savior of the world. God's purpose was that this event be written by Moses to serve as a permanent record that would last until the ends of the earth for our instruction in the awesome power of our Lord over our enemies, and in His faithfulness, love, and mercy. There lies the beginning of our Bible today! God intended for us to have a record of Him. If it was God's intention, can we really doubt that He could make sure we had a true record? I think about how people today who profess to be Christians (me included, in my immature days) don't believe the Bible to be the true inspired inerrant Word of God. After all, I can hear my own silly self saying many years ago, there have been errant human hands all over the creating of the Bible. However, I have come to realize and have faith that my God is big enough to see that His Word remain intact. And here we read of His intention that there be a record, so we can be certain it came to fruition. Jesus Himself more than likely used the Septuagint, the first translation of the Hebrew Bible, and here is what He said about it:
"Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one
tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and
shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of
heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven." - Matthew 5:17-19
Jesus believed that Bible, that Word of God, that law and the prophets, from which He taught. He did not come to change one thing about that Bible, but He was the fulfillment of all that was written. He had no problem relying on a humanly translated Bible; nor should we! However, He did warn against those who would break the commandments written of in scripture and teach men to do the same. Additionally, and perhaps more powerfully, Jesus said at the very end of the Bible, in Revelation, chapter 22:
“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things...For I testify unto every man that hears the words of the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. He who testifies these things says, 'Surely I come quickly.'" - Revelation 22:16a and18-20a
While most would argue and say this referred only to the book of Revelation, there are too many other instances in the Bible where God warned not to add to or subtract from His word (Deut. 4:2, Deut. 12:32, Prov. 30:6). Surely, if it was so important that we not add or subtract from the word of God, He would certainly see to it that His word was preserved intact! Now that is not to say that there haven't been inaccurate translations of the Bible, especially in more recent times. I do believe there are errant translations and I studied this in depth and wrote about it in this blog post. Included in that post are some links that further explain in depth how and when the Bible became perverted. I had occasion to read again one of the links I provided and most heartily recommend it again here: 1611 King James Bible. Com
Now after saying that I am certain that God's Word has remained intact and we can trust it, I have added that there are, after all, human perversions. But once again, our God is big enough to make sure we get His true Word. He said that if we seek Him with all our heart, we WILL FIND HIM, and that means the true HIM:
"But if from there you will seek the LORD your God, you shall find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul." - Deuteronomy 4:29
Okay, now back to Exodus:
(3) And Moses and Aaron came in to Pharaoh and said to him, “Thus says the LORD God of the Hebrews, ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, that they may serve Me.'"
Moses and Aaron went before Pharaoh and spoke the words of the Lord so that Pharaoh knew they were the very words of the Lord by beginning, "Thus says the Lord..." How long would Pharaoh refuse to humble himself before the Lord and let God's people go? Of course, God already knew how long it would be, but this does show that Pharaoh did have the choice. He could have humbled himself before the Lord and repented and allowed the people to go before now. Yes, God had a purpose in allowing Pharaoh's heart to remain hardened throughout all the plagues. But the same God who was allowing time for the Israelites and even the Egyptians to know this was the true God, would have most assuredly accepted Pharaoh's true repentance, if there was any. We always have a choice; no one is doomed to hell against his will for God's purposes. However, as God is all-knowing and knows the future and what would happen in every possible instance, He can plan to carry out His will accordingly. You can bet, if Pharaoh had humbled himself and relented, God would have found another way to carry out His will and show his signs and wonders to be recorded throughout history.
(4) "'Or else, if you refuse to let My people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring the locusts into your coast. (5) And they shall cover the face of the earth, that one will not be able to see the earth; and they shall eat the residue of what is left, which remains to you
from the hail, and they shall eat every tree which grows for you out
of the field. (6) And they shall fill your houses, the houses of all your servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians, which neither your fathers nor your fathers’ fathers have seen, since
the day that they were on the earth to this day.’” And he turned and
went out from Pharaoh.
Moses (through his spokesman Aaron) continued the words of the Lord that if Pharaoh again refused to let God's people go, the next day God would bring locusts into Pharaoh's territory. They would be so thick on the face of the earth that no one would be able to see. They would consume whatever vegetation had remained after the hailstorm, including every tree. They would be so thick they would fill the houses of Pharaoh and his servants and all the Egyptians. This would be a plague of locusts such as had never been seen since the beginning of time. With that, Moses (with his spokesman Aaron) turned and left Pharaoh.
(7) And 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 know that Egypt is destroyed?”
Pharaoh's servants got it! They told Pharaoh to let the men go to serve their Lord, because Egypt was as good as destroyed because of his refusal to let them go thus far.
(8) And Moses and Aaron were brought again to Pharaoh, and he said to them, “Go, serve the LORD your God, but who are they that shall go?”
Evidently, at the urging of his servants, Moses and Aaron were brought back in to Pharaoh. Pharaoh appears to have relented somewhat and told them to go serve their Lord, but he wanted to know just who was going. Pharaoh received much value and profit from the labor of the Israelites, and feared that they would not return if they all went, so he wanted an account of just who was going.
(9) And Moses said, “We will go with our young and our old, with our sons and our daughters, with our flocks and our herds we will go, for we must hold a feast to the LORD.”
Moses insisted that they all should go, including all their flocks and herds. They were going to participate in a feast to the Lord, so all had to go. The adults would surely prepare the feast, and the children would be expected to witness it. The animals would be needed for the feast and for sacrifice to the Lord.
(10) And he said to them, “Let the LORD be so with you, as I will let you go, and your little ones; look to it; for evil is before you. (11) Not so! Go now, you who are men, and serve the LORD, for that is what you desired.” And they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.
Pharaoh's meaning in verse 10 is a little difficult to understand, but with the finished thought in verse 11, you get the gist. He was probably mocking or cursing them, saying, in effect, it was at their peril if they tried to take their little ones. It is obvious he did not intend to let them take their children. He said only the men could go and serve their Lord. He suggested that since they desired to go, they should accept his compromise and go and serve the Lord since that is what they said they wanted to do. With that word, Moses and Aaron were driven out from Pharaoh's presence.
(12) And the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, all that the hail has left.”
Of course, only letting the men go, was not what God commanded, and He instructed Moses to stretch out his hand over the land of Egypt and, in effect, summon the locusts. They would eat every herb left in the land after the hailstorm.
(13) And Moses stretched forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind upon the land all that day, and all that night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts.
This is not the first time the scripture says that God told Moses to stretch out his hand, and Moses wrote that he then stretched out his rod. Moses may have been making it a point to show that it was the rod of God, God Himself, who summoned the plagues. Of course, that is what God Himself told Moses to do in the beginning, but I still find it interesting that Moses quoted God's words, "Stretch out your hand...", but then made it a point to show that it was God through this rod of God that did the summoning. I believe it is further proof of how accurate Moses tried to be in his writing, and how modest he usually was regarding himself. God had said "tomorrow" He would send the locusts. This time rather than immediately bringing locusts upon the land, He first brought the east wind, blowing all the rest of that day and that night, and when it was morning, on the morrow, then came the locusts.
