Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 7:13-14

13 And he hardened Pharaoh’s heart, that he hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had said.

14 And the Lord said unto Moses, Pharaoh’s heart is hardened, he refuseth to let the people go.

I have discussed previously these passages that say the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart. I will repeat here that I don’t believe it is accurate that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and if you would like more explanation why I feel that way, you can refer back to my original post.

I will just add one point to what I have already said before. The fact is that the biblical record is itself divided on whom, exactly, hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and so I feel that one of the interpretations must be discarded. Here in verse 13 it is clearly stated that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart, but at other times it explicitly state that Pharaoh is the one hardening his own heart. We will see this in Exodus 8:32 where it states, “and Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also.” Note that the “also” suggests that not only was he the one that hardened his heart at the time of Exodus 8:32, but also at this previous instance as well.

I do not believe there is anything heretical in acknowledging that the Bible is a record compiled from many accounts, some of which disagree in particular details, and which cannot therefore all be entirely true. Of course extreme prudence and caution is to be taken when holding to one version compared to another, and in some cases it better to just say “whether it was just as this record states, or just that one states, I do not know, I accept the spirit of them both.”

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 7:10-12

10 And Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and they did so as the Lord had commanded: and Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh, and before his servants, and it became a serpent.

11 Then Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers: now the magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments.

12 For they cast down every man his rod, and they became serpents: but Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods.

There is much speculation as to how the wise men and the sorcerers were able to turn their rods into serpents. Some suppose that it might have been sleight-of-hand, where they somehow replaced the rods with serpents. This explanation would suggest that even the author of Exodus was fooled, though, for it is written “and they became serpents.” Some see this as an actual power effected by a perverse connection to the devil. Without a doubt, Satan does have a real power in and over this world, just ask any person who has been driven by fear, anger, jealousy, or lust.

In either case, whichever way the wise men and sorcerers did their miracle, God allowed it. Whatever their method, God could have frustrated it, but He didn’t. The reason seems to be evident: He let the sorcerers have their moment and show their power, so that then He might kill, break, and consume their work with his own serpent. God let the mystics show their full power so that He could show that He had greater. He was showing to Pharaoh a clear picture of what was coming, and that the Pharaoh did not have the power to prevent it. Would Pharaoh regard the sign and comply with the Lord to avoid the full fruit of this disastrous prophecy? We will see in tomorrow’s verses.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 7:8-9

8 And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

9 When Pharaoh shall speak unto you, saying, Shew a miracle for you: then thou shalt say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and cast it before Pharaoh, and it shall become a serpent.

Moses had seen the miracle with the snake in Mount Horeb, and had been instructed to show it also to the Israelites, and now he was prepared to do the same for Pharaoh.

God foretold that Pharaoh, himself, would be the one to ask for this sign, presumably as evidence that the Lord had sufficient power to demand that Pharaoh let the Israelites go into the wilderness. Of course, asking for a sign is often treacherous in the Bible. Those who say they will not believe except for a sign, typically do not believe with a sign either, and so God turns the sign into a curse against them. The disbelieving stake their plans on God not being to deliver on His promises, and so He breaks their plans to keep His word. Since they sought to call the Lord’s bluff, their own is called instead. This is, indeed, how things would go for Pharaoh, too. He will, in fact, see many wonders and miracles, but all of them to his own detriment!

Another small detail that other commentators have observed is that Moses says “take thy rod” to Aaron. Assuming that this was the shepherd’s staff that Moses had used in Midian, it would seem Moses had now given it to Aaron.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 7:6-7

6 And Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded them, so did they.

7 And Moses was fourscore years old, and Aaron fourscore and three years old, when they spake unto Pharaoh.

We do not know exactly how old Moses was when he left Egypt for Midian. While in that strange land he got married, had two sons, lived as a shepherd, and all the Egyptians who wished to condemn him died. It’s entirely possible that he left Egypt as a young man, and had spent as much as sixty years living this other life. And while we do not know any details for Aaron, other than that he had raised his own family, he too had lived a whole life before this major turning point.

