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Bible Study Online ArticleLocated at the Bottom of Page In the last article we'd discovered that there were still those who'd remained loyal to Pharaoh, in spite of their recent misfortunes from the "judgment plagues" that the Lord was unleashing upon the Egyptian kingdom.
For we find that even though these Egyptian loyalists' had lost all their cattle (the plague that brought forth "murrain" the deadly cow disease)... ...all their livestock, part of their grain supply, and possibly some very valuable servants... ...they continued to stand with their ruler, and because of this, their hearts were too, harden against the Lord: "And when Pharaoh saw that the rain, the hail, and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet more; and he hardened his heart, he and his servants. So the heart of Pharaoh was hard; neither would he let the children of Israel go, as the Lord had spoken by Moses." - Exodus 9:34,35 And rest assured; if it had not been for the Holy One of Israel, the Egyptians would not have had the things that they had taken so much pride in. They wouldn't have had their personal wealth and their precious kingdom to begin with. Being that their kingdom would have probably fallen into the hands of foreigners, permanently, after their fourteenth family dynasty had ended. But fortunately for them, the Lord had made them apart of His overall plans when it came to the Israelites. And although on the surface, and to one's natural eye, it would seem that the Israelites' enslavement from within the Egyptian kingdom was a very unfortunate situation and time period for them. But when one delves deeper, they will find that the Holy One had in fact used the Egyptians to provide and protect the Israelites - as He continued to mold them into the powerful nation that He had promised to Abraham. Consider the possibility that if the Israelites would have stayed uncovered and unprotected, from within the land of Canaan that was filled with powerful tribes and soldiers - it would have been only a matter of time before the Israelites would have been conquered. And rest assured the Lord wasn't going to allowed that to happen, for He always keeps His promises. And this is one of the reasons why the Lord had instructed Moses to record all that he had witnessed Him do, when it came to the Egyptians - for the recorded event could be used as a warning to those who are determined to opposing, and mocking the One True God: "Now the Lord said to Moses, 'Go in to Pharaoh; for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his servants, that I may show these signs of Mine before him, and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and your son's son the mighty things I have done in Egypt, and My signs which I have done among them, that you may know that I am the Lord.'" - Exodus 10:1,2 However as we move forward, we'd also learned that the Lord had instructed Moses to announce to Pharaoh the next plague that He was planning to unleash upon his kingdom, if the Egyptian ruler didn't quickly give in to Moses' demands: "So Moses and Aaron came in to Pharaoh and said to him, '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."' And he turned and went out from Pharaoh." - Exodus 10:3-6 Now let's take this moment to consider which Egyptian deity that the Lord might be challenging with this particular plague, for I personally tend to lean towards "Osiris the god of Agriculture." And since the Lord was sending the locust in order to come and devour the rest of the lands vegetation and what was left of the Egyptians farming system that had escaped the previous "hail storm plague" - in my opinion, Osiris would seem to be a great fit when it comes to the "locust plague." However, this viewpoint falls way outside the consensus of opinion when it comes to this particular plague that the Lord is about to unleash. Know that normally when this particular plague is taught, there are two Egyptian deities that seem to pop up the most when being discussed. The most popular view, points towards the brother of Osiris who was known as "Seth the Storm god" as the deity that's being challenged. But this doesn't make sense, being that this particular plague is targeting the Egyptians agriculture through the use of locusts, not storms like it did in the previous plague. But to be fair, it would seem that most Bible teachers have come to an understanding that "Seth" was also a "god of the crops." Now it's possible that later on, this so-called "divine attribute" could have been obtained by Seth after he had tricked and killed his brother Osiris. But when it comes to the mythology of Osiris and Seth, the story can become a bit complex. However as we move forward, the other Egyptian deity that seems to come up quite often when the "locust plague" is being discussed - deals with the deity that's known as "Serapis." Now when it comes to Serapis - know that this was a deity that was conjured up in order to help ease the religious tensions between the Greeks and the Egyptians back during Greece Ptolemaic dynasty that came at a much later date - than where we are currently at right now. But what makes Serapis interesting, deals with the fact that his overall "divinity makeup" was a combination of two very popular Egyptian deities that were known as: Osiris and Apis. Again this mythology can get a bit complex, but notice how... just like with Seth -- Osiris is indirectly pulled back into the equation. Be that as it may, know that none of this matters when it comes to these deities, for they are simply a byproduct of one's particular ideology, of one's natural understanding of things. And when this recorded event is approached with a mindset of such, it allows us to go beyond the surface of the Sacred Text, for we must understand that the Word of God doesn't just limit us to a particular nation, culture or time period. Notice how we continue to find from within our journey, the Holy Scriptures constantly reminding us, that it doesn't matter what man can conjure up from within his own understanding of things, and from within his own limited mind. For there will never be a philosophy, ideology, or scientific theory that will take us beyond, or to enable us to surpass, replace, or present a better path than the one that the Almighty has provided to us through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Now we'll leave it there for the time being. But in the next article we will see how Pharaoh would respond to Moses' latest warning. And being that the Egyptian ruler and his servants had taken such a costly blow from the last "judgment plague" will anyone speak out against Pharaoh? And if they do, will he listen?
Moses & the Swarm of Flies Plague **YOUR CURRENT BIBLE STUDY ONLINE SERIES WOULD BE HERE**
173) How Far Are You Willing to Go 175) Although Exempted - They Still Endured 176) Moses You Can Go & Serve Your God - Only If... 177) God vs The Egyptian Bull Cults 178) A Hard Lesson for Pharaoh 179) God Brings Boils Upon Man & Beast 181) God Tells Pharaoh: You Owe Me Everything! 183) God vs Nut the Sky goddess 184) The Lord Giveth and Taketh 185) The Egyptians Disdain for the Holy One 187) <-CURRENT BIBLE STUDY ONLINE PAGE-> 188) Pharaoh's Moment of Intervention 
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