"The angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing fire from the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, yet the bush was not consumed. So Moses said, 'I must turn aside now and see this marvelous sight, why the bush is not burned up.' When the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, 'Moses, Moses!' And he said, 'Here I am.' Then He said, 'Do not come near here; remove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.' He said also, 'I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' Then Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.'"
Exodus 3:2-6
Three sets of 40
years for Moses
Moses' 120 years of life
were divided into 3 sets of 40 years each: 40 years as a young man
in Egypt, 40 years in Midian, fathering two sons before he
encountered the burning bush and returned to Egypt to save his people
from the bondage of slavery. Later, Moses led the Israelites through
the wanderings in the wilderness for another 40 years. And when this
set of 40 years was over, Moses died, Acts 7:17-43.
In Exodus 3-4, Moses
takes his sheep to the area of Mount Horeb to find good pasture. It
is there that he has his first encounter with God. Something
interesting to notice is that Moses met God at this Mount Horeb and
later received the Ten Commandments there. It is also on this same
mountain that God spoke to Elijah the prophet in a "still small
voice" I Kings 19.
The angel of the LORD appeared to Moses in a blazing fire from the
midst of a bush and when Moses looked he noticed that the bush was
burning with fire yet it was not consumed. So Moses, out of
curiosity, decided to investigate it. It is then that God called
Moses' name and asked him to remove his sandals since he was standing
on holy ground. This practice of removing one's shoes was common
when entering a home or a sacred place in those days. Notice that
God was not asking Moses to remove his shoes because the place was
holy, but because God Himself is holy and was there. Moses fell
face
down when he realized
he had come
into God's presence. He hid his face in fear. Then God said,
“Do not come near here; remove your sandals from your feet, for the
place on which you are standing is holy ground.” He said also,
“I
am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and
the God of Jacob.” Exodus 3:5-6. We
see many occasions in the Bible where men and women fell face down in
God's presence,
Genesis 17:3, Ezekiel 1:28.
God told Moses that the
cries of the Israelites had reached his ears and that He intended to
rescue them. God asked Moses to go to Pharaoh and demand the
deliverance of His people. Moses perhaps out of shock asked "Why
me?"
In this third chapter of
Exodus, God tells Moses who He is in five different
ways. Let's consider the following:
1. (3:6) God tells Moses, “I
am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and
the God of Jacob"
2. (3:14) God tells Moses "God
said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”; and He said, "Thus you shall
say to the sons of Israel, I AM has sent me to you"
3. (3:15) Moses is instructed to tell the Israelites that God is "The
Lord, the
God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the
God of Jacob"
4. (3:16) Moses is instructed to tell the elders that God is
"The Lord,
the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob"
5. (3:18) Moses is instructed to tell Pharaoh that God is
"The Lord,
the God of the Hebrews"
Notice that Moses
was reluctant to go and began giving reasons why he was the wrong
person to go since no one would ever believe him. But in response to
Moses, God provided him with a series of signs he could use to
prove God's power and authority: 1) God changed Moses'
staff into a snake. When Moses grabbed the snake by its tail, it
changed back to a staff. 2) God caused Moses' hand to become
leprous like snow and restored and healed it. 3) God told
Moses that if they would not believe him with those two signs, he
should take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground
and it would become blood on the dry ground.
Even though God had
promised to Moses that He would give him the right words to say,
Moses still wavered saying he was not eloquent but slow of speech and
slow of tongue. So Moses begged God to send someone else in his
place. God was angry with Moses, but allowed Moses' brother Aaron to
speak in Moses' place. Moses would start a journey as the leader of
the Israelites. Exodus 5:10-16.