In short, the two men had already lived an entire life, and were quite possibly expecting a quiet sunset to their lives, yet now they were stepping into their greatest undertaking yet. Moses would live another forty years, thus only a third of his life would be spent leading Israel, but it would be the third that defined the whole.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 7:4-5

4 But Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you, that I may lay my hand upon Egypt, and bring forth mine armies, and my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments.

5 And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them.

These verses further explain how Pharaoh refusing to let the Israelites go served the purposes of the Lord. The Egyptians had denied the Lord’s sovereignty, taken away His peoples’ dignity, enslaved them, and murdered an untold number of their children. Their crimes were immense, and God was not only coming for deliverance, but also retribution. God was here to have a war against the Egyptians, and He wanted them to stand up to the fight long enough to receive the full punishment. Pharaoh capitulating quickly would not have served God’s purpose “that I may lay my hand upon Egypt.” Of course, God could have punished the Egyptians whether the Israelites had already been released from their captivity or not, but keeping the Israelites present would ensure that the Egyptians understood who it was that punished them and why.

“The Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord,” God further declared. The Egyptians would be converted to the fear of Him, even if not to the worship of Him. Remember that Pharaoh had previously asked “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice?” Because the Israelites were weak, the Egyptians were dismissive of their God. Now, though, they would learn that a lack of power and prosperity in the Israelite people was in no way a reflection of their God.

This is actually another theme that can be found throughout the Bible. Even at the height of their strength, the Israelites would never become a world superpower like other nations, but they would still punch far above their weight class! Against far stronger foes, such as the Philistines and the Assyrians, they would prevail. Their God would win the respect of pagan nations, not because of the people’s great strength, but because of how they were preserved and progressed in spite of their weakness.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 7:1-3

1 And the Lord said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet.

2 Thou shalt speak all that I command thee: and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he send the children of Israel out of his land.

3 And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt.

As mentioned previously, these verses seem to repeat the events that we already read of in Exodus 4 and 5, so I will not rehash the same commentary that I made previously, but there are two new details that are worth making note of.

The first is in verse 1, where Moses is said to have been made “a god to Pharaoh.” The first time we heard of Moses being given this role, to stand in the place of God, it sounded as though he was being made a god to Aaron. Here the roles are clearly Moses as God, Aaron as the prophet, and the Pharaoh as everyday people. And this reframing emphasizes why Moses should not have stressed whether Pharaoh was persuaded by his words or not. It is not for God to worry whether the people believe Him or not, and so it was not for Moses to worry about that either. God commands us in what is right and true, and if we do not accept it, it is we who have failed, not God. Like God, Moses’s only concern was to dictate the truth, Aaron’s was to communicate it, and Pharaoh’s was to obey or be damned.

And that leads to the second difference between this account and the first. These verses seem to suggest that Aaron alone spoke to Pharaoh. The first time around it said “Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh,” but these verses suggest that while both men went in together, Moses might have stood there completely silent, or only spoken to Aaron, and Aaron delivered the message to Pharaoh all on his own. And given the roles mentioned above, why not? Usually we people do not hear God directly, but only through the mouths of his prophets. And if Moses was a god to Pharaoh, then why not only be heard indirectly through the mouth of Aaron?

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 6:28-30

28 And it came to pass on the day when the Lord spake unto Moses in the land of Egypt,

29 That the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, I am the Lord: speak thou unto Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I say unto thee.

30 And Moses said before the Lord, Behold, I am of uncircumcised lips, and how shall Pharaoh hearken unto me?

Back in verses 10 through 12 we heard the start of a conversation between Moses and God, where Moses was discouraged because the Israelite people had not believed his message from the Lord. This conversation was interrupted by the record of Levitical genealogy, and todays verses seem to be recapping where the exchange had left off.

Moses had failed to convince the Israelites that God would liberate them, and now he was being asked to get Pharaoh to believe God’s words instead. Moses was sure that he could not do this. He had “uncircumcised lips,” he did not speak well, he could not see himself being up to the task. We have already examined God’s response to this fear in the first account of these events, but there is a notable difference in this second version which we will review in the next verses.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 6:26-27

26 These are that Aaron and Moses, to whom the Lord said, Bring out the children of Israel from the land of Egypt according to their armies. 

