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TRANSCRIPT
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
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Plagues #4-6
Exodus Chapters 8-9
SLIDE: Welcome >
Good morning saints!
We’re continuing on in the Book of Exodus today and will be
getting into plagues #4, 5 and 6.
I want to start today by reading from Peter’s First Letter,
chapter 2:
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy
nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the
praises of him who called you out of darkness into his
wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now
you are the people of God; once you had not received
mercy, but now you have received mercy.”
“Chosen” is a major underlying theme of today’s plagues. The
Israelites are spared from the effects of these plagues but the
Egyptians feel their full impact.
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #4 – DOG-FLIES
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SLIDE: PLAGUES 4, 5 AND 6
Plagues #4, 5 and 6 were dog-flies, livestock disease and
boils.
“Each of the ten plagues was an ammonia-laced
scrub-bucket of suds”1 to cleanse the land of
polytheism.
The whole essence of polytheism is the belief that every force
in nature has a god that controls it. In Egypt, they worshipped
the Nile god, the sun god, the cat god, the sheep god, etc.
The Ten Plagues were designed to flip all the laws
of nature on end to demonstrate ― not just for the
Jewish people but for all of humanity, for all of history ―
that He alone controls all of nature, all of the physical
world, and that there is nothing outside of His control. 2
Now, please remember that the first nine plagues WERE
of supernatural origin - they were miracles from the power of
God. However, most of these plagues were natural1
and had occurred previously in Egypt from time to time,
which probably was why it took the Pharaoh some time to see
1 Plague #7 Hail that had fire in the ice was the exception
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #4 – DOG-FLIES
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them as anything totally out of the ordinary. The 10th plague
– the plague of judgement - however, never occurred before.
It is completely normal - according to the Scriptures -
that God would use ordinary events and circumstances and
nature’s various elements in an extraordinary way to achieve
His purposes. However, there was a significant difference
with the Exodus plagues:
1. PRECISE TIME.- started and stopped ON COMMAND
2. PRECISE LOCATION – miracles 4-9 ONLY AFFECTED
the Egyptians and did not harm the Israelites
3. INTENSITY – while many of the plagues occur
naturally, their magnitude/strength were
UNPARALLELED NOW.
Prior to any of these plagues beginning, God had let Moses in
on His plan:
“But I will harden3 Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my
signs and wonders in Egypt, he will not listen to you. Then I
will lay my hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment
I will bring out my divisions, my people the Israelites. And
the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I stretch
out my hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out of
it.” Exodus 7:3-5
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #4 – DOG-FLIES
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I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, he will not listen to you,
and I will visit the plagues on Egypt so that everyone will
know that I am the Creator God.
SUMMARIZE TO DATE
<There were two types of hardening: (explain)>
Snakes: Moses and Aaron go into the place and meet
with the Pharaoh; he tells Moses to show him a “wonder”
(miracle)4; Aaron throws down his staff and it turns into a
snake. The Egyptian magicians do the same, but Aaron’s
staff swallows them. Pharaoh concludes that Moses and
Aaron are just better magicians at this trick; he gives his
heart a pep-talk and walks away unconcerned.
Plague #1 - Nile River turns to blood; Egyptian magicians
duplicate to some degree but cannot stop it. Pharaoh
hardens his heart by giving himself a pep-talk. He
probably thinks that Moses and Aaron are just better
magicians at this particular sign; he turns and walks away
unconcerned.
Plague #2 – Frogs; Egyptian magicians again can
duplicate but cannot stop. But –THERE IS A DIFFERENT
TYPE of hardening of Pharaoh’s heart after this plague.
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #4 – DOG-FLIES
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–> Pharaoh sees something that gets him uneasy –
‘precision’ - God can STOP the plague at a precise
point in time, unlike the normal polytheistic gods.
This unnerves him a bit, and he hardens his heart
(makes himself stubborn; ignores the facts of what he
sees). He does this in order to avoid the
implications of this ability.
Plague #3 – Gnats (no-see-ums). Uncomfortable but not
totally mind-changing.
SLIDE: Dead Man’s Hand >
Up to now, the first three plagues had affected BOTH the
Egyptians and the Hebrews.
