Moses is told by The LORD to go to Pharaoh again (v1-6). So Moses and Aaron did so and said, “Thus says the LORD God of the Hebrews: ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, that they may serve Me. Or else, if you refuse to let My people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your territory. And they shall cover the face of the earth, so that no one will be able to see the earth; and they shall eat the residue of what is left, which remains to you from the hail, and they shall eat every tree which grows up for you out of the field. They shall fill your houses, the houses of all your servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians—which neither your fathers nor your fathers’ fathers have seen, since the day that they were on the earth to this day.’”
Once again Pharaoh is given advanced warning by The LORD through Moses although God told Moses that Pharaoh’s heart was still hard. The LORD told Moses that these signs were done so that their children and their children’s children could be told of God’s mighty deeds so that they would know that He is The LORD.
God asks Pharaoh to humble himself. The heart of the matter was Pharaoh’s pride, he thought he was greater than God. Despite the plagues which come upon them already, he still refused to humble himself. Locusts were going to come on the next day – how gracious of God to give him notice and a chance to change, but he didn’t.
I recall speaking to a work colleague about being saved and his reply was, ‘I’ll think about it on my death bed’. All I could answer was that he may not get the chance even of a deathbed to consider it on.
Pharaoh’s servants seemed get exasperated and they said to him, “How long shall this man be a snare to us? Let the men go, that they may serve The LORD their God. Do you not yet know that Egypt is destroyed?”
The servants realised the danger they were in more than Pharaoh did and seemed to relent and they obviously had some influence on Pharaoh for he was persuaded to speak with Moses and Aaron again (v7-11) and he said to them that they could go and serve The LORD their God but he wanted to know who would be going. Moses replied, “We will go with our young and our old; with our sons and our daughters, with our flocks and our herds we will go, for we must hold a feast to the LORD.”
Pharaoh again made a compromise and said that the men could go but the women and children would have to stay. Moses again refused the compromise. Many think that they can make bargains with God without a full commitment, but God is not looking for bargains He wants our full commitment.
Pharaoh still does not recognise the True God even though the plagues had already made nothing of and shown the ineffectiveness of Egypt’s little gods.
The LORD told Moses to stretch his hand over the land and locusts would come and eat every herb, all that the hail had left (v12-15). Moses did so and in the morning an east wind all that day and all night brought the locusts all over the land of Egypt. They were very severe, they had never seen locusts like them, nor would there be after them. It says that they covered the whole earth but I’m assuming that is within the context of Egypt rather than the whole of the planet, and that it didn’t include Goshen where the Israelites lived. I say that because it is qualified by the words, “throughout all the land of Egypt’. The land was darkened and all the herbs and fruit on the trees was eaten, so there remained nothing green throughout the land of Egypt.
Once more God showed that He was greater than the Egyptian god ‘Set’ who they worshiped as the protector of the crops.
It doesn’t bear thinking about for the land to be covered with locusts and it took its toll on Pharaoh, who came to call for Moses and Aaron once more (v16-20) and came with his false repentance again. As before, Pharaoh said, “I have sinned against the LORD your God and against you. Now therefore, please forgive my sin only this once, and entreat the LORD your God, that He may take away from me this death only.”
As we know, this was false, note the words, ‘only this once’ and ‘this death only’. It was expedient then but only temporary. It did not bring about a lasting change. God again showed His mercy and turned the wind to a westerly which took the locusts away and blew them into the Red Sea. Not one locust remained in Egypt. No half measures with God. Despite God’s incredible mercy and Pharaoh’s play acting at repentance, Pharaoh hardened his heart and refused to let the people go. He was simply trying to avoid the consequences but not to change his life and believe on the LORD.
This is till the same today, people turn to God when in trouble to avoid the consequences and once they have gone, they forget about God. Many use Him merely as a convenience, when He longs for us to trust Him and experience the changed life which only He can bring about.
The ninth plague is sent without warning (v21-23). He told Moses to stretch out his hand toward heaven and there was darkness so thick that it could be felt in all the land of Egypt for three days. They did not see one another, nor did anyone go out. The third in this set came without warning as in the previous sets. However, the Israelites had light in their dwellings.
This was more than fog, it was thick darkness which could be felt, it was supernatural as the Israelites were not affected by it. So much for the Egyptian sun god, Ra, who was powerless in more ways than one.
Once more Pharaoh tried a compromise (v24-29) and told Moses to go and serve The LORD but leave the flocks and herds behind. He even said the children could go this time. Moses replied that they would need the flocks and herds so that they could offer sacrifices to The LORD their God so they must take them insomuch that ‘not a hoof shall be left behind’.
The LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart again as this was leading up to the final act of God. All his previous compromises would not have been sufficient for the final act of God. Whilst we read that he hardened his own heart, it was a double hardening as we also read that God hardened it as it was leading up to the most important act of all, the Passover, which was a wonderful picture of The Lord Jesus Christ going to the cross many years later to rescue you and me from the power of sin and Satan.
In frustration Pharaoh sends Moses away without letting them go and said, “Get away from me! Take heed to yourself and see my face no more! For in the day you see my face you shall die!” And Moses said, “You have spoken well. I will never see your face again.”
Pharaoh didn’t realise how true his words were, ‘you will never see my face again’ and Moses agreed with him.
Pharaoh suggested by his compromises that they could still serve and worship God, but that is not possible. If we are to serve and worship Him it must be without compromises and with full commitment, no half measures nor half-heartedness. We must surrender all to Him.
The plagues were not God playing games with Pharaoh, they were for a purpose and the Bible tells us the reasons. In Exodus 5:2 Pharaoh had asked, ‘Who is the LORD? The LORD showed Pharaoh His power and that he surpassed any of the false gods in Egypt. He also showed His power through Moses (9:16). They were also for evidence of the power of God for Israel’s future generations and to show the inadequacy of false gods and demons, and the greatness of God.
Some 400 years later (1 Samuel 4:8) we read that the Philistines remembered that The God of Israel sent plagues on Egypt.
