The MacArthur Study Bible, NKJV
Page 48
4:24–26 The presence of Zipporah’s name indicates that the personal pronouns refer to Moses. She, judging by her action of suddenly and swiftly circumcising her son, understood that the danger to her husband’s life was intimately connected to the family’s not bearing the sign of the covenant given to Abraham for all his descendants (Gen. 17:10–14). Her evaluation, “You are a husband of blood to me,” suggests her own revulsion with this rite of circumcision, which Moses should have performed. The result, however, was God’s foregoing the threat and letting Moses go (v. 26a). The reaction of God at this point dramatically underscored the seriousness of the sign He had prescribed. See note on Jer. 4:4.
4:29, 30 The “leadership team” functioned as instructed: Aaron told all and Moses performed all the signs given to him (vv. 2–9).
4:31 So the people believed…then they bowed…and worshiped. Just as God predicted, they responded in belief at the signs and in worship at the explanation of God’s awareness of their misery.
Exodus 5
5:1 Let My people go. With this command from Israel’s LORD, the confrontation between Pharaoh and Moses, between Pharaoh and God, commenced. It was a command Pharaoh would hear often in the days leading up to the Exodus.
5:2 Who is the LORD…? In all likelihood Pharaoh knew of Israel’s God, but his interrogative retort insolently and arrogantly rejected Him as having any power to make demands of Egypt’s superior ruler.
5:3–5 As a follow-up to Pharaoh’s rejection, the spokesmen rephrase more specifically their request, together with a warning of possible divine judgment upon Israel for their failure to obey their God. Pharaoh saw this simply as a ruse to reduce the hours put in by his slave work force.
5:6–9 Showing his authority to give orders to Israel, Pharaoh immediately increased their workload and the severity of their bondage. By adding, “let them not regard false words,” he showed his negative evaluation of God’s words.
5:10 taskmasters…and their officers. When combined with “officers of the children of Israel” (v. 15), a 3-level command structure is seen to have been in place—Egyptian section leaders and labor gang bosses, and Israelite foremen.
5:11 straw. Ancient documents from Egypt show that straw was used as a necessary component of bricks—it helped bind the clay together.
5:15–19 The formal labor complaint at the highest level was rejected with an emphatic evaluation of laziness on the part of Israel and a demand that production not slack.
5:20–21 The leadership team evidently knew of the lodging of the formal labor complaint and waited outside the royal hall in order to meet Israel’s representatives. The meeting was definitely not a cordial one, with accusations raised both about the propriety of and the authority of the words and actions of Aaron and Moses toward Pharaoh.
5:22, 23 Moses returned to the LORD. Whether Moses and his brother remonstrated with the foremen about their strong and wrong evaluation remains a moot point. Rather, the focus is upon Moses, who remonstrated with the LORD in prayer. Evidently, Moses did not anticipate what effect Pharaoh’s refusal and reaction would have upon his own people. Confrontation with Pharaoh so far had provoked both angry resentment of Israel by the Egyptians and of Moses by Israel—this was not the expected scenario!
Exodus 6
6:1 Now you shall see. The LORD announced in response to Moses’ prayer that finally the stage had been set for dealing with Pharaoh, who, in consequence, would only be able to urge Israel to leave.
6:2–5 God spoke to Moses and reminded him of His promises to the patriarchs. Once again the focal point of the covenant was the land of Canaan deeded to their descendants by divine decree. The fact that this covenant was remembered meant obvious removal from Egypt!
6:2, 3 I am the LORD. The same self-existent, eternal God, Yahweh, had been there in the past with the patriarchs; no change had occurred in Him, either in His covenant or promises.
6:3 God Almighty…LORD…not known. Since the name Yahweh was spoken before the Flood (Gen. 4:26) and later by the patriarchs (Gen. 9:26; 12:8; 22:14; 24:12), the special significance of Yahweh, unknown to them, but to be known by their descendants, must arise from what God would reveal of Himself in keeping the covenant and in redeeming Israel. See notes on 3:13, 14.
6:4 My covenant. The Abrahamic Covenant (cf. Gen. 15:1–21; 17:1–8).