(14) And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the coasts of Egypt; very grievous were they; before them there had been no such locusts as they, nor shall there be such after them. (15) For they covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they ate every herb of the land and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left; and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the field, through all the land of Egypt.
The locusts went all over the land of Egypt, but they miraculously rested within the coasts of Egypt. God had used natural means, the winds that were at His disposal, to bring the locusts, but it was indeed a miracle that they came just when He had said they would, and they remained within the borders of Egypt. The locusts were more severe than had ever been seen in the land since the beginning, as God had said in verse 6 they would be. They were so thick that the land was darkened, and they ate every bit of green that had remained in Egypt after the hailstorm.
(16) Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste, and said, “I have sinned against the LORD your God and against you. (17) Now therefore, please forgive my sin only this once, and entreat the LORD your God, that He may take away from me this death only.”
Moses and Aaron had been driven out of Pharaoh's presence, but now he called them back quickly. Of course, he realized the power of God and he knew the right words to say to ask that they ask their God to remove the plague of locusts. Just as we might imagine the prayer of any sinner, Pharaoh asked that he be forgiven "just this one time", insinuating that he would not sin again. However, Pharaoh's words are not sincere. He is as sorry as one who has just been caught is sorry that he got caught, but it is not a sincere repentance to God. He just said the words he hoped would work to take this plague away.
(18) And he went out from Pharaoh and entreated the LORD. (19) And the LORD turned a mighty strong west wind, which took away the
locusts and cast them into the Red sea; there remained not one locust
in all the coasts of Egypt.
Sincere or not, Moses took Pharaoh's words at face value, and went out from Pharaoh and asked the Lord, in Pharaoh's behalf, to remove the locusts. And the Lord did as Moses asked, now sending a mighty west wind to take all the locusts away and casting them into the Red Sea. Evidence that this was truly a miracle of God was that not a single locust was left within the borders of Egypt!
(20) But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go.
Once again might come the discussion about a just God hardening the heart of a man against his will. There was a discussion about this in Exodus, chapter 4, especially verse 21. Additionally, there was discussion about it in chapter 9, verse 14, when God determined to send all His plagues on Pharaoh's heart. It was evident that Pharaoh had not been sincere or truly repentant, so it may be that God truly did harden his heart at this time, or rather kept it hardened, until the fruition of the plagues. His heart was already hard and unrepentant, and he would not let the children of Israel go.
(21) And the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, darkness which may even be felt.” (22) And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven, and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. (23) They did not see one another; nor did anyone rise from his place for three days; but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.
With no further warning to Pharaoh, God told Moses to stretch his hand toward heaven which would bring darkness over the land of Egypt, and that he did. It was a darkness so thick and dark that it was even felt. Although God could have used any means to bring darkness, it seems reasonable to think that perhaps it was caused by a thick fog, because it could be felt, and perhaps the heavy misty dampness of the fog is what put out all the candles and fires in the Egyptian homes. It was so dark and thick that the Egyptians could not see one another, nor did they even try to arise from their places for three days. However, the Israelites had light in their homes.
As so many of the plagues seemed to do, this plague showed God's control over one of the Egyptians' chief objects of worship, the Sun-god. I don't know that God was purposely choosing a plague for each one of the Egyptian gods; the fact was, that the Egyptians used nature and things created by God as their gods. Of course, God was greater than anything or anyone He Himself created. If all of heaven and earth is at God's disposal, and one has false gods he came up with himself, then they are bound to be controlled by God; it's just going to happen without any particular plan on God's part to expose one's false gods.
(24) And Pharaoh called to Moses and said, “Go, serve the LORD; only let your flocks and your herds be kept back; let your little ones also go with you.”
After three days of the thick darkness, Pharaoh called Moses in and he decided to relent a little further this time. He would allow all the people to go, including the little ones, but their herds and flocks must be kept back. Obviously, Pharaoh was trying to make sure the Israelites would return; their livestock would be his security that the Israelites would not permanently leave Egypt, leaving him without all their forced labor from which he had obviously profited. Also, when you think about it, he and the Egyptians had lost a great deal of their livestock to the plagues; all the more reason he may have wanted the livestock to stay, and not risk them leaving forever.
(25) And Moses said, “You must give us also sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God. (26) Our cattle also shall go with us; there shall not a hoof be left behind, for from them we must take to serve the LORD our God, and even we do not know with what we must serve the LORD until we arrive there.”
Moses refused Pharaoh's offer, saying the livestock was necessary as they would need some of them to offer as sacrifices and burnt offerings to the Lord, and they would not know which animals they would need until they got to the place where they would serve the Lord.
(27) But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not let them go.
Of course, Pharaoh would not agree to this. If he had relented, we may be sure it would have been short-lived, as it has been obvious that he had not been sincere in any repentance up to this point. Therefore, the Lord may have hardened his heart because, "He had yet another miracle to work for the complete conviction of the Egyptians and triumph of his people; and till that was wrought He permitted the natural obstinacy of Pharaoh’s haughty heart to have its full sway, after each resistance of the gracious influence which was intended to soften and bring him to repentance." (Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible)
(28) And Pharaoh said to him, “Get away from me; take heed to yourself and see my face no more, for in the day you see my face you shall die.” (29) And Moses said, “You have spoken well; I will see your face no more.”
Pharaoh got angry when he couldn't make Moses adhere to his terms, and sent him away, saying he never wanted to see him again. He was so angry that he told Moses to take heed, for if he ever saw him again, Moses would die! Pretty strong words against someone Pharaoh himself had on more than one occasion called before him to save him from God's plagues. To threaten someone with death who had shown himself quite able to inflict plagues away from his presence wasn't very smart. But how often do people say dumb things they don't mean in anger? In this case, Moses told Pharaoh he had spoken true words. He may have known by a spirit of prophecy that he would not again be sent to Pharaoh, and that Pharaoh would soon meet death at the Red Sea.
(Exodus 11:1) And the LORD said to Moses, “I will bring yet one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt; afterwards he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will surely thrust you out of here altogether."
I have included chapter 11 in this present study as it became evident that this short chapter was a continuation of Moses's last meeting with Pharaoh. It seems these words of the Lord had been given previously to Moses so that he had known for certain that he would not be sent again to Pharaoh. It is also possible they were being divinely given to him as he spoke to Pharaoh, but it will soon become apparent that Moses was still in the presence of Pharaoh. This is the reason that Moses said that Pharaoh had spoken well in that he would not see him again, because the Lord told him that He would bring one final plague on Pharaoh and the Egyptians, and after that, Pharaoh would let the Israelites go. As a matter of fact, he wouldn't only let them go, he would thrust them out of there!
(2) “Speak now in the hearing of the people, and let every man ask from his neighbor and every woman from her neighbor, jewels of silver and jewels of gold.” (3) And the LORD gave 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.
