The Plagues Begin
Open Your Bible
Exodus 6:14-30, Exodus 7:1-25, Deuteronomy 7:6-11
BY Abby Flynn
It’s the early nineties, and I’m sitting in the front row staring at the Sunday school felt board. (Does anyone else remember those?) I’m not sure if the other kids can see around my puffy pigtails, but in that moment, I don’t really care. The teacher booms out in her best Moses voice, “Let my people go!” And all of us kids, playing the part of Pharaoh, shout, “NO!”
At the time, I thought of Moses and Aaron as these powerful guys with booming voices and a magical stick who eventually wear Pharoah down so he sets the Israelites free. But today, as I meditate on our reading in Exodus 7, I’m able to get a little clearer on the details.
It turns out Moses and Aaron were pretty regular guys. They came from a long line of people you’ve probably never heard of (Exodus 6:14–25). Nothing about them or their family would hint at God assigning them to take on this massive task. Not to mention, the fact that these guys were not young birds (Exodus 7:7). On the contrary, they were already in their eighties when God told Moses to deliver the Israelites.
And don’t get me started on Moses. The booming voice from Sunday School? Probably not biblically accurate. In fact, Moses told God, “Since I am such a poor speaker, how will Pharaoh listen to me?” (Exodus 6:30). Moses struggled with his own weakness. He didn’t believe God could use him because he was a terrible speaker, thus, why God allowed Aaron to be a part of the plan.
They knew their mission wouldn’t be easy and over and over, Pharaoh’s heart would be hardened. But the fact that the task seemed impossible made it clear that only God could accomplish it. In Exodus 7, we see God give Aaron and Moses the command of what to say, “Let my people go” (Exodus 7:16). And so begins the story we’ve come to know so well.
Once the plagues begin, Moses and Aaron are simply conduits of God moving on behalf of His people. The Israelites had been enslaved and without hope for so long. Now, God had chosen two unlikely men to lead them to freedom.
Today’s reading reminds us that God doesn’t need superheroes or perfect people to carry out His will. In fact, He has often chosen the weak, the foolish, the rejected, and the unpopular to accomplish His purposes. He just wants us to be willing to trust and follow Him.
It’s those of us who are weak that need a mighty hand. So trust Him today, follow His commands, and see how He can use you.
57 thoughts on "The Plagues Begin"
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it is in our weaknesses that His power is made the strongest . . . so today how am i going to let my weakness show for His strength ? ✞
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Exodus is so relatable. I imagine it was disheartening for Moses and Aaron to perform these acts, only to have Pharoh’s magicians to duplicate them. It reminds me of how sometimes I think that because I am in Christ I want to stand out from culture, but it can so easily become pride in that I feel I should be more successful in my endeavors or more talented than those who don’t know Him. So I imagine Moses and Aaron felt some humility and maybe even foolishness. Also, they had no influence over Pharoh even though they were obeying God’s commands. This reminds me of times I have tried to influence those I love to turn from their sin, knowing God was asking me to love them and serve them even though they were breaking my heart. And I know the pain of loving someone with a hard heart. So there is so much to learn in this part of Exodus, and so much about God that still seems mysterious. Why did he harden Pharoh’s heart? Why would he allow Moses and Aaron to seem to only fail? I’m not really sure, but it gives me peace knowing that God may ask us to do things in faith, and He can still work through us, and they can still seem to fall apart (at least from our perspective). But we know how this story goes, and remembering is what gives me strength. And knowing how long this journey for the Israelites became and how daunting it was for Moses, reminds me that being in fellowship with God doesn’t always mean an easy path. I love how unsure and I’ll-equipped Moses felt, because I feel those things too. And I love how God takes him on this journey, uses him as a leader, and through it reminds us, that we are on a similar journey. I am grateful we have His Spirit to journey with us and reminded that it’s okay when dreams die, we fail, or or we feel less than. Because through these chapters, God reminds us He is the same, and whatever it is, He can.
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Good insight. Thanks for sharing.
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True trust is so hard, yet so important. ❤️
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Incredible
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We need to boast in our weakness . Something that goes opposite to modern culture. It’s a challenge to confess I cannot do everything myself but as a Christian we need to point it out so we can magnify him.
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Mercy I love this view so much. What a wonderful insight. Thank you.
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