6 posts tagged “pharaoh”
Exodus 19
“The Lord directed Moses, ‘Go down and warn the people not to break through to see the Lord; otherwise, many of them will die. Even the priests who come near the Lord must purify themselves, or the Lord will break out against them.’ But Moses responded to the Lord, ‘The people cannot come up Mount Sinai since you warned us: Put a boundary around the mountain and consider it holy.’” Exodus 19: 21-23
Several months after their exodus from Egypt, Moses was obviously frustrated with the children of Israel. Bellyaching had replaced appreciation as the national demeanor of God’s people. It is easy to be frustrated with complaining people. Even the bible calls us “sheep”, who need a shepherd.
At this point in the exodus, though, Moses must have been frustrated with God. The source of his frustration concerned God’s promise, made when He called Moses to lead Israel out of bondage.
“But Moses asked God, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring the Israelites out of Egypt? God answered, ‘I will certainly be with you, and this will be the sign to you that I have sent you: when you bring the people out of Egypt, you will all worship God at this mountain.’” Exodus 3: 11-12
Moses had done all God had told him to do. He went to Egypt, spoke to Israel, spoke to Pharaoh, obeyed the Lord, led Israel out…
In Moses’ heart, he must have felt he held up his end of the bargain. Now, at what he thought was the end, Moses was ready to see the confirmation of his calling. They’re standing at the foot of the mountain, and all Moses needs to see is for Israel to worship, and it would all have been worth it. But God withheld Israel from coming up the mountain!
Why would God have withheld this fulfillment from Moses? More so, why would He deny Israel?
Worship is a matter of the heart, and Israel’s heart was not ready. Much of what men let pass for worship, the Lord literally cannot stand!
Has the Lord withheld something from you lately? Trust His judgment & timing is completely in line with His character.
Blessings.
Steve Wiggins
“Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his officials so that I may do these miraculous signs of Mine among them, and so that you may tell your son and grandson how severely I dealt with the Egyptians and performed miraculous signs among them, and you will know that I am the Lord.’” (Exodus 10: 1-2)
There has been an ages-long debate over the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart. Some hold to a strict belief that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart, while others say Pharaoh hardened his own heart.
Those who say God hardened Pharaoh’s heart usually carry the inference that He kept Pharaoh from believing. It is as if Pharaoh could not have softened, even if he wanted to. I find that hard to believe because the bible says that God does not delight in punishing the wicked, but rather He delights when they turn from their wickedness and trust Him. (Ezekiel 33: 11)
I believe God gave Pharaoh the same chance He gave anyone else, but He knew Pharaoh would not believe. God knew the same plagues that would make many repent, would make many others hate Him even more. In a sense, the Lord DID harden Pharaoh’s heart, because the plagues came from God. That said, it was totally Pharaoh’s decision as to how he would respond. God just knew.
Perhaps the best testimony to my belief is from the bible itself, in the final verses of Exodus, chapter 9.
“When Pharaoh saw that the rain, hail, and thunder had ceased, he sinned again and hardened his heart, he and his officials. So Pharaoh’s heart hardened, and he did not let the Israelites go, as the Lord said through Moses.” (Exodus 9: 34-35)
In a similar way, the Lord did not make the Israelites believe, any more than He made Pharaoh not believe. Each man has a choice. ( Joshua 24: 15)
The question is: What do you want your legacy to be? Will you choose judgement or deliverance?
Blessings.
Steve Wiggins
Artist In Residence
Minister Of Music
Exodus 8
“Pharaoh responded, “I will let you go and sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness, but don’t go very far. Make an appeal for me.” Exodus 8: 28
The plagues were disciplinary chastisements of God. Instead of annihilating the tyrant by one stroke, God, in His divine forbearance, inflicted 10 successive plagues to break his pride.
Notice how different the ways of God are from the ways of man. Human warriors attack by surprise; they don’t space out their blows; and when he has him beneath his feet, he makes an end of him. But God warned Pharaoh 10 times, and each time the Lord gave Pharaoh the opportunity to repent. Before punishing him, God showed him mercy.
There is grace and merciful forgiveness for all who repent; but there is unsparing punishment for those who, hardening their hearts to the voice of God, continue in their stubborn ways.
But what is repentance?
Repentance is more than lip service. It is more than praying a prayer, walking an isle, donating money, etc. Repentance is complete surrender, giving-over of your life to the Lord. Anything less falls-short of what the Lord requires.
Here in verse 28 of Exodus 8, Pharaoh seems to have repented. But Pharaoh is not repenting. He is negotiating.
For a moment, try thinking of Egypt as representative of “the world”. Pharaoh can represent a personal demonic bondage holding you captive, threatening you against trusting the Lord. Imagine yourself as being so valuable that two warring kingdoms would fight to the death to obtain you. One wants to exploit you, while the other wants to lavish its love upon you.
Now, imagine yourself hearing the truth of the gospel, about Jesus’ offering of grace, mercy and forgiveness for all who would repent. Imagine a growing desire in your heart, to obey the God’s voice...to trust Jesus.
The enemy senses you are about to be won by the Lord, so it offers a compromise: follow God, but not completely.
Don’t buy the lie. Anything less than completely surrendering to follow Jesus is not true repentance. Ask yourself: Have you surrendered your life to the Lord, or are you still in negotiations?