After plague #3, Pharaoh is probably thinking “I can
endure this discomfort as long as those Hebrews slaves can”
and thus only needed to “pump himself up” after plague #3 to
continue to struggle. He hardens his heart by giving himself a
pep-talk.
But… ALL OF A SUDDEN IN PLAGUE #4, the Hebrews will
NOT be affected at all! This will greatly worry him.
BTW - Anyone know the name of this card hand shown on the
screen? Deadman’s Hand. Two pair – black Aces and black
Eights. It is supposedly the hand "Wild Bill" Hickok was holding
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #4 – DOG-FLIES
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when he was murdered in Deadwood, South Dakota on August
2, 1876. The fifth card is not known for certain.5
This is the poker hand Pharaoh is holding when Plague #4
begins, and he’ll find out soon enough that God
doesn’t bluff
4TH PLAGUE – ‘SWAMS’ Hebrew name: arob6 - swams
Exodus 8:20-32
20 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the
morning and confront Pharaoh as he goes to the river and
say to him, ‘This is what the Lord (Yehovah) says: Let my
people go, so that they may worship me. 21 If you do not let
my people go, I will send swarms of flies on you and your
officials, on your people and into your houses. The houses of
the Egyptians will be full of flies; even the ground will be
covered with them.
22 “‘But on that day I will deal differently with the
land of Goshen, where my people live; no swarms of flies will
be there, so that you will know that I, the Lord (Yehovah),
am in this land. 23 I will make a distinction between my
people and your people. This sign will occur tomorrow.’”
24 And the Lord did this. Dense swarms of flies
poured into Pharaoh’s palace and into the houses of his
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #4 – DOG-FLIES
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officials; throughout Egypt the land was ruined7 by the
flies.
25 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said,
“Go, sacrifice to your God (eloheim) here in the land.”
26 But Moses said, “That would not be right. The
sacrifices we offer the Lord our God would be detestable to
the Egyptians. And if we offer sacrifices that are
detestable in their eyes, will they not stone us? 27 We must
take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer
sacrifices to the Lord our God, as he commands us.”
28 Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to offer sacrifices
to the Lord (Yehovah) your God (eloheim) in the wilderness,
but you must not go very far. Now pray for me.”
29 Moses answered, “As soon as I leave you, I will pray
to the Lord, and tomorrow the flies will leave Pharaoh and
his officials and his people. Only let Pharaoh be sure that he
does not act deceitfully again by not letting the people go to
offer sacrifices to the Lord.”
30 Then Moses left Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord
(Yehovah), 31 and the Lord did what Moses asked. The flies
left Pharaoh and his officials and his people; not a fly
remained. 32 But this time also Pharaoh hardened2 his
heart and would not let the people go.
Yehovah speaks to Moses and tells him to confront
Pharaoh where he “goes to the water” - meaning where he 2 ‘Kabed’ “to be heavy, weighty, or burdensome” = make stubborn
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #4 – DOG-FLIES
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goes to the Nile. This likely was the same place Moses waited
for Pharaoh for the 1st plague - when the Nile was turned
blood red. And, like the 3rd plague, the consequences for NOT
freeing Israel will be another attack of flies, but not the small
no-see-ums; this time it will be their big brothers!
Now, these were a known and dreaded species of fly,
called by the locals “dog-flies”. They "corrupted the land" by
depositing their eggs everywhere. They were a real problem,
particularly as concerned the livestock. These flies fasten
upon every uncovered surface, especially the eyelids and
comers of the eyes, and their bites cause severe inflammation8,
sometimes blindness and even death.
As with the previous plagues, this was not a new
phenomenon - these flies showed up from time to time.
But, what was different was the INTENSITY of their attack,
and their NUMBER.9
God states that His PURPOSE in this 4th
plague is to
demonstrate to Pharaoh that…
“I (am) the Lord (Yehovah), [am] in this land.”
In other words –> to show Pharaoh Who is really the
Boss in Egypt.
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #4 – DOG-FLIES
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This is the first plague in which Moses and Aaron do not
use a staff. It is an obvious statement that they are not
magicians but merely carrying out the will of Yehovah.
