LESSON 8
THE SECOND, THIRD, AND FOURTH PLAGUES
Exodus 8:1-32
—by E. L. Bynum
Introduction:
We are condensing A. W. Pink’s suggested seven-fold purpose for the plagues upon Egypt. (1) They gave a public manifestation of the mighty power of God, Exodus 9:16, “And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.” Exodus 8:19, “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.
(2) They were a Divine visitation of wrath, a punishment for Pharaoh and the Egyptians, Exodus 10:16, “Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste; and he said, I have sinned against the LORD your God, and against you.”
(3) They were a judgment from God upon the gods (demons) of Egypt, Numbers 33:4, “For the Egyptians buried all their firstborn, which the LORD had smitten among them: upon their gods also the LORD executed judgments.”
(4) They demonstrated that Jehovah was high above all gods, Exodus 18:11, “Now I know that the LORD is greater than all gods: for in the thing wherein they dealt proudly he was above them.”
(5) They furnished a complete testing of human responsibility. (This is the meaning of the number ten; compare the ten commandments).
(6) They were a warning to the other nations, that God would curse those who cursed the Israelites, Genesis 12:3, “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” Joshua 2:8-9, “And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof; 9 And she said unto the men, I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you.”
1 Samuel 4:8, “Woe unto us! who shall deliver us out of the hand of these mighty Gods? these are the Gods that smote the Egyptians with all the plagues in the wilderness.”
(7) These plagues were designed as a series of testings for Israel, Deuteronomy 4:33-34, “Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live? 34 Or hath God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and by a stretched out arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?” Exodus 15:11, Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?”
I. THE SECOND PLAGUE FROGS vv. 1-15
A. The Demand and the Plague of Frogs Announced, vv. 1-4.
1. God’s demand and the reason for it, v. 1; Exodus 3:12, “And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain.”
2. The land was to be smitten with frogs, v. 2; Psalms 105:30, “Their land brought forth frogs in abundance, in the chambers of their kings.”
a. Frogs were SACRED to the Egyptians. One of their deities was “HEKA” or “HEGET,” was a frog-headed goddess. She was the goddess of resurrection, fertility, and childbirth.
b. They COULD NOT KILL these sacred FROGS, for this was not allowed under their religious system.
c. The frogs would come out of the Nile, which would be ANOTHER BLOW at their RELIGION, since they worshiped it.
d. Frogs are SYMBOLS of UNCLEANNESS and of EVIL, Revelation 16:13, “And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.”
3. The frogs would DISRUPT and CORRUPT every aspect of life, Psalm 105:30, “Their land brought forth frogs in abundance, in the chambers of their kings.”
B. The Plague Executed, vv. 5-7.
1. The command given, v. 5.
2. The command obeyed, v. 6.
3. The magicians also bring up frogs, v. 7. What a joke on the devil’s crowd! They already had too many frogs. What was needed, was to get rid of the frogs.
C. Pharaoh’s Request and the Frogs Removed, vv. 8-15.
1. Pharaoh’s request and his promise, v. 8.
2. Moses agrees to his request, v. 9; Isaiah 10:15, “Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? as if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself, as if it were no wood.”
3. The lesson for Pharaoh, vv. 10-11:
a. Pharaoh requested that the frogs be gone “Tomorrow,” v. 10; Proverbs 27:1, “Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.”
b. Pharaoh had DESPISED God’s GOODNESS to him, Romans 2:4-5, “Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God.”
c. He DID NOT REPENT unlike the King of Nineveh, Jonah 3:5-7, “So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water.”
4. Request made to God, v. 12.
Note: “And Moses cried unto the Lord.” Not for Pharaoh’s conversion; for he knew he was past cure; but for his deliverance from the present plague, that the power of God might be the more manifested, and the tyrant’s conscience the more convinced. —John Trapp’s Commentary.
The frogs DIE, v. 13.
Note: “The word for “villages” signifies “courts”, and may be so rendered here; and THE SENSE IS, that they not only died out of their dwelling houses, but out of their courtyards, and even out of their gardens, orchards, and fields, so that there were none near them to give any manner of trouble and offence. And their dying, and remaining DEAD upon the spot, were CLEAR PROOFS that they were REAL FROGS that were produced, and NOT IN APPEARANCE ONLY, as the frogs of the magicians might be.” —John Gill’s Expositor.
5. Heaps of STINKING frogs, v. 14.
Note: “The killing of the frogs was a mitigation [a LESSENING] of the punishment; but the LEAVING THEM TO ROT in the land was a CONTINUAL PROOF that such a plague had taken place, and that the DISPLEASURE of the Lord STILL CONTINUED.” —Adam Clarke’s Commentary.