The children of Israel were about to be delivered from their bondage in Egypt, and would have left empty-handed, having been slaves to the Egyptians without rightful pay, but their Lord saw to it that they were justly rewarded for their services. They did not have to raid, loot, or steal, but had only to ask of their neighbors, and the Lord gave them such favor with the Egyptians, that the Egyptian people would gladly give the Israelites articles of silver and gold. Furthermore, Moses was held in high regard by Pharaoh's servants and by the Egyptian people. They had seen what he had done in the name of the Israelites' God, and they came to respect him. I believe it is fair to conclude that many Egyptians were indeed saved because of their witnessing of the many plagues up to this point, as was suggested was one of the reasons for the prolonging of the plagues--see post notes on Exodus 4, verse 21. This does not mean that the Egyptians wouldn't die a physical death, but if saved by believing on the Lord who had wrought such miracles in their country, they wouldn't have to die an eternal death in hell.
(4) And Moses said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘About midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt; (5) And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the maidservant who is behind the mill, and all the firstborn of the animals. (6) And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as was not like it before, nor shall be like it any more.'"
Moses spoke to Pharaoh; after he had said Pharaoh had spoken well, he now spoke these words of the Lord to Pharaoh. At about midnight the Lord would go through the midst of Egypt and all the firstborn of man and beast, including Pharaoh's firstborn son, would die. There would be a great wailing of grief throughout the land of Egypt when all the firstborn died, such as had never been heard before, nor would ever be afterward. This is what the Lord had warned to Pharaoh in the beginning, in Exodus 4:22-23, that if he did not let God's son Israel go, He would slay Pharaoh's firstborn son.
(7) "‘But against any of the children of Israel a dog shall not move its tongue against man or beast, that you may know that the LORD does make a difference between the Egyptians and Israel. (8) And all these your servants shall come down to me and bow themselves down to me, saying, "Get out, and all the people who follow you," and after that I will go out.'” And he went out from Pharaoh in a great anger.
The firstborn of all the Egyptians would die, but there was not to be so much as a dog moving its tongue toward a snarl or growl against the Israelites. In that, they would know that the Lord did distinguish between His children Israel and the Egyptians. Then Pharaoh's own servants would bow before the Lord and tell Him and His people to get out of their land, and at that point, they would go; that was a certainty. And with that final message, Moses went out from Pharaoh's presence in anger.
(9) And the LORD said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not heed you, so that My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.”
Moses was angered, justifiably, it would seem, by the stubborn arrogance of Pharaoh, but the Lord reminded him that Pharaoh would not yet listen to him, for God's express purpose in magnifying His wonders in the land of Egypt. This is something I must remind myself--even though I may feel justified in my anger against a Godless government and its ungodly agenda that leads the people astray, I must remember that God alone raises up leaders for His purposes. Sadly, His purposes may be for judgment against a country's wickedness, as in the case of Egypt, but good can ultimately come to the individual persons who come to the end of themselves and look to their Lord for their salvation. When things are too easy, we often become lazy and forgetful and unthankful for all that the Lord has done for us; we can even take Him for granted and compromise His word and relegate Him to a distant second place. It is in His mercy, that God will allow terrible tragedies that bring us back to Him!
(10) And Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh; and the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go out of his land.
I believe this is a sort of parenthetical comment relating to all the signs and wonders up to this point. Moses and Aaron had brought all these miraculous plagues in the sight of Pharaoh, but the Lord had hardened Pharaoh's heart so that he would not let the Israelites go out of his land up to this point, so that the Lord's wonders could be multiplied in the land of Egypt for the maximum good of the most people. I believe that means not only the Israelite people at this time, but also the pagan Egyptians who would come to know God as Lord, and maybe most importantly, to the countless generations of Jews and Gentiles who would afterward read the report of these marvelous wonders, and come to know the Lord as their Savior!
Sunday, July 27, 2014
Saturday, July 12, 2014
Pharaoh A Saint Compared to Us?
Continuing with a chronological Bible study:
(Exodus 9:1) Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and tell him, ‘Thus says the LORD God of the Hebrews: “Let My people go, that they may serve Me."'"
At the end of the last chapter, the plague of the flies had been lifted from the land of Egypt because Pharaoh had asked that Moses entreat the Lord for him, which he did. Furthermore, Pharaoh had said he would let the Israelite people go; however, he did not. Now the Lord told Moses to go to Pharaoh and tell him that the Lord God of the Hebrews again told him to let His people go.
(2) "'“For if you refuse to let them go, and will hold them still, (3) Behold, the hand of the LORD is upon your cattle which are in the field, upon the horses, upon the donkeys, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep; there shall be a very severe pestilence. (4) And the LORD shall separate between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt; and there shall nothing die of all that is the children's of Israel.”’”
Again Moses, through his spokesman Aaron, was to give Pharaoh a warning of what would happen if he refused to let God's people go. The phrase "there shall be" was added by the KJV translators for clarity; it was not in the original text. Although it does seem to be needed to correctly express the idea, I think the sense is that the Lord, with His hand on the beasts of the land, could immediately bring pestilence to them, without any stretching forth of Aaron's rod or any other fanfare. The Lord's hand was already on them with pestilence ready to be let go at His bidding. The beasts of the earth, all things in nature, and every person's life are held in God's hand and are at His command at any given moment. Because they are at His command, He could easily distinguish between the beasts of Israel and the beasts of Egypt, and He would not allow any of the Israelites' animals to die.
(5) And the LORD appointed a set time, saying, “Tomorrow the LORD will do this thing in the land.”
Not only could the Lord's hand immediately bring pestilence, but it could do it at any particular appointed time, proving that it could only be the Lord who brought the pestilence. This also gave Pharaoh time to change his mind before the Lord followed through with what He warned would happen if Pharaoh refused to let God's people go.
(6) And the LORD did that thing on the next day, and all the cattle of Egypt died; but of the cattle of the children of Israel, not one died.
The Lord did as He warned on the next day, bringing pestilence to the livestock of the Egyptians. Regarding "all the cattle of Egypt", I believe it must be read and understood that all the cattle which died were of Egypt, because we later read of a plague affecting the cattle again. Perhaps the plague was brought upon only the "cattle which are in the field", as stated in verse 3, and there were others not affected, or perhaps the pestilence was upon all the Egyptian livestock, but not all died, but all that did die were of Egypt; none of the livestock of the Israelites died. Once again, it must be noted that a plague affected objects of worship by the Egyptians. Egyptian deities proved again to be under the power of the Israelites' God.
(7) And Pharaoh sent, and, behold, there was not one of the cattle of the Israelites dead. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.
Pharaoh apparently sent messengers to inquire about the Israelite cattle, and found that none were dead of the Israelites' livestock. It's interesting that he purposely sent messengers to see if what had been promised was indeed true, and remarkable that when he found it was true, he dug in his heels all the more and did not let the Israelites go.