It is also the first plague that brings a degree of ruin to
the land.
And --- there a very important difference begins
now. Yehovah states: “I will distinguish between My
people and your people”.
Up to now, both the Egyptians and the Israelites
have felt the effects of the plagues. Now, ONLY the
people of Egypt will feel their effects; the Israelites
will NOT be affected.
Pharaoh asks Moses to intercede with Yehovah to stop the
plague and then he will let the people make sacrifices in the
land. Moses says that’s not a good idea – the Egyptian
citizens were not very happy with the Israelites right about now
– their livestock is sick and they themselves covered with dog-
fly bites. If they hold their festival locally, the Egyptians will
erupt because the Israelites will probably be required to
sacrifice animals that were sacred to the Egyptians.
Instead, Moses says, let us go on a three-day journey into
the wilderness and hold the festival out of the sight of the
Egyptian people. Pharaoh says, OK, OK already, just don’t go
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #4 – DOG-FLIES
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too far!! But PLEASE go plead with your God to call off the
attack of the dog-flies.10
Moses does so, the plague STOPS ON CUE. BUT, Pharaoh
goes back on his word – again – he hardens his heart.
‘Kabed’ “to be heavy, weighty, or burdensome” = make
stubborn and ignore the plain facts in front of
you.
TWO MAIN POINTS about this plague that I want to talk about:
It starts and STOPS on cue from Yehovah
Yehovah is able to distinguish between the Egyptians
and the Israelites
1. PRECISION
So what we have here again is a precision in time. The
plagues start and stop on cue from Yehovah. But now,
we see a precision in space – Goshen (where the Hebrews
primarily live) is not effected, only the rest of Egypt.
Pharaoh ignored the impact of plague #3 and gives himself
courage because he reasons that he can outlast the Israelites in
enduring the effects of the plagues.
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #4 – DOG-FLIES
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But, beginning with plague #4, the plagues will ONLY
affect the Egyptians.
”I am the Creator God in the land.” The fact that not
only can I bring this plague, but I can wondrously
distinguish, not just in TIME (as with the frogs dying
when I said to) but in SPACE ALSO. It will not occur in
Goshen but only in the rest of the land.
2. SEPARATION OF ISRAELITES
The second point here deals with the fact that God DOES
DISTINGUISH between the Hebrews and the Egyptians.
EXPLAIN BRIEFLY – COME BACK TO THIS AT THE END.
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #5 – LIVESTOCK DISEASE
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5TH PLAGUE – LIVESTOCK DISEASE
Hebrew name: ‘deber’ - Pestilence11
Let’s move on to the next plague – the disease of the livestock.
Exodus 9
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say
to him, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews,
says: “Let my people go, so that they may worship me.” 2 If
you refuse to let them go and continue to hold them back,
3 the hand of the Lord will bring a terrible plague on your
livestock in the field—on your horses, donkeys and camels
and on your cattle, sheep and goats. 4 But the Lord will
make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and that
of Egypt, so that no animal belonging to the Israelites will
die.’”
5 The Lord set a time and said, “Tomorrow the Lord
will do this in the land.” 6 And the next day the Lord did it:
All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one animal
belonging to the Israelites died. 7 Pharaoh investigated and
found that not even one of the animals of the Israelites had
died. Yet his heart was hardened (‘kabed’) and he would not
let the people go.
Next is the plague of dever - the death of livestock. Again, we
see precision! God set the time – tomorrow – and it happened
as He said. But the precision this time is to an even greater
extent. God distinguishes between the cattle of the Egyptian
and the cattle of the Israelites, and not even one of the Hebrew
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #5 – LIVESTOCK DISEASE
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cattle dies. Some Egyptians did live in Goshen, but
even these were effected while the Hebrew cattle
were not. Like the parable of Jesus: “Two men will be in the
field; one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be
grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.”
Matthew 24:40-41
So – not only does God control the timing of the
plague – when it begins and when it ends - but He
now demonstrates that He controls where the
effects will strike and not strike.
Now - pretend that you are the Pharaoh and all of your
cattle are starting to die. The first reports come in from the
various provinces - “there’s been these plagues Sir; we don’t
know exactly what it is”.
