Exodus 5.1-6.13-Moses And Aaron's First Confrontation With Pharaoh Results In Greater Suffering For Israel But God Promises Deliverance
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Sunday October 9, 2011
Journey Through The Bible Series: Exodus 5:1-6:13-Moses And Aaron’s First Confrontation With Pharaoh Results In Greater Suffering For Israel But God Promises Deliverance
Lesson # 5
Please turn in your Bibles to Exodus 5:1.
This morning we will study Exodus 5:1-6:13, which records Moses and Aaron’s first confrontation with Pharaoh which results in greater suffering for Israel but God responds by guaranteeing the Israelites deliverance from Egypt.
Exodus 5:1 And afterward Moses and Aaron came and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let My people go that they may celebrate a feast to Me in the wilderness.’” 2 But Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and besides, I will not let Israel go.” 3 Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please, let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God, otherwise He will fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword.” 4 But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you draw the people away from their work? Get back to your labors!” 5 Again Pharaoh said, “Look, the people of the land are now many, and you would have them cease from their labors!” (NASB95)
These verses present to us Moses and Aaron obeying the Lord’s instructions to demand that Pharaoh release the Israelites to worship Him in the wilderness.
History tells us that the Pharaoh at this time was Amenhotep II.
Moses and Aaron gained an audience with Pharaoh because in the traditional legal system of the ancient world, kings were expected to make themselves available to the lowliest and poorest in society as well as the rich and influential.
This is seen when king Solomon granted an audience with two prostitutes to settle a dispute between the two (1 Kings 3:16-28).
The prophets of Israel took advantage of this right of audience and often times in highly critical and confrontational ways (cf. 2 Samuel 12:1-14).
Nathan confronted David with his sin of murdering Uriah the Hittite (2 Samuel 12:1-15).
The Lord warned Moses ahead of time that Pharaoh would stubbornly resist His demand to let Israel go (see Exodus 4:21, 23).
The Lord did this to prepare Moses in order that he would not be taken aback or frustrated by Pharaoh’s response.
Pharaoh’s response to God’s demands is sarcastic and arrogant since he does not honor or worship the God of Israel but rather the gods of Egypt.
In verse 3, Moses and Aaron communicate all that God had told them to say to Pharaoh but add a clause that God would destroy them if they don’t worship Him.
In verses 4, Pharaoh accuses Moses and Aaron of causing the Israelites to shirk their responsibilities to him as a result of them organizing the Israelites.
In verse 5, Pharaoh expresses Egyptian xenophobia (cf. 1:9-14).
Exodus 5:6 So the same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters over the people and their foremen, saying, 7 “You are no longer to give the people straw to make brick as previously; let them go and gather straw for themselves. 8 But the quota of bricks which they were making previously, you shall impose on them; you are not to reduce any of it. Because they are lazy, therefore they cry out, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ 9 Let the labor be heavier on the men, and let them work at it so that they will pay no attention to false words.” (NASB95)
In these verses, we have Pharaoh expressing the hardness of his heart by making the burden upon the Israelites even more oppressive.
His argument is that the Israelites are dreaming of freedom because they have too much time on their hands.
He considers Moses and Aaron’s words as lies and calls the Israelites lazy and this is why they cry out they want to worship their God.
Therefore, he increases the labor by shifting the responsibility of the Egyptians providing straw for the bricks for the Israelites to the Israelites doing it themselves.
Exodus 5:10 So the taskmasters of the people and their foremen went out and spoke to the people, saying, “Thus says Pharaoh, ‘I am not going to give you any straw. 11 ‘You go and get straw for yourselves wherever you can find it, but none of your labor will be reduced.’” 12 So the people scattered through all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. 13 The taskmasters pressed them, saying, “Complete your work quota, your daily amount, just as when you had straw.” 14 Moreover, the foremen of the sons of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten and were asked, “Why have you not completed your required amount either yesterday or today in making brick as previously?” (NASB95)
The situation has gone from bad to worse since the people trusted in the promises of the Lord, they are now suffering even more than before.
Moses and Aaron faithfully carried out the divine directives, yet nothing appeared to be accomplished except even greater suffering for the Israelites.
This teaches the Christian that carrying out God’s will as revealed in His Word does not always increase their comfort.
In fact, it oftentimes increases their suffering undeservedly and often results in opposition from the world, which is the case here with Pharaoh opposing the Israelites.
Exodus 5:15 Then the foremen of the sons of Israel came and cried out to Pharaoh, saying, “Why do you deal this way with your servants? 16 There is no straw given to your servants, yet they keep saying to us, ‘Make bricks!’ And behold, your servants are being beaten; but it is the fault of your own people.” 17 But he said, “You are lazy, very lazy; therefore you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the Lord.’ 18 So go now and work; for you will be given no straw, yet you must deliver the quota of bricks.” 19 The foremen of the sons of Israel saw that they were in trouble because they were told, “You must not reduce your daily amount of bricks.” (NASB95)
The Israelite foremen desperately seek an audience with Pharaoh to complain about his unreasonable demands upon them.
The Israelites and Moses and Aaron are being taught that when they are weak then they are strong for God’s power is manifested through human impotence (cf. 2 Corinthians 12:10-12).
Exodus 5:20 When they left Pharaoh’s presence, they met Moses and Aaron as they were waiting for them. 21 They said to them, “May the Lord look upon you and judge you, for you have made us odious in Pharaoh’s sight and in the sight of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us.” (NASB95)
Here we have the Israelite foremen turning on Moses and Aaron who are the Lord’s messengers.