Blessings.
Steve Wiggins
Exodus 6
“Then the Lord spoke to Moses, ‘Go and tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the Israelites go from his land.’ But Moses said in the Lord’s presence: ‘If the Israelites will not listen to me, then how will Pharaoh listen to me, since I am such a poor speaker?’” Exodus 6: 10-12
Often times in my church experience, I have heard it taught that Moses had a speech impediment. The reason many give for this assumption is from Moses’ own admission, “I am such a poor speaker.” In other bible translations, the verse is interpreted: “I am a man of faltering lips.” It is easy to see why theologians would come to the conclusion that Moses couldn’t speak well.
In actuality, the verse literally interprets, “I have uncircumcised lips.” Moses’ argument wasn’t that he had a speech impediment. It was that he had a “righteousness” impediment. He didn’t believe he was righteous enough to effectively minister. He had a confidence problem.
We also know that there was nothing wrong with Moses’ speech, based on Stephen’s testimony before his martyrdom. “So Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was powerful in his speech and actions.” Acts 7: 22
Ultimately, the greatest testimony was that of God, who said, “Therefore, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh so that you may lead my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.” Ex 3: 10
Why is it that we must be confident in ourselves before we will place confidence in God? Faith works the other way around. We are first called to do the thing we are uncertain of, then, once God has accomplished His purpose through us, we grow in faith.
God’s calling is our equipping. That is to say, He supplies all we need to accomplish what He calls us to achieve. We may not have all the supplies we need on the outset, but He will supply them as needed, along the way.
As we continue through the book of Exodus, watch as Moses becomes bolder. His confidence builds ashe experiences God’s faithfulness. Don’t be afraid of what God is calling you to. Be afraid of not following.
Blessings.
Steve Wiggins
Exodus 2
“Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, ‘Should I go and call a woman from the Hebrews to nurse the boy for you?’ ‘Go.’ Pharaoh’s daughter told her. The girl went and called the boy’s mother. The Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will pay your wages.’ So the woman took the by and nursed him.” Ex 2: 7-9
At a time when Egyptian men were killing Hebrew babies, God used a force unstoppable by men to save Moses. God used women!
Several years ago, there was an extremely popular book titled, “Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus”. The bestseller swept through pop culture and enlightened both genders as to the differences between the sexes, by utilizing simple terms.
In a simple term, God used women to save Israel. He drew from their innate nurturing tendencies. Men could kill a baby out of duty, but women would have to betray their nature, their souls.
The rabbis say, “Pharaoh’s plans for the annihilation of the Israelite children are defeated by women-the human feelings of the midwives, the tender sympathy of a woman of royal birth, and a sister’s watchfulness and resource in extremity. It was to the merit of pious women that Israel owed its redemption in Egypt.” I would add, God directed the hearts of those women to respond in the way He created them to naturally.
Do you struggle beneath the weight of this world? Do you find it more and more difficult to honor God in your thoughts and actions, because of the “enemy’s” intimidation?
Remember the simple Proverb, taught to children: Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your understanding; think about Him in all your ways, and He will guide you on the right paths.” Prov 3: 5-6
Sometimes, when it seems the Lord has allowed you to drift into the enemy’s hands, it is there He provides deliverance. It is comforting to know we don’t have to save our own lives. We need only to trust and obey the Lord with all we have.
Blessings.
Steve Wiggins
Exodus 1
“A new king who had not known Joseph came to power in Egypt. He said to his people, ‘Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and powerful than we are. Let us deal shrewdly with them; otherwise they will multiply further, and if war breaks out, they may join our enemies, fight against us, and leave the country.’” Ex 8-10
I find it interesting that the Pharaoh stated no specific fault with the Israelites. In fact, there is no accusation of wrongdoing, only a suspicion. I believe Pharaoh’s suspicion was evidence of the guilty conscience of a viciously ambitious man.
There are two significant biblical times when Hebrew infants were murdered: Pre Exodus Egypt, and Pre-advent Bethlehem. Both Herod and this particular Pharaoh shared similar climbs to power. They took their positions by force and dirty politics.
The monarch of this new Egyptian dynasty was probably Rameses II. Joseph served one of the Hyskos (Shepherd) kings, an Asian dynasty whose rule in Egypt began in Egypt centuries before him. Their rule came to an end not long after the death of Joseph, when the Hyskos were driven back into Asia, and a descendent of the native dynasty regained the throne.
This new Pharaoh undoubtedly was raised on nationalistic pride, fueled by generations of hatred and mistrust of foreigners.
I grew up in the Southern United States. In those days, there was an intense race struggles between Americans of African and European descent. Most often, the hatred had nothing to do with the character of individuals. It was simple fear, mixed with some degree of ambitious competition.
In a similar way, Pharaoh’s prejudice against the Hebrews was completely unfounded and irrational. He simply loved power more than people.
So, what great lesson can we learn from this injustice? There are probably several lessons in this passage, but let’s focus on this notion: In the times immediately preceding God’s deliverance of Israel, He began preparing Egypt to expel the Hebrews, and Israel’s desire to leave.
Take a moment and reflect on your present life situation. Where is the Lord calling you? What factors is the He allowing, in preparation of your deliverance?
Blessings.
Steve Wiggins
