Jews worldwide still celebrate the Feast of Passover 4000 years after the fact. What fact? The simple fact that the second book of the Bible is named after the seminal event that brought mighty Pharaoh to his knees—but not his senses!
The Egyptians had several million Israelites living in their country—as slaves! It didn’t start out that way. Joseph, the son of Jacob, brought his extended family to live in Goshen to escape a world famine. About 430 years later Moses was chosen by God to lead the Israelites out of slavery, out of Egypt, and into a land promised by God. In Exodus chapter six God lays out His plan; to Moses, to Pharaoh, and unfortunately to the Egyptian army.
“I am the Lord…I will free you from being slaves…I will redeem you…I will Be your God…And I will bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to Give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.”
You may remember Moses politely asking Pharaoh to release the Israelites and you may remember Pharaoh’s answer—ten times over. After each refusal a terrible plague would visit the land and people of Egypt. Pharaoh repeatedly said “NO”, but God worked His plan despite the ‘Nattering Nabor of Negativity’. Ten No’s, Ten plagues, and a Tin Man with a defective heart! Can’t you just hear Pharaoh mumbling, “I want to see the Wizard”?
For all you Bible students and scholars who like icing on their cake, in six instances Pharaoh hardened his own heart, in four instances, God hardened Pharaoh’s heart! God often makes himself crystal clear. Psalm 95:7-9 , “…Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah, as you did that day at Massah in the desert, where your fathers tested and tried me, though they had seen what I did.”
No comments:
Post a Comment