6:6–8 God instructed Moses to remind Israel of what they had previously been told: of God’s remembering the covenant with Abraham, of His seeing their misery, of His delivering them from it, of His granting to them the land of Canaan, and thus taking them there. The repetitive “I will” (7 times) marked God’s personal, direct involvement in Israel’s affairs. Bracketed, as they were, by the declaration, “I am Yahweh,” denoted certainty of fulfillment.
6:9 because of anguish of spirit. The bondage was so great that it blocked out even the stirring words Moses had just delivered to them (vv. 6–8).
6:12 uncircumcised lips? See notes on 4:10.
6:14–27 The genealogical information formally identified Moses and Aaron as descendants of Levi, third son of Jacob by Leah. It also listed Aaron’s son, Eleazar, and grandson, Phinehas, both of whom would become Israel’s High-Priests. Mention of Levi in company with Reuben and Simeon recalled, perhaps, the unsavory background belonging to these three tribal fathers (Gen. 49:3–7) and emphasized that the choice of Moses and Aaron was not due to an exemplary lineage. This is intended to be a representative genealogy, not a complete one.
6:28—7:5 A summary of the mission to Egypt resumes the narrative after the genealogical aside on Moses and Aaron.
Exodus 7
7:1 as God to Pharaoh. Moses, as the spokesman and ambassador for God, would speak with authority and power. your prophet. Aaron, as the divinely appointed spokesman for Moses, would forthrightly deliver the message given to him. Cf. Acts 14:11–13, where Barnabas and Paul were so perceived in a similar situation.
7:4 My armies and My people. The first term in this double-barreled designation of Israel occurred originally in 6:26. The nation was seen as organized like an army with its different divisions (its tribes) and also as God’s military instrument upon the Canaanites. The second term with its possessive pronoun revealed the incongruity of Pharaoh’s acting as though these people belonged to him.
7:5 know that I am the LORD. This purpose of the Exodus finds repeated mention in God’s messages to Pharaoh and in God’s descriptions of what He was doing (cf. 7:16; 8:10, 22; 9:14, 16, 29; 14:4, 18). Some of the Egyptians did come to understand the meaning of the name Yahweh, for they responded appropriately to the warning of the seventh plague (9:20), and others accompanied Israel into the wilderness (12:38). In the final analysis, Egypt would not be able to deny the direct involvement of the God of Israel in their rescue from bondage and the destruction of Egypt’s army.
7:9 Show a miracle. Pharaoh’s desire for accreditation would not go unanswered. That which God had done for Moses with the rod (4:2–9), and Moses had copied for Israel (4:30, 31), also became the sign of authority before Pharaoh (cf. 7:10).
7:11 magicians. Magic and sorcery played a major role in the pantheistic religion of Egypt. Its ancient documents record the activities of the magicians, one of the most prominent being the charming of serpents. These men were also styled “wise men” and “sorcerers,” i.e., the learned men of the day and the religious as well (the word for sorcery being derived from a word meaning “to offer prayers”). Two of these men were named Jannes and Jambres (cf. 2 Tim. 3:8). Any supernatural power came from Satan (cf. 2 Cor. 11:13–15). enchantments. By means of their “secret arts” or “witchcraft,” the wise men, sorcerers, and magicians demonstrated their abilities to perform a similar feat. Whether by optical illusion, sleight of hand, or learned physical manipulation of a snake, all sufficiently skillful enough to totally fool Pharaoh and his servants, or by evil supernaturalism, the evaluation given in the inspired record is simply “they also did in like manner.” However, the turning of ro
ds into snakes, and later turning water into blood (7:22) and calling forth frogs (8:7), were not the same as trying to create lice from inanimate dust (8:18–19). At that point, the magicians had no option but to confess their failure.
7:12 Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods. The loss of the magicians’ rods in this fashion gave evidence of the superiority of God’s power when Aaron’s rod gulped down theirs.
