Exodus 9 - 6.22.26

Scripture

‭‭Exodus‬ ‭9‬:‭34‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“When Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder had stopped, he sinned again: He and his officials hardened their hearts.”

Observation

In this passage, the back and forth between Pharaoh, and Moses and Aaron continues. Moses and Aaron are relaying God’s Word to Pharaoh. They are instructing Pharaoh to let all the people of Israel-(men, women, children, and animals) go into the wilderness so they can worship the Lord. If Pharaoh refuses God’s request, there will be consequences on Pharaoh and his people. Pharaoh’s heart was stubborn and refused to let the people of Israel go. So, God inflicted plagues upon Egypt’s livestock. He inflicted a plague of festering boils upon Pharaoh’s people and even their animals. God even called down a mighty hailstorm to destroy their crops. You would think Pharaoh would get the message by now. But instead, he would continue to lie to Moses and Aaron’s faces, promising them that he would let their people go if God would bring relief from these plagues.

Application

You can’t fool God.

How many of us have ever done or may know someone who has ever done what Pharaoh did here? Picture it. You have an uncomfortable circumstance in your life. It’s only then that You decide to turn to God. You then try to bargain with Him. You ask God to remove that difficult circumstance from your life, telling God if He does, then you will do what He asks of you. Then, when relief comes your way, you’re back doing the same old dumb things that got you in that predicament in the first place. 🤦🏽‍♂️

Let me ask you something. Do you really think we’re fooling God?! God is all knowing. He knows how it is all going to play out. The learning lesson here is that we can’t keep hardening our hearts towards God. Sooner or later, it will catch up to us. It did with Pharaoh as we will read in the upcoming chapters. Every time we ignore God’s direction and His ways, our conscience grows less sensitive to Him. When we continue to reject God’s calling and decide to harden our hearts towards Him, God eventually gives us what we ask for. God will then harden our hearts like He did with Pharaoh. This time it reaps eternal consequences.

“There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, “Thy will be done,” and those whom God says in the end, “Thy will be done.””-C.S. Lewis

“That is why the Holy Spirit says, “Today when you hear his voice, don’t harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled, when they tested me in the wilderness.” -Hebrews‬ ‭3‬:‭7‬-‭8‬

Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for Your patience with me, for putting up with my foolishness. Forgive me for ever thinking that I can ever fool You. May I never harden my heart towards You and lose the sensitivity of hearing the voice of Your Holy Spirit. Please give me the strength and courage to abide in Your calling for my life. In Jesus name I pray, Amen. 🙏🏽

-Moses Gaddi