V16 -17 – Who is like the Lord? Mighty in power?
Moses and Aaron just strike the ground and the dust turns into gnats. Just imagine that. Our God is mighty in power, awesome in splendor.
Exodus 15:11 NIV – Who among the gods is like you, Lord? Who is like you— majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders?
In this part of the song of Moses and Miriam, they exclaim after seeing all the signs that God has done that there is no one like the Lord. No one like him in all the earth and in the heavens. He fills everything and is all in all.
V18-19 – Though they had been stubborn, the magicians now acknowledge that this was God. They could no longer compete with him. And they start realizing that they are dealing with one who has much power than them. In fact, they even tell Pharaoh this.
But Pharaoh continues to remain stubborn. This shows the extent of the stubbornness of the heart, that even though He sees what is happening, his heart still remains hard. In times of pain and trouble, people should seek the Lord and realize their need for him. But unfortunately, many, like Pharaoh here, do not respond to the Lord and still harden their hearts.
God gets all the glory even in this plague because the magicians now admit that this is God.
V20-24 – The Lord still says the same thing – Let my people go so that they can worship me. And this time, God clearly sets out a distinction between the Egyptians and the Israelites in that the flies would not be in Goshen where the Israelites live. The purpose of this was so that Pharaoh would know that the Lord was present even in the heart of the land. God is very clear about making himself known to all men and He does that here.
God is present in our land, even in the heart of our countries and He seeks to ensure that all people know Him. His purpose is for all to feel his love and power. That they would recognize that they need him. We must recognize our need for God and draw close to Him.
Joel 2: 12-13 GNBUK – “But even now,” says the LORD, “repent sincerely and return to me with fasting and weeping and mourning. Let your broken heart show your sorrow; tearing your clothes is not enough.” Come back to the LORD your God. He is kind and full of mercy; he is patient and keeps his promise; he is always ready to forgive and not punish.
I see a lot of similarity between what Moses and Aaron does in giving this warning to Pharaoh and how Jonah gave the warning to Nineveh. In both, God promises punishment if his word is not heeded to. But the difference was in their response. Pharaoh’s heart remains hard but the people of Nineveh are very quick to repent and fast, even up to their animals.
And the Lord did not destroy Nineveh. But He continues to punish Egypt and in the end, will receive all the glory.
V25-32 -Pharaoh gives in for a moment but says that they should offer their sacrifices to the Lord in the land of Egypt.
But Moses and Aaron knew God’s command. They were to take a three day journey and sacrifice to the Lord in the wilderness. And so Moses and Aaron insisted on that. They were not tempted to change God’s instruction. They were careful to obey every bit of the word given by God.
This is a warning and is a great example given to us. Do not twist God’s word. Obey and follow it as it is. If He commands me to do something, I must not twist it but do exactly what He says.
And I must not be lazy about it. I must know that there is not much time and so I must take every opportunity He gives me to do as He instructs in every of my life. Because I only have but a certain set number of days on earth to make decisions that will impact eternity.
Ephesians 5: 15-16 NIV – Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.
Psalm 139:16 NIV – Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
John 9:4 NLT – We must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent us. The night is coming, and then no one can work.
Pharaoh agrees to let them go but says they should not go too far. And Moses warns him not to lie to them again. But that’s exactly what Pharaoh does. He lies to them and by so doing continued to heap God’s anger on himself.
Romans 2:5 NLT – But because you are stubborn and refuse to turn from your sin, you are storing up terrible punishment for yourself. For a day of anger is coming, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.
We cannot mock God. He is not man. He asks that we draw closer and He promises that He is ready to fill us with his Holy Spirit:
Isa 44:3 NKJV – For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, And floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, And My blessing on your offspring;
Psalm 81:10 NIV – I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth and I will fill it.
And the Lord indeed says this in that chapter of Psalms, in a wishing voice as we see in the verses before and after the above verse:
Psalm 81:6-16 NIV – I removed the burden from their shoulders; their hands were set free from the basket. In your distress you called and I rescued you, I answered you out of a thundercloud; I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Hear me, my people, and I will warn you— if you would only listen to me, Israel! You shall have no foreign god among you; you shall not worship any god other than me. I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth and I will fill it. “But my people would not listen to me; Israel would not submit to me. So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices. “If my people would only listen to me, if Israel would only follow my ways, how quickly I would subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes! Those who hate the Lord would cringe before him, and their punishment would last forever. But you would be fed with the finest of wheat; with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”
And again, He says:
Revelation 3:18 NIV – I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.
Let us not delay any longer. Let our response be like the Psalmist:
Psalms 27:7-8 NASB 1995 – Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice, And be gracious to me and answer me. When You said, “Seek My face,” my heart said to You, “Your face, O LORD, I shall seek.”
(Help me father against delayed obedience. I must not be slow to obey you. Help me father to make most of the time you give me.)