Happy Friday and Happy opening day of the State Fair of Texas. What a big day of the year it always is when the gates of the great State Fair open up again. The sights, sounds and smells will abound that can only be claimed by the state fair. The smell of all things frying, the sounds of laughter and care-free times from the revelers and of course the sights; the lights, the colors, the overabundance of everything is a visual assault to the eyes. In fact, that would be a great way to describe a day at the fair. An overabundance of stimulation to the senses. You see too much, you eat too much, you smile and laugh to beyond capacity and as a result memories are made. Margie and I have made wheelbarrow loads of memories at the fair. For us, the state fair has been a canvas for countless strokes of pigmented oil that has colored our lives. Oh, the great State Fair of Texas.
Well, there is no state fair going on in Egypt today in chapter 10, alas, just the opposite. We will see two of the last three plagues strike the unbelievers of Egypt as Pharaoh continues to staunchly refuse to let the Israelites go. But we will see the mighty mass that is his hard heart start to move just a bit today. As God chips away at everything Pharaoh has and is, he finally starts to bargain with God. Compromising with God, something we are all guilty of.
Plague eight brings locusts upon the land. Now when I was growing up locusts were what we called heat bugs. Those big ol’ nasty looking flying beetle things that would shed their skin once a year and sing like crazy during the heat of the day. They’re properly called Cicadas. A locust is very similar in physical appearance to what we called a grasshopper, yet it has one big difference, locusts have a swarm behavior where grasshoppers do not. Serapia was the Egyptian protector from locusts and we’ll see God humiliate her as she is powerless to defend against this massive swarm. And speaking of swarm, this was a swarm like no other. As Pharaoh once again hardens his heart against God’s request to let the people go, God sends a swarm of locusts the likes of which the world had never seen or ever will see again. “The locusts came up over all the land of Egypt and settled on the whole country of Egypt, such a dense swarm of locusts as had never been before, nor ever will be again.” (Ex 10:14) We’re also told in Ex 10:5-6, “and they shall cover the face of the land, so that no one can see the land. And they shall eat what is left to you after the hail, and they shall eat every tree of yours that grows in the field, and they shall fill your houses and the houses of all your servants and of all the Egyptians, as neither your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen, from the day they came on earth to this day.” This was, as we would say, “a problem.”
I have a bunch of big beautiful green leafy tropical canna lilies by our garage. I love cannas because it’s as tropical as you can get in the Texas heat. But I noticed last week a grasshopper has apparently moved in. I noticed several of the big glossy green leaves were chewed up and about gone. I looked at this leaf that is the size of a baby elephant’s ear and wondered how one or even two locusts could get this amount of eating done. Amazing what these little guys can consume. They see this leaf like I see a cruise buffet. Just imagine what the largest swarm of locusts the world has ever known did to the lush fertile valley of the Nile after it had flooded, leaving the Earth moist, green and ripe. They decimated everything. Food, vegetation, wheat, seed, grain, stalks, leaves, trees, grass, weeds, you name it, gone.
This plague drives Pharaoh to his knees. He sees his kingdom literally stripped bare and he wants to talk. But his talk is not one of concession but one of compromise. He wants to make a deal with God and well, God just doesn’t make deals. So here comes plague number 9.
Darkness. Plague number 9 is levelled at the most powerful, the most worshipped of all gods in Egypt, Ra the sun god. The image of the sun disc was possibly the most prevalent of all images in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. The power of the sun heated, grew food, gave light and provided the rhythm of life. And in the snap of His fingers God takes all that away. The land goes dark for three entire days. Well, at least it does for the Egyptians, the Israelites are over in Goshen having a bright sunny beach day because the Lord did not bring darkness upon his people, only the unbelieving Egyptians.
And this was not just some dusky twilight we’re taking about, it was really dark, “a darkness to be felt.” (Ex 10:21b) “So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was pitch darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days.” (Ex 10:22b-23a)
You know darkness is a funny thing. What we think is dark is not really dark. The absolute lack of all light is a rarity. Light is almost always present even in the darkest moments. But if you seek it, you can find “a darkness to be felt.” I have only ever experienced this once and it was at Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. I was on a business trip, we were close, so we stopped in for the super quick “tourist look.” When we got into the biggest of the caverns, "the big room", they cut the light and BAM! Pure, absolute, utter darkness. The true absence of all light. It was as God says, “a dark you could feel.” Of course, you literally could not see your hand in front of your face, but the loss went beyond sight. It somehow felt that the darkness was robbing you of your other senses. You could feel the darkness somehow draining your being. Pulling at the fiber of your DNA. Taking away.
It makes me think of 1 John 1:5, “This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” You see God is pure light and His light permeates this world. It is more difficult than you think to find a place that is absolutely void of His light. But when you do experience it, “it will be felt.” This is what the Egyptians experienced, pure, pitch black; the absence of God. And by the way, what do you think Hell will be like for those that reject God and are eternally separated from the presence of God? Yep, pure darkness. “ I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” An eternity spent in absolute, pure pitch black darkness, the absence of any of God’s light. The absence of God's presence.
But what we notice as these plagues ramp up in their intensity is that Pharaoh all of the sudden wants to bargain. Not relent but bargain. Not consent but compromise. The deal that God is offering is let my people go to worship and offer sacrifices to me in the wilderness. All of them. Men, women, children, their stuff, their flocks, their herds. All of them and all of their stuff. Folks, the Israelites are moving out and Pharaoh does not like the idea of his 2 million free slave laborers walking out of his kingdom. So first he makes a compromise, I’ll them go, but just not very far. They can go over there by that tree where I can see them kind of a deal. After another devastating plague He tries another compromise with God. I’ll let the men go but the women and children must stay. Basically, by this offer he is guaranteeing that the men will come back. After another devastating plague, He agrees to let the men, women and children all go but they can’t take their flocks. Your flocks were your wealth and food, you couldn’t live without them, so this again would guarantee the return of the Israelites. All of this compromise and where did it get Pharaoh? It will get him the delivery of the 10th plague. And what death, loss and pain it will bring. It will bring “loud wailing (weeping) throughout Egypt—worse than there has ever been or ever will be again.” (Ex 11:6) I can't imagine this weeping that took place. You see, you can’t compromise with God.
Although we try right? God makes an offer and we counter. I mean, I don’t think many times it’s intentional, it’s just who we are. We all inherited a sin nature and that nature dictates that we are selfish, arrogant, prideful, egocentric creatures. Only through accepting Jesus as our Lord and Savior can this sin nature have any hope of changing. (2 Cor 5:17) Through Jesus we can learn to see God’s plan and accept it for what it is. The unmovable, unchangeable, unfaltering instruction of God. The next time God makes a request, watch out for trying to compromise or make deals with Him. His plan is perfect and does not need to be altered, bettered or fixed. It’s already perfect the way it is. Your job? Simply accept it and praise Him for His love, mercy and grace upon your life.
I pray you have a blessed weekend and join me back on Monday as we’ll look at the 10th and final plague and the Passover, which will finally free the Israelites from their bondage, or so they think.
Blessings.
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