In
Exodus 5-10, Moses and Aaron back in
Egypt, approached Pharaoh saying
"Thus says the Lord, the God of
Israel, ‘Let My people go that they may celebrate a feast to Me in
the wilderness.’” But Pharaoh said,
“Who is the Lord that I
should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and
besides, I will not let Israel go. Instead, the Pharaoh increased the
Israelites' work load. He commanded the taskmasters over the people
and their foremen, saying, “You are no longer to give the people
straw to make brick as previously; let them go and gather straw for
themselves. But the quota of bricks which they were making
previously, you shall impose on them; you are not to reduce any of
it. Because they are lazy, therefore they cry out, ‘Let us go and
sacrifice to our God.’ Let the labor be heavier on the men, and let
them work at it so that they will pay no attention to false words.” When they couldn't fulfill their brick quotas, they were beaten and
they blamed Moses for bringing trouble upon them. In turn Moses
blamed God saying,
"O Lord, why have You brought harm to this
people? Why did You ever send me? Ever since I came to Pharaoh to
speak in Your name, he has done harm to this people, and You have not
delivered Your people at all." Exodus 5:22-23. But God renews his promises and
again He tells Moses who He is in
four
different ways:
God spoke further to
Moses and said to him, "I am the Lord;
and I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as God Almighty, but by
My name, Lord, I did not make Myself known to them. I also
established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan,
the land in which they sojourned. Furthermore I have heard the
groaning of the sons of Israel, because the Egyptians are holding
them in bondage, and I have remembered My covenant. Say, therefore,
to the sons of Israel, ‘I am the Lord,
and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and
I will deliver you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with an
outstretched arm and with great judgments. Then I will take you for
My people, and I will be your God; and you shall know that
I am the Lord
your God, who brought
you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. I will bring you to
the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I
will give it to you for a possession; I
am the Lord." Exodus 6:2-8 NASB.
When Moses and Aaron
approached Pharaoh again they used one of the signs that God had
given them: Aaron threw down his staff and it turned into a snake.
Notice that he did not use sorcery or chants, but simply threw it
down. But the Egyptian court magicians were also able to turn their
staves into snakes by their secret arts. Aaron's snake consumed the
magicians' snakes, but Pharaoh was not impressed.
Interesting Fact:
The Ancient Egyptians loved their snakes. Their favorite was
the rearing cobra with its distinctive good spread. The Pharaoh's
headdress often resembled the cobra's hood for protection as a symbol
of royalty. Snake charmers around the world still perform this trick
today. The real shocker of the day was when Aaron's snake ate the
magicians' snakes.
In Exodus
7:14-24 - 12:1-51, we read about the 10
plagues. When the signs failed to convince Pharaoh, God
had to take drastic measures. God began a series of ten plagues on
the Egyptians, both with the purpose of convincing Pharaoh of God's
mighty power and authority and also to release the Israelites from
the bondage of slavery. The plagues would also demonstrate God's
superiority to the Egyptian gods. The plagues are usually divided
into four groups, three groups of three plagues each and one final
climactic plague. The first three plagues affected all of Egypt. After that the plagues spared the area around Goshen where the
Israelites lived.
PLAGUE
|
WARNING
|
TIME
|
RESPONSE
|
EGYPTIAN
GOD
|
1. BLOOD
|
YES
|
MORNING
|
PHARAOH'S HEART WAS HARDENED
|
Hapi, Knum,
Osiris
|
2. FROGS
|
YES
|
NONE
|
PHARAOH HARDENED HIS HEART
|
Heqt
|
3. LICE/
GNATS
|
NO
|
NONE
|
PHARAOH HARDENED HIS HEART
|
Kheper, Geb
|
4. INSECTS
|
YES
|
MORNING
|
PHARAOH HARDENED HIS HEART
|
Kheper,
Amon-Ra
|
5. LIVESTOCK
|
YES
|
NONE
|
PHARAOH'S HEART WAS HARDENED
|
Apis (bull),
Hathor (cow)
|
6. BOILS
|
NO
|
NONE
|
LORD HARDENED PHARAOH'S HEART
|
Imhotep,
Serapes,
Thoth
|
7. HAIL
|
YES
|
MORNING
|
PHARAOH HARDENED HIS HEART
|
Nut
(sky goddess)
|
8. LOCUSTS
|
YES
|
NONE
|
LORD HARDENED PHARAOH'S HEART
|
Seth, Nepri,
Thermuthis
|
9. DARKNESS
|
NO
|
NONE
|
LORD HARDENED PHARAOH'S HEART
|
Ra (sun god)
|
10. DEATH
|
YES
|
NONE
|
PHARAOH LET THE ISRAELITES GO
|
PHARAOH
|
1. Blood
|
All the water in the Nile and in the streams,
reservoirs, ponds, and even buckets and jars were changed to
blood. All the fish in the Nile River died as a result.
