Posted on by Abe Austin

Basis for Judgment: A Creation of God

I finished yesterday’s post by pointing out that if man tries to make himself the final power and authority in the universe—which would be to make himself god—then he must supplant his connection to actual divinity. If he would exalt himself, he must pave a ceiling between himself and heaven.

The Inner Voice)

But let’s look back even further than yesterday’s post. I mentioned at the start of this series that our society has developed a strong emphasis on everyone needing to “listen to their own heart,” and be “true to themselves.” Once I might have agreed with this notion wholeheartedly, but the words inside of these phrases have gradually changed their meaning. We used to mean that people needed to listen to the conscience as their heart, that they needed to be true to their divine selves. But today we’ve taken away the notion of an external voice that whispers within us, and now when we tell people to look inward, they think we mean narcissistic navel-gazing.

The fact is, there have always been two voices inside of us: the divine influence and the selfish desire. “Listen to your heart” was only useful advice when it pointed towards the first of those two inner voices. It becomes a great misguidance when attributed to the second. This misguidance is pernicious in that it so closely resembles what actually would have been good advice.

Spiritual Without God)

This subtle shift can perhaps be seen most clearly in society’s shift away from organized religion. “I’m spiritual, not religious,” we hear parroted over and over, but what does that really mean? From what I see, it appears to mean that the person still has a sense that she has a spiritual element, but she does not accept that she is a creation of God.

Yet each of us is a creation of God. This is the fundamental belief that we have lost, and that is very concerning, for it is the fundamental belief. The most fundamental, core principle of our identity must be where we are from. If we are from God, then it absolutely behooves us to understand who God is, what He is like, and what He created us for. And if He has told us these things, and if His voice is one of the influences that lives inside of us, then we must assume that following His instructions would bring us, His creations, the greatest fulfillment and purpose that we are capable of. If we truly are from God, then there can be no coherent argument to abandon Him just because society has decided something else.

To say that you are spiritual, but not religious, to say that you believe in the divine self, but not the divine creator, is to appreciate the beauty of the tree while cutting it off at the roots. It is to lay hold of something that is true and good, but to sever it from its sustenance, and before long it will wither and lose what originally attracted us to it. We can live without the belief that we are a creation of God, and we can even convince ourselves that it is so, but none of that will change our soul from still needing Him.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 7:15-18

15 Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water; and thou shalt stand by the river’s brink against he come; and the rod which was turned to a serpent shalt thou take in thine hand.

16 And thou shalt say unto him, The Lord God of the Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness: and, behold, hitherto thou wouldest not hear.

17 Thus saith the Lord, In this thou shalt know that I am the Lord: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood.

18 And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall lothe to drink of the water of the river.

When Moses showed the miracle of water turning to blood to the Israelite elders, he had merely scooped some water from the river and poured it out on the soil. This time he was to turn the entire river red, causing the land to literally flow with blood. As discussed earlier, this blood is both the blood of the innocent Israelite sons who were cast into the river, and also a sign of the future Egyptian blood that would be shed in retribution.

Of course this miracle would also be mirrored in the future by Jesus turning the water into wine, and wine is a very similar image to that of blood. Thus, the miracle that Moses performed for Pharaoh had direct application to the situation in which it was conducted, but the fact that its same imagery appeared in entirely other contexts shows us that there must also be a larger, more universal interpretation of it also.

One possible interpretation is that of God creating life. The water to blood shows how the Lord is able to turn base material into part of a living thing. And not just living, but also dying. Blood is, after all, both an emblem of life and death. Thus it is God creating the entire mortal experience, from one end to another, birth to death. God draws this existence out of the base materials: dust to body and water to blood. Just as God created the Earth with its bodies of continent and veins of river, he authored the human body of flesh and vein of blood as well.

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 7:4-5

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 6:13

13 And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, and gave them a charge unto the children of Israel, and unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt.

The Lord gave great detail to Moses for how the delivering of captive Israel would go. He explained exactly what miracles to perform, that Pharaoh would not listen to him, and how the Lord would work wonders to finally secure the Israelites’ freedom. He also described how Moses would return with the Israelites to Mount Horeb and there serve the Lord.

But what we do not hear is an exhaustive detailing for how Moses would lead the people forty years in the wilderness, becoming their prophet/father for the rest of his life, and the law and legacy that he would leave to them for countless generations. All we hear in this verse is that God “gave them a charge…to bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt.”

Sometimes God details our paths out exhaustively, but typically it is only to a point. Much is often left unsaid, to be discovered at the time of facing it. Moses had a sense of his purpose and his calling, but not necessarily the full vision of whom he would become.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 6:2-3

2 And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the Lord: 

3 And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.

We previously read of Moses asking the Lord what His name was so that he could tell it to the Israelites, and God told Moses to introduce Him as “I AM,” which is a translated form of YHWH/Yahweh/Jehovah. In today’s verses we learn the additional detail that the patriarchs did not, themselves, know this name. Though God had an extremely close relationship with these historical men, apparently He never disclosed to them His actual name. He was just their “God,” or their “Lord.”

