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 10:14-15

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.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 10:3-6

3 And Moses and Aaron came in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me.

4 Else, if thou refuse to let my people go, behold, to morrow will I bring the locusts into thy coast:

5 And they shall cover the face of the earth, that one cannot be able to see the earth: and they shall eat the residue of that which is escaped, which remaineth unto you from the hail, and shall eat every tree which groweth for you out of the field:

6 And they shall fill thy houses, and the houses of all thy servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians; which neither thy fathers, nor thy fathers’ fathers have seen, since the day that they were upon the earth unto this day. And he turned himself, and went out from Pharaoh.

At first a plague of locusts might sound like a step backward from the previous curses. God had just slain the Egyptians’ cattle with a plague, and their servants with fire and hail. There had been a real loss of life just recently, but locusts seem to be more of the caliber of the frogs, lice, and flies several curses ago.

But on closer examination, this is not the case at all. The previous animal nuisances may have been able to spread mild diseases or irritation, but the locusts would do far worse: they would eat all of the Egyptians’ grain! We had heard during the previous plague that the hailstorm had destroyed the flax and the barley, but not the edible crops like the wheat and the rye. God had been willing to leave Pharaoh the most important crops if he would let the Israelites go, and Pharaoh had initially agreed to this, but now Pharaoh went back on his word and so now the locusts were here to finish the job.

No more meat and no more grain, the Egyptians were drawing nearer and nearer to starvation! If God had taken just one source of food they could have relied upon the other, but piece-by-piece, He was taking it all. We can build up all manner of securities and contingencies against the powers of man, but no place is safe and no insurance is reliable when God comes calling.