Exodus 7-8: The Plagues

Exodus 7-8

Many people’s greatest fear is speaking in public.  In fact people say that they fear public speaking MORE than they fear death.  This fear is not something new, because Moses feared public speaking too.  In Exodus 6, Moses begins to give excuses for why he’s unable to carry out this mission: “Pharaoh won’t listen to me because I am ‘unskilled in speech’” (Exodus 6:12).

Just in case God missed hearing Moses the first time around, Moses asks again in Exodus 6:30, “Uh God, public speaking is not really my thing.  Are you sure you’ve got the right guy? (Paraphrased of course) 

But God was kind to Moses and gave him his very own prophet, Aaron!  Moses would tell Aaron what to say or do, and Aaron would then relay the message to Pharaoh.  In doing this, God accomplished two things: God doesn’t allow Moses to use his excuse that he is unskilled in speech, and He makes Moses look legit in Pharaoh’s eyes – “See, I make you as God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet” (Exodus 7:1).  How many times have you been afraid and made an excuse for something God was asking you to do?  Were you eventually obedient, like Moses?

And so begins the story of the ten plagues in Exodus 7 and 8.

By this time Moses and Aaron were confident.  They knew that God was going to use them to demonstrate just how GREAT God really is.  You see, God not only wanted to free the people of Israel, but God also wanted to demonstrate His great power so that Egypt would “know that I am the Lord” (Exodus 7:5, 17). 

Each of the four plagues we see in these two chapters became increasingly harsh – the turning of all water into blood for seven days, the frogs infesting all of the land, the dust of the earth turning into gnats or lice, and finally swarms of flies (except for where the Israelites lived).  Each plague corresponded to an Egyptian god, which showed the authority of the True God over the Egyptian gods.  Has God ever done great things to get your attention?  Did you listen, or did you ignore the signs?

In order for the Lord to demonstrate his power, He used Pharaoh to stand in the way of setting the Israelites free from slavery.  In just two chapters, Pharaoh’s heart was hardened seven times so that he would not let God’s people go (Exodus 7:3, 13, 14, 22; 8:15, 19, 32). This is continued in Exodus 9:7, 12, 35; 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10; 14:4, 8, and mentioned in 1 Samuel 6:6.  Each time Moses gives Pharaoh the chance to change his mind, repent, turn to the one true God, and free Israel.  Each time Pharaoh refuses.  All of Egypt receives God’s judgment in the form of plagues.  Were you ever too proud to listen to God?  Did your pride get in the way of something that God called you to do, not knowing He had much more in store for you?

Exodus 7 and 8 begins the great story of Moses saving the nation of Israel from the bondage of slavery.  This story has been passed down and told for thousands of years.  It testifies that God will go through great lengths to save His people that He loves.  Just as Moses was the savior for the people of Israel, God sent Jesus to be the Savior for the whole world.