April 6-12

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This week we get to read about some of the plagues that occurred in Egypt before Pharaoh finally released the Israelite slaves. It’s a classic Old Testament story that has been told time and time again. It teaches us about Jesus Christ delivering us from sin, and there are many details that add rich layers to our understanding. 

Let’s talk background to the verses I want to talk about today. Moses has told Pharaoh to let the people go, Pharaoh refused, and he gave the Israelites more work. Moses told Pharaoh to release them again, and then Moses turned the river to blood. Here is one of those details I want to talk about.

Exodus 7:22 And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments: and Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the Lord had said. 

The magicians mimicked Moses. They turned more water into blood. We don’t know all of the details of how that occurred, but let’s explore another relevant detail.

Pharaoh didn’t release the Israelites, and Moses (through the power of the Lord) brought frogs up out of the rivers. Here is how the magicians reacted.

Exodus 8:7 And the magicians did so with their enchantments, and brought up frogs upon the land of Egypt. 

As time moves on, more plagues come. Moses brings lice upon the Egyptians, and the magicians can’t mimic it. They tell Pharaoh that, “It is the finger of God.” After the lice, the magicians stop making an appearance. They are no longer active participants that we know of.

There are two parallels that I see.

Parallel 1. Satan mimics.

The magicians didn’t really do anything original, nor did they do anything on a grand scale like Moses did. They gave a watered down (pun intended) version of what Moses produced in order to give Pharaoh an excuse to ignore the miracles before his eyes. In the end, they gave enough that they saved their own skin for a while, but they were ultimately still walking towards their own misery. 

Isn’t that ironic?

Satan may bluster and blow, but ultimately, we’re going to see how pathetic he is. Anything he is able to pull off will seem a little sad when we are finally able to pull back the curtain and see the majesty of God. Isaiah even prophecies about it.

Isaiah 14:16 They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; 

We’re going to look at Satan and be like, “This guy??” Satan may make himself and his followers feel better for a moment, but they’re really just walking on towards their own misery. They’re digging themselves further and further and further down into it rather than looking up and seeing the reality around them.

Parallel 2. The magicians just made it worse.

Has anyone else noticed the fact that the magicians literally added to the problem as part of their demonstration of power rather than saving the people? Am I late to the party in recognizing that? Because it blew my mind once the Lord helped me see it.

Perhaps some of us are asking why the magicians were able to mimic Moses at all. Maybe a more important question is, “If they’re powerful, why are they making more blood and more frogs rather than driving the plagues away?”

As we go through mortality, we’re going to see imitations from Satan. 

We’re thirsty or hungry or feeling oppressed, and he’s going to whisper, “Do this. It will make you feel full and free.” The things we choose to engage in may fill for a while, but they’re actually just making the problem worse. We’ll see that it fills us for a minute and completely ignore the disasters happening around us. We’ll keep treading down that path, insistent that the God of the Hebrews has no place in our life. 

Why did the magicians show their small demonstrations of power by making the problem worse? I’m not totally sure. However, it holds perfect parallels to Satan.

Satan can’t take away the plagues. He can placate you and make you feel as though the God of the Hebrews has no true power, but he is only making the problem worse. He is distracting you and giving you excuses to continue down your path towards misery.

There have been plenty of times in my life that I’ve wondered at the blindness of the world. Humans are so convinced that they’re doing things the right way to make themselves happy. They cry out against those who would have them show restraint, claiming that they’re controlling. When the plagues come, they blame the person who warned them rather than seeing natural consequences. Even more unfortunately, they lead their families into the same quicksand after them, ironically and falsely under the name of freedom and compassion.

Humans often love marching on to their own destruction. 

It makes me wonder if any of the Egyptians wanted to follow the Hebrews. Did any of them put down their tools and weapons and ask themselves, “Maybe they do have the power of God with them. Should we follow them?” Or were they simply eager to kick out the Israelites and get back to their pathetic magicians in peace?

Blows my mind, but we see those patterns in the world all the time. 

Fortunately, we can see things as they are. We won’t find the truth in the world. We can only find it from God, making Himself known to the people. He does have true power. He allows mimicry so as to preserve agency and faith, but He holds the truth as to leading healthy and happy lives. We follow Him, and we will find it. We will be protected, and we will find it.