If you are a responsible Egyptian sovereign, the first
thing you would want is a damage report; like the
TV coverage of the Hurricanes in Texas and Florida
-> How bad it is?
But - Pharaoh’s actual response is:
Pharaoh investigated and found that not even one of the
animals of the Israelites had died. Yet his heart was
hardened (‘kabed’) and he would not let the people go. (vs. 7)
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #5 – LIVESTOCK DISEASE
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He does not look at the power of the plague. He is looking to
see the precision of the plague. Which is very strange
because, you know, if I were the sovereign of Egypt, WE
wouldn’t care a whit about the precision; we just care about
how powerful it is. But that’s not true for Pharaoh.
Pharaoh is still trying to figure out who this
Yehovah fellow is. The gods in polytheism do not have
precision regarding what they do – they can start an avalanche
by rolling a snowball off the mountain, but what it does after
that is beyond their ability to control. They can’t control when
the avalanche will stop nor whether or not it will strike the ski
lodge. But this fellow Yehovah obviously can.
Pharaoh is beginning to realize that he’s dealing
with Someone Who is radically different than any of
the gods he knows.
The ability to control space and time
suggests that he’s dealing with the
Creator.
But what is the Pharaoh’s response once the plague stops?
The same as when he first encountered the precision in God’s
ability – in the case with frogs – he becomes stubborn and
refuses to consider the implications of that the precision
means.
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #6 – BOILS
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6TH PLAGUE - BOILS
Hebrew name: ‘shechin’12 - Boils
Let’s move on to the 6th plague – the plague of boils.
Exodus 9:8-12
8 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of
soot from a furnace and have Moses toss it into the air in
the presence of Pharaoh. 9 It will become fine dust over the
whole land of Egypt, and festering boils will break out on
people and animals throughout the land.”
10 So they took soot from a furnace and stood before
Pharaoh. Moses tossed it into the air, and festering boils
broke out on people and animals. 11 The magicians could not
stand before Moses because of the boils that were on them
and on all the Egyptians. 12 But the Lord hardened
(‘chazaq’)3 Pharaoh’s heart and he would not listen to Moses
and Aaron, just as the Lord had said to Moses.
The plague of boils (shechin) descends upon all of Egypt
except for Goshen. Again. God again separates away the
Hebrews from the rest of the people. The painful blisters that
affect both man and beast.
Moses and Aaron were to be actively involved in making
this plague occur. Obeying God’s instruction, they picked up
soot from of kiln and threw it into the air, where it would blow
3 ‘Chazak’ – made strong, courageous. Pharaoh could continue because of this “pep-talk” to his heart.
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #6 – BOILS
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away and land on all living creatures, and it would cause
painful pustules to arise.
This is the 3rd plague of the 2nd set of plagues – which
means that it is unannounced - Pharaoh received no warning.
Well, the magicians are back again in the narrative. But
this time, it’s to point out that they are NOT involved in trying
to duplicate the plague because they can’t even stand there
before Moses and Pharaoh because they too are afflicted with
the boils.
The Egyptian magicians functioned in many roles, a major
one being advisors and spiritual counsellors to the Pharaoh.
Up to now, they no doubt had been whispering in the
Pharaoh’s ear about what to do.
But now they’re covered with boils – they are
completely powerlessness before the Hebrew God. So
they now hide in their bedrooms in shame.
Pharaoh essentially loses his soldiers in his
spiritual battle with God.
Pharaoh’s knees begin to buckle. He is about to give in,
but God steps in and gives Pharaoh’s heart a pep-talk so that
he can continue.
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #6 – BOILS
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Why does God do that when Pharaoh is about to let the people
go? Because Pharaoh is to be given every the chance to
agree.
Remember - It is of paramount importance in this story that
Pharaoh should come to an understanding of who God is, so
that he might make a moral choice to obey or disobey Him,
and thus be held accountable for his actions.
There is only one problem - Pharaoh might
give in - but for the wrong reasons!
What if he lets the Hebrews go - NOT because he theologically
gives up when he realizes that God is the Creator - but
because it’s too hard for Egypt to continue to fight the
battle?
What if he gives in for tactical reasons but NOT
actually for moral or theological reasons?