However, this fact is not reflected in the earlier text of the Bible. This is not at all that the first time that the name of Jehovah has been used. It first appeared in Genesis 2:4 (the English translation writes this name as “the LORD” instead of Jehovah), and there are also verses where the patriarchs are said to speak the name of “Jehovah” (written in English as all-caps GOD). The simplest explanation is that the patriarchs did not actually use God’s name, but when their account was written, the name was inserted by the author, since at that time the name would have been common knowledge.

And if this is the case, then for Moses to have information revealed to him that the patriarchs never had would signify how pivotal his role was to the Israelite people. Put simply, Moses was the single most influential figure sent to the Hebrews until the birth of Christ. Of course, at the time of this conversation with the Lord, Moses had not yet done anything remarkable for the people of Israel. God already knew Moses’s destiny, though, and entrusted him with information that was befitting of who he would become, not who he already was.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 5:3

3 And they said, The God of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days’ journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the Lord our God; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword.

Moses and Aaron again petitioned for the Israelites to go make sacrifices in the wilderness. This time they showed more decorum, using language like “let us go, we pray thee.” They also gave stronger reasoning for why they needed to do this thing, stating that God would punish them with curses and death if they failed to obey.

However, this is one of the times I wish I knew how to read Hebrew so I could whether this interpretation accurately captures what was written here. Using an interlinear bible, I see that the phrase “he fall upon us” is derived from יִפְגָּעֵ֔נוּ (yifgatno). Then, when I search for the definition of this term by itself, I only get back “will be hurt.” Looking at the other parts of the verse I still don’t see where the recipient of this hurting is defined as the Israelites. Now I know that Hebrew works differently than English, and that the context of a word or phrase can change the meaning entirely, but it does make me wonder whether the subject of the “will be hurt” was only assumed by the translators to be the Israelites. Perhaps a scholar of ancient Hebrew text could weigh in on this, but it does occur to me that if Moses and Aaron had actually stated that God would fall upon the Egyptians with pestilence and the sword, then it would be a more truthful prediction of the future, and it would better explain the great anger that the Pharaoh shows next.

And if this is the case, then it seems that while Pharaoh took what Moses and Aaron said as a threat, it might really have been a heartfelt warning. “Let us go, we pray thee. We’re trying to spare you the reckoning that is nearly upon you!” But Pharaoh couldn’t or wouldn’t understand, and his arrogance proved to be his downfall.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 5:2

2 And Pharaoh said, Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go.

Pharaoh’s initial response is actually quite civil. At this point he did not punish Moses and Aaron for their boldness and he did not use angry or threatening words. However in another two verses this calm demeanor falls away and a more vicious layer will manifest.

The language of Pharaoh’s response is meaningful. “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice? I know not the Lord.” This will be a major theme throughout the Bible. Who is God? Why should we follow Him? There will be Elisha, who must contend with the priests of Baal to prove which God is the true one. There will be Rabashakeh, general of the Assyrian army, who will ask how the Lord can deliver Israel from their siege when none of the gods of the other lands could do so. There will be King Darius, who will come to learn that his servant Daniel served the one, true God.

All throughout the Bible there will be those that ask these core questions. Who is God, and why should I follow Him? It will be a challenge posed by many outsiders, but also by the Israelites when they forget the faith of their fathers and fall to idolatry. It is a question that is still posed today, even among self-proclaimed Christians who question how much they should defer to the word of God before it becomes embarrassing.

Pharaoh is an example to all of us. He did not know the Lord, he did not know why he should follow the Lord, and so he refused what God has commanded. We will observe what follows that decision.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 5:1

1 And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness.

Pharaoh is given his first chance to free the Israelites. Moses and Aaron don’t waste any time in lengthy preamble, they get straight to the point, and they don’t show any special reverence to the Pharaoh, either. It is also worth noting that they do not speak on their own authority, it is clear right from the beginning that this demand is from “the Lord God of Israel.”

Something that I never noticed in my previous readings was that they were approaching Pharaoh under false pretenses. They told Pharaoh that they simply meant to have a feast in the wilderness, after which they would return, but clearly they didn’t intend to ever come back! Further on in the story it will become apparent that Pharaoh was perfectly aware of what their real purpose was, so it wouldn’t be accurate to say that he was actually tricked, but it was false pretenses still the same.

My understanding of this is that the Lord was not content to just free captive Israel, He was here to repay the many crimes that the Israelites had suffered at the hands of the Egyptians, and He would do so by cursing them, by plundering their wealth, and by slaying all their firstborn. Pushing the Pharaoh to agree to something that he knew was a trick was the final step for the Lord’s utter demoralization of the Egyptian people. It was a recompense for the earlier generations that had welcomed the Israelites with open arms, but then turned that gift into a punishment. Frankly, this is a side of God we don’t often consider, but the fact is He is a jealous God, and He does demand equal retribution for our crimes.