(8) And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Take for yourselves handfuls of ashes from a furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh. (9) And it shall become fine dust in all the land of Egypt, and shall become boils breaking forth in sores on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt.”
After Pharaoh again hardened his heart and refused to let the people go, this next plague was to come without warning. The Lord instructed Moses and Aaron to take handfuls of ashes and scatter them toward heaven where Pharaoh could see what they were doing. Throwing the ashes from the fiery furnace up to heaven may have been symbolic; the very furnace at which the Hebrews had been oppressed and enslaved now became the source of the plague upon the Egyptians. The ashes would come down as a fine dust over the land of Egypt causing inflamed boils and blisters all over the Egyptian people and the animals throughout the land of Egypt. Additionally, the symbolic act could have also been a reference to the fact that there were times that the Egyptians sacrificed men, burning them alive, and throwing their ashes up to the heavens.
(10) And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled them toward heaven; and they became boils breaking forth in sores on man and beast. (11) And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils were on the magicians and on all the Egyptians.
Moses and Aaron did as God told them, and the ash dust became boils and blistery pustules on man and beast, so severe that Pharaoh's magicians could not even stand before Moses!
(12) And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not hearken to them, as the LORD had spoken to Moses.
Pharaoh still stood obstinate and would not let the people go, as God had told Moses he would. For a previous discussion on the Lord hardening Pharaoh's heart, please see the post on Exodus 4, especially the notes on verse 21.
(13) And the LORD said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh, and say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD God of the Hebrews, “Let My people go, that they may serve Me, (14) For I will at this time send all My plagues on your heart, and on your servants and on your people, that you may know that there is none like Me in all the earth."'"
The Lord told Moses to again rise up early in the morning to meet with Pharaoh and tell him God's words, to let His people go in order to serve Him. God said He would at this time send all His plagues on Pharaoh's heart, etc. This would have to be all the remaining plagues He had planned, and it appears that they all would be sent, with no chance to stop them midstream. Either God knew that Pharaoh would not have repented and let the people go before all were accomplished, or else after all the chances Pharaoh had up to this point to repent, now there would be no further chances and God would accomplish all He had planned so that Pharaoh would know in his heart that there was none like Him in all the earth. In the end, everyone will know the truth. All the atheists, all those who ridicule God and the Bible and those who believe, will in the end come to know the truth, for the Bible tells us "every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God" (Romans 14:11). They will bow and confess because they will know that truly they are in the presence of the Lord Almighty. Likewise, Pharaoh would know in his heart that there was none like the one true almighty God of heaven and earth after He sent all His plagues. I do believe it is possible that God would reach a point when He would give no more chances to repent because of the scripture in Isaiah, chapter 55, specifically verse 6, which says, "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found..." "While" suggests there will be a time when He won't be found.
(15) "'"For now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. (16) And indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, to show in you My power, and that My name may be declared throughout all the earth."'"
Although the KJV translated verse 15 in the future tense, Biblical scholars say that in the Hebrew the verbs were in the past tense and not in the future, so I have used the translation above that most scholars agree is the correct one. After all, God never struck Pharaoh and all the people with pestilence that removed them from the earth, but it is certainly something He could have done at any time with great ease. That has to be the message to Pharaoh now, that God could have stretched out His hand and struck Pharaoh and all the Egyptians and killed them instantly, but He had a purpose in raising him up and allowing him to be in this position of power at this time. It was to show through him God's power over him and over all his worthless gods and idols, that only the one true God would be declared as Lord of all throughout all the earth.
I have to remind myself of this fact that it is God alone who raises up leaders, when I look around at how far from God we are at this present time in our country. A country that was founded on Christian principles, a country that sought the blessing of Almighty God, one that regularly prayed to Him and sought His guidance, now seeks to remove Him from everything. We now have a president that regularly "quotes" from the founding documents, but leaves out all references to God in those documents. He has actually covered up a reference to Jesus on a stage where he was to talk; he couldn't even be seen in the presence of a reference to Jesus that he didn't himself even make! Actually, that has a very strong spiritual implication that Obama cannot stand in the presence of Jesus, but that is another topic. His party just this last presidential election cycle decided they did not even want God as a part of their platform. We wonder why everything is so bad in this country right now--it is because we tossed aside everything God stands for and decided we wanted Godless people to rule over us! And GOD alone raised Obama up to bring judgment on this country. We wanted Godlessness and God allowed us to have what we wanted. We, as a country, that is. I certainly never wanted a Godless man as president! There are many good Christian people in this country who didn't want him, but as a country, we elected him. He is the very picture of what we have become. He is the most pro-abortion president we have ever had, voting on three occasions before becoming president to allow babies born alive after botched abortions to die on a shelf with no attempt to save their lives! I think of that abortion doctor, Kermit Gosnell, who was found guilty of murder because he killed babies born alive that had survived botched abortions. I remember that bewildered look he had when he was found guilty. In his mind, he was only carrying out what he had been paid to do, end the life of a mother's baby, as was her choice. What he did was a very picture of abortion, this woman's reproductive "right" to murder her child! It made people uncomfortable to think he killed a baby outside of the womb, but just inside the womb is okay. When you think about it, Dr. Gosnell was much more humane in killing the baby right away, rather than letting it slowly die on a shelf with no care as Obama proposed we do!! In addition, Obama has done more to promote the homosexual agenda than any other president, something God called an abomination, and something He warned us against when He told us to remember Sodom and Gomorrah as an example of what would happen, "suffering the vengeance of eternal fire". Obama is the most lawless president we have ever had, ignoring laws he does not like, changing laws at his whim, using his pen and his phone to act as our king, and our Congress seems impotent against him. It is because God alone raised him up! Our country chose to be ruled by a Godless man, and here we are!
(17) "'"As yet you exalt yourself against My people, that you will not let them go? (18) Behold, tomorrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as has not been in Egypt since its foundation until now. (19) Therefore send now and gather your cattle and all that you have in the field, for the hail shall come down on every man and beast which shall be found in the field and is not brought home, and they shall die.”’”
God was still speaking to Moses, telling him to speak these words to Pharaoh, as thus said the Lord. Still Pharaoh exalted himself above God's people and refused to let them go, but God was about to send all His remaining plagues striking the very heart of Pharaoh, and showing him His power as Lord of all the earth, as stated in verses 14-16 above. God now warned Pharaoh that tomorrow at this time He would send a rain of hail such as had never been seen before. However, He actually mercifully still gave Pharaoh a chance to avoid the hail, if he would just gather all the livestock in the field and bring them in, they would avoid being killed by the hail. Any man or beast in the fields at this time tomorrow would be killed by hail, but they had about 24 hours warning to avoid what was sure to come.
(20) He who feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his cattle flee to the houses. (21) And he who did not regard the word of the LORD left his servants and his cattle in the field.
