And the story of Moses leading God's people out of Egypt begins.
Exodus 3:13-14
And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? and God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM, and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
As I read in the book of Exodus, I have always wondered, Why? God hardens Pharaoh's heart, why would he do that?
I counted twelve plagues that God sent on the Pharaoh and his people, and each time God hardened the heart of Pharaoh so that he did not let the people go.
1 Rod turned to a serpent
2 Waters turned to blood
3 Frogs everywhere
4 Lice
5 Flies
6 Cattle died
7 Boils
8 Pestilence
9 Hail
10 Locusts
11 Complete darkness
12 Death to all firstborn of the Pharaoh and his people
Each time though, God saved the people of Israel from suffering any of those plagues.
This time reading through this story, it dawned on me that had Pharaoh bent to Moses and said, "Okay, your people can go." What would really be the lesson in all this? Of course God knew that if he didn't hardened Pharaoh's heart, then there would be no lesson learned. God knew he had to show Pharaoh that he is the LORD. Pharaoh, each time, tried to have his Wise men and sorcerers compete and do the same, but they could not compete with the plagues that God sent.
Exodus 5: 2
And Pharaoh said, Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go.
Or at least that's my take on this scripture in reading it this time around.
I appreciate all who have stopped by each week to visit and share. Thank you.
The link up is below. Thanks for sharing a scripture blessing today.
~hugs 'n blessings~
Peabea
Sharing with:
You're on my mind today, Pat, and in my prayer again this morning. It was 30 years ago today that I lost my first husband to a drunk driver. As I sit here today and look back on all the Lord has done for me since, I'm so thankful. He took care of me every step of the way, gave me contentment in those first 10 especially lonely years, and gave me a love again who came with his own extended family. None of that seemed possible on that first devastating day, but I held on to My Heavenly Father and He was faithful! I, too, learned lessons along the way that only times of hardship could bring.
ReplyDeleteThank you Julie. That would be such a devastating loss when it's unexpected and so young. I do have the blessing of 55 years with the love of my life, and he was ill so we knew it would happen one day. Just still in the mind and prayers, I wanted more days, but God knew best and actually took him in a peaceful way which I had prayed for. Each day is different now. I'm sorry for your loss, and I can imagine even after all these years the memories creep in, and it does sound like you had a blessing in your new hubby and life. Thanks for your words today and prayers. Hugs
DeleteI'm so happy that you have decided to try the link up again! I love this little gathering place!
ReplyDeleteHi Elizabeth...I wasn't going to but they helped fix it so hoping it lasts; especially since it's free and I'm on a reduced budget. :) I do miss seeing the link ups and comments, and it also helps me as I read the Bible to discern and dig deeper so I know what scripture I want to share. Have a great week ahead. Hugs.
DeleteI was so happy to see that you were doing the link-up again. I missed posting before it closed though. :-( But I'll be back next week!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for your diligence in sharing. Blessings.