Exodus 6:1-13
Experiencing Defeat
Recently I suffered a defeat in my ministry that has left me wondering about my abilities, my direction, and even my calling. Good friends gave me wise counsel, but while the wound is fresh, I concentrate on personal study and Bible reading.
So far, three truths have become evident. One, my own mistakes contributed to the defeat. Two, in spite of my mistakes, the defeat probably was inescapable. And three, against all my circumstances do not spell failure. God still reigns over both me and the situation.
One of the places where encouragement has emerged is from my current devotional reading in Exodus. I have found I am not alone.
Securing Defeat
Some of God’s greatest works come after what appears to be our deepest failures. An example of this occurs just prior to his deliverance of Israel from Egypt.
If we were writing the story of Israel’s rescue from Egyptian slavery, we probably would allow at least some encouraging news at the beginning, like an inspirational moment. As the story stands, the LORD sends Moses and Aaron to the Pharaoh, knowing full well that they will fail.
In Exodus 3, the LORD tells Moses to go to Pharaoh and ask for three days leave so that the people can sacrifice to their God in the wilderness. Then he drops the bomb. “But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand” (Exodus 3:19). In the original language, the opening phrase is emphatic. The LORD knows with certainty that Pharaoh will refuse to budge.
Now we come to Exodus 5, where Moses approaches Pharaoh. The contrast between the two men could not be greater. One is an unknown prophet from the desert who says he represents the creator of the universe, and the other is the most powerful monarch in the Near East, a man who believes he is a god.
At the beginning of the chapter, Moses introduces his God to Pharaoh. “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a fast for me in the wilderness’ ” (Exodus 5:1).
On the surface the demand is a simple one. Any god would claim the right to his people’s worship.
Of course, Pharaoh objects. “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and moreover, I will not let Israel go” (Exodus 5:2).
Even though Pharaoh phrases his challenge as a question, his words are dismissive. He does not care who the LORD is. All he cares about is his own image as the reigning god of the Egyptians.
Moses ignores the challenge and moves to the issue. “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God, lest he fall on us with pestilence or with the sword” (Exodus 5:3).
The answer goes to the heart of Pharaoh’s question, “Who is the LORD?” He is the God who has chosen Israel to be his people, and because he has become their God, he owns the right to claim their allegiance.
Pharaoh does not care. He claims that the people have too much time on their hands, and in a show of spite, withholds straw from their assigned task as brick-makers. Meanwhile, he insists they continue to meet the quotas.
The Bitter Taste of Defeat
The Israelite foremen bring their complaint to Moses, and Moses takes it to God. “O LORD, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not delivered your people at all” (Exodus 5:30). Defeat hurts.
The incident looks like a failure, but Pharaoh has done only what God said he would do. The LORD tells Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will drive them out of this land” (Exodus 6:1).
Here are nine statements that God makes regarding who he is and what he is about to do. The statements run in sequence from Exodus 6:6-8, and begin and end with the declarations, “I am the LORD.”
I am the LORD.
I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
I will deliver you from slavery to them
I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment.
I will take you to be my people.
I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.
I will give it to you for a possession.
I am the LORD.
The LORD utters these words just before he begins the final Shock and Awe campaign against Egypt--the ten plagues that will humiliate Egypt’s gods, destroy the land, and ultimately dethrone Pharaoh by taking out his son.
Sometimes the darkness eats us alive, and God is nowhere to be seen. Do not think that all is lost. Sometimes the darkness must be dark in order for the light to be most welcome.
Doug Knox