The Magicians replicated this plague using
their sorcery arts.
Pharaoh turned his back on Moses going into the
palace.
|
2. Frogs
|
The frogs were so many that they were
everywhere; in the houses, in the bedrooms and all the food.
After Moses prayed their dead carcasses were everywhere with a
foul smell.
The Magicians also made frogs appear using
sorcery, but they couldn't remove the LORD's frogs.
Pharaoh begged Moses to remove the frogs
promising to let the Israelites go to offer sacrifices to God if
he succeeded.
After the frogs disappeared, Pharaoh hardened
his heart.
|
3. Lice/
Gnats
|
The lice or gnats descended upon everyone,
people and animals.
The Magicians were unable to replicate this
plague. They acknowledged God's hand.
Pharaoh would not listen.
|
4. Insects
|
The insects (flies or beetles) swarmed
everywhere, eating almost everything and probably spread disease
everywhere they went.
This plague affected only the Egyptians. The
land of Goshen where the Israelites lived was spared.
Pharaoh tried to negotiate by suggesting that
the Israelites could worship God in Egypt, but Moses stood firm,
insisting that he let the Israelites go to the desert. Pharaoh
agreed to let them go only if Moses would pray to have the
insects removed.
After the insects were removed, Pharaoh
hardened his heart again.
|
5. Livestock
|
The Egyptian livestock which included the cows,
sheep, goats, camels, horses and donkeys died.
This plague affected only the Egyptians. The
Israelites' livestock survived.
Pharaoh's heart was unchanged.
|
6. Boils
|
Open boils covered all the Egyptians and
animals.
The Magicians were unable to heal themselves
from this plague. They were ashamed of the impotence of their so
called gods. They couldn't stand in Moses' presence.
Pharaoh's heart was still not changed.
|
7. Hail
|
The worst hailstorm ever known to man was this.
It destroyed trees, flax and barley.
The land of Goshen was spared as well as some
of the Egyptians who obeyed God's warnings and His power.
Pharaoh recognized that he had sinned against
the Israelites and begged Moses to stop the hail. Moses agreed
and prayed to God although he knew Pharaoh had not truly
repented.
When the hail was over, once again Pharaoh
hardened his heart.
|
9. Darkness
|
Thick darkness throughout all the land of
Egypt.
The land of Goshen was not covered in darkness.
I think this darkness is a period of silence.
Usually before the LORD's judgment, there was a period of this in
Scripture, Mark 15:33; Rev. 16.
This ninth plague is the set up for the tenth and final plague.
Pharaoh agreed to let the Israelites go to
worship God, but insisted that they could not take their
livestock.
Moses refused causing Pharaoh to throw him out
of the palace threatening to kill him if he ever returned.
Again, the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart.
|
10. Death
|
All the firstborn sons in the land of Egypt, in
each family whether slave or free were to die, except those that
would heed the warning of the LORD and mark their door frames
with blood.
After Pharaoh's firstborn son died, he sent the
Israelites away in his own grief.
The people took their dough before it was
leavened with their kneading bowls bound up on the shoulders.
- Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for he
had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, "God
will surely take care of you, and you shall carry my bones from
here with you." Exodus 13:19.
They
also took what Moses had requested of the Egyptians: articles of
silver, gold and clothing. The LORD gave favor in the eyes of
the Egyptians toward the Israelites so that they could take all
these articles. So the Israelites began their great exodus from
Egypt.
|
In Exodus
11-12, we read of the Passover and the final plague which
killed all of the firstborn sons. This to me is very shocking! This
may be interpreted as God's judgment on Pharaoh for killing all the
Hebrew boys we read about at the beginning of the Book of Exodus.