Teenager cleaning their room – not because they
realize it’s the right thing to do but because they’re
tired of hearing their mother nag them about it.
That’s the case here. Pharaoh is on the brink of giving in for
the wrong reason…
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #6 – BOILS
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“God doesn’t want Pharaoh to surrender out of a lack of
strength!... He wants Pharaoh to understand that there is One
God who rules all that exists. This Creator God doesn’t
want to beat those who oppose Him into submission.
That might be the way that the Egyptian gods
work… But it is not the way of the Creator.
The Creator wants His creatures to know the TRUTH of
His existence and to shape their lives around this
truth.”13
So, God strengthens his heart by giving him that
courage to continue a bit longer.
QUESTION: WHY might Pharaoh be at the breaking point here
– it’s only boils, that’s aggravating but it’s not usually deadly,
and it doesn’t impact Egypt’s economy like the previous plague
that killed livestock.
The issue with boils is bodily affliction!
Remember that Job almost lost everything he
had – family, wealth, etc.,
but did not start cursing his fate until his
body was covered with sores.: Job 2.14
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
PLAGUE #6 – BOILS
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So, Pharaoh – covered in boils and without his magicians to
advise him - is about to give in but God stops him. “Look
Pharaoh - if you want to give in because of practical matters –
because you think it is too hard to continue, but you would
RATHER continue fighting, I will give you the courage to see
your vision through. My question to you is: ‘Do you think it
makes theological sense to give up because I’m the Creator?’
You decide. ”
And here we come back to the issue of free will. If God
gave him the strength of will and the strength of heart to be
able to continue to pursue what he really wants - keeping the
Israelites as slaves - that’s not taking away Pharaoh’s free will;
it’s strengthening his free will.
God strengthens Pharaoh’s free will after plague
#6.
He gives Pharaoh the courage to continue to continue.
The tipping point for Pharaoh is the next plague – hail –
which we’ll look at next time.
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
SEPARATION
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Separation
[This next section is generally formulated from points
raised in Tom Bradford’s Torahclass, Exodus Lesson 8.15]
Ok. I want to come back to the fact that, starting in
plague #4, God set apart the Hebrews from the Egyptians
regarding the effects of the plagues.
I’m sure that this did not make the Egyptians very happy!
And, this idea of separation ALSO doesn’t
make many people happy today.
It doesn’t fit in well with today’s view of
the word ‘fairness’.
SLIDE: CHOSEN BY GOD
Chosen by God! We often have heard the term that the Jews
are the chosen people.
“Chosen people”. In the Old Testament, Moses says to Israel:
“For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The
Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the
face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
SEPARATION
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The Lord did not set his affection on you and choose
you because you were more numerous than other peoples,
for you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because
the Lord loved you…” Deuteronomy 7:6-8
“Because the Lord loved you”…
The OT uses other very special words to describe Israel’s
relationship to God: Set Apart, Elect, Loved by God, Separated
These are Biblical terms - applied first to Israel and then
to all those who have accepted and trust in Christ.
And here in Exodus beginning with plague #4, we see this
all-important spiritual principle that completely flies in
the face of the modern world. A principle that if most even
understood it, would be denounced as the most intolerant and
arrogant position a person might harbor.
And it is this: God choses and then separates
His servants away from everyone else, He elevates
them, has higher expectations of them, and
gives them special attention. 16
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
SEPARATION
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SLIDE: SEPARATION #2
God’s chosen servants are different. But it is Yehovah
Who gives them different status; it is has not come because of
anything they've done to merit such favor but because God has
DECLARED it so.
We see this PATTERN all through the Scripture:
Genesis 1:4 “God saw that the light was good, and He
separated the light from the darkness”.
Abraham was separated from pagan world
Israelites were separated away from Egyptians in the
plagues – God separated the Jews from the Gentiles!
Levites separated from other tribes to be His special
tribe, all His own.
Then, the sons of Aaron separated away to be
priests
Now we who have put our trust in Christ – grafted
into spiritual Israel are chosen people, royal
priesthood, and holy nation (I Peter 2:9)
This is an important point about God - He divides, elects,
and separates. He makes distinctions. And He doesn’t change.
