God offers encouragement

  • Exodus 6:1-6
  • God reiterates all He has promised
    • Appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
    • Gave no Name until now
    • He remembers His covenant
    • Tell Israel, “I WILL deliver you …”
    • You will be Mine
  • Moses tells the people, they don’t listen
  • God repeats His mandate – let my people go

Genealogy of Moses and Aaron

  • Exodus 6:14-30
  • Genealogy shows Levite lineage of both
  • God’s mandate repeated (Exodus 6:26-29)
  • Moses’ objection restated (Exodus 6:30)

Back before Pharaoh

  • Exodus 7:1-14
  • “I will make you as God to Pharaoh”
  • Will harden Pharaoh’s heart – why?
    • Multiply signs
    • Great judgments
    • Egypt will know
  • They did what God commanded

Staffs to snakes

  • Exodus 7:7-13
  • Moses was eighty, Aaron eighty-three
  • Staff thrown down, Pharaoh’s snakes eaten
  • Pharaoh’s heart hardened
    • Who hardened it?
    • As God had said

First plague – Nile to blood

  • Exodus 7:14-25
  • God let Pharaoh sleep on his own stubbornness
  • Next day
    • Nile struck with staff
      • Water to blood
      • Everything in the Nile dies
      • River stank of death
      • Not only the Nile, bu tall standing, flowing, and stored water
    • Magicians replicated (but could not end the plague)
    • Pharaoh unimpressed
    • Went on for seven days

Second plague – frogs

  • Exodus 8:1-15
  • Same request, new threat
    • Smite the land with frogs
    • From out of the Nile to everywhere
    • No respecter of people
  • Moses struck, magicians replicated
    • Pharaoh asks Moses to relent
    • Moses – choose a date
  • God performs, but plague not over!
    • Land stank of frogs
    • Pharaoh unmoved

Gnats – stretching magicians’ limits

  • Exodus 8:16-19
  • Third plague
    • First one the magicians could not mimic
    • Magicians’ confession
  • Pharaoh still not impressed

Flies, flies, flies, flies, flies

  • Exodus 8:20-32
  • Fourth plague – starts early in the morning
  • Met Pharaoh as he came to the water
    • Plague to be one of flies
    • Goshen will be unaffected
  • Negotiation begins
    • Go sacrifice, but inside Goshen
    • Nope, three days’ journey
      • Exodus 8:26 – The animals they would be sacrificing were an abomination to the Egyptians. The ox, bull, and cow were all considered holy by the Egyptians.
    • Go, but not far away, and pray for me also
    • Flies withdrawn
    • Pharaoh hardens own heart

Number five – livestock die

  • Exodus 9:1-7
  • All livestock in the field to die
    • If you don’t let the people go
    • Includes horses, donkeys, camels, herds, flocks
    • Again, Goshen is exempt
    • “Tomorrow” was the day
    • Happened as described
    • He knew it happened, but Pharaoh’s heart was hardened

Boils from soot

  • Exodus 9:8-12
  • Toss handfuls of soot toward the sky
    • Became boils on man and beast throughout Egypt
    • Magicians effected also
    • God hardened Pharaoh’s heart

Killer hail – seventh plague

  • Exodus 9:13-26
  • God’s message to Pharaoh
    • Has been lenient to this point
    • Wanted to show His power, proclaim His Name
    • You exalt yourself by your defiance
  • Plague to start next day, this time
    • Heavy, unprecedented hail
    • Fire flashing continually within it
    • Killed everything in the field – people, animals, plants
    • But not in Goshen

Hail’s effect

  • Exodus 9:27-30
  • Death and damage overwhelming
    • Pharaoh “repents” of sin against the Lord
    • Declares self and nation as wicked
  • Moses knows better (Exodus 9:30)

God’s foresight

  • Exodus 9:31-32
  • Still wheat and spelt
  • Both good for bread
  • Also good for locusts

Back to start

  • Exodus 9:33-35
  • Moses performed as promised – again
  • Pharaoh’s heart was hardened – again
  • Just as God had promised

Eight – inundation of locusts

  • Exodus 10:1-6
  • Not much left
    • Many animals, plants, people destroyed by previous plagues
    • Still enough to get by
    • Gives punch to the coming ultimatum
  • Worst ever locust infestation coming
    • Will eat what’s left
    • Will cover the ground
    • Will even infest the houses

Frustration and defiance

  • Exodus 10:7-11
  • Pharaoh’s servants at tipping point
  • Pharaoh decides to make a point himself
    • Moses and Aaron called back
    • Told to go and serve the Lord
    • Asks who would be going – everyone and everything
    • Pharaoh – “That’ll be the day!”

God releases the locusts

  • Pharaoh loses this round also
  • Moses immediately instructed to act
  • Largest inundation ever, everything left was eaten
  • Pharaoh “repents” again
  • God hardens Pharaoh’s heart