I love this! It's so simple. Those who believed and feared God among the servants of Pharaoh heeded God's warning and brought all the servants and cattle in from the fields. I believe this is proof that God drew out these plagues upon Egypt in order to give some of the Egyptians time to repent and be saved. He could have swooped in, struck down or frozen Pharaoh and his servants, and allowed His people to go immediately, but He had a purpose in doing it the way He did. He told us in verse 16 it was to show His power that His name be magnified in all the earth. He could have shown His power immediately, but to us dense sinners, we need a much longer look for it to sink in! Adam Clarke wrote a beautiful commentary on this, part of which can be found in my post on chapter 4, especially the notes on verse 21, linked here. Those who believed what they had thus far seen and feared the Lord, were spared; those who did not heed the word of the Lord left their servants and livestock in the fields.
(22) And the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch forth your hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, on man, on beast, and on every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.” (23) And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven; and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and fire ran along on the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt.
The next day at the appointed time, the Lord told Moses to stretch forth his hand toward heaven and thus call the hailstorm onto the land of Egypt, on every man, beast, and herb in the fields. Moses did as the Lord told him, and the Lord sent a horrific hailstorm with thunder and lightning that ran along the ground. This must have been very frightening to the Egyptians who didn't see much rain, let alone thunderstorms, not to mention fierce thunderstorms with severe lightning and heavy hail. This must surely have looked like the wrath of God raining down on the Egyptians, and the ones who had believed were not in the fields and were spared.
(24) So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. (25) And the hail struck throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail struck every herb of the field and broke every tree of the field. (26) Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, there was no hail.
The hailstorm with fierce lightning causing hail and fire all through the land of Egypt was like nothing that had ever been seen before in the land of Egypt. The hail struck every man and beast in the field, and struck every herb and broke every tree where it rained. But it did not rain in Goshen where the children of Israel were. God had given warning, and the children of Israel could have easily heeded the warning and brought their livestock and come in and avoided the hail, but God made a very dramatic point in separating His people from the Egyptians. They and their animals, and their herbs, plants, and trees were spared.
(27) And Pharaoh sent and called for Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “I have sinned this time; the LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked. (28) Entreat the LORD (for it is enough) that there be no more mighty thunderings and hail; and I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.”
So fierce and frightening was the plague of hail and lightning, Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron to ask them to ask the Lord to remove it. On one hand, Pharaoh called the Lord "Jehovah", the proper name for the one true eternal God, admitted his sin, and called himself and his people wicked. You might think he had had an epiphany and saw the light; he used some of the right words. But I couldn't help notice that he said he sinned "this time"; now maybe he meant that this time, for the first time, he saw his sin and wickedness, but he continued on to ask that they ask the Lord to remove the hail and thundering because "it is enough". Who is he to say that it had been enough? Maybe it had been enough to make him see the light. Although he tried to use the right words, I rather think his arrogance showed through. He did not have a truly repentant heart as he could not totally admit his sin and he seemed to tell the Lord what was enough. He did ask Moses and Aaron to entreat the Lord to end the hailstorms and he did say that he would then let the Israelite people go.
(29) And Moses said to him, “As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the LORD; and the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, that you may know that the earth is the LORD’s. (30) But as for you and your servants, I know that you will not yet fear the LORD God.”
Moses agreed to Pharaoh's request. He said as soon as he had left the city, he would spread his hands to the Lord, and the Lord would stop the hail and thunder, so that Pharaoh would know that the earth was the Lord's and at His command. However, Moses indeed did see that Pharaoh's admission of guilt and acknowledgment of Jehovah God were not true and heartfelt; he knew and told him so that he knew Pharaoh and his servants did not yet fear the Lord.
(31) And the flax and the barley were struck, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud. (32) But the wheat and the rye were not struck, for they were not grown up.
These verses speak of the plants that were struck and destroyed by the hailstorm. The barley had ears and the flax was in bud, so it was struck, but the wheat and rye, as later bloomers, were not yet sprouted from the ground, and so not struck by hail. By this, the time of year can be approximated, which a consensus of the early commentaries state, must have been late February or early March.
(33) And Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread out his hands to the LORD; and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not poured on the earth.
Moses did as he told Pharaoh he would, and went out of the city and spread his hands out to the Lord in prayer and supplication for Pharaoh. Indeed the thunder and hailstorm ceased, just as Moses had told Pharaoh it would.
(34) And when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders were ceased, he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants. (35) And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, neither would he let the children of Israel go; as the LORD had spoken by Moses.
Once the hailstorm ceased, Pharaoh sinned again; to begin with, we know he was not thankful to the Lord for answered prayer! He hardened his heart, which sin does, he and his servants both. He sinned again by not fulfilling his promise to let the Israelites go if Moses asked the Lord to remove the hailstorm. It's funny; I started out typing "Unbelievably", etc.; but it's actually not so unbelievable. When you read of these events just boom-boom, one immediately after another, it's hard to believe that Pharaoh could return to his ways after just witnessing such miracles. However, imagine a person praying to God to remove a big problem and promising to change his ways, and after God answers the prayer, he returns to his former ways. Actually, Pharaoh's actions are sadly too credible. His heart was hardened and he would not let the children of Israel go, and this was just as Moses had said, for he knew that Pharaoh did not yet fear the Lord, as he said in verse 30. Moses spoke it, but God had said all along that Pharaoh would not let the children of Israel go until all His signs and wonders were accomplished.
Adam Clarke wrote a scathing rebuke to any self-righteous Christian who would think that it was unbelievable that Pharaoh could continue to sin and resist God after so many signs, to those who might believe the only possible explanation must be that God was controlling and hardening Pharaoh's heart against his will:
"...is not the conduct of Pharaoh and his courtiers copied and reacted by thousands who are never suspected to be under any such necessitating decree? Every sinner under heaven, who has the Bible in his hand, is acting the same part. God says to the swearer and the profane, Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; and yet common swearing and profaneness are most scandalously common among multitudes who bear the Christian name, and who presume on the mercy of God to get at last to the kingdom of heaven! He says also, Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy; thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not commit adultery; thou shalt not steal; thou shalt not bear false witness; thou shalt not covet; and sanctions all these commandments with the most awful penalties: and yet, with all these things before them, and the professed belief that they came from God, Sabbath-breakers, men-slayers, adulterers, fornicators, thieves, dishonest men, false witnesses, liars, slanderers, backbiters, covetous men, lovers of the world more than lovers of God, are found by hundreds and thousands! What were the crimes of the poor half-blind Egyptian king when compared with these! He sinned against a comparatively unknown God; these sin against the God of their fathers - against the God and Father of Him whom they call their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! They sin with the Bible in their hand, and a conviction of its Divine authority in their hearts. They sin against light and knowledge; against the checks of their consciences, the reproofs of their friends, the admonitions of the messengers of God; against Moses and Aaron in the law; against the testimony of all the prophets; against the evangelists, the apostles, the Maker of heaven and earth, the Judge of all men, and the Savior of the world! What were Pharaoh’s crimes to the crimes of these? On comparison, his atom of moral turpitude is lost in their world of iniquity. And yet who supposes these to be under any necessitating decree to sin on, and go to perdition? Nor are they; nor was Pharaoh. In all things God has proved both his justice and mercy to be clear in this point. Pharaoh, through a principle of covetousness, refused to dismiss the Israelites, whose services he found profitable to the state: these are absorbed in the love of the world, the love of pleasure, and the love of gain; nor will they let one lust go, even in the presence of the thunders of Sinai, or in sight of the agony, bloody sweat, crucifixion, and death of Jesus Christ! Alas! how many are in the habit of considering Pharaoh the worst of human beings, inevitably cut off from the possibility of being saved because of his iniquities, who outdo him so far in the viciousness of their lives, that Pharaoh, hardening his heart against ten plagues, appears a saint when compared with those who are hardening their hearts against ten millions of mercies. Reader, art thou of this number? Proceed no farther! God’s judgments linger not. Desperate as thy state is, thou mayest return; and thou, even thou, find mercy through the blood of the Lamb."