6. Pharaoh REFUSES to keep his word, v. 15;
a. He DID NOT LEARN RIGHTEOUSNESS, Isaiah 26:10, “Let favour be shewed to the wicked, yet will he not learn righteousness: in the land of uprightness will he deal unjustly, and will not behold the majesty of the LORD.”
b. He had NO WISDOM, James 3:17, “But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.”
c. He was a LIAR, James1:8, “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.”
d. He was a STIFF-NECKED man, Proverbs 29:1, “He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.”
Note: Many people are NOT interested in repenting, but will PROMISE ANYTHING to try TO REMEDY the disaster. It may be the sickness of a baby or some other terrible thing, and they will promise the preacher and God anything. When the baby gets well, THEY FORGET ALL of their promises, and they continue to harden their hearts.” —E. L. Bynum.
e. He had NO INTEGRITY, Psalms 66:13-14, “I will go into thy house with burnt offerings: I will pay thee my vows, which my lips have uttered, and my mouth hath spoken, when I was in trouble.”
8. The meaning of the hardened heart, v. 15; Exodus 8:8: “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.”
a. When a person SEES THE HAND of God AT WORK and RESIST God’s WORD, THEN the heart is HARDENED. This happens to many people today, Psalms 95:8, “Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness.”
b. Pharaoh continued to harden his heart UNTIL the very END, Exodus 14:5-9, 23, And it was told the king of Egypt that the people fled: and the heart of Pharaoh and of his servants was turned against the people, and they said, Why have we done this, that we have let Israel go from serving us? 6 And he made ready his chariot, and took his people with him: 7 And he took six hundred chosen chariots, and all the chariots of Egypt, and captains over every one of them. 8 And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued after the children of Israel: and the children of Israel went out with an high hand. 9 But the Egyptians pursued after them, all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, and his horsemen, and his army, and overtook them encamping by the sea, beside Pihahiroth, before Baalzephon. 23 And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them to the midst of the sea, even all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen.”
II. THE THIRD PLAGUE: LICE vv. 16-19
A. The Divine Command for the Plague, vv. 16-17.
1. The rod was used, v. 16, “Stretch out thy rod.” This plague came without warning. “It was God’s judgment on Pharaoh for hardening his heart and breaking his promise and he was not given the option of avoiding it by submission to God’s will.” —Eclectic Notes on Exodus.
2. The lice came from the dust, v. 17.
Note: “The entomologists [study of insects] Kirby and Spence place these minute but disgusting insects in the very FRONT RANK of those which INFLICT INJURY upon man.”
a. The Egyptians were NOTED FOR CLEANLINESS, so this along with the other plagues would be a HORROR to them.
b. They came from the DUST, which is UNDER A CURSE, Genesis 3:17,19, “And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; 19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”
c. This was a judgment against “SET,” the Egyptian god of the DESERT.
B. The Failure of the Magicians, vv. 18-19.
1. They tried but failed, v. 18. From this point forward the Egyptians wisely (magicians) WITHDREW from the contest. See the N.T. comment on two of these men, 2 Timothy 3:8, “Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith.”
2. They RECOGNIZE the SOURCE of the plagues. v. 19.
a. This is the finger of God, Luke 11:20, “But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you.”
b. The magicians had DECEIVED EVEN PHARAOH with their demonic powers, but NOT THIS TIME.
Note: “Of God;” of that supreme God, whom both the Egyptians and other heathen idolaters acknowledged as superior to all men, and idols, and devils. This they said, lest they should be thought inferior to Moses and Aaron in magical art. But hereby they own the sovereign God to be on Israel’s side; and yet, like the devils, they proceed to fight against him. —Matthew Poole’s Commentary on the Bible.
3. Pharaoh’s heart is HARDENED, v. 19; Hebrews 10:31, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”
III. THE FOURTH PLAGUE: FLIES vv. 20-32.
A. The Demand and the Plague of FLIES Announced, vv. 20-23.
1. The DEMAND upon Pharaoh, v. 20.
2. The PROMISED PLAGUE on the Egyptians, v. 21; Psalms 78:45, “He sent divers sorts of flies among them, which devoured them; and frogs, which destroyed them.”
Note: “swarms [of flies] upon thee,” The beetle, or scarab, was sacred and regarded as the emblem of the Sun god. It was sculptured on monuments, painted on tombs, engraved on gems, worn round the neck as an amulet and honoured in ten thousand images. —Eclectic Notes on Exodus.
Isaiah 7:18, “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.”
This miracle was TO DESTROY THE FAITH of the Egyptians in BEELZEBUB “LORD OF THE FLY,” a god that was worshiped by the Egyptians.
3. Goshen to be SPARED, v. 22; Psalms 91:7, “A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.”
4. The DIVISION [Heb. “Redemption” or Ransom] between GOD’S people and the DEVIL’S people, v. 23; Matthew 25:32, “And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:”
Note: This reveals God’s love for His people, and His protection of them. It also teaches the DOCTRINE OF SEPARATION proclaimed by God, and which is badly needed in our day. —ELB.
