Monday, October 14, 2019

Exodus 10:12 says, And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail hath left.  God sent locusts to destroy the rest of the crops.  Just like the Egyptians and Pharaoh, we might not lose everything at once when we go against God's will, we will lose everything gained that way eventually.  Verse thirteen states, And Moses stretched forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind upon the land all that day, and all that night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts.  Once again, God waited until the next day to send the plague.   Pharaoh could have still changed his mind and have let the Israelites go.   We can be sure that God will always give everyone ample opportunity to respond to His gift of salvation.  Verse fourteen declares, And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the coasts of Egypt: very grievous were they; before them there were no such locusts as they, neither after them shall be such.  There was an unprecedented swarm of locusts.  There will come an unprecedented punishment for those who do not accept the free gift of salvation.  Verse fifteen adds, For they covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left: and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the field, through all the land of Egypt.   We would think that Pharaoh would have believed God by now, but he still didn't.  Some people today refuse to believe God, no matter how much evidence they are confronted with.  Verse sixteen declares, Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste; and he said, I have sinned against the LORD your God, and against you.  Pharaoh once again called Moses and Aaron and confessed his sin, but there was really no sincerity to his confession.  When in a bad situation today, many people will call on God and make any promise, but as soon as the problem goes away, they forget their promise.  Verse seventeen adds, Now therefore forgive, I pray thee, my sin only this once, and intreat the LORD your God, that he may take away from me this death only.  Pharaoh asked Moses and Aaron to forget His sin this one time and ask God for His forgiveness.  I believe the implication was that he wouldn't sin again.  Verse eighteen states, And he went out from Pharaoh, and intreated the LORD.  Moses once again prayed to God for Pharaoh.  I am not sure that Moses believed Pharaoh, but I believe that his prayer was sincere.  We may not have a lot of confidence in a person's declaration of faith and their asking us to pray for their forgiveness, but we must be sincere when we pray if they ask us to.  Pharaoh's obedience was between him and God and was not up to Moses to judge.  Verse nineteen declares, And the LORD turned a mighty strong west wind, which took away the locusts, and cast them into the Red sea; there remained not one locust in all the coasts of Egypt. God granted Moses' prayer for Pharaoh and got rid of all the locusts.  When we ask God for salvation through Jesus Christ, He gets rid of all our sins.  Verse twenty concludes, But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go.  Pharaoh once again failed to live up to his promise to God, just as some people today refuse to live up to promises made to God simply to get out of a bad situation.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Exodus 10:1 says, And the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh: for I have hardened his heart, and the heart of his servants, that I might shew these my signs before him:  God told Moses to once again go to Pharaoh.  This time it says that God had hardened Pharaoh's heart, but I still believe that Pharaoh had a choice in whether to believe God or not.  Even though I know we are told that there will come a time when God will no longer offer His mercy to someone who continually rejects it, I don't believe that God ever causes anyone to eject His mercy.  Verse two adds, And that thou mayest tell in the ears of thy son, and of thy son’s son, what things I have wrought in Egypt, and my signs which I have done among them; that ye may know how that I am the LORD,  God told Moses to tell Pharaoh that he would tell his children and grandchildren what things God had done in Egypt that they might know that He is the LORD.  God's work in the world should always be evident to those who will acknowledge it.  Verse three states, And Moses and Aaron came in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me.  This is the question that everyone ultimately has to answer, and that is how long will he or she refuse to humble themselves before God.  Verse four adds, Else, if thou refuse to let my people go, behold, to morrow will I bring the locusts into thy coast:  Of course, with Pharaoh there was the requirement to let God's people go after Pharaoh humbled himself, and with us it is to let our sins go.  Verse five continues, And they shall cover the face of the earth, that one cannot be able to see the earth: and they shall eat the residue of that which is escaped, which remaineth unto you from the hail, and shall eat every tree which groweth for you out of the field:  God once again gave Pharaoh time to obey.  This time, God said He was going to send locusts to eat up what was left of the crops of the Egyptians.  God gives everyone plenty of opportunities to come to Him for salvation.  