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SEPARATION
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This is NOT a God who says we're all one big happy
family.
He does NOT view everyone the same and He is NOT
tolerant or politically correct in order to suit our
ever-changing vanities and preferences.
Unlike much of modern grade-school sports,
not everyone will get a trophy!
To undermine this attribute of God is to create a
false god.
If you are a true Believer and Disciple of Jesus, then the
hit song from so many years ago, "We are the World", DOESN'T
apply to you at all spiritually.
YOU, by the blood of Jesus, have been separated
away from all other humans. The Lord has given you
elevated status and favor. YOU are the modern
spiritual equivalents of Levites
What did YOU ever do to merit this favor?
Nothing. You simply accepted the reality of what
Jesus the Messiah did for you.
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
SEPARATION
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Being in a system where we are “chosen” for something is
a mixed bag. Pick-up sides in school, selected for one side –>
feels great is you’re picked #1 or #2, not so great if you’re
selected because you’re the last remaining choice.
Hockey – too slow to get out of the way!
But even that’s is better than not being chosen
at all (St Mary’s CHOIR, me and nuns and choir)
Here in Exodus, God says to Pharaoh, “Let My people go”.
MY people.
Nobody seems to have a problem with that statement when
God makes it in Exodus, but that’s not very popular today. I
thought God was the Father of ALL people. He is, but STILL He
says to Pharaoh that the Israelites are His people.
And beginning with the 4th plague, God demonstrates
this by making a distinction – He separates the
Israelites from the Egyptians regarding the
plagues.
Is that fair?
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
SEPARATION
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“It’s human nature that suffering should be equally
shared, right? … People just hate it that one group thinks they
are special; especially if those people are not part of that
group. And, this is the situation for Believers today… How
often have we heard people sarcastically that Christians and
Messianic Jews seem to think that we have something available
to us……wisdom, love, blessing, favor… that others don’t?
And what about Jesus’ statement “I am the way and the
truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except
through me.” (John 14:6) - sounds somewhat narrow-
minded, doesn’t it?
BUT THE REALITY IS THAT GOD DISTINGUISHES between those
who trust Him from everyone else; that principle and
pattern is the very essence of Salvation, and it is
demonstrated right here in Exodus.
It’s the reason that the WORLD has always hated Israel,
and the reason that the world increasingly hates the
Church, and always will.
But, still - even some of the Israelites had a problem with
the concept of “specially chosen”. Remember in our sessions
in the Book of Numbers, there comes a time when an individual
named Korah disputes with Moses over the fact that only the
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
SEPARATION
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sons of Aaron – Moses’ brother - can be priests4. Korah was of
the very same Levite clan as Moses and Aaron, so he thinks
Moses is just playing favorites. He tells Moses:
“The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the
Lord is with them. Why then do you set yourselves above
the Lord’s assembly?” (vs. 4)
Korah was saying that it obviously isn’t fair that only one small
group was chosen and set apart to be priests, since EVERYONE
in the community is holy.
“A loving God WOULDN’T say that – it must be
that Moses is making up the rules.”
“Ok Korah”, says Moses, “test your hypothesis and offer
incense in the tabernacle the next morning.”
Korah convinces 250 other leading men of Israel who are
of the same mindset to do likewise. The next morning as they
try to offer incense in the tabernacle - a privilege reserved by
God exclusively for the priests -> fire comes out of the holy
place and turns the entire group into crispy critters. (vs. 35)
4 Numbers 16
Exodus Session 11 – Plagues 4-6
SEPARATION
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QUESTION: But – how does God make the choice?
We’re not told! A Sovereign God can and does make
distinctions between people for His Own reasons, and He
doesn’t have to tell us why.
What good would it be to know “why” anyway? – if we
knew, we would only try to meet those conditions, and
thus we would be acting counter the whole message of
the Gospel -> Salvation is by grace alone, not
by works!
Ephesians 2:8-9 “For it is by grace you have been saved,
through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift
of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.”
Some people assume that the fact that the Jews referred
to as the “Chosen People” is the cause of anti-Semitism in the
world. I don’t think so. If Jewish "choseness" is in fact the
cause of anti-Semitism, then hatred against the Jews should
disappear when Jews drop the claim that they are chosen.
