Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 11:7-8

7 But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that ye may know how that the Lord doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel.

8 And all these thy servants shall come down unto me, and bow down themselves unto me, saying, Get thee out, and all the people that follow thee: and after that I will go out.

God had sworn to slay all of the Egyptian firstborn, but as with the previous curses, He would set a division between the Egyptians and the Israelites. The phrase “shall not a dog move his tongue” must be an old expression, and most scholars agree that it meant that things would be so peaceful that not even a dog would bark in the streets. Thus it not only illustrated safety from physical harm, but even from anything alarming or distressing.

God also prophesied that this curse would be the one that finally broke Egypt. “These thy servants” appears to be referencing the Egyptian leadership, who would demand that the Israelites go. God further foretold that Pharaoh wouldn’t go back on his word this time, as given by “and after that I will go out.”

There is one other sentence at the end of verse 8 that I have omitted. “And he went out from Pharaoh in great anger.” This doesn’t make a lot of sense in the current setting of Moses describing the coming curse to the Israelites, and I believe that this last sentence actually belongs with the next two verses. I will therefore include it in tomorrow’s study.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 11:4-6

4 And Moses said, Thus saith the Lord, About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt: 

5 And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts. 

6 And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it any more.

God revealed His plan to Moses. He would pass through the land of Egypt, consigning every firstborn to death. The word used for firstborn is a masculine noun, which suggests it was specifically the eldest male of each household that would die. This, of course, would have disrupted the Egyptian legacy, as their culture passed the estate and right to rule to each firstborn son, just as in the Israelite culture.

Furthermore, the application of this curse was absolute. God declared that the rich and mighty would die, even the firstborn of Pharaoh, but also the poor and lowly, such as the firstborn of the maidservant. And not just the firstborn of the people either, but every firstborn animal as well.

And what was the reason for taking all of the firstborn? God Himself declared it when He called Moses to this cause. God explained that His message for Pharaoh was, “Thus saith the Lord, Israel is my son, even my firstborn: I say unto thee, let my son go, that he may serve me: and if thou refuse to let him go, behold, I will slay thy son, even thy firstborn.” Thus, Pharaoh had already been warned that this was how the Lord would even things out if the Israelites were not let go. God had been merciful in making Pharaoh perfectly aware of the stakes at hand, and also in demonstrating through the prior curses that He was absolutely capable of making good on His threat. Pharaoh had every reason to surrender, but he continued to defy God anyway.

Pharaoh’s decisions might seem incredulous if we didn’t have so many examples around us today of people jeopardizing their happiness, their families, and their very lives for false destructive lifestyles. People are often willing to lose it all rather than surrender to the God that they’ve rejected.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 11:2-3

2 Speak now in the ears of the people, and let every man borrow of his neighbour, and every woman of her neighbour, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold.

3 And the Lord gave the people favour 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.

Thus far God’s demands to the Pharaoh had been that every man, woman, and child of the Israelites would depart into the wilderness, and that they would bring all of their cattle as well. But today we see this was not all the Israelites would carry with them. The Lord instructed the Israelites to borrow jewels and precious metals from their Egyptian neighbors. “Borrow,” of course being a very loose term. These things were being “borrowed” with no intention ever returning them!

The point of this seems to be to finish the signs of war against the Egyptians. Though the Israelite people did not raise a single sword against their slavers, by the end of this sequence the Egyptians would have had all their firstborn slain, their fields razed to the ground, lost their commercial industries, and all of their valuables would be taken. It would appear exactly as if the Egyptians had been conquered by a great army, but the battles were fought entirely by God, not man.

I can only assume that the devastation of the prior plagues was what caused the Egyptians to so freely part with their treasures. We are told that “Moses was very great in the land,” which seems to suggest that all the people understood where all these curses were coming from. We also know that Pharaoh’s counselors had been advising him to just let the Israelites go, and it seems likely that the sentiment was held by the local populace as well. So whether they trusted the Israelites or not, the Egyptians were likely anxious to appease them and be rid of them.

Posted on by Abe Austin · 1 Comment

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 11:1

1 And the Lord said unto Moses, Yet will I bring one plague more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go hence: when he shall let you go, he shall surely thrust you out hence altogether.