Verse six concludes, And they shall fill thy houses, and the houses of all thy servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians; which neither thy fathers, nor thy fathers’ fathers have seen, since the day that they were upon the earth unto this day. And he turned himself, and went out from Pharaoh.  Moses told Pharaoh that this was to be a swarm of locusts like had never been seen before.  Then, Moses left.  Once we have delivered the gospel to someone, especially if they continually refuse to refuse to accept it, there may come a time when all we can do is leave.  Verse seven declares, And Pharaoh’s servants said unto him, How long shall this man be a snare unto us? let the men go, that they may serve the LORD their God: knowest thou not yet that Egypt is destroyed?  Pharaoh's servants were even advising Pharaoh to let the Israelites go, but they could not make the decision for him.  Just like Pharaoh, each individual must decide whether to accept or reject God.  No one else can do it for them.  Verse eight states, And Moses and Aaron were brought again unto Pharaoh: and he said unto them, Go, serve the LORD your God: but who are they that shall go?  Moses and Aaron were brought back, told to go, but then were asked who would be going.  Pharaoh was still attempting to control the situation, just as many people attempt to put conditions on God's salvation today.  Verse nine declares,  And Moses said, We will go with our young and with our old, with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds will we go; for we must hold a feast unto the LORD.  Moses said all the Israelites were going and they were taking their possessions with them.  When we come to Christ, we must bring everything that we have with us, though we cannot accept salvation for others.  Verse ten states, And he said unto them, Let the LORD be so with you, as I will let you go, and your little ones: look to it; for evil is before you. Then verse eleven adds, Not so: go now ye that are men, and serve the LORD; for that ye did desire. And they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.  Pharaoh said he would let the men go, but not the children. Once more he thought he was still in control and more powerful than God.  This is a dangerous place to be.  We cannot attempt to compromise with God.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Exodus 9:27 says, And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time: the LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked.  Pharaoh once more sent for Moses and Aaron.  This time Pharaoh acknowledged the truth, and that was that his people and he had sinned against God.  We need to remember that it was not just Pharaoh, but the people of Egypt as well who were afraid of the Israelites becoming too powerful.  Though the leaders of the world today may call for Christians to be persecuted, it is often just the people of the world themselves who persecute them without the government endorsing it.  Verse twenty-eight states, Intreat the LORD (for it is enough) that there be no more mighty thunderings and hail; and I will let you go, and ye shall stay no longer.  Pharaoh again asked for Moses and Aaron to speak to God on his behalf.  He said he had endured enough and he would let the Israelites go.  If we ask for God to help us, we need to be sincere in our promise to do what He wants us to do.  Verse twenty-nine declares, And Moses said unto him, As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will spread abroad my hands unto the LORD; and the thunder shall cease, neither shall there be any more hail; that thou mayest know how that the earth is the LORD’s.  What Moses told Pharaoh he would do to stop the storm should have proven beyond a doubt that God was the One causing the storms.  We do not have such a sign today, but God will still make Himself know to everyone in a way that cannot be denied other than by refusal to believe.  Verse thirty adds, But as for thee and thy servants, I know that ye will not yet fear the LORD God.  Moses said he would do what Pharaoh asked, even though he knew that Pharaoh and the Egyptians still did not believe God.  Verse thirty-one says,  And the flax and the barley was smitten: for the barley was in the ear, and the flax was bolled.  Then verse thirty-two adds, But the wheat and the rie were not smitten: for they were not grown up.  Though the Egyptians had lost part of their crops, they had not lost everything.  Ultimately, sin will cost us everything that we gain by it, though we may not lose everything in this life.  Verse thirty-three states, And Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread abroad his hands unto the LORD: and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not poured upon the earth. Moses did what he told Pharaoh he would do, and God did as Moses asked.  When we act on God's behalf, knowing we are following His will, then He will answer our prayers.  Verse thirty-four declares, And when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders were ceased, he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants.  Once God did what He said He would do, the Egyptians and Pharaoh once again hardened their hearts.  Verse thirty five concludes, And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, neither would he let the children of Israel go; as the LORD had spoken by Moses.  