Wow! Definitely thought-provoking words! Bring them into present time and culture, and imagine Christians with Bible in hand who condone the murder of the most innocent as a reproductive right of the mother; those who elevate the sin of homosexuality, something God called an abomination (an act, not a person!), to the status of God-ordained unions and marriage; those who affect to be so intelligent and enlightened that they understand that while they profess to love the Lord, they "understand" that God must be separated from civil society; and all of the above vote for a political party that wants no part of God in its platform. All this from a people who have no excuse! The people in our country have grown up free with God's word readily available in books, on TV, on radio, in a church on every corner. While it's true that not every church or medium that professes to be Christian, truly is the true word of God, any person who truly seeks the Lord and His truth will have no trouble finding it. But they reject the Bible as the inspired word of God and as Mr. Clarke said above, they reject the words of God, Jesus, the prophets, the apostles, and Moses and Aaron in the Mosaic law. This country is without excuse and just look at us! It does make Pharaoh look like a saint in comparison!
(Exodus 9:1) Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and tell him, ‘Thus says the LORD God of the Hebrews: “Let My people go, that they may serve Me."'"
At the end of the last chapter, the plague of the flies had been lifted from the land of Egypt because Pharaoh had asked that Moses entreat the Lord for him, which he did. Furthermore, Pharaoh had said he would let the Israelite people go; however, he did not. Now the Lord told Moses to go to Pharaoh and tell him that the Lord God of the Hebrews again told him to let His people go.
(2) "'“For if you refuse to let them go, and will hold them still, (3) Behold, the hand of the LORD is upon your cattle which are in the field, upon the horses, upon the donkeys, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep; there shall be a very severe pestilence. (4) And the LORD shall separate between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt; and there shall nothing die of all that is the children's of Israel.”’”
Again Moses, through his spokesman Aaron, was to give Pharaoh a warning of what would happen if he refused to let God's people go. The phrase "there shall be" was added by the KJV translators for clarity; it was not in the original text. Although it does seem to be needed to correctly express the idea, I think the sense is that the Lord, with His hand on the beasts of the land, could immediately bring pestilence to them, without any stretching forth of Aaron's rod or any other fanfare. The Lord's hand was already on them with pestilence ready to be let go at His bidding. The beasts of the earth, all things in nature, and every person's life are held in God's hand and are at His command at any given moment. Because they are at His command, He could easily distinguish between the beasts of Israel and the beasts of Egypt, and He would not allow any of the Israelites' animals to die.
(5) And the LORD appointed a set time, saying, “Tomorrow the LORD will do this thing in the land.”
Not only could the Lord's hand immediately bring pestilence, but it could do it at any particular appointed time, proving that it could only be the Lord who brought the pestilence. This also gave Pharaoh time to change his mind before the Lord followed through with what He warned would happen if Pharaoh refused to let God's people go.
(6) And the LORD did that thing on the next day, and all the cattle of Egypt died; but of the cattle of the children of Israel, not one died.
The Lord did as He warned on the next day, bringing pestilence to the livestock of the Egyptians. Regarding "all the cattle of Egypt", I believe it must be read and understood that all the cattle which died were of Egypt, because we later read of a plague affecting the cattle again. Perhaps the plague was brought upon only the "cattle which are in the field", as stated in verse 3, and there were others not affected, or perhaps the pestilence was upon all the Egyptian livestock, but not all died, but all that did die were of Egypt; none of the livestock of the Israelites died. Once again, it must be noted that a plague affected objects of worship by the Egyptians. Egyptian deities proved again to be under the power of the Israelites' God.
(7) And Pharaoh sent, and, behold, there was not one of the cattle of the Israelites dead. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.
Pharaoh apparently sent messengers to inquire about the Israelite cattle, and found that none were dead of the Israelites' livestock. It's interesting that he purposely sent messengers to see if what had been promised was indeed true, and remarkable that when he found it was true, he dug in his heels all the more and did not let the Israelites go.
(8) And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Take for yourselves handfuls of ashes from a furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh. (9) And it shall become fine dust in all the land of Egypt, and shall become boils breaking forth in sores on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt.”
After Pharaoh again hardened his heart and refused to let the people go, this next plague was to come without warning. The Lord instructed Moses and Aaron to take handfuls of ashes and scatter them toward heaven where Pharaoh could see what they were doing. Throwing the ashes from the fiery furnace up to heaven may have been symbolic; the very furnace at which the Hebrews had been oppressed and enslaved now became the source of the plague upon the Egyptians. The ashes would come down as a fine dust over the land of Egypt causing inflamed boils and blisters all over the Egyptian people and the animals throughout the land of Egypt. Additionally, the symbolic act could have also been a reference to the fact that there were times that the Egyptians sacrificed men, burning them alive, and throwing their ashes up to the heavens.
(10) And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled them toward heaven; and they became boils breaking forth in sores on man and beast. (11) And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils were on the magicians and on all the Egyptians.
Moses and Aaron did as God told them, and the ash dust became boils and blistery pustules on man and beast, so severe that Pharaoh's magicians could not even stand before Moses!
(12) And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not hearken to them, as the LORD had spoken to Moses.
Pharaoh still stood obstinate and would not let the people go, as God had told Moses he would. For a previous discussion on the Lord hardening Pharaoh's heart, please see the post on Exodus 4, especially the notes on verse 21.
(13) And the LORD said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh, and say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD God of the Hebrews, “Let My people go, that they may serve Me, (14) For I will at this time send all My plagues on your heart, and on your servants and on your people, that you may know that there is none like Me in all the earth."'"
