Exodus 8 - Pharaoh Keeps Hitting Snooze

The first plague should have gotten Pharaoh's attention.

It didn't.

The Nile turned to blood.

Egypt has felt the first plague. Egypt took the hit.

Pharaoh watched it happen and basically shrugged.

So, Exodus 8 becomes a cycle of warnings, consequences, temporary surrender, and immediate backtracking.

Pharaoh keeps saying the right thing when the pressure spikes.

Then the moment life gets easier, he switches up.

Honestly, we've all seen that pattern before.

Sometimes in other people.

Sometimes in the mirror.

 

The Frogs Are Coming

1And the Lord spake unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Let my people go, that they may serve me.

2 And if thou refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all thy borders with frogs:

3 And the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into thine house, and into thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and into the house of thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thine ovens, and into thy kneadingtroughs:

4 And the frogs shall come up both on thee, and upon thy people, and upon all thy servants.

 

   God sends Moses back with the same message, "Let my people go."

   No new strategy. No updated pitch. Nothing has changed.

   Just the same command that Pharaoh has already ignored once. Israel belongs to God.

   And Pharaoh is still refusing.

   This time God announces a new plague.

   Frogs. Lots of frogs. Not a few hopping around the riverbank. These frogs will be everywhere.

   Houses. Bedrooms. Beds. Ovens. Kneading troughs. Everywhere.

   This is full-blown frog chaos. Everywhere Pharaoh turns, there will be frogs.

   You can almost feel the frustration before it even happens.

   There's no escaping it. No shutting the door. No finding a quiet corner.

   Egypt is about to be overwhelmed. God is making Egypt feel the weight of its rebellion.

   Sometimes people think ignoring God will make the issue go away. Pharaoh keeps learning the opposite.

Ignoring a problem doesn't make it disappear. Sometimes it just makes the cleanup bigger later.

 

Egypt Gets Absolutely Overrun-The Frogs Take Over

5 And the Lord spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch forth thine hand with thy rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come up upon the land of Egypt.

6 And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt.

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

 

   Aaron stretches out his hand.

   The frogs come. And they come. And they come.

   Just like God said, frogs cover the land. Egypt is crawling with them. By now Egypt probably feels like a giant swamp.

   Imagine opening a cabinet. Frogs.

   Pulling back your blanket. Frogs.

   Walking into the kitchen. More frogs.

   Everything God announced becomes reality.

   Then Pharaoh's magicians imitate the sign. Which sounds impressive until you think about it.

   Egypt already has too many frogs. Adding more frogs isn't helping anybody.

   That's like seeing your kitchen on fire and proving your skills by starting another fire in the living room.

   Pharaoh’s magicians can add frogs. They can't remove them.

   The magicians can increase the problem. They can't solve it.

   That's a pretty big difference.

   Creating problems is easy. Fixing them usually takes a lot more wisdom. Anybody can make a mess bigger. Fixing it is another story.

 

Pharaoh Suddenly Wants Prayer

8 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, Intreat the Lord, that he may take away the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the Lord.

9 And Moses said unto Pharaoh, Glory over me: when shall I intreat for thee, and for thy servants, and for thy people, to destroy the frogs from thee and thy houses, that they may remain in the river only?

10 And he said, To morrow. And he said, Be it according to thy word: that thou mayest know that there is none like unto the Lord our God.

 

   Now Pharaoh calls for Moses and Aaron.

   Funny how that works. When everything was comfortable, Pharaoh wasn't interested.

   The king who refused God's command is now ready to talk. Pharoah is finally asking for help.

   He says, "Intreat the LORD."

   Pray. Ask God to remove the frogs. Then he'll let Israel go.

   At least that's what he says.

   Moses asks when he wants the frogs removed.

   Pharaoh answers, "Tomorrow." Interesting.

   If your palace was crawling with frogs, you'd probably say, "Right now."

   Yet Pharaoh delays. Even in the middle of misery, his heart isn't fully surrendered.

   This is one of the strangest responses in the chapter.

   But honestly, we're not always that different. People do this all the time. We know what needs to change. We know what's causing problems. And somehow we keep saying, "Later."

   Sometimes we know what needs to change, but we still push it off another day.

 

The Frogs Leave. So Does Pharaoh's Honesty.

11 And the frogs shall depart from thee, and from thy houses, and from thy servants, and from thy people; they shall remain in the river only.

12 And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh: and Moses cried unto the Lord because of the frogs which he had brought against Pharaoh.

13 And the Lord did according to the word of Moses; and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the villages, and out of the fields.

14 And they gathered them together upon heaps: and the land stank.

15 But when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart, and hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had said.

 

   Moses prays. God answers. The frogs die.

   Problem solved. Well, almost.

   The frogs are piled everywhere. The land is covered with piles of them. The smell must have been awful. But still the plague is over.

   Pharaoh got exactly what he asked for. Then comes the turning point.