Pharaoh again refused to let the children of Israel go.  We should never make a commitment to God when we need His help and then refuse to follow through once He has delivered us from the problem.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Exodus 9:13 says, And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.  Moses could only deliver God's message, just as we can only deliver the gospel today.  Verse fourteen states, For I will at this time send all my plagues upon thine heart, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people; that thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth.  God told Moses that He would send plagues on the heart of Pharaoh and the people, so that they would know that He was God.  God does not send plagues on people today, but He does touch the heart of each individual in such a way that that person will know that He is God.  Verse fifteen adds, For now I will stretch out my hand, that I may smite thee and thy people with pestilence; and thou shalt be cut off from the earth.  God said He was going to make their suffering even worse than it had been.  I believe that people will always suffer spiritually when they reject God's gift of salvation, but the more and the longer they reject it, the harder their hearts will become toward God.  Verse sixteen continues, And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.  Some people would interpret this to mean that God had caused Pharaoh to be as he was so that God could show the world His power, but I believe that it means that God had allowed Pharaoh to become this powerful.  God could just remove all those in power that do not believe in and follow Him, but He allows people to make their own choices, and some become quite powerful.  Verse seventeen asks, As yet exaltest thou thyself against my people, that thou wilt not let them go?  God asked Pharaoh if he would still exalt himself above God, and this is the question everyone eventually has to answer for himself or herself.  When we reject the gospel, we are putting our will above God's will.  Verse eighteen declares, Behold, to morrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as hath not been in Egypt since the foundation thereof even until now.  God gave Pharaoh a warning that about the same time the next day that it was going to hail as it had never hailed before.  God has already given us His warming of the coming destruction of the world because of its sin and rebellion, and it may not happen tomorrow, but it indeed could.  Verse nineteen adds, Send therefore now, and gather thy cattle, and all that thou hast in the field; for upon every man and beast which shall be found in the field, and shall not be brought home, the hail shall come down upon them, and they shall die.  God warned Pharaoh to not let anyone or anything be caught out in the hail storm or they or it would die.  We today have God's warning to not be caught out in the coming storm of judgment without Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Verse twenty states, He that feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his cattle flee into the houses:  Those that believed God fled to their houses and got their cattle under shelter.  We today who believe God's word will flee from the world to the shelter of the cross.  Of course, we cannot save the material things of the earth when we do, but we can place everything under God's guidance and protection.  Verse twenty-one adds, And he that regarded not the word of the LORD left his servants and his cattle in the field.  Just as there were people then who did not believe God, there are people today who will not believe God and accept His gift of salvation.  Verse twenty-two declares, And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch forth thine hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man, and upon beast, and upon every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.  God had Moses stretch out his hand for the hail to begin.  Moses represented God, and God wanted there to be no mistake that He was behind the hail.  I believe that when God sends His judgment , there can never be another explanation for what is happening.  Verse twenty-three states, And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt.  Moses did what God told him to do, and God did what He said He would do.   We today are to share the gospel with the world, and God will save those who believe, but He will also allow those who do not to go away into everlasting punishment.  Just as the people of Egypt had but two choices, so do people today.  Verse twenty-four declares, So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. Then verse twenty-five adds, And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field.  I have seen some bad hail storms, but never one that had fire mixed in with the hail.  This was indeed God's act of judgment, and everything caught outside was destroyed.  Everybody who does not accept Christ as Savior and Lord will face an even worse punishment, and that is everlasting suffering separated from God.  Verse twenty-six proclaims, Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail.  Once more, this was what we would call a precision strike, because God's people were spared the destruction, just as we will be today if we accept God's gift of salvation through Christ.

