Explore the Bible  Lesson Preview
March 14, 2010
"Divine Purpose"
Background: Exodus 5:1 - 10:29
Lesson:  Exodus 5:1-3, 6:6-8, 7:1-5

Motivation: God's purpose is to see His people conformed to Christ's image.  Through His judgments, we see power & purpose.  Each of the plagues undermined something in which the Egyptians were trusting.  As the plagues increased in severity, even some Egyptians began to respond in faith to God.  (9:20) (Acts 7:36; 2 Thess. 2:8-12)

Examination: 

I.       Confrontation (5:1-21)

A. Request "Let My people go, that they may hold a feast to Me in the wilderness" (1) Moses began with a simple request to "test the waters."

B. Rebuke "Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice to let Israel go?" (2) Ultimately, the confrontation is not between Moses and Pharaoh (probably Amenhotep II, son of Thutmose III), but between Pharaoh and God.  The root of all sin is voiced in the words, "Who is the Lord that I should obey..."  Invariably, when one of God's people chooses to launch out in obedience, Satan will counter with discouragement.  Although God had warned Moses (4:21) that Pharaoh would not respond, it must have been a terrific disappointment to finally appear in Pharaoh's court and be met with immediate rejection.

C. Retaliation "You shall no long give the people straw to make bricks as before.  Let them go and gather straw for themselves." (7)  Believer's Study Bible, p. 86; 5:7-8 "Sun-dried mud brick, especially when strengthened by straw, would be a sturdy building material if it could be protected from direct rain.  Archaeologists have found examples of bricks such as these, with and without straw, in Egypt."

D. Rejection " ‘Let the Lord look on you and judge, because you have made us abhorrent in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants, to put a sword in their hands to kill us.'" (21) It's tough when you get criticized for trying to do good.  Not only did Moses' plea fall on deaf ears, it resulted in God's people being subjected to harsher conditions.  As a result, Moses met criticism from all sides. (5:21) His mission was made immeasurably more difficult because of disharmony among the people of God.

II.     Encouragement (5:22-6:9)

         Disappointment can quickly turn to defeat and despair if we don't take it to the Lord, as Moses did (5:22).  In His kindness, God meticulously reviews the plan for Moses and reaffirms His power in a recap of 3:7-12.

A.  Power "Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh..." (6:1) God gave Pharoah an opportunity to submit to His authority willingly.  However, with Pharaoh's stubborn (even arrogant) refusal, God will turn up the heat. 

B.  Purpose "I will take you as My people, and I will be your God.  Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God who brings you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians." (6:7) Believer's Study Bible, p. 87: 6:7 "This covenant language, similar to that of Ruth (Ruth 1:16).  In answer to Moses' question in 5:22, which amounts to "God, what are You doing?", the Lord tells Moses in 6:2-8 His basic plan.  He intends to make Himself known to His people Israel by delivering them from bondage, forming them into a covenant community, and providing them with a land in which He will bless them.  All this is to fulfill the promises made to the patriarchs.

C. Promise "‘And I will bring you into the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and I will give it to you as a heritage.  I am the Lord.'" (6:8) God exhorts Moses to stand on His promise.

D. Perception "So Moses spoke thus to the children of Israel; but they did not heed Moses, because of anguish of spirit and cruel bondage." (6:9) Believer's Study Bible, p. 87: 6:9 "Those in the middle of crises need to hear the Lord's word of purpose (cf. Rom. 8:28), but so often the tragedy of immediate circumstances overcomes one's ability to hear even a true word of comfort and hope.  "Anguish" is literally "shortness"; i.e., they had lost heart because, instead of the promised deliverance, they were experiencing an intensification of "bondage."

III.    Commands (6:10-7:13)

A.  Heritage of Moses and Aaron (6:14-30) Recounting an abbreviated genealogy is a means of establishing perspective.  We should all draw strength from Godly people who've come before us and prepared the way.

