1. Bringing Israel Out Exodus 6: 6, 7
  1. Bring you out
    1. Freedom from Sin
  2. Deliver and Rescue
    1. Bring you from a place of danger
  3. Redeem you
    1. Pay the price for something to buy them back
  4. To bring you to myself
    1. When we are out of Sin
    2. Set free from danger
    3. Paid for fully
    4. We can enter the presence of God himself and become his possession

2. Sharing His glory

  1. I will make you a god to Pharaoh 7:1
    1. elohim in the plural sense
    2. Not Elohim like God Himself
    3. It is God in Moses that makes Pharaoh respect Moses.
    4. God will work through Moses and give Him strength, boldness and confidence
  2. God did call Moses by His own name though.
    1. Someone calls themselves Caesar Augustus during Jesus time, they would have been killed.
    2. A king of flesh and blood does not share his glory with others, but the LORD shares His glory with those who fear Him.
  3. No king would let another ride his horse, but Elijah rode on the glory and power of God.
    1. His power is in a whirlwind and story Nahum 1: 3
    2. Elijah rode on a whirlwind to heaven 2 Kings 2: 11
  4. No mortal man sits on the kings throne.
    1. Then Solomon sat on the throne of the LORD 1 Chronicles 29: 23
  5. No mortal man uses the kings scepter,
    1. Moses took the staff of God in his hand
  6. No mortal man wears the kings crown.
    1. You set a crown of fine gold on his head Psalm 21: 4

3. Pharaoh’s heart

  1. Exodus 10: 1 I have hardened Pharaoh’s heart  and his court so you can tell your children that I am the LORd your God
    1. So God took away Pharaoh’s free will
    2. He punished him with Locusts, Darkness, and the death of the firstborn males.
    3. When Pharaoh, who could not change his mind refused to do so, God kept punishing him.
  2. Exodus 10: 3, 4 Moses and Aaron come into Pharaoh’s court
    1. How much longer are you going to refuse to humble yourself before Me.
    2. It takes a lot to walk into court and say that.
    3. Much more diplomatic to use different words
  3. Accuse Pharaoh of not letting people go when he has no choice in the matter.  If they know God is taking away his free will, why keep going to ask him if he is going to change his mind in this matter?
  4. Pharaoh calls them back in Exodus 10: 7 – 9
    1. Why bring this conversation between Pharaoh and his court into the bible?
    2. Pharaoh brings Moses in and states he will let them go so he agrees with his court.
    3. For someone who has a heart heart from God, he seems to be able to change his mind here.
  5. Asks a bizarre question Who exactly is going?
    1. If I were Moses I would say “Those who you have been throwing into the river and having make your bricks.
    2. Look how Moses responds in Vs 9 Old young, sons, daughters, flocks, and herds.
      1. He is rattling off every type of conceivable slave.
      2. Unique question and answer. Let’s look at their next conversation
  6. Go but let your flocks and herds stay here Vs 24
    1. Eight plagues and an offer to let them go is on the table
    2. How many after 400 years would probably take this offer?
    3. Moses says. “I’m glad you mentioned the cattle. we are going to worship the Lord and don’t know what we will need to do that so we are taking them all with us.
    4. A lot of details, negotiations, and questions for a man with no choice in the matter.
  7. First verse seems pretty straight forward, but let’s try to see in Pharaoh’s mind to see what is happening here

4. Pharaoh sins Exodus 9: 27

  1. Pharaoh admits that this god of the Hebrews is actually the all powerful and just Creator God and that he and his people are morally bound to obey God’s word.
    1. He understands that his defiance of God, his creator is a sin.
  2. Seven verses later, when the plague stops, he hardens his heart and changes his mind.
    1. Pharaoh has gone back on his word before, but this time it is different.  He had just acknowledged that God is just and that he, is morally obligated to obey Him.  Now when Pharaoh changes his mind, he is turning his back on the truth.
    2. Notice the word he sinned which is an echo of the first acknowledgement that Pharaoh made about his sinning.
  3. Pharaoh learned his lesson, but it does not affect his behavior.
  4. Why would someone who has learned the truth and has paid a terrible price for it continue to choose to defy God?
  5. Pharaoh considers himself a god
    1. for someone who thinks he is a god to come to the realization that he is just like all the other people around him, this is a real shock.
    2. He is having a problem acting on what he knows to be true.  His mind tells him he is just a man, but his actions have a hard time admitting it.

5. Back to Exodus 10: 1, 2

  1. This is not the first time that that God is telling Moses about His goals in bringing about the plagues.
    1. Exodus 7: 5
    2. Notice the differences
      1. First time the motivation of the plagues was not to terrorize the Egyptians, but to teach them a lesson.
      2. He was going to teach the Egyptians and Pharaoh that there was only one God and they are going to know it.
    3. Exodus 10: 2 the purpose is that all would know he is the Lord.  The Egyptians and the Hebrews.
      1. That they would also know this throughout all generations.
    4. Egypt has rejected the truth and they can’t be taught anymore.  The last three plagues are about teaching His own people who he is.

6. Pharaoh’s heart part two

  1. What if God is not hardening his heart?  How would you harden someone if you did not have any power to do it in their life?
  2. Moses and Aaron ask a pointed question in 10: 3
    1. Do you think Pharaoh is going to give in when you talk to him like that?
    2. They are playing off Pharaoh’s ego.
    3. The purpose of the slaves is to build his storehouses and empire.  In one plague God is going to destroy their whole agriculture and need for slaves.
  3. As soon as Moses and Aaron leave Pharaoh’s leaders turn to him in exasperation. Vs 7
    1. More diplomatic that Moses was.
    2. The political structure of Pharaoh’s court is starting to unravel so he calls them back in
  4. Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh.  They did not return on their own. The servants are trying to broker a deal.10: 8 who exactly is going?
    1. Pharaoh’s resolve is weakening.
    2. Come on Moses, give me something.  I am offering an olive branch to you to try and save face here.
    3. No olive branch is offered back.  We are all going.
    4. The deal rejected and Locusts come and destroy the land.
  5. The locusts destroy everything and darkness comes upon them and no one can leave the house.
  6. Pharaoh brings Moses back and tries to broker another deal Vs 24 – 26
    1. Moses all the people you were going to take can go, but give me something here.  Let me keep the cattle.
    2. God isn’t working any magic here.  The natural area of narcissistic pride is playing out in front of us.
  7. Pride destroyed Pharaoh, the land, and his court.
    1. He holds onto ego as a last resort and it ends up destroying him completely.