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Exodus 9:1 says, Then the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.  God once again sent Mose to Pharaoh with the same message.  Pharaoh was to let God's people go, so that they might serve Him.  When God frees us from sin today, it is so that we might go and serve Him.  Verse two adds, For if thou refuse to let them go, and wilt hold them still,  Verse three continues, Behold, the hand of the LORD is upon thy cattle which is in the field, upon the horses, upon the asses, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep: there shall be a very grievous murrain.  God was going to expand the punishment so that now it would affect their animals, which the Egyptians used for food and to do work with.  Disobeying God will ultimately affect everything we have.  Verse four continues, And the LORD shall sever between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt: and there shall nothing die of all that is the children’s of Israel.  Once more, there was going to be a distinction between the animals of the Egyptians and the animals of the Israelites, just as there is a difference spiritually between those that follow Christ today and the rest of the world.  We may suffer from the same problems, but we have God's forever deliverance from the penalty of sin.  Verse five declares, And the LORD appointed a set time, saying, To morrow the LORD shall do this thing in the land.  God set a time for this to happen if Pharaoh did not obey.  God always gave Pharaoh an opportunity to obey, just as he does with everyone today.  Verse six adds, And the LORD did that thing on the morrow, and all the cattle of Egypt died: but of the cattle of the children of Israel died not one.  Pharaoh did not let the Israelites go, so God did what He said He would do.  God will always keep His promises, but He will also give everyone an opportunity to repent nd come to Him.  Otherwise, He would be an unfair God.  Verse seven states,  And Pharaoh sent, and, behold, there was not one of the cattle of the Israelites dead. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.  Even when Pharaoh saw that God had done what He said He would do, Pharaoh would not let the people of Israel go.  There are many, many people today, who even though they can see the results of God's creative work, who still will not even acknowledge that there is a God.  Verse eight declares, And the LORD said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh.  God once again sent Aaron and Moses to Pharaoh with another sign.  Verse nine adds, And it shall become small dust in all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast, throughout all the land of Egypt.  Moses and Aaron were to throw dust into the air, and it was to cause boils on all the people of Egypt.  The plagues were becoming more personal for the Egyptians.  They were now going to be affected physically themselves.  God's punishment of sin will always be personal, even if it does not occur until the coming judgment.  Verse ten states, And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward heaven; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast.  Moses and Aaron did what God commanded, just as we must today, and God delivered on His promise, just as He will today.  Verse eleven adds, And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boil was upon the magicians, and upon all the Egyptians.  The magicians were no longer able to duplicate the plague, because they were suffering the effects of it themselves.  Verse twelve concludes, And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had spoken unto Moses.  Once more, I don't believe that God made Pharaoh not listen to Moses and Aaron and believe in God's power, but that God knew the nature of Pharaoh.  If someone does not accept Christ as Savior and Lord today, it is not because God causes them to not be able to.  Pharaoh could have still made the right choice, otherwise God was punishing the Egyptians for something that they had no control over.

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Exodus 8:25 says, And Pharaoh called for Moses and for Aaron, and said, Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land.  Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron to come to him and told them to go sacrifice to their God.  Pharaoh still wasn't acknowledging God as the only God and wasn't offering to allow the people of Israel to go with them.  I believe he was looking for a compromise with God, just as many people do today.  Verse twenty-six states, And Moses said, It is not meet so to do; for we shall sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians to the LORD our God: lo, shall we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, and will they not stone us?  Moses said it would be an abomination in the eyes of the Egyptians for them to do so, and that they would be stoned for worshipping their God before the Egyptians.  Moses and Aaron could not compromise on God's command to bring His people out of Egypt, even if they were allowed to worship God.  I don't believe it was a fear of being stoned that kept them from accepting Pharaoh's offer, but the knowledge that this was not what God wanted.  We cannot compromise on our calling from God today.  Verse twenty-seven adds, We will go three days’ journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the LORD our God, as he shall command us. Moses said that they would go three days into the wilderness and sacrifice to God so that He could command them.  Spiritually, we need to separate ourselves from the world today to see what God wants us to do,  Verse twenty-eight declares, And Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away: intreat for me  Pharaoh said that he would allow them to go, and asked Moses to intreat, or speak to God for him about this.  Until they come to accept Christ as their Savior and Lord, people today need us, as followers of Christ, to intreat with God for them.  Verse twenty-nine proclaims, And Moses said, Behold, I go out from thee, and I will intreat the LORD that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, to morrow: but let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully any more in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD.  Moses said that he would speak to God on Pharaoh's behalf, and that the swarms of flies would be gone the next day.  This would show beyond a doubt that the power of God.  Moses also warned Pharaoh about dealing deceitfully with God.  There are people today who will profess to believe God simply hoping to get what they want in this world, but they need to heed the warning that Moses gave Pharaoh, and that is to not deal deceitfully with God.  Verse thirty states, And Moses went out from Pharaoh, and intreated the LORD.  Then verse thirty-one adds, And the LORD did according to the word of Moses; and he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; there remained not one.  Moses dealt fairly with Pharaoh and spoke to God on his behalf.  God answered Moses' prayer.  We may go to God in all sincerity today on behalf of other people because they have asked us to, and God will hear our prayer.  Verse thirty-two declares,  And Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also, neither would he let the people go.  As soon as Pharaoh got what he wanted from God, he changed his mind about fulfilling his promise to God through Moses and Aaron.  People today make promises to God until they get what they want, sometimes even people who have asked us to pray for them, and then they forget their promise to God.