In reality they are rejecting the Lord and not Moses and Aaron whom the Lord sent to Pharaoh.
Exodus 5:22 Then Moses returned to the Lord and said, “O Lord, why have You brought harm to this people? Why did You ever send me? 23 Ever since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, he has done harm to this people, and You have not delivered Your people at all.” (NASB95)
Moses questions his ability to lead and to accomplish what God has sent him to do.
However, he has faithfully carried out what the Lord wanted him to do. He just hasn’t seen any fruit.
He will learn that even though he might faithfully communicate God’s Word to people, this doesn’t guarantee that people will respond to the message (cf. Luke 8:4-15) and will often result in suffering undeservedly.
Exodus 6:1 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for under compulsion he will let them go, and under compulsion he will drive them out of his land.” (NASB95)
The Lord assures the dejected and discouraged Moses by telling him that under compulsion Pharaoh will be forced to free the Israelites.
In fact, Pharaoh himself will drive the Israelites from the land of Egypt.
“Under compulsion” means that the Lord will deliver the Israelites by means of His divine omnipotence.
Notice that the Lord does not even attempt to explain why He chose to confront Pharaoh in such a way or why Pharaoh scoffed at His demands but rather, He simply communicates to Moses His original promise in Exodus 3:19 to deliver Israel by the exertion of His power.
Exodus 6:1 presents the first of four occurrences in 1-8 of the phrase “I am the Lord,” which emphasizes God’s responsibility to fulfill His covenant promises to the patriarchs as well as His faithfulness to these promises.
It also emphasizes that the fulfillment of the promises to the patriarchs are unconditional meaning that their fulfillment is totally based upon the faithfulness of God rather than the faithfulness of the patriarchs themselves.
Exodus 6:2 God spoke further to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord; 3 and I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name, Lord, I did not make Myself known to them. 4 I also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they sojourned.” (NASB95)
In these verses, God again mentions His covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
God says that He made Himself known to the patriarchs as El Shaddai, “God Almighty” (Genesis 17:1; 35:11) and did not identify Himself to them as Yahweh (יהוה), “Lord,” which is the personal name of God.
Yahweh is the personal covenant name of God emphasizing that the Lord was involving Himself in and concerning Himself with and intervening in the life of the Israelites and fulfilling His covenant promises He made to the patriarchs.
God also states that He promised to give these men and their descendants the land of Canaan, which is sometimes called the “Palestinian” covenant, which is in fact an extension of the “Abrahamic” covenant (Genesis 12:7; 13:14-17)
Exodus 6:5 “Furthermore I have heard the groaning of the sons of Israel, because the Egyptians are holding them in bondage, and I have remembered My covenant.” (NASB95)
The expressions “I have heard” and “I have remembered” both are idiomatic ways of saying I am about to act upon My promises to My people.
Exodus 6:6 “Say, therefore, to the sons of Israel, ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. 7 Then I will take you for My people, and I will be your God; and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 8 I will bring you to the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I will give it to you for a possession; I am the Lord.’” (NASB95)
God makes seven promises in these verses: (1) He will free the Israelites from Egyptian slavery. (2) He will redeem the Israelites by the exertion of His power and with great judgments. (3) He will take the Israelites as His people. (4) He will be their God. (5) The Israelites will know that He is the Lord their God who delivered them from Egypt. (6) He will bring the Israelites to the land which He promised to the patriarchs. (7) He will give it to the Israelites to posses.
Notice that God promises to do all the work.
The Israelite and Moses’ part is to exercise faith in these promises.
Faith appropriates the omnipotence of God (Matthew 17:20).
All of these promises are also prophecies, which were all fulfilled.
Exodus 6:9 So Moses spoke thus to the sons of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses on account of their despondency and cruel bondage. 10 Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 11 “Go, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the sons of Israel go out of his land.” 12 But Moses spoke before the Lord, saying, “Behold, the sons of Israel have not listened to me; how then will Pharaoh listen to me, for I am unskilled in speech?” 13 Then the Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron, and gave them a charge to the sons of Israel and to Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt. (NASB95)
It is understandable that the Israelites would not listen to Moses.
The Israelites had suffered their entire lives and this latest incident with Pharaoh has destroyed all hope.
The God of their forefathers seemed to them but a impotent person and at worst non-existent.
The Lord commands Moses to return to Pharaoh and demand that he free the Israelite slaves.
But Moses responds by arguing that if the Israelites who are his brethren don’t listen to him, how will Pharaoh, who is his enemy, listen to him?
His logic is sound but not based upon faith in the promises of God.
He is using human rationalism to solve the problem he faces.
At the end of verse 12, Moses reiterates a previous protest in order to be released from his duties.
He states that he is “unskilled in speech,” which in the Hebrew literally means “My lips are uncircumcised.”
This does not indicate he had a speech impediment but rather he was using the metaphorical language of circumcision that he was “not ready for public speaking.”
He might have been thinking that if God was willing to kill him for not circumcising his boys then maybe God would be willing to dismiss him as His representative to Pharaoh for being unwilling to speak to Pharaoh again.
Moses is discouraged.
So it is no surprise that he would be seeking to be removed from his office, which he believes will end his suffering.
In verse 13, the Lord ignores Moses’ complaints and his resignation and instead commands both him and his brother to lead the Israelites out of Egypt by His power.