Exodus 2 through 12

I confess that I’m having trouble keeping up with all the points I wish to blog about related to the Bible reading program. After my last post related to only Exodus 1 to illustrate the backdrop in which God sent Moses into action, I’ve read about God telling Moses His intent regarding freeing the Israelites from slavery, and about each instance in which Moses went to Pharaoh, told him to “let [his] people go,” Pharaoh responded (sometimes yes, sometimes no), a disaster came upon all of Egypt, with Pharaoh hardening his heart once each disaster passed.

As of this writing, I have yet to reread the rest of the Book of Exodus this time through, especially the parts of the history post-Red Sea miracle, where the Israelites complained about being in the desert so much to the point that even Moses lost his faith, struck the rock when he was supposed to speak to it instead, and lost the reward God had previously promised him regarding being able to enter the Promised Land. However, having already some of the early conversations between God and Moses, I am struck by Moses’ lack of faith, noticing God’s apparent frustration at that already.

¹⁰ Then Moses said to the Lord, “O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither before nor since You have spoken to Your servant; but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.”

¹¹ So the Lord said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the Lord? ¹² Now therefore, go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall say.”

¹³ But he said, “O my Lord, please send by the hand of whomever else You may send.”

¹⁴ So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and He said: “Is not Aaron the Levite your brother? I know that he can speak well. And look, he is also coming out to meet you. When he sees you, he will be glad in his heart. ¹⁵ Now you shall speak to him and put the words in his mouth. And I will be with your mouth and with his mouth, and I will teach you what you shall do. ¹⁶ So he shall be your spokesman to the people. And he himself shall be as a mouth for you, and you shall be to him as God. ¹⁷ And you shall take this rod in your hand, with which you shall do the signs.”

Exodus 4:10-17, New King James Version

For context, God and Moses have been having this conversation (“Moses and the Burning Bush”) since the beginning of Exodus 3, a whole chapter earlier. Prior to Moses’ expression of fear in the above passage, he already had questioned God three times in the same conversation about different things, with God each time either giving him answers or demonstrating miracles right before his eyes.

Reading through these chapters, and witnessing the series of miracles that God did, from the first (throwing down the staff to have it become a snake, to the killing of every firstborn in Egypt), there were quite a few details that stood out:

1. There was a total of ten plagues, plus the miracle of God changing the staff to a snake and back prior to the first plague.
2. Each subsequent plague impacted Egypt worse than the previous.
3. At first, Pharaoh’s “wise men” and magicians could replicate the signs and wonders that God did, but by the third plague (lice), they no longer could, and immediately recognized that the God of the Hebrews was different from any that they had experienced (see Exodus 8:18-19).
4. Each time there was a plague, God protected the Hebrews, who were living in the land of Goshen within Egypt, from its effects. This was to show the Hebrews that God really was who He said He was all this time, so that they would know that God was indeed real, in real time (see Exodus 8:22).
5. Pharaoh’s heart appeared to soften each time God struck Egypt with a plague, but it grew hard once again each time the plague ended.
6. Plagues #7 and #8 (hail and locusts, respectively) appeared to have been what broke the camel’s back (so to speak) for Pharaoh’s servants, as they entreated him to relent (see Exodus 10:7).
7. At around the same time, Pharaoh kinda-sorta realized his sin but still only appeared to care about himself (see Exodus 10:16-17).
8. For plagues #8 and #9 especially, we get to see a closer aspect of the vileness of Pharaoh’s character. First, he had asked Moses who all would be going to the sacrifice and balked when Moses indicated that the women and children would be joining the men (see Exodus 10:8-11). Later, when Pharaoh had changed his mind about allowing the women and children to join the men, he still balked at Moses asking for the livestock to be included (see Exodus 10:24-28). It is recorded repeatedly as Pharaoh having a hardened heart. In New Testament terms, it’s also a clear picture of pride and selfishness. And in modern terms, we might describe Pharaoh as an entitled, controlling narcissist, seeing himself as above everything else. Here, it’s all the same thing.
9. Right as the Lord was finally wearing Pharaoh down to the point of truly letting the Israelites leave, the Bible records that God had given them favor in the sight of the Egyptians (see Exodus 11:3, 12:33, 12:35-36).
10. After Moses announced to Pharaoh the last great plague, the Bible records Moses as having left “in great anger” (see Exodus 11:8). The Bible records next that God stepped in to remind Moses of why Pharaoh’s heart kept hardening. Although it doesn’t explicitly say why Moses was particularly angry when he left Pharaoh this time, but the fact that God steps in immediately appears to give us an indication.