Ex. 7:13
The Ten Plagues on Egypt
The Plague: 1. Blood (7:20)
Egyptian Deity: Hapi
The Effect: Pharaoh hardened (7:22)
The Plague: 2. Frogs (8:6)
Egyptian Deity: Heqt
The Effect: Pharaoh begs relief, promises freedom (8:8), but is hardened (8:15)
The Plague: 3. Lice (8:17)
Egyptian Deity: Hathor, Nut
The Effect: Pharaoh hardened (8:19)
The Plague: 4. Flies (8:24)
Egyptian Deity: Shu, Isis
The Effect: Pharaoh bargains (8:28), but is hardened (8:32)
The Plague: 5. Livestock diseased (9:6)
Egyptian Deity: Apis
The Effect: Pharaoh hardened (9:7)
The Plague: 6. Boils (9:10)
Egyptian Deity: Sekhmet
The Effect: Pharaoh hardened (9:12)
The Plague: 7. Hail (9:23)
Egyptian Deity: Geb
The Effect: Pharaoh begs relief (9:27), promises freedom (9:28), but is hardened (9:35)
The Plague: 8. Locusts (10:13)
Egyptian Deity: Serapis
The Effect: Pharaoh bargains (10:11), begs relief (10:17), but is hardened (10:20)
The Plague: 9. Darkness (10:22)
Egyptian Deity: Ra
The Effect: Pharaoh bargains (10:24), but is hardened (10:27)
The Plague: 10. Death of firstborn (12:29)
Egyptian Deity:
The Effect: Pharaoh and Egyptians beg Israel to leave Egypt (12:31-33)
© 1993 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
7:14—10:29 The obvious miraculous nature of the 10 plagues cannot be explained by identifying them with natural occurrences to which Moses then applied a theological interpretation. The specific prediction of, as well as the intensity of, each plague moved it beyond being normal, natural phenomena. The notification of the specific discriminatory nature of some of the plagues, distinguishing between Hebrew and Egyptian (cf. 8:23; 9:4, 6; 10:23), or Goshen and the rest of the land (cf. 8:22; 9:26), as they did, also marks the supernatural nature of these events.
7:15 in the morning. Apparently, Pharaoh habitually went to the river for washing or, more likely, for the performance of some religious rite. Three times Moses would meet him at this early morning rendezvous to warn of plagues, i.e., the first, fourth, and seventh (8:20; 9:13). by the river’s bank. The first confrontation of the plague cycle took place on the banks of the Nile, the sacred waterway of the land, whose annual ebb and flow contributed strategically and vitally to the agricultural richness of Egypt. Hymns of thanksgiving were often sung for the blessings brought by the Nile, the country’s greatest, single economic resource.
7:17 blood. The Heb. word does not denote red coloring such as might be seen when red clay is washed downstream, but denotes actual substance, i.e., blood.
7:19, 20 the waters…all the waters. The use of different words, “waters, streams, rivers, ponds, and pools,” indicates graphically the extent of the plague. Even buckets of wood and stone filled with water and kept inside the homes could not escape the curse of their contents being turned into blood.
7:22 the magicians…did so with their enchantments. How ludicrous and revealing that the magicians resorted to copycat methodology instead of reversing the plague. What they did, bringing just more blood, did serve, however, to bolster Pharaoh’s stubbornness.
7:24 dug all around the river. The only recourse was to tap into the natural water table, the subterranean water supply. Evidently this was the water which was available to the magicians to use (v. 22).
7:25 seven days. An interval of time occurred before another warning was delivered, indicating that the plagues did not occur rapidly in uninterrupted succession.
Exodus 8
8:1 Go to Pharaoh. The warning for the second plague was delivered to Pharaoh, presumably at his palace. Warnings for the fifth (9:1) and eighth (10:1) plagues also occurred at the palace.
8:2 smite. The verb God used also meant “to plague.” Various terms (lit. from the Heb.), namely “plagues” (9:14), “strike” (12:13), and “pestilence” (9:3, 15), were employed to impress them with the severity of what was happening in Egypt. frogs. That Egyptians favored frogs was seen in the wearing of amulets in the shape of a frog and in the prohibition against intentionally killing frogs, who were considered sacred animals. The croaking of frogs from the river and pools of water signaled to farmers that the gods who controlled the Nile’s flooding and receding had once again made the land fertile. The god Hapi was venerated on this occasion because he had caused alluvial deposits to come downstream. Further, the frog was the representation, the image, of the goddess Heqt, the wife of the god Khum, and the symbol of resurrection and fertility. The presence of frogs in such abundance, all over everywhere outside and inside the houses (vv. 3, 13), however, brought only frustration, dismay, and much discomfort, rather than the normal signal that the fields were ready for cultivating and harvesting.