B. The Plague Executed, v. 24.
1. God is long-suffering, but there comes A TIME WHEN HIS PATIENCE WEARS OUT, Psalms 8:25-26, “With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful; with an upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright; With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself froward.” [Froward = willfully contrary]
2. Walk CONTRARY to God and HE will walk contrary to you, Leviticus 26:23-24, “And if ye will not be reformed by me by these things, but will walk contrary unto me; 24 Then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins.”
3. Think about all of the GERMS, and DISEASES carried by these flies.
C. Pharaoh’s Compromise Rejected, vv. 25-29.
1. The COMPROMISE OFFERED – sacrifice in the land, v. 25. The devil is always opposed to separation.
a. The Devil is a MIXER but God is a SEPARATOR, 1 Corinthians 6:15-20, “Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid. What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.”
b. Be NOT UNEQUALLY YOKED together with UNBELIEVERS, 2 Corinthians 6:14-18, “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? 15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? 16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, 18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”
c. Keep yourself UNSPOTTED from the world, James 1:27, “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”
d. Friendship of the world is ENMITY with God, James 4:4, “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the FRIENDSHIP of the world is ENMITY with God? WHOSOEVER therefore will be a FRIEND of the world is the ENEMY of God.”
2. Moses REFUSED the COMPROMISE and MAKES A DEMAND, vv.26-27.
a. It was NOT the will of God, v. 26; Romans 12:2, “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
b. It would be an abomination to the Egyptians because of the animals used for the sacrifice, v. 26; Exodus 8:26, “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?”
c. Moses determines to go as ordered by the Lord, v. 27.
3. The second compromise offered – Don’t go very far, v. 28. During the plagues Pharaoh offered four compromises to Moses and Aaron.
a. GO sacrifice to your God, Exodus 8:25, “And Pharaoh called for Moses and for Aaron, and said, Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land.”
b. You shall NOT GO very FAR away, Exodus 8:28, 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.
c. Only the MEN shall go, Exodus 10:7-11, “And Pharaoh’s servants said unto him, How long shall this man be a snare unto us? let the men go, that they may serve the LORD their God: knowest thou not yet that Egypt is destroyed? 8 And Moses and Aaron were brought again unto Pharaoh: and he said unto them, Go, serve the LORD your God: but who are they that shall go? 9 And Moses said, We will go with our young and with our old, with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds will we go; for we must hold a feast unto the LORD. 10 And he said unto them, Let the LORD be so with you, as I will let you go, and your little ones: look to it; for evil is before you. 11 Not so: go now ye that are men, and serve the LORD; for that ye did desire. And they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.”
d. Let your FLOCKS and your HERDS STAY, Exodus 10:24-26, “And Pharaoh called unto Moses, and said, Go ye, serve the LORD; only let your flocks and your herds be stayed: let your little ones also go with you. 25 And Moses said, Thou must give us also sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice unto the LORD our God. 26 Our cattle also shall go with us; there shall not an hoof be left behind; for thereof must we take to serve the LORD our God; and we know not with what we must serve the LORD, until we come thither.”
4. Moses WARNS Pharaoh, “but let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully any more,” v. 29; Jeremiah 42:20-21, “For ye dissembled in your hearts, when ye sent me unto the LORD your God, saying, Pray for us unto the LORD our God; and according unto all that the LORD our God shall say, so declare unto us, and we will do it. 21 And now I have this day declared it to you; but ye have not obeyed the voice of the LORD your God, nor any thing for the which he hath sent me unto you.” ==“dissembled in your hearts,” = “to conceal the truth” in this case the concealed the truth from their own hearts.
D. The FLIES Removed, vv. 30-32.
1. The Lord ANSWERS Moses’ prayer, vv. 30-31.
2. Pharaoh HARDENS his heart, v. 32.
—Outline by E. L. Bynum; Revision by Art Davison
STUDY QUESTIONS
1. What was the seven-fold purpose of the plagues?
2. Name the first four plagues upon Egypt in their proper order.
3. What was the relationship of the frogs to the religion of Egypt?
4. Why could not the Egyptians try to kill the frogs?
5. What are frogs a symbol of in the Scriptures?
6. What was Pharaoh to learn from this plague?
7. What finally happened to the frogs?
8. What did Pharaoh promise to do, if the frogs were taken away?
9. Where did the lice come from?
10. In the Scripture the dust in under a . Gen. 3:17,19
11. Why did the Egyptians fail in reproducing lice?
12. Did the plague of flies come upon the land of Goshen? Why?
13. What was the first compromise offered by Pharaoh?
14. Why did Moses refuse to compromise?
15. What was the second compromise offered by Pharaoh?