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Was It Suppose to be Like This?
"Then, as they came out from Pharaoh, they met Moses and Aaron who stood there to meet them. And they said to them, 'Let the Lord look on you and judge, because you have made us abhorrent in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us.'" -- Exodus 5:20,21
Bible Study Article Covers : Exodus 5:20-23
In the last article, we learned that the Israelites had gone to Pharaoh and pleaded with him to ease or remove the work decree he had placed on them. This work decree was placed against the Israelites after Moses and Aaron had met with the Egyptian ruler. They tried to get Pharaoh to see how unfair and unjust that his work decree was. But what they didn't understand is that Pharaoh wanted his work decree to be unfair and unjust, for it was punishment, in regards to what Moses and Aaron had requested of him, on their behalf.
Remember that Moses and Aaron had requested that Pharaoh would allow the Israelites to be able to go out into the wilderness in order for them to worship the God of Israel.
Needless to say, Pharaoh was infuriated behind this request and so therefore the work decree was handed down upon the Israelites:
"So the same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people and their officers, saying, 'You shall no longer give the people straw to make brick as before.
Let them go and gather straw for themselves. And you shall lay on them the quota of bricks which they made before.
You shall not reduce it. For they are idle; therefore they cry out, saying, "Let us go and sacrifice to our God."
Let more work be laid on the men, that they may labor in it, and let them not regard false words.'" -- Exodus 5:6-9
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They Blamed Moses?
With this work decree, the Israelites were made to do what seemed to be the near-impossible when it came to their daily brick quotas. And when they couldn't reach those quotas, they were severely beaten by the Egyptian taskmasters. To make matters worse, by the Israelites going back to Pharaoh and pleading to him for mercy, all they did was reassure the Egyptian ruler that his plan to turn the Israelites against each other was perhaps working.
And so it would seem, is that although they were angry and disappointed that Pharaoh had refused their request, they seemed to be even angrier and disappointed when it came to Moses and Aaron:
"Then, as they came out from Pharaoh, they met Moses and Aaron who stood there to meet them. And they said to them, 'Let the Lord look on you and judge, because you have made us abhorrent in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us.'" -- Exodus 5:20,21
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Should We Blame The Israelites?
Notice the attitude and anger that the Israelites displayed at Moses and Aaron: "Let the Lord look on you and judge, because you have made us abhorrent in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us."
Now it's at this point where I will go out on a limb and go against the mainstream teaching on this account by asking the question: "Can you blame the Israelites for being upset with Moses and Aaron?" Now I can see the Holier-than-thous cringe when they read that, for the questions in their minds would be:
"Huh! The nerve of those Israelites, can't they see that Moses and Aaron were obeying the One True God? Can't they see that God was trying to help them in order to give them something better?"
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The Israelites Had No Idea?
And my answer to both of those questions would be, "No, they couldn't see what the One True God was doing through Moses and Aaron." And the reason why they couldn't see - is for the mere fact that they weren't privy to the things and advantages that we have today, that would have helped to reinforce their faith and insight in the things that God had done and continue to do.
They didn't have God's Word in the form of the Sacred Text that spanned throughout 1600 years of recorded events and prophecies that had been foretold and fulfilled, which constantly proved who God is like we do today. They weren't blessed to have the privilege of having access to God personally through the gift of the Holy Spirit, also like we do today.
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I Can See if it was Moses
Sure Moses was able to have this honor, being that he interacted with God personally, and Aaron, although not as close to God like Moses, still was able to benefit as well: "So the Lord said to Moses: 'See, I have made you as God to Pharaoh, and Aaron your brother shall be your prophet.'" --Exodus 7:1
But it wasn't Moses and Aaron that was complaining and running to Pharaoh, now were they? Being that they knew or were still learning who God was. And they knew enough at this point not to go against the Almighty. No, it was the Israelites who were doing this murmuring and complaining, for they didn't know God in that sense; they simply didn't have the advantages that we have today.
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Do We Have The Right?
So why in the heck do we, as Christian leaders and Bible teachers, slam them for being "faithless?" Honestly, if anybody should be slammed for the "faithless" things that they do, they should be us believers in the world today. Yeah, that's right, it should be us, for we have everything that shows and proves to us that God is Who He says that He is, and yet we constantly doubt and compromise our positions as Christians.
