Episode 2465 - Lesson 4 - Wednesday July 23 - Flies, Livestock, and Boils

Flies, Livestock, and BoilsRead Exodus 8:20-9:12. What does this account teach about however great may be the manifestations of God’s power and glory, humanity still has freedom to reject Him?The Egyptian god Uatchit was the fly god of swamps and marshes. The god Khepri (of the rising Sun, creation, and rebirth) was depicted with the head of a scarab beetle. These "gods" were defeated by the Lord. In this account (Exod. 8:20-24), while the Egyptians were suffering, the Hebrews were protected. In fact, no further plagues affected them.Again, all this was an attempt by God to let Pharaoh know that "I am the LORD in the midst of the land" (Exod. 8:22, NKJV).Thus, Pharaoh began to bargain. No doubt the pressure was mounting. He was willing for Israel to worship their God and to sacrifice to Him, but only in the land of Egypt (Exod. 8:25). His conditions could not be met because some of the animals were considered sacred in Egypt, and sacrificing them would have caused violence against the Hebrews. Also, this was not God’s plan for Israel.Meanwhile, the next plague (Exod. 9:1-7) falls on the livestock. Hathor, the Egyptian goddess of love and protection, was depicted with the head of a cow. A bull god Apis was also very popular and highly regarded in ancient Egypt. Thus, in this fifth plague, additional principal deities were defeated when the Egyptians’ livestock died.In the sixth plague (Exod. 9:8-12), the total defeat of Isis, the goddess of medicine, magic, and wisdom, is made manifest. We also see the defeat of deities like Sekhmet (goddess of war and epidemics) and Imhotep (god of medicine and healing). They are unable to protect their own worshipers. Ironically, now even the magicians and sorcerers are so afflicted that they cannot appear in court, which shows that they are helpless against the Creator of heaven and earth.For the first time in the story about the ten plagues, a text says that "the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart" (Exod. 9:12, NIV). However confusing this phrase might be, when understood in the full context, it reveals again that the Lord will let us reap the consequences of our own continual rejection of Him.Pharaoh’s problem wasn’t intellectual; he had enough rational evidence to make the right choice. Instead, it was a problem of his heart. What should this tell us about why we must guard our hearts?