Many have that that doesn’t make any difference. The real
question is whether the “Chosen People” idea is indeed a
legitimate cause of anti-Semitism – or whether it is merely
another excuse.17 When we come across the desert tribe
named AMALEK, we’ll see that it’s the latter.
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The reason why I started into this section is to
emphasize the concept of patterns because they allow us to
reasonably know the general nature of how our God responds
to us and to various circumstances.18 Jesus said – as “Just as
Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man
must be lifted up…”5 God operates according to established
patterns…
And if Scripture DIDN’T show us God’s patterns and
principles, and if we did not see them constantly
repeated, then we would have good reason to doubt He
statement that He never changes. There is not even
a shadow of turning, of changing, in Him.
The main issue today with the concept of separateness –
being seen differently in God’s eyes –is that it runs contrary to
political correctness. AND THE TIME IS COMING WHEN IT WILL
BE CLASSIFIED AS A FORM OF HATE SPEECH.
We don’t want to offend the sensitivity of others. We see
this sensitivity play out in how the church approaches
the subject of faith.
Many go out of their way to say that if you have faith in
just about ANY spiritual being, you have a good and
valid faith.
5 John 3:14
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But if that’s true, then “olly olly oxen free” – everyone
who is hiding from God can come out into the open
without losing the game. You have to throw out
Revelation chapter 6, where it says…
Then the kings of the earth, the nobles, the
commanders, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and
free man, hid in the caves and among the rocks of the
mountains. And they said to the mountains and the
rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of the One
seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the
Lamb. For the great day of Their wrath has come, and
who is able to withstand it?”… Rev. 6
Many feel uncomfortable or embarrassed with the concept of
chosenness. It’s so much more acceptable to say that God
makes NO distinction among people or nations – that there
essentially are no chosen people.
Therefore, a loud and growing body of Church leaders
say that no matter what someone calls god (whether that is
Buddha, Krishna, Brahma, or Allah), we’re all essentially
speaking of the same god, just from a different cultural and
language perspectives. It’s just that all these poor misguided
people don’t know that they’re actually worshipping the God of
the Bible.
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Now, if you believe that, then I suppose you also believe
that poor Pharaoh was actually worshipping the God of
the Hebrews, and not his own Egyptian gods…..he was
just ignorant.
Feeling the pressure to place nice with the world, many in
the church have pulled the punch of the Gospel regarding
Jesus being the ONLY way. This is deemphasized in order to
better find the common ground between religions, especially
as we try to reach out to Moslems.
But totally avoiding the crucial issue about Christ only
tends to unintentionally reinforce their belief that He is
NOT the only way – that being a better Muslim or better
Hindu will make them more acceptable to God.
[Recent conversation with Adam (a friend of mine) about Islam
and the Korah being “inspired”.]
“It is funny how mortals always picture us (demons) as
putting things into their minds: in reality our best work is
done by keeping things out.”
― C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters
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Please hear me - God distinguishing one from
another is all that separates you and me from an
eternity apart from Him.
And, that distinction is based on one thing
alone: trust in the Savior He has provided,
Jesus of Nazareth. Not good works, not good
intentions.
As nice and warm and fuzzy and peaceful and loving as it
sounds to embrace all gods as just mistaken reflections
of THE true God, DO NOT buy in to this demonic lie.
Wrath downplayed…
Exodus demonstrates the wrath of God toward
opposition to HIM, which is sin. God’s wrath is not
warm and fuzzy, so it is often downplayed today. Take for
example the new hymnal for the Presbyterian Church (USA).
In 2013, the committee putting together a new hymnal
dropped the popular hymn “In Christ Alone” because
the song’s authors refused to change a phrase about
the wrath of God.
The original lyrics say that “on that cross, as Jesus died, the
wrath of God was satisfied.”19 The Presbyterian Committee on
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Congregational Song wanted to SUBSTITUTE THE WORDS, “the
love of God was magnified.”