8:7 the magicians did so. Once again, instead of reversing the plague, the magicians in demonstrating the power of their secret arts only appeared to increase the frog population to the added discomfort of the people. Their power was not sufficient enough to do more than play “copycat.” That the magicians could duplicate but not eradicate the problem was, however, sufficient to solidify royal stubbornness.
8:8 Entreat the LORD. Using the LORD’s name and begging for relief through His intervention was more a point in negotiation and not a personal or official recognition of Israel’s LORD.
8:9 remain in the river only. A specific detail like this in Moses’ question indicates that the Nile and the waters had returned to normal and again continued to support life.
8:10 Tomorrow. Having been granted the privilege to set the time when the LORD would answer Moses’ prayer for relief, Pharaoh requested a cessation only on the next day. Presumably he hoped something else would happen before then so that he would not have to acknowledge the LORD’s power in halting the plague, nor be obligated to Moses and his God. But God answered the prayer of Moses, and Pharaoh remained obstinate (v. 15).
8:16 Without prior warning, the third plague descended on the country. The same absence of warning occurred for the sixth (9:8, 9) and the ninth (10:21) plagues. A 3-fold pattern surfaces: prior warning at the river, then at the palace, and then no warning given. lice. The Heb. term is preferably taken to designate tiny, stinging gnats barely visible to the naked eye. Those priests, who fastidiously kept themselves religiously pure by frequent washing and by shaving off body hair, were afflicted and rendered impure in their duties.
8:17 All the dust of the land…throughout all the land. The record stresses by its repetition of “all” and “land” the tremendous extent and severity of this pestilence.
8:19 This is the finger of God. The failure of the magicians to duplicate this plague elicited from them this amazing evaluation, not only among themselves, but publicly before Pharaoh, who nevertheless remained recalcitrant, unwilling to acknowledge the power of God.
8:21 swarms. The LXX translates “swarms” as “dog-fly,” a bloodsucking insect. The ichneumon fly, which deposited its eggs on other living things so the larvae could feast upon it, was considered the manifestation of the god Uatchit. “The land was corrupted because of the swarms” (v. 24) is hardly an evaluation propitious for any insect-god! Whatever the specific type of fly might have been, the effect of the plague was intense and distressful.
8:22 set apart the land of Goshen. For the first time in connection with the plagues, God s
pecifically noted the discrimination to be made—Israel would be untouched! The term “sign” (v. 23) describes the distinction which was being drawn and which was also specifically noted for the fifth, seventh, ninth, and tenth plagues. Coupled with the repeated emphasis on “My people” in God’s pronouncements, the specific distinguishing between Israel in Goshen and Egypt itself highlighted both God’s personal and powerful oversight of His people.
8:23 Tomorrow. The plague-warning on this occasion stated exactly when it would strike, giving Pharaoh and his people opportunity to repent or yield. “Tomorrow” was also the due time for the fifth, seventh, and eighth plagues (9:5, 18; 10:4), and “about midnight” was the stated time for the ninth plague to commence (11:4). See note on 11:4.
8:26 sacrificing the abomination of the Egyptians. An attempt at appeasement by compromise on the part of Pharaoh—”Go, sacrifice…in the land”—was countered by Moses’ pointing out that Israel’s sacrifices would not be totally acceptable to the Egyptians, who might even react violently—”will they not stone us?” This evaluation Pharaoh immediately understood. Either their strong dislike of shepherds and sheep (Gen. 46:34) or Israel’s sacrificial animals being sacred ones in their religion brought about Egyptian aversion to Israel’s sacrifices.
8:27–29 We will go…I will let you go. The first declaration showed the decision to travel no less than 3 days beyond Egyptian borders was a non-negotiable item. The second declaration showed Pharaoh trying to keep that decision to travel and sacrifice strictly under his authority and not as a response to the LORD’s request for His people.