27 These are they which spake to Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring out the children of Israel from Egypt: these are that Moses and Aaron.

These are interesting verses, lauding the accomplishments of Moses and Aaron at the conclusion of giving their ancestry. The fact that it is tying Moses and Aaron to the events that we were already in the middle of reading is strong evidence that this whole genealogy sequence was actually a separate passage that was inserted in the middle of the other account. The record of Moses seems to be a patchwork of many different tellings all combined together, sometimes in haphazard ways.

One other thing that stands out to me is that the two men are first listed as “Aaron and Moses” and secondly as “Moses and Aaron.” This seems to emphasize their inseparable nature. There is no Moses rescuing captive Israel without Aaron, just as there is no Aaron performing the priestly rituals in the wilderness without Moses. Moses may have been the one God spoke directly to, but in their duty both men were equally yoked. They pulled together as one.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 6:21-25

21 And the sons of Izhar; Korah, and Nepheg, and Zichri.

22 And the sons of Uzziel; Mishael, and Elzaphan, and Zithri.

23 And Aaron took him Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab, sister of Naashon, to wife; and she bare him Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

24 And the sons of Korah; Assir, and Elkanah, and Abiasaph: these are the families of the Korhites.

25 And Eleazar Aaron’s son took him one of the daughters of Putiel to wife; and she bare him Phinehas: these are the heads of the fathers of the Levites according to their families.

In these verses we hear the children of Izhar and Uzziel, who were Moses and Aaron’s uncles, and the sons of Korah, who was Moses and Aaron’s cousin. More importantly, we also hear the names of Aaron’s sons and his grandson, all of whom would be integral to the law that God would lay forth. Through Moses, God would establish the priestly office and detail its responsibilities. This office would first fall to Aaron and his sons, and then to their descendants, ultimately turning the entire Levitical tribe into a priest class in Israel.

The tribe of the Levites would serve exclusively in this function, being the only ones authorized to perform the priestly duties until the advent of Jesus Christ, who was of the tribe of Judah. Christ would extend the priestly responsibility to any worthy man who was called to it, regardless of his heritage. For now, though, it would be approximately 1,600 years that the Levites would carry this duty alone.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 6:16-20

16 And these are the names of the sons of Levi according to their generations; Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari: and the years of the life of Levi were an hundred thirty and seven years.

17 The sons of Gershon; Libni, and Shimi, according to their families.

18 And the sons of Kohath; Amram, and Izhar, and Hebron, and Uzziel: and the years of the life of Kohath were an hundred thirty and three years.

19 And the sons of Merari; Mahali and Mushi: these are the families of Levi according to their generations.

20 And Amram took him Jochebed his father’s sister to wife; and she bare him Aaron and Moses: and the years of the life of Amram were an hundred and thirty and seven years.

Yesterday we read a brief account of the descendants of Reuben and Simeon, but those were simply to establish the context for today’s verses, which dive more deeply into the descendants of the third son Levi. And the reason why we are going into greater detail with the descendants of Levi is because this leads us to the birth of Aaron and Moses.

So, to summarize the connection, Levi had three sons. The middle son, Kohath, had four sons. The eldest of those, Amram, was the father of Aaron and Moses. So Moses and Aaron were the great-grandchildren of Levi. This information is helpful in getting a sense of just how long the Israelites had been in bondage. Presumably they were not enslaved during the first generation of the Israelite tribes (that of Levi), but it may have occurred in the time of Kohath or Amram. Of course, if Kohath, Amram, and Aaron and Moses were all born late in the lives of their fathers, this could still represent a gap of more than a hundred years between Israel’s entry to Egypt and its exit. The fact that the Israelites had grown to such a size that the Egyptians would fear them suggests that there was some significant passage of time before they were enslaved.

In short, it seems the Israelites were not under captivity for many centuries. There are many estimates that put it around 80 years, and that makes sense with the information given in these verses. Of course, 80 years is still long enough that the vast majority of the Israelites alive at this point would have spent their entire lives in slavery. When all one has known is a singular, deprived sort of life, it really doesn’t matter whether that situation originated just before birth, or thousands of years earlier. Either way, bondage is the entirety of that person’s existence.