The Lord told Moses to again rise up early in the morning to meet with Pharaoh and tell him God's words, to let His people go in order to serve Him. God said He would at this time send all His plagues on Pharaoh's heart, etc. This would have to be all the remaining plagues He had planned, and it appears that they all would be sent, with no chance to stop them midstream. Either God knew that Pharaoh would not have repented and let the people go before all were accomplished, or else after all the chances Pharaoh had up to this point to repent, now there would be no further chances and God would accomplish all He had planned so that Pharaoh would know in his heart that there was none like Him in all the earth. In the end, everyone will know the truth. All the atheists, all those who ridicule God and the Bible and those who believe, will in the end come to know the truth, for the Bible tells us "every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God" (Romans 14:11). They will bow and confess because they will know that truly they are in the presence of the Lord Almighty. Likewise, Pharaoh would know in his heart that there was none like the one true almighty God of heaven and earth after He sent all His plagues. I do believe it is possible that God would reach a point when He would give no more chances to repent because of the scripture in Isaiah, chapter 55, specifically verse 6, which says, "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found..." "While" suggests there will be a time when He won't be found.
(15) "'"For now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. (16) And indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, to show in you My power, and that My name may be declared throughout all the earth."'"
Although the KJV translated verse 15 in the future tense, Biblical scholars say that in the Hebrew the verbs were in the past tense and not in the future, so I have used the translation above that most scholars agree is the correct one. After all, God never struck Pharaoh and all the people with pestilence that removed them from the earth, but it is certainly something He could have done at any time with great ease. That has to be the message to Pharaoh now, that God could have stretched out His hand and struck Pharaoh and all the Egyptians and killed them instantly, but He had a purpose in raising him up and allowing him to be in this position of power at this time. It was to show through him God's power over him and over all his worthless gods and idols, that only the one true God would be declared as Lord of all throughout all the earth.
I have to remind myself of this fact that it is God alone who raises up leaders, when I look around at how far from God we are at this present time in our country. A country that was founded on Christian principles, a country that sought the blessing of Almighty God, one that regularly prayed to Him and sought His guidance, now seeks to remove Him from everything. We now have a president that regularly "quotes" from the founding documents, but leaves out all references to God in those documents. He has actually covered up a reference to Jesus on a stage where he was to talk; he couldn't even be seen in the presence of a reference to Jesus that he didn't himself even make! Actually, that has a very strong spiritual implication that Obama cannot stand in the presence of Jesus, but that is another topic. His party just this last presidential election cycle decided they did not even want God as a part of their platform. We wonder why everything is so bad in this country right now--it is because we tossed aside everything God stands for and decided we wanted Godless people to rule over us! And GOD alone raised Obama up to bring judgment on this country. We wanted Godlessness and God allowed us to have what we wanted. We, as a country, that is. I certainly never wanted a Godless man as president! There are many good Christian people in this country who didn't want him, but as a country, we elected him. He is the very picture of what we have become. He is the most pro-abortion president we have ever had, voting on three occasions before becoming president to allow babies born alive after botched abortions to die on a shelf with no attempt to save their lives! I think of that abortion doctor, Kermit Gosnell, who was found guilty of murder because he killed babies born alive that had survived botched abortions. I remember that bewildered look he had when he was found guilty. In his mind, he was only carrying out what he had been paid to do, end the life of a mother's baby, as was her choice. What he did was a very picture of abortion, this woman's reproductive "right" to murder her child! It made people uncomfortable to think he killed a baby outside of the womb, but just inside the womb is okay. When you think about it, Dr. Gosnell was much more humane in killing the baby right away, rather than letting it slowly die on a shelf with no care as Obama proposed we do!! In addition, Obama has done more to promote the homosexual agenda than any other president, something God called an abomination, and something He warned us against when He told us to remember Sodom and Gomorrah as an example of what would happen, "suffering the vengeance of eternal fire". Obama is the most lawless president we have ever had, ignoring laws he does not like, changing laws at his whim, using his pen and his phone to act as our king, and our Congress seems impotent against him. It is because God alone raised him up! Our country chose to be ruled by a Godless man, and here we are!
(17) "'"As yet you exalt yourself against My people, that you will not let them go? (18) Behold, tomorrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as has not been in Egypt since its foundation until now. (19) Therefore send now and gather your cattle and all that you have in the field, for the hail shall come down on every man and beast which shall be found in the field and is not brought home, and they shall die.”’”
God was still speaking to Moses, telling him to speak these words to Pharaoh, as thus said the Lord. Still Pharaoh exalted himself above God's people and refused to let them go, but God was about to send all His remaining plagues striking the very heart of Pharaoh, and showing him His power as Lord of all the earth, as stated in verses 14-16 above. God now warned Pharaoh that tomorrow at this time He would send a rain of hail such as had never been seen before. However, He actually mercifully still gave Pharaoh a chance to avoid the hail, if he would just gather all the livestock in the field and bring them in, they would avoid being killed by the hail. Any man or beast in the fields at this time tomorrow would be killed by hail, but they had about 24 hours warning to avoid what was sure to come.
(20) He who feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his cattle flee to the houses. (21) And he who did not regard the word of the LORD left his servants and his cattle in the field.
I love this! It's so simple. Those who believed and feared God among the servants of Pharaoh heeded God's warning and brought all the servants and cattle in from the fields. I believe this is proof that God drew out these plagues upon Egypt in order to give some of the Egyptians time to repent and be saved. He could have swooped in, struck down or frozen Pharaoh and his servants, and allowed His people to go immediately, but He had a purpose in doing it the way He did. He told us in verse 16 it was to show His power that His name be magnified in all the earth. He could have shown His power immediately, but to us dense sinners, we need a much longer look for it to sink in! Adam Clarke wrote a beautiful commentary on this, part of which can be found in my post on chapter 4, especially the notes on verse 21, linked here. Those who believed what they had thus far seen and feared the Lord, were spared; those who did not heed the word of the Lord left their servants and livestock in the fields.
(22) And the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch forth your hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, on man, on beast, and on every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.” (23) And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven; and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and fire ran along on the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt.
The next day at the appointed time, the Lord told Moses to stretch forth his hand toward heaven and thus call the hailstorm onto the land of Egypt, on every man, beast, and herb in the fields. Moses did as the Lord told him, and the Lord sent a horrific hailstorm with thunder and lightning that ran along the ground. This must have been very frightening to the Egyptians who didn't see much rain, let alone thunderstorms, not to mention fierce thunderstorms with severe lightning and heavy hail. This must surely have looked like the wrath of God raining down on the Egyptians, and the ones who had believed were not in the fields and were spared.
(24) So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. (25) And the hail struck throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail struck every herb of the field and broke every tree of the field. (26) Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, there was no hail.
The hailstorm with fierce lightning causing hail and fire all through the land of Egypt was like nothing that had ever been seen before in the land of Egypt. The hail struck every man and beast in the field, and struck every herb and broke every tree where it rained. But it did not rain in Goshen where the children of Israel were. God had given warning, and the children of Israel could have easily heeded the warning and brought their livestock and come in and avoided the hail, but God made a very dramatic point in separating His people from the Egyptians. They and their animals, and their herbs, plants, and trees were spared.