   As soon as things get easier, Pharaoh hardens his heart again.

   The emergency is over, so God gets pushed to the side.

   There it is. The pattern.

   Crisis softens him. Comfort hardens him.

   It's easy to seek God when we're desperate. The scary thing isn't that Pharaoh breaks his word. It's how quickly he does it.

   It's easy to make promises to God in a crisis. The real test comes when the crisis is gone.

 

Dust Turns Into Lice

16 And the Lord said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt.

17 And they did so; for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust of the earth, and it became lice in man, and in beast; all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt.

18 And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not: so there were lice upon man, and upon beast.

19 Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh, This is the finger of God: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had said.

 

   No warning this time. No conversation. No negotiation.

   God simply tells Aaron to strike the dust.

   The dust suddenly becomes lice throughout Egypt.

   Suddenly the plague is everywhere. People feel it. Animals feel it.

   Nobody can escape it.

   Then something remarkable happens. The magicians try to copy the sign. And fail.

   For the first time, they're stuck.

   They turn to Pharaoh and say, "This is the finger of God."

   That's a huge statement.

   The experts of Egypt are basically saying, We can't explain this. This is beyond us."

   The experts are waving the white flag. Yet Pharaoh still refuses to listen. Pharaoh just keeps digging in.

   Sometimes the issue isn't a lack of evidence. It's a refusal to respond to what we already know.

 

The Flies Show Up

20 And the Lord said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water; and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Let my people go, that they may serve me.

21 Else, if thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are.

22 And I will sever in that day the land of Goshen, in which my people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall be there; to the end thou mayest know that I am the Lord in the midst of the earth.

23 And I will put a division between my people and thy people: to morrow shall this sign be.

24 And the Lord did so; and there came a grievous swarm of flies into the house of Pharaoh, and into his servants' houses, and into all the land of Egypt: the land was corrupted by reason of the swarm of flies.

 

   God sends Moses to Pharaoh early in the morning. Again, the message is simple,"Let my people go." Same command. Same choice.

   Same stubborn king.

   Then comes another plague. Swarms of flies fill Egypt. Flies everywhere. Homes. Palaces. Land.

   But this plague has something new.

   Goshen, where the Israelites live, is spared. Israel is protected.

   God draws a line. God is making a distinction between Egypt and His people. The separation becomes visible.

   God isn't randomly throwing chaos around. He is acting with precision. He is acting with purpose. Nothing here is accidental.

   Sometimes when reading the plagues, it's worth slowing down and noticing how precise God is being.

   Nothing here is out of His control.

   When life feels chaotic, it's worth remembering that God never loses control of the details.

 

Pharaoh Tries to Negotiate Terms

25 And Pharaoh called for Moses and for Aaron, and said, Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land.

26 And Moses said, It is not meet so to do; for we shall sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians to the Lord our God: lo, shall we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, and will they not stone us?

27 We will go three days' journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the Lord our God, as he shall command us.

28 And Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away: intreat for me.

 

   This is where Pharaoh starts getting sneaky. Instead of saying yes, he starts bargaining.

   Pharaoh says Israel can sacrifice.

   Just not very far away. Stay close. Don't go too far.

   It's almost obedience. Almost. But almost obedience is still disobedience.

   Pharaoh wants a version of God's command that costs less. A version he can still control.

   Honestly, that's relatable.

   Most of us don't mind surrendering until surrender starts getting expensive.

   We usually prefer partial obedience because it lets us keep one hand on the steering wheel.

   Moses refuses. God didn't say "almost." God said let the people go. God requires actual obedience.

   That's a tension people still wrestle with.

   We often like compromise better than surrender. A little obedience feels safer than full obedience.

 

Here We Go Again

29 And Moses said, Behold, I go out from thee, and I will intreat the Lord that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, to morrow: but let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully any more in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the Lord.

30 And Moses went out from Pharaoh, and intreated the Lord.

31 And the Lord did according to the word of Moses; and he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; there remained not one.

32 And Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also, neither would he let the people go.

 

   Moses agrees to pray.

   The flies are removed.

   Just like the frogs before.

   Just like Pharaoh promised before.

   Everybody knows what's coming next. Because the pattern is obvious now.

   Once the relief comes, Pharaoh changes his mind again. His heart hardens. Again.

   The people stay in Egypt.

   The chapter ends with another broken promise. Another opportunity rejected. Another chance wasted.

   At this point, Pharaoh's words are becoming predictable. When pressure rises, he promises change. When pressure leaves, he goes back to normal.

   That's one reason character matters so much.

   Anybody can make promises in a crisis. Keeping them afterward is the challenge.

   Pay attention to any area where you've been telling God, "Later."

   Later I'll deal with that.

   Later I'll forgive them.

   Later I'll trust You.

   Later I'll obey.

   Pharaoh keeps saying "not now."

 

 

Exodus 8 is a reminder that the longer we keep hitting snooze on what God has made clear, the easier it becomes to keep doing it.