There was one more plague for Egypt, and this one followed a different pattern than any that came before. First, as discussed before, Pharaoh and his people would be given no warning of it, and no ultimatum to avoid it. It would fall on them without Moses and Aaron prophesying of it, yet they would know that it had come from the Lord, just the same.

And, because of this curse, Pharaoh would “thrust [Israel] out.” Every time before, Moses had gone to see if Pharaoh would let them leave, but this time Pharaoh would go to Moses. Pharaoh wouldn’t need any convincing, this time he would outright demand that the Lord’s demands be fulfilled, down to the smallest detail.

Another difference that we will see with this plague is that Moses does not raise his staff or his hand or do anything else to signal its arrival. This one comes entirely from the unseen world, a curse that is prepared, triggered, and executed by God alone.

In short, yet another plague, seemingly just a continuation of all that came before, but already this one was being set apart from all the rest. Something familiar, yet totally new.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 10:27-29

27 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not let them go.

28 And Pharaoh said unto him, Get thee from me, take heed to thyself, see my face no more; for in that day thou seest my face thou shalt die.

29 And Moses said, Thou hast spoken well, I will see thy face again no more.

At the start of this conversation Pharaoh had seemed quiet and subdued, but his follow-up in today’s verses makes me wonder if that quietness had actually been stifled rage. As soon as Moses reiterates his demands, that all of the Israelites must leave with all of their animals, Pharaoh drops all pretense of compliance and compromise. He gives a vicious threat: “Get thee from me…in that day thou seest my face thou shalt die!” Moses was now banished from the Pharaoh’s court on pain of death!

But Moses was not alarmed. Instead he approved Pharaoh’s words, foretelling that the two men would indeed no longer look one another in the face. There was only one curse yet to come upon Egypt, and this time Moses would not forewarn Pharaoh of its coming nor repeat God’s demands to Pharaoh. Pharaoh already knew everything he needed to know. There was nothing more to be understood, promised, or threatened. All that remained was for the breaking to occur.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 10:24-26

24 And Pharaoh called unto Moses, and said, Go ye, serve the Lord; only let your flocks and your herds be stayed: let your little ones also go with you.

25 And Moses said, Thou must give us also sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice unto the Lord our God.

26 Our cattle also shall go with us; there shall not an hoof be left behind; for thereof must we take to serve the Lord our God; and we know not with what we must serve the Lord, until we come thither.

I wonder how the darkness must have affected the people psychologically. Speaking for myself, it sounds like a period of intense loneliness and despair. To all of a sudden have my sight cut off, and to have no one to help me because they are all just as blind as me, and to be unable to tell day from night, or do any work, in many ways I am sure this would break me.

It comes as little surprise then that Pharaoh sounded quite humbled in this conversation. His choice of words were much more subdued than before. There was no more melodramatic confession of sin, no vain promises, no begging for the Lord’s mercy. In as few words as possible he simply told Moses to go into the wilderness.

And yet…even in this moment Pharaoh was still holding something back. Previously Pharaoh said he would let the Israelites go if they left behind their women, children, and flocks. Now he allowed for the women and children, but he was still trying to restrict their flocks.

As with every time before, Moses neither tried to haggle or compromise. In no uncertain terms he reiterated that all of their flocks must come with them: “there shall not an hoof be left behind,” and that was that. In almost every other relationship in life we try to meet one another somewhere in the middle. But with God, we either meet His terms fully and completely or we accept the consequences that follow.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 10:20-23

20 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go.

21 And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may 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 saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days: but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.

Pharaoh had given his most solemn pledge yet, approving death and unforgiveness for him and his people if he ever again turned back on his promise. Yet in today’s verses he still “would not let the children of Israel go.”

Thus far Pharaoh had witnessed miracles of transfiguration, pests and vermin, and the destruction of crops and cattle. Now, though, a new sort of affliction was summoned, one more strange and fantastic. This one was an attack on something much more fundamental than any of the previous: the ability to see.

Darkness spread throughout the land, casting the Egyptians into pitch blackness. We are told that the darkness was “thick,” that it could even “be felt.” Some have suggested that the darkness might have been thick ash or dust, actual particles that were so dense as to block out the sun. Verse 22 tells us that in their blindness the Egyptians didn’t dare venture out into the streets, remaining still and alone in the darkness of their own homes.

