Exodus 8 reminds me of Green Flies. Growing up near the marshlands, we had the misfortune of getting too close to the islands in mid-summer. Green Flies can bite repeatedly, leaving nasty welts. Under attack, our only thought was how to escape. Pretty soon, we would go back to normal activities. Today’s lesson is that painful consequences don’t always lead to changed behavior. The chapter begins with Moses once again being told to go to Pharaoh and repeat the Lord’s command: “Let my people go, so that they may worship Me.” This time, it comes with a warning: ”If you refuse to let them go, I will send a plague of frogs on your whole country.” God has a fantastic sense of humor. For a river people, a plague of frogs was anything but terrifying. They symbolized fertility and life. He continues: “They will come up into your palace and your bedroom and onto your bed… into your ovens and kneading troughs.” Okay, that’s pretty gross. Aaron stretched out his hands over the waters: “the frogs came up and covered the land. But the magicians did the same things by their secret arts.” How pathetic! The magicians can only produce more misery. The cheap imitations of Satan are fun and attractive at first, but later, they leave us feeling slimy. After sleeping with too many frogs, Pharaoh summoned Moses: “Pray to the Lord to take the frogs away… and I will let your people go.” Moses agreed: “So that you may know there is no one like the Lord our God… the frogs will leave you.” The frogs didn’t return to the river: “The frogs died in the houses… They were piled into heaps, and the land reeked of them.” Their symbol of life was now piled up into smelly mounds of death. Predictably: “When Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses.”
The third plague comes without a warning to Pharaoh. Aaron was instructed to “Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the ground… the dust will become gnats.” The Hebrew word used could be “lice” or any insignificantly small thing that is a pest in large numbers. I think the idea is that these tiny things contaminated everything. The priests were unclean, the sacrifices were unclean. Everything was unfit for religious service. We also read: “the magicians tried to produce gnats by their secret arts, they could not… the magicians said to Pharaoh, ‘This is the finger of God’.” A friend recently told me with regard to overcoming addiction, that “everyone has a different bottom”. For some, losing everything will not lead to change; to others, it might only take a few gnats. “But Pharaoh’s heart was hard and he would not listen.” Friend, is God trying to get your attention?
The chapter ends with another plague. The Lord told Moses: “early in the morning… confront Pharaoh as he goes to the river.” The Lord says: “Let my people go, so that they may worship me. If you do not… I will send swarms of flies on you and your officials.” This time, He adds an extra touch: “I will deal differently with the land of Goshen, where My people live; no swarms of flies will be there.” The Lord said: “I will make a distinction between My people and your people.” To this very day, the separation and preservation of the Jewish people is incomprehensible. From exile and captivity to the dispersion and holocaust, the nation and it’s people still remain. “Dense swarms of flies poured into Pharaoh’s palace and into the houses of his officials… the land was ruined by the flies.” We don’t know what kind of “flies” they were, but we know this got Pharaoh’s attention! He summoned Moses and Aaron: “Go, sacrifice to your God here in the land.” We can be tempted by “almost obedience”. Partially following God’s command is usually not following them at all. Moses declined the offer: “That would not be right. The sacrifices we offer the Lord our God would be detestable to the Egyptians.” Pharaoh said whatever he had to say to get relief: “I will let you go to offer sacrifices… but you must not go very far. Now pray for me.” Moses prayed, the flies left, again, “Pharaoh hardened his heart and would not let the people go”. Why would Moses continue to fall for Pharaoh’s lies? Our God keeps His promises! In a world full of liars, we can stand out by simply keeping our promises. If you have been trying to escape something painful, maybe it is time to listen to God’s instruction?