Read with Me
Exodus 9:8-12 (HCSB)
Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of furnace soot, and Moses is to throw it toward heaven in the sight of Pharaoh. It will become fine dust over the entire land of Egypt. It will become festering boils on man and beast throughout the land of Egypt.” So they took furnace soot and stood before Pharaoh. Moses threw it toward heaven, and it became festering boils on man and beast. The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils were on the magicians as well as on all the Egyptians. But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart and he did not listen to them, as the LORD had told Moses.
Listen with Me
This sixth plague, painful, festering boils that broke out on every person and every animal throughout Egypt (except for the Israelites and animals living in Goshen), caused wholesale disability due to the excruciating pain, and death from the infections. Even Pharaoh’s magicians were in such pain that they could not appear before Moses to challenge him.
But even though screams of the people of Egypt, including his own household, were able to reach Pharaoh’s ears, they could not touch his heart. God himself hardened Pharaoh’s heart so that he would not repent until He had fully demonstrated His power.
Some might respond to this truth by questioning God’s wisdom or His grace. If God had not hardened Pharaoh’s heart, isn’t it possible that he could have repented and relented sooner, not only releasing the Israelites earlier, but also sparing thousands of Egyptian lives?
The simple answer is no. God can see the end from the beginning, so He knew in advance that even if Pharaoh seemed to show repentance, as he already had during some of the earlier plagues, it would take the death of his own first born son to break his pride so that he would submit to God’s demands. So, rather than allow him to put an on a show of acquiescence to bring the plagues to an end, God hardened his heart so that his real character was continually on display.
Pray with Me
Father, it is sadly very common for us to think that You have the same temporal limitations as us, and to judge Your actions on the basis of that assumption. But You not only see into our hearts down to our deepest motives and attitudes, but You can also see what our motives, attitudes, and actions will be as time passes. It is only with Your help that we can have the right motives, attitudes, and actions. Help us, Lord! Amen.