This is a powerful reminder to all, that God is the Master of life
and death, and that what He gives to us, He may also take away from
us. After the plague of darkness, Moses warned Pharaoh that at
midnight all of the firstborn sons in all the land of Egypt were to
die, except for the firstborn sons of the Israelites. They were to
be spared. The Israelites were also to take heed and obey the
instructions of the LORD so that the angel of death would pass over
and not kill them. Pharaoh's heart has been hardened by God, and he
did not listen to Moses.
The account of the
Passover is one of the most important miraculous events in all of the Jewish history and the Christian faith. Remember that Christ is our Passover. A lot of the Jewish roots are based on this account. The narrative
of events stops here briefly for a section on the procedures for
Passover night, instructions for future celebrations of Passover and
a new Jewish calendar.
In Exodus 12:1-2, God
instructs Moses and Aaron to direct the Israelites to abandon the
Egyptian calendar and adopt a new one. The Passover would now begin
their new year. Their new calendar would be the first step toward
creating a new society a free people. The Egyptian calendar was
built around the Egyptian gods and three festivals: the festival of
the gods, the festival of the kings and finally the festival of the
dead. The new Jewish calendar was not based on mythology or seasonal
changes, but on a historic event. Their new lives, free from the
bondage of Egyptian slavery, to new lives under the True God who
rescued them from this bondage.
Procedures
for the Passover (Exodus 12:3-13)
Lamb:
The Israelites were to take a male lamb about a year old
without blemish, taken from the sheep or the goats. Each family was
to kill it at twilight. Each family was to take some of the blood
and put it on the doorposts and on the lintel of the houses in which
they ate it. They were to eat the flesh roasted with fire.
Interesting fact: This same blood that was shed and saved the
Israelites is a parallel with the blood required for the forgiveness
of our sins that we read of in Hebrews 9:22
Herbs:
For the Passover meal, they were to eat the roasted lamb with
bitter herbs, most likely a salad made up of lettuce and other
stemmed plants.
Unleavened
Bread: They were also to eat unleavened
bread, a kind of flat cake that could be prepared quickly since it
didn't need to rise.
No
leftovers:
They were not to save food from the Passover meal, but were
commanded to consume or burn it up. This rule was applied to food
that had been used for an offering.
Loins
girded: A
flowing garment was the normal attire for an Israelite. When they
needed to move quickly, they would grasp the garment at the bottom
pulling it to the waist and tucking it to the belt. This would
allow for easy maneuvering.
Sandals
and staff:
The Israelites were to be prepared to leave as soon as they were
given the signal, so they were to eat with sandals on and a staff in hand. According to tradition, the sandals were to be removed inside
the house and the staff was to be kept near the door in order to be
taken up when one left. But the Israelites were not to leave the
house until morning, Exodus 12:22. This highlights their urgent
waiting on the LORD and their readiness to follow. It emphasizes
the need to wait on the LORD and to be ready to move when God
decides to act upon.
In
Exodus 12:14-20, we read of the
Feast of Unleavened Bread.
Moses had instructed the Israelites about how to celebrate the Passover and the Feast of
Unleavened Bread before they even had their first one. They were to
celebrate it each year thereafter. Although they had not yet been
free from Egyptian bondage, God in His mighty power established a
yearly commemoration of the Passover even before it actually was in
effect. Moses and the Israelites obeyed God's instructions. They
placed the blood on their doors, readied themselves in their houses
and waited for the Lord's Passover. Isn't that amazing!
"Now it came about
at midnight that the Lord struck all the firstborn in the land of
Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the
firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the
firstborn of cattle. Pharaoh arose in the night, he and all his
servants and all the Egyptians, and there was a great cry in Egypt,
for there was no home where there was not someone dead." Exodus
12:29-30 NASB.
In the last part of this study we will consider the 40 years that Moses led Israel from the crossing of the Red Sea unto the gates of the Promised Land.
Luci