The connection between this curse and the effects of sin is obvious. Prolonged sin blinds a people to the spiritual world, warping their sense of right and wrong, and obfuscating the connection between behavior and their consequences. A people so afflicted then grope stupidly through their relationships and attitudes, making wrong choices and causing harm without even knowing what they do.

As before, a division is put between the Egyptians and the Israelites, such that the Israelites still have “light in their dwellings.” It is unclear whether the exterior in the land of Goshen was still veiled in darkness, but at the very least we know that in the comfort of their own homes God’s people could still see. This, of course, is symbolic of “the light that shines in the darkness,” Jesus Christ. Even as all the world blinds itself to the truth, Christ is the light that will keep us grounded on solid principles and understanding.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 10:18-19

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.

Just as an east wind had brought the locusts into the land, a west wind took them out. This wind would have come from the Africa mainland, and evidently it blew across Egypt and into the Red Sea.

Once again, the effect of this healing is as absolute as the plague had been. In the time of affliction we were told that the locusts consumed “all the fruit of the trees…and there remained not any green thing.” So, too, here we are told there “remained not one locust.” God is able to take and give in absolute measure.

I can’t help but wonder what it was like for the Egyptians to see all the locusts blown away and witness the nakedness and barrenness of their land revealed underneath. This image of exposed desolation reminds me of Adam and Eve with their fig-leaf aprons, covering their shame from God, only to have Him see right through them. When we sin, our good fruit is withered and we are left with a shameful desolation that we typically go to great lengths to hide, but when a west wind blows our humiliation is uncovered, much to our embarrassment, but this can also be the first step to true repentance if we will allow it.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 10:16-17

16 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste; and he said, I have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you.

17 Now therefore forgive, I pray thee, my sin only this once, and entreat the Lord your God, that he may take away from me this death only.

Pharaoh repents once more, again admitting that he has sinned against the Lord. This time, though, he also takes the dramatic step of setting restrictions on the forgiveness that he seeks. “Forgive, I pray thee, my sin only this once,” he tells Moses. Also he asks that God “may take away from me this death only.” This seems to be Pharaoh saying he is so sincere about this repentance that he doesn’t need any other chances. If he were to violate his word again, then God and Moses shouldn’t forgive him any more! Then the punishment and the death that he asks to be spared from this time should be delivered in full measure.

Thus, Pharaoh was literally, and of his own volition, putting the lives of himself and the other Egyptians on the line. He was willingly inviting destruction should he go back on his word, and so one would think that this would be the end of the whole affair.

But it wasn’t. Even after this, Pharaoh would go back on his word yet again, and his words that God should withhold forgiveness and administer death would prove prophetic.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 10:14-15

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 were no such locusts as they, neither after them shall be such.

15 For they covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left: and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the field, through all the land of Egypt.

These verses are full of dramatic phrases to describe just how great the multitude of locusts were. Verse 14 not only makes the point that they were more severe than had ever before been seen, but also the bold claim that neither would there be any swarm so severe ever again! Such a claim could only be made from a place of omniscience or prophecy. We are not told when and how the Lord told one of his servants that there would never be such a mass of locusts again, but apparently He did and the author was aware of that fact.

I’m captivated by the colorful imagery that verse 15 presents: “the land was darkened” by how the locusts “covered the face of the whole earth.” It then continues with the theme of light and color by further describing how “there remained not any green thing.” There is a clear picture being painted of how the locusts took away the color of the land, covering it in darkness.

Going back to the theme of how the curses represent the effects of sin, this description of the locusts seems to highlight how our sins cover and destroy all that was once beautiful, colorful, and growing. In environments of pervasive sin new creation is snuffed out. Think of the Dark Ages, a time where the words of Christ were made inaccessible to the common man, and at the same time innovation and invention halted and even moved backwards. Life became dark and dreary, without inspiration or beauty. Only as the words of scripture were translated, printed, and made available to all did the light of innovation and invention return to the people. When it prevails en masse, sin consumes all that is good and leaves the soul barren. When the truth prevails, it breathes life and color into all.