A Pesty Judgment

A PESTY JUDGMENT

Exodus 8:16-32

A Plague of Gnats

This morning we look at the 3rd and 4th plagues as recorded in Exodus 8:16-32 –

-The plague of gnats and a plague of flies –

-Two pesty judgments!

The plague of gnats is much like the plague of frogs before it –

-God causes an unnatural number of gnats to plague Pharaoh and the Egyptians.

-8:16 – “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Say to Aaron, stretch out your staff and

strike the dust of the earth, so that it may become gnats in all the land of Egypt.’”

-One gnat is a nuisance, a bazillion is unbelievable misery!

God’s purpose, as in the plague of frogs, is to demonstrate His power and authority over –

-nature, people, gods and religion, Pharaoh

The difference between the gnat and frog plague is that the magicians try their magical

incantations and come up empty –

-They begin to see the work of God in the plague!

-They say to Pharaoh in verse 19 – “This is the finger of God!”

-But Pharaoh is not moved – his heart becomes even harder –

-v. 19b – “…But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as

the LORD had said.”

Pharaoh illustrates for us that a hard heart is not due to a lack of evidence –

-God has made Himself known through Creation and the human conscience –

-Psalm 19:1 – “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims

his handiwork.”

-Romans 1:19-23

-The problem of the human heart is rebellion against its Creator – Not a lack of evidence!

-Ill. Of Jesus feeding the 5,000 and then they say, “Show us a sign…”

What begins to emerge with the 4th plague – the plague of flies – is God’s dealing with Israel –

-There’s two purposes in the plagues –

-To this point it has been all about Pharaoh and Egypt – and the message has been

one of judgment –

-But God’s purpose for His people is salvation!

-The plagues are judgment on Egypt, but for Israel, it is salvation.

Read Exodus 8:20-32

Pray

2

A Plague of Flies

There is a change in severity with this 4th plague of flies –

-It isn’t just personal misery, but the land itself begins to be “ruined” –

-v. 24 – “Throughout all the land of Egypt the land was ruined by the swarms of

flies.”

-A footnote in The New American Commentary explains that the word “land” is

personified in this text as it is in several others so that it is saying the people of the land’s

way of life was ruined.

-They couldn’t go about their normal business because of the swarm of flies.

-And what’s more –

-In Psalm 78:45, in describing this plague, Asaph says, “He sent among them

swarms of flies, which devoured them…”

-This has led some to speculate that the flies were mosquitoes!

-They are making normal life impossible for the Egyptians.

Much of the description of this plague is like the previous three – complete misery, flies outside

and inside, crawling all over their bodies, ingesting them, etc. –

-God’s purpose – v. 22 – “…that you may know that I am the LORD in the midst of the

earth.”

But what is different is what stands out the most (as it should) –

-And the difference is what it says about God and His people.

-Specifically, what God does for His people.

-v. 23 – “Thus I will put a division between my people and your people.”

-NIV – “I will make a distinction between my people and your people.”

-NKJV – “I will make a difference between my people and your people.”

-The word translated division is found three other times in the Hebrew Bible.

-Psalm 111:9 – “He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his

covenant forever.”

-Psalm 130:7 – “O Israel, hope in the LORD! For with the LORD there is steadfast

love, and with him is plentiful redemption.”

God is saying the difference between the Egyptians and Hebrews is that the Hebrews are God’s

redeemed people!

Three Characteristics of Redeemed People

1 – They are restored worshippers –

-God’s people are restored people – restored to live according to God’s original purpose

in creating them.

-God created us to worship Him.

-To see and to savor His glory.

-But because of sin, we have fallen from that original purpose –

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-It’s not that in sin we become non-worshippers – We remain worshippers

but we worship the wrong things.

-We become worshippers of created things instead of worshipping the

Creator.

-But, in redemption, God restores us to our original purpose and we begin to

worship the true Creator.

-8:20 – “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Rise up early in the morning and present yourself

to Pharaoh, as he goes out to the water and say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD, ‘Let my

people go, that they may serve me.’”

-All the times we have heard and will hear these words –

-7:16; 8:1; 8:20; 9:1; 10:3, 7, 8, 11, 24, 26; 12:31 = 11x

-When you look up the Hebrew word “serve” you find that it can be translated

“work”, “serve”, or “worship” –

-So, here, in the plague part of Exodus, Moses uses this word 11 times…

-In the book of Numbers, he uses this word to describe the work or service

of the priests.

-Num. 8:15 – “After that, the Levites shall go in to serve at the tent of

meeting…”

-In Deuteronomy, he uses this word in clear reference to worshipping the

true God or worshipping the false gods –

-Deut. 4:19; 4:28; 5:9

-The point is this – To serve the LORD is to worship the LORD –

-“Let my people go that they may serve me” is the same as saying “Let my

people go that they may worship me.”

-But, going back to the characteristic of redeemed people, they are restored worshippers

– why do we say “restored”?

-Genesis 2:15 – “Then the LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of

Eden to work it and keep it.”

-There’s the word again – “to work” or “to serve” or “to worship”

-God made Adam and put him in the Garden of Eden to “work” it –

-Adam’s work in the Garden what to be Adam’s worship to God.

-In redemption, God restores Him people back to their original purpose – to be

worshippers of God!

2 – They are a set apart for the glory of God –

-v. 22 – “But on that day I will set apart the land of Goshen, where my people dwell, so

that no swarms of flies shall be there, that you may know that I am the LORD in the midst

of the earth.”

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-What isn’t explicit in the first three plagues is now made explicit –

-The plague judgments fell on the Egyptians and not the Hebrews because God set

apart the land of Goshen where the Hebrews lived.

-This is awesome!

-Because to “set apart” means “to treat excellently; to treat specially; to treat with

distinction” –

-Ill. Of a the way a husbands sees (and treats) his beloved!

-This is how God sees His people –

-He treats them excellently and specially –

-He has set His redeeming love on them!

-Does this mean an Egyptian couldn’t be saved?

-Absolutely not – If they turned from worshipping their false gods and worshipped

the true God of the Hebrews they would be saved.

-Later, in the Law, He makes provision for that exact same scenario –

-Deut. 7:6-9

3 – They are spared judgment and are recipients of the mercy of God –

-In point number 2, the emphasis is on God’s grace – God giving what is not deserved –

while in point 3 the emphasis is on mercy – God not giving what is deserved!

-God’s people are spared the judgments that He will rain down on the Egyptians –

-So that both purposes of God in the plagues are see –

-His judgment upon Pharaoh and those who mistreated Him people –

-And the people He is redeeming for His name’s sake!

-Both are accomplished through the plagues.

For You

1 – You are redeemed to worship –

-1 Cor. 6:19, 20 – “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within

you? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your

body.”

2 – You are part of the redeemed or you are not –

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3 – Your redemption is in Jesus Christ –

-1 Peter 1:18, 19 – “Knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from

your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold but with the precious blood of

Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.”