We're so fortunate to be able to see the One True God in all of His works and glory because we're able to identify those works through the Sacred Record that He has left us (which is one of His greatest works), and yet we prefer to listen to the slaves of this world and the ruling elites that rule over them.
As Christian leaders and Bible teachers, do we think that this would take the substance and flavor out of the message that we are about to give to an audience that expects to be entertained? Could one think that their message would hold no interest if they didn't have anyone to look down their self-righteous noses at and ridicule them?
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Going Beyond the Surface of the Text?
Of course, the Israelites were wrong to come against Moses and Aaron, but they knew better at this time. For they saw themselves as being privileged, to be the tail of the powerful beast known as the Egyptian kingdom.
The Israelites saw all the surrounding countries coming to Egypt for aid and support. They saw how Egypt was growing in power and prestige. The Israelites also saw how prosperous and thriving the Egyptian kingdom was becoming. I mean, in a world during this period, who wouldn't want to be a part of that? Could one be blamed for wanting to be the tail of this beast instead of being devoured by it?
Is it so hard to see that this is what the Israelites feared when it came to what Moses and Aaron were doing? Would it be so farfetched to see that the Israelites felt like they were now being placed in a position to be devoured by this powerful Egyptian beast? For they believed that they were now being pitted against a force that just couldn't be defeated?
This is why they lashed out at Moses and Aaron. This is why they were afraid for their lives, being that Egypt was all that they knew: "Let the Lord look on you and judge, because you have made us abhorrent in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us."
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They Knew Not the God of Israel?
The Israelites didn't know that the One True God used Joseph to put the Egyptians in the powerful position that they were in now. Sure their elders probably knew, and this was perhaps one of the reasons they stood with Moses and Aaron. But it wasn't the elders who were complaining and afraid, now was it? No, it was the younger generations, the one's who came up in the days of the new Pharaoh, who himself, didn't know Joseph or the God that he served: "Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph." -- Exodus 1:8
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Moses Did the Right Thing?
But Moses shows us what we as believers are supposed to do. And although he was upset himself with what Pharaoh was doing when it came to the Israelites. Moses' first reaction didn't involve him compromising his position with God to please people, like so many of us are willing to do in today's time.
I find it amazing that we as Christians are so willing to give up our eternal royal benefits to avoid negative labeling and controversies. Seriously, we should be ashamed of ourselves.
But as for Moses, his first action didn't involve folding in the face of the opposition. No, he went to go and have a little talk with God: "So Moses returned to the Lord and said, 'Lord, why have You brought trouble on this people? Why is it You have sent me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, he has done evil to this people; neither have You delivered Your people at all.'" -- Exodus 5:22,23
You see, Moses wanted answers, and he wanted them now. I often wonder, wouldn't it be grand if we could learn how to have such boldness to approach God with our problems and the patience and faith to wait for an answer and the proper season and let God make moves within our lives?
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In the next Bible Study Online Article:
In the following article, we will look at why Moses needed to ask God a question that dealt with him being chosen. Also, does Moses' hesitation come from being faithless, or perhaps something else is causing him to give pause?
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Joseph the Overseer of Egypt
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Current Bible Study Online Series:
156) Pharaoh Makes the First Move Against God
157) The Egyptian Deities that Reaped the Wrath of God
158) Pharaoh the Unjust & Unreasonable
159) <-CURRENT BIBLE STUDY ONLINE PAGE->
160) Why Did You Send Me?
161) Moses Know That I Am Jehovah
162) Moses and the Desolate Souls
163) Moses Do You Know Who You Are?
164) Moses A God Amongst the Egyptians
165) The Battle for the Souls of Humanity
166) Moses and the Egyptian Magicians
167) The God of Israel vs. Hapi the god of the Nile
168) For Seven Days the Nile River Bleeds
169) God vs. Heket the goddess of Fertility
170) God vs. Geb the Earth god
171) God Releases the Swarms of Flies
172) Israel Set Apart
173) How Far Are You Willing to Go
175) Although Exempted - The Israelites Still Had to Endure
176) Go & Serve Your God - Wait A Minute...
177) The God of Israel vs The Egyptian Bull Cults
179) The Plague of Boils
181) God tells Pharaoh - You Owe Me Everything!
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