The song’s authors, Stuart Townend and Keith Getty,
objected. So the committee voted to drop the song from its
new Glory to God hymnal.20 The church issued a statement
saying that there is a lot of disinformation on their decision
and they had nothing against songs citing God’s wrath but
rather the use of the theological word ‘satisfied’. 21
– I Peter 1:1-2 “To God’s elect…who have been chosen according
to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying
work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled
with his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.”
SLIDE: CHOSEN PEOPLE
I want to end today just as I started - reading from Peter’s First
Letter, chapter 2:
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy
nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the
praises of him who called you out of darkness into his
wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now
you are the people of God; once you had not received
mercy, but now you have received mercy.”
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We may not know the REASONS for His choice, but we do
know the PURPOSE of choosing us.
Next time
OK - As bad as the first 6 plagues had been, they were
little as compared to the ferocity of the next set of 3. God
gives Pharaoh a grave warning that “this time (plague #7) I will
set my blows upon your heart…..”. The Hebrew word here is ‘leb’
and its essence is that of the INNER self22. This is a person’s
soul where our conscience and our emotions and our wills and
our sense of self resides. What was about to come will not just
effect Pharaoh’s anger and stubbornness; it will finally
penetrate his thick skull and attack his inner being……and it
would “hurt” far deeper than anything prior.
This will be the turning point in the plagues.
Endnotes
1 Eugene Peterson, Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places (pg. 162-63)
2 Aish.com, Rabbi Ken Spiro, History Crash Course #10: Ten Plagues, http://www.aish.com/jl/h/cc/48931787.html
3 Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, Hebrew # 7185. Qashah; Phonetic Spelling: (kaw-shaw');
Short Definition: stiffened
4 Strong’s Hebrew # 4159. Mopheth : Phonetic Spelling: (mo-faith'); a wonder, sign, portent
5 Dead Man's Hand, https://www.pokernews.com/pokerterms/dead-mans-hand.htm
6 Strong’s Hebrew # 6157. Arob; Phonetic Spelling: (aw-robe'), swarm – probably a swarm of flies
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7 Strong’s Hebrew #7843. Shachath; Phonetic Spelling: (shaw-khath'), destroy, ruin, corrupt
8 Alfred Edersheim, Bible History, Book 2, CH. 6
9 Tom Bradford, Torahclass, Exodus Lesson 8 chapter 8-9
10 Ibid.
11 Strong’s Hebrew # 1698. Deber; Phonetic Spelling: Phonetic Spelling: (deh'-ber); pestilence
12 Strong’s Hebrew # 7822. Shechin , Phonetic Spelling: (shekh-een'), a boil, eruption 13 AlephBeta, Rabbi David Fohrman, Parsha Va’era Guide.
https://www.alephbeta.org/guides/get?key=public/guides/parsha/1/Exodus/2/Vaera
14 Rabbi Lord Jonathan Zacks, The Difference Between Signs and Wonders, http://rabbisacks.org/covenant-
conversation-5770-bo-the-difference-between-signs-and-wonders/
15 https://torahclass.com/teacher/35-old-testament-studies/old-testament-studies-exodus/127-lesson-8-chapter8-9
16 Bradford, Numbers Lesson 3 Chapters 2 and 3, http://www.torahclass.com/old-testament-studies-tc/37-old-testament-studies-numbers/197-lesson-3-chapter2-3
17 Ask the Rabbi: Chosen People – Source of Anti-Semitism? http://www.aish.com/atr/Chosen_People_Source_of_Anti-Semitism.html
18 Bradford Exodus Lesson 8 chapter 8-9.
19 http://www.gettymusic.com/in-christ-alone/
20 In Christ Alone’ Dropped From Presbyterian Church Hymnal Over Lyric Dispute And Scriptural Debate Bob Smietana, USA Today, August 7, 2013 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/07/in-christ-alone-dropped_n_3719253.html
21 Presbyterian News Service, Jerry L. Van Marter, Presbyterian Hymnal producers respond to misinformation Unsuccessful copyright permission led to exclusion of ‘In Christ Alone’, August 9, 2013 https://www.pcusa.org/news/2013/8/9/presbyterian-hymnal-producers-respond-misinformati/
22 Strong’s Hebrew # 3820. Leb, Phonetic Spelling: (labe), inner man, mind, will, heart