B. Handiwork of God (7:1-12) The miracles promised by God begin to come to pass.  Concerning the imitation of the Egyptian magicians, Believer's Study Bible comments on p. 90: 7:11 "Though the identity of these Egyptians is not mentioned here, the names were evidently preserved in the oral history of Israel, and a form of them is very possibly given in II Tim. 3:8 as Jannes and Jambres.  Egyptian magicians had long ago mastered the art of inflicting a temporary paralysis on a cobra, making him appear stiff and rod-like.  However, their ‘rods' were swallowed up by the ‘rod' of Aaron, which should have been a message to Pharaoh of the direction of events of the coming days (v. 12).  The magicians were able to copy each of the first few miracles (v. 22; 8:7; 9:11) until the plague of lice (8:18, 19).  This suggests that the miracles gradually increased in difficulty and/or severity.  This should teach us that something that appears to be the work of God may really be the work of Satan (II Thess. 2:8-12).  In order to be a genuine work of God, an experience must be associated with the proclamation of truth and must bring glory to God."

C. Hardness of Pharaoh's Heart (7:13) God first predicted this reaction in 4:21.  Believer's Study Bible comments on p. 85: 4:21 "In this first of many references to the hardening of Pharaoh's heart (i.e., his mind and will), it is significant that the Lord is both subject and agent (cf. 7:3; 9:12; 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10; 14:4,8).  The theological problems regarding man's will arising from this verse are largely due to the false assumption that the issue here is one of salvation.  The Lord did not keep Pharaoh from responding to the gospel.  What He did was to use a self-hardened (7:13, 22; 8:15, 19, 31; 9:7, 34, 35), condemned pagan to provide an opportunity to demonstrate His power and to bring His judgment on this wicked people (cf. Deut. 2:30; Josh. 11:20).  God's decree of judgment on Pharaoh was that he would cause his own destruction.  The fact that God can affect a person's mind and will should not surprise or alarm us, since that is the assumption from which we often pray (cf. Prov. 21:1).  It should also be noted in this contest between YAHWEH and the Egyptian gods (who were thought to protect Egypt from such plagues) that there is a progression of hardening.  After each of the first five miracles of judgment, Pharaoh is invariably said to have a firm or dull heart which was insensitive to the voice of God.  Only after the sixth plague is it specifically stated that YAHWEH hardened Pharaoh's heart (9:12)"

IV.    Judgments (7:14 - 10:29)

A.  Pharaoh's Hardened Heart ". . . Pharaoh's heart is hard; he refused to let the people go." (14)  As mentioned above, Pharaoh's hard heart was not necessarily placed by God in an unwilling victim.  In fact, v. 13 tells of a progressive hardening.  A "hard heart" speaks of a rebellious spirit toward God's will.  The opposite would be a "clean heart" (Ps. 51:10).

B.  God's Progressive Punishment "By this you shall know that I am the Lord..." (7:17). The Egyptian magicians imitated the first three plagues.  Beginning with the plague of flies, Goshen was protected (8:22).  By the plague of human disease, the magicians themselves were afflicted (9:11).  Pharaoh stubbornly refused until the tenth plague (10:28).

1.   Nile Turned to Blood (7:14-25) Believer's Study Bible, p. 91: 7:17-19 "Sothis and Khnum were gods of the Nile, which was said to be the bloodstream of the god Osiris.  The Nile River was literally the source of life for Egypt.  The ‘buckets of wood' and ‘pitchers of stone' may have been water tanks or cisterns.  Verse 24 suggests that the only way the Egyptians were able to find drinking water was by digging around the banks of the river.  The exact nature of this and other miracles is not explained.  Evangelical scholars differ as to whether this passage means that the water became blood-like or that it actually became bloody.  It seems to have been only exposed water that was affected.  Whatever the change in the water, it was destructive and nauseating, and an offense to the pagan deity that supposedly gave life through the river."

2.   Frogs (8:1-15) This plague was a direct slur on the Egyptian frog-god Keket.  The Egyptians, including the Pharaoh, suddenly had thousands of "house guests," every place they walked, sat, slept or ate.  The Egyptian magicians (through the power of Satan) could only make the problem worse.  In his first acknowledgment of YAHWEH (8), the Pharaoh agrees to allow God's people the opportunity to worship.  Notice in verse 15 that Pharaoh is said to harden his own heart.

3.   Lice (8:16-19) The word used could also be translated "gnats," "sand fleas" or "mosquitoes."  J. Vernon McGee gives an account of one man's modern day experience in Egypt: "man tells about his experience with them in Egypt: ‘I noticed that the sand appeared to be in motion.  Close. . .inspection revealed. . . that the surface of the ground was a moving mass of minute ticks, thousands of which were crawling up my legs. . . I beat a hasty retreat, pondering the words of the Scriptures, ‘the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt."