(27) And Pharaoh sent and called for Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “I have sinned this time; the LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked. (28) Entreat the LORD (for it is enough) that there be no more mighty thunderings and hail; and I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.”
So fierce and frightening was the plague of hail and lightning, Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron to ask them to ask the Lord to remove it. On one hand, Pharaoh called the Lord "Jehovah", the proper name for the one true eternal God, admitted his sin, and called himself and his people wicked. You might think he had had an epiphany and saw the light; he used some of the right words. But I couldn't help notice that he said he sinned "this time"; now maybe he meant that this time, for the first time, he saw his sin and wickedness, but he continued on to ask that they ask the Lord to remove the hail and thundering because "it is enough". Who is he to say that it had been enough? Maybe it had been enough to make him see the light. Although he tried to use the right words, I rather think his arrogance showed through. He did not have a truly repentant heart as he could not totally admit his sin and he seemed to tell the Lord what was enough. He did ask Moses and Aaron to entreat the Lord to end the hailstorms and he did say that he would then let the Israelite people go.
(29) And Moses said to him, “As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the LORD; and the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, that you may know that the earth is the LORD’s. (30) But as for you and your servants, I know that you will not yet fear the LORD God.”
Moses agreed to Pharaoh's request. He said as soon as he had left the city, he would spread his hands to the Lord, and the Lord would stop the hail and thunder, so that Pharaoh would know that the earth was the Lord's and at His command. However, Moses indeed did see that Pharaoh's admission of guilt and acknowledgment of Jehovah God were not true and heartfelt; he knew and told him so that he knew Pharaoh and his servants did not yet fear the Lord.
(31) And the flax and the barley were struck, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud. (32) But the wheat and the rye were not struck, for they were not grown up.
These verses speak of the plants that were struck and destroyed by the hailstorm. The barley had ears and the flax was in bud, so it was struck, but the wheat and rye, as later bloomers, were not yet sprouted from the ground, and so not struck by hail. By this, the time of year can be approximated, which a consensus of the early commentaries state, must have been late February or early March.
(33) And Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread out his hands to the LORD; and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not poured on the earth.
Moses did as he told Pharaoh he would, and went out of the city and spread his hands out to the Lord in prayer and supplication for Pharaoh. Indeed the thunder and hailstorm ceased, just as Moses had told Pharaoh it would.
(34) And when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders were ceased, he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants. (35) And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, neither would he let the children of Israel go; as the LORD had spoken by Moses.
Once the hailstorm ceased, Pharaoh sinned again; to begin with, we know he was not thankful to the Lord for answered prayer! He hardened his heart, which sin does, he and his servants both. He sinned again by not fulfilling his promise to let the Israelites go if Moses asked the Lord to remove the hailstorm. It's funny; I started out typing "Unbelievably", etc.; but it's actually not so unbelievable. When you read of these events just boom-boom, one immediately after another, it's hard to believe that Pharaoh could return to his ways after just witnessing such miracles. However, imagine a person praying to God to remove a big problem and promising to change his ways, and after God answers the prayer, he returns to his former ways. Actually, Pharaoh's actions are sadly too credible. His heart was hardened and he would not let the children of Israel go, and this was just as Moses had said, for he knew that Pharaoh did not yet fear the Lord, as he said in verse 30. Moses spoke it, but God had said all along that Pharaoh would not let the children of Israel go until all His signs and wonders were accomplished.
Adam Clarke wrote a scathing rebuke to any self-righteous Christian who would think that it was unbelievable that Pharaoh could continue to sin and resist God after so many signs, to those who might believe the only possible explanation must be that God was controlling and hardening Pharaoh's heart against his will:
"...is not the conduct of Pharaoh and his courtiers copied and reacted by thousands who are never suspected to be under any such necessitating decree? Every sinner under heaven, who has the Bible in his hand, is acting the same part. God says to the swearer and the profane, Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; and yet common swearing and profaneness are most scandalously common among multitudes who bear the Christian name, and who presume on the mercy of God to get at last to the kingdom of heaven! He says also, Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy; thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not commit adultery; thou shalt not steal; thou shalt not bear false witness; thou shalt not covet; and sanctions all these commandments with the most awful penalties: and yet, with all these things before them, and the professed belief that they came from God, Sabbath-breakers, men-slayers, adulterers, fornicators, thieves, dishonest men, false witnesses, liars, slanderers, backbiters, covetous men, lovers of the world more than lovers of God, are found by hundreds and thousands! What were the crimes of the poor half-blind Egyptian king when compared with these! He sinned against a comparatively unknown God; these sin against the God of their fathers - against the God and Father of Him whom they call their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! They sin with the Bible in their hand, and a conviction of its Divine authority in their hearts. They sin against light and knowledge; against the checks of their consciences, the reproofs of their friends, the admonitions of the messengers of God; against Moses and Aaron in the law; against the testimony of all the prophets; against the evangelists, the apostles, the Maker of heaven and earth, the Judge of all men, and the Savior of the world! What were Pharaoh’s crimes to the crimes of these? On comparison, his atom of moral turpitude is lost in their world of iniquity. And yet who supposes these to be under any necessitating decree to sin on, and go to perdition? Nor are they; nor was Pharaoh. In all things God has proved both his justice and mercy to be clear in this point. Pharaoh, through a principle of covetousness, refused to dismiss the Israelites, whose services he found profitable to the state: these are absorbed in the love of the world, the love of pleasure, and the love of gain; nor will they let one lust go, even in the presence of the thunders of Sinai, or in sight of the agony, bloody sweat, crucifixion, and death of Jesus Christ! Alas! how many are in the habit of considering Pharaoh the worst of human beings, inevitably cut off from the possibility of being saved because of his iniquities, who outdo him so far in the viciousness of their lives, that Pharaoh, hardening his heart against ten plagues, appears a saint when compared with those who are hardening their hearts against ten millions of mercies. Reader, art thou of this number? Proceed no farther! God’s judgments linger not. Desperate as thy state is, thou mayest return; and thou, even thou, find mercy through the blood of the Lamb."
Wow! Definitely thought-provoking words! Bring them into present time and culture, and imagine Christians with Bible in hand who condone the murder of the most innocent as a reproductive right of the mother; those who elevate the sin of homosexuality, something God called an abomination (an act, not a person!), to the status of God-ordained unions and marriage; those who affect to be so intelligent and enlightened that they understand that while they profess to love the Lord, they "understand" that God must be separated from civil society; and all of the above vote for a political party that wants no part of God in its platform. All this from a people who have no excuse! The people in our country have grown up free with God's word readily available in books, on TV, on radio, in a church on every corner. While it's true that not every church or medium that professes to be Christian, truly is the true word of God, any person who truly seeks the Lord and His truth will have no trouble finding it. But they reject the Bible as the inspired word of God and as Mr. Clarke said above, they reject the words of God, Jesus, the prophets, the apostles, and Moses and Aaron in the Mosaic law. This country is without excuse and just look at us! It does make Pharaoh look like a saint in comparison!
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