Tuesday, October 8, 2019

{Somehow, I had missed this passage, so it will be out of order}
Exodus 6:14 says, These be the heads of their fathers’ houses: The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel; Hanoch, and Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi: these be the families of Reuben.  These next verses are a partial genealogy of the children of Israel who were in Egypt.  The main thing we can learn from this is that these were the people that were to be the fulfillment of the covenant made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and that God knew who they were and where they were.  We today as followers of Christ are also a part of the fulfillment of God's promise of making His people a great nation, but we are not His by nature of our birth, but by the nature of our rebirth in Christ. We will now just look at these names.  Verse fifteen states, And the sons of Simeon; Jemuel, and Jamin, and Ohad, and Jachin, and Zohar, and Shaul the son of a Canaanitish woman: these are the families of Simeon.  Verse sixteen says, And these are the names of the sons of Levi according to their generations; Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari: and the years of the life of Levi were an hundred thirty and seven years.  Verse seventeen states, The sons of Gershon; Libni, and Shimi, according to their families.  Then verse eighteen says, And the sons of Kohath; Amram, and Izhar, and Hebron, and Uzziel: and the years of the life of Kohath were an hundred thirty and three years. Verse nineteen says, And the sons of Merari; Mahali and Mushi: these are the families of Levi according to their generations.  Verse twenty states, And Amram took him Jochebed his father’s sister to wife; and she bare him Aaron and Moses: and the years of the life of Amram were an hundred and thirty and seven years  This verse tells of the birth of Aaron and Moses, listing both father and mother,  We know about Moses life, but we don't know much about Aaron's until he was called by God to help Moses.  Even if we are not well known to the world, when God calls us to do something, no matter how insignificant it may seem to us, it is still important in advancing God's kingdom.  Verse twenty-one says, And the sons of Izhar; Korah, and Nepheg, and Zichri.  Then verse twenty-two, And the sons of Uzziel; Mishael, and Elzaphan, and Zithri.  Verse twenty-three states, And Aaron took him Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab, sister of Naashon, to wife; and she bare him Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.  We are told that Aaron was a husband and father, so he had to put what God called him to do ahead of his wife and children, as we must today.  Vere twenty-four says, And the sons of Korah; Assir, and Elkanah, and Abiasaph: these are the families of the Korhites.  Verse twenty five states, And Eleazar Aaron’s son took him one of the daughters of Putiel to wife; and she bare him Phinehas: these are the heads of the fathers of the Levites according to their families.  Vere twenty-six concludes, These are that Aaron and Moses, to whom the LORD said, Bring out the children of Israel from the land of Egypt according to their armies.  This is a list of the Israelites whom God told Aaron and Moses to bring out of Egypt.  I believe that there were many more, but this is just a partial list of the lineage of those who were delivered.  We cannot name all the Christians in the world today, but we are all a part of God's kingdom because of His promise to us.  Verse twenty-seven declares, These are they which spake to Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring out the children of Israel from Egypt: these are that Moses and Aaron.  Just as these were the people that God was going to deliver, they were the people that Pharaoh was determined to not let go.  Today, God is determined to deliver those who will come to Christ from the sins of this world, but the world is just as determined to hold on to them.  Verse twenty-eight states, And it came to pass on the day when the LORD spake unto Moses in the land of Egypt,  Verse twenty-nine adds, That the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, I am the LORD: speak thou unto Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I say unto thee.  Verse thirty concludes, And Moses said before the LORD, Behold, I am of uncircumcised lips, and how shall Pharaoh hearken unto me?  This just repeats God's call to Moses and Moses' reluctance to do what God sent him to do.  We need to learn to simply do what God calls us to do without excuses.  Just as God did for Moses, He will empower us to do whatever He calls us to do.