4.   Flies (8:20-32) The first three plagues had been universal across Egypt.  However, beginning with this plague, the land of Goshen is "set apart" (22) clearly showing the divine origin of the plagues and their purpose.  The word used could refer to the sacred beetle, the scarab that was a symbol for eternal life.  Pharaoh begins to promise compromises to Moses. (25-32)

5.   Disease of Cattle (9:1-7) Whereas the fourth plague was limited geographically, this plague was limited to Egyptians only.  Cows were representative of the Egyptian sky-goddess Hathor.  The second largest temple unearthed in Egypt is dedicated to the worship of the sacred black bull, Apis.

6.   Disease of Humans (9:8-17) The black ashes became a visible representation of the spreading plague.  The magicians are unable to have any power (11) demonstrating the progressive nature of the plagues.

7.   Hailstorm (9:18-35) For the first time, Egyptians are able to respond individually in faith to YAHWEH (9:20).  Believer's Study Bible, p. 94: 9:23, 24 "Some scholars have thought that the hail itself burned with fire; others have suggested falling meteors.  This was more probably literal hail poured forth in excessive quantity accompanied by much lightning, which may have produced fires.  The Egyptians would probably have expected their sky-gods such as Nut and Shu, and Seth the protector of crops, to protect them from such disasters."

8.   Locusts (10:1-20) Two things separate this plague from the others: 1) rather than occurring supernaturally, the locusts are brought by an east wind (10:13), 2) the plague causes Pharaoh to repent, if only temporarily (10:16).  Believer's Study Bible, p. 95: 10:13 "God used nature to accomplish His miraculous signs.  Ordinary locusts were brought in by an east wind (cf. 14:21) from Arabia; but in this case they did not come in ordinary numbers (v. 14).  Also, they came when predicted by Moses, and they devastated Egypt as a judgment from God.  Egyptian wind and vegetation deities should have protected Egypt from such disasters, but they could not."

9.   Darkness (10:21-29) In an insult to the Egyptian sun-god Ra, God causes an impenetrable darkness to fall across Egypt.  The miracle is seen in the land of Goshen retaining its light.

10. A Note on Compromise - An interesting study is found in Pharaoh's attempts to have God's people accept a compromise:

a.   stay "in the land" (8:24) - Some Christians want to play church on the devil's turf.  They want to enjoy the leeks and garlic's of Egypt without being inconvenienced in their religion.

b.   "You shall not go very far away.  Intercede for me (8:28) - The world wants to coop the church as a popular social organization.

c.   "I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer" (9:28) - Sometimes Christians hear the world say what we want to hear without such talk being backed up by actions.

d.   "Let the men go. . ." (10:7) Pharaoh was willing to let the men go without the women and children.  The world often says, "Practice your religion - just let us have your kids!"

Application

1.   God's judgments are certain.

2.   God's judgments center on our belief system.

3.   God's judgments cause one to decide either for God or against.

Leader Pack:  Item 5: Poster: Lesson Outline

Illustrator: p. 60 "Aaron's Role in Exodus", p. 33 "Pharaoh's Question, ‘Who is Yahweh?'"

Notes: **You may access David's Lesson Preview in MP3 format at: http://www.hfbcbiblestudy.org/;

Dates: 2010 Dates: 1/13-5/12 -  Milestones and Midlink for Spring;  1/26 - 4/13 - Livingproof Bible Study; 3/14 - Time Change Sunday; 3/17 - No Midlink Meal or Classes for Spring Break; 3/25-26 - FBA Middle School Spring Musical; 3/28 - Spring Loaded at HCHS; 3/29 - HUB Golf Scramble; 4/1 -Broken for You Service; 4/4 - Easter Sunday - NO SBS; 4/11  - SBS Quarterly Workers Dinner; 4/18 - New & Pros. Member Orientation; 4/22 - MetroLIVE in the City; 4/24 - AIDSudan 5K Walk/Run; 4/25 - John Bisagno preaching and 50^th Anniversaries celebrated; 4/27 - FBA Spring Athletics Banquet.