21 神降灾祸给埃及

Creation to Christ – Lesson 21

The Lord sent plagues on the Egyptians

1.  Introduction

·      We will begin by looking back at what we have already learned.

? Why did Satan want to destroy the Israelites?

Because he knew God had promised Abraham that one of his descendants would be the Deliverer.

? Do you remember another time Satan tried but couldn’t hinder God’s plans concerning the Deliverer?

Satan convinced Cain to kill Abel so that the promised Deliverer could not come through Abel’s line, but God continued His plan through Seth.

       ? What did God plan to do through Moses?

              Deliver the Israelites from slavery.

       ? What unusual thing did Moses see, and what made it possible?

              A burning bush that was not being destroyed because God was in it.

       ? What does God’s name “I AM” mean?

That He is the “Self-Existent One,” who has lived, and always will live, completely by His own power and wisdom.

·      We will now turn our attention to the focus of this lesson.

God is supreme.

Nothing under heaven or earth can diminish His authority.  His word is dependable and His plans are unstoppable.

We’ve learned that Satan arrogantly challenged His Maker but to no avail. Throughout history he’s tenaciously opposed God.  Satan’s connived and convinced man to do the same, but God will never be defeated.  These rebellious scenarios only serve to provide God a backdrop for displaying His mighty power.

2. Pharaoh refused to obey God’s command given through Moses and Aaron.

·      Pharaoh did not know the only true and living God.

              Pharaoh didn’t know God, nor did he want to.

              ? What did the Egyptians worship?

Instead of the Creator, they worshiped creation, such as the Nile River, the sun, moon, animals and even Pharaoh.

Long before this point in history, the majority of the earth’s population had rejected the revelation that God had given about Himself.  As a result, Satan, the god of this world, had deceived them so that they worshiped all kinds of things, imagining them to be gods.

·      We know from secular history that there were many intelligent, highly-skilled people among the Egyptians.

Among them were capable writers, mathematicians, chemists, military and civilian leaders, architects, artists and craftsmen.  They were knowledgeable in many fields, but concerning spiritual truth, they were totally blind and foolish.

The Egyptians refused to release the Israelites from slavery, but they themselves were also hopelessly enslaved.  The Egyptians were held captive and completely subservient to Satan, his lies and his ways.

·      There are many today who are still deceived by Satan.

? In the same way that the Egyptians chose to believe the lies of Satan, and worshiped created things rather than their Creator, what have most people today chosen to rely on instead of what the Bible says?

    Their own ideas based on their natural wisdom and knowledge.

Each person has to decide for himself who he will believe – Satan or God.

·      God wants all people to know the truth.

Even though most people in the early stages of world history had chosen to turn away from the true understanding of God, He ensured that His truth would be preserved.

? Who did God choose to receive and guard His truth?

    The nation of Israel – the descendants of Abraham.

Through them, God planned to preserve the true knowledge of Himself, the origins of the universe, as well as the way to know Him.  Israel was also to be the channel through which the truth was to spread to the whole world.

·      God also cared for the Egyptians.

He would have taught Pharaoh and his people the truth if they had been willing to listen. But Pharaoh refused to listen to God’s message through Moses.

3. God planned to use Pharaoh’s rebellion to display His almighty power.

·      Through Pharaoh’s rebellion, the Lord planned to impress on the Israelites that He was their God.

The generation of Israelites living in Egypt when Moses returned there had heard about the Lord and what He had done for Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph, but they had never personally experienced the Lord’s greatness and power.

God was going to use this rebellious Pharaoh as a means to display His power and wisdom to this generation of Israelites.

? What do the verses we have just read say that God planned to show the Israelites in Egypt?

That He was still almighty, that He cared about them, and that He was faithful to keep the promises He had made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

He wanted the Israelites to be gripped by the reality that the God of their forefathers was also their God.

·      The Lord also planned to reveal to all nations that He alone was the true and living God.

Because Pharaoh was determined to fight against Him, God planned to use this proud and wicked ruler to display His mighty power to the Egyptians and the then-known world. Through Pharaoh’s defiance, the God of Israel would be revealed as the Almighty Ruler over the earth.

·      The Lord knows the hearts of all people.

He knew what Pharaoh was like before Moses spoke to him. God wasn’t surprised when the king of Egypt refused to obey Him.

? God had already told Moses that Pharaoh would not let the Israelites go.  Do you remember when He told him that?

  When He spoke to him from the burning bush.

·      God did not make Pharaoh disobey Him.

Although God knew what Pharaoh would do, He did not make Pharaoh choose to refuse to listen to His message through Moses.  Nevertheless, God used Pharaoh’s rebellion to demonstrate that those who rebel against Him will suffer terrible judgment.

·      God is still the same.

No one who ignores or resists God can escape His punishment.  Pharaoh could not fight against God and win, and neither can anyone else.

4. The Lord sent nine plagues on the Egyptians.

·      Because Pharaoh refused to release the Israelites, the Lord began to show His great power by sending plagues on the Egyptians.

Because of the time it would take, we will not read all the details of what happened, but if you want to read the story, it is found in Exodus, chapters 7-10.

Let me give you a summary of the plagues: First, the Lord turned the water of the Nile River into blood.  Then, He sent plagues of frogs, lice (gnats), and flies.  Following this, He caused the Egyptian’s horses, cattle, sheep, camels and donkeys to become sick.  Next, the Lord caused all of the Egyptians to have terrible boils.  This was followed by a terribly destructive hailstorm, a plague of locusts, and three days of total darkness.

·      Each of the plagues was an attack on the Egyptian’s  gods.

For example, the Egyptians worshiped the Nile River, and God turned its water into blood.  As another example, they worshiped the sun, and God caused three days of total darkness.

? What was the Lord showing these idolaters?

  That He had complete power over their gods.

The Egyptians’ gods could not save them from the plagues; neither could the Egyptians save themselves.

5. God protected the Israelites from the nine plagues.

·      While the Egyptians were suffering from the plagues, the Lord was taking care of His people.

? Why do you think the Lord protected the Israelites from the effects of the plague?

·      The Lord protected the Israelites because He loved them.

? Why didn’t they deserve His love?

    Because they were sinners.

They didn’t deserve His intervention.  He protected them because of His love, mercy and grace.

·      God protected the Israelites because of His promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

? What had God promised these men?

That He would bless them and make their descendants into a great nation, and give them the land of Canaan.

Although hundreds of years had passed since the promise had been given and the Israelites were now slaves in Egypt,