CHAPTER 5

(1491 B.C.)

PHARAOH

¹And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told the Pharaoh (according to many authorities, the Pharaoh at that time was Menephthap, the son and successor of Rameses II; history records that he was a weak individual, but, because of certain events, had an exalted opinion of himself; the close of Chapter 4 presents the people worshipping in believing joy; the close of Chapter 5 sets before the reader the same people filled with unbelieving bitterness; the glad tidings of Salvation is one thing; the struggle against the power that tries to keep the soul in bondage is quite another), Thus says the LORD God of Israel, Let My People go, that they may hold a feast unto Me in the wilderness. (If it is to be noticed, the Holy Spirit, in giving Moses direction regarding the Sacred Text, in no way recognizes the splendor of Egypt. The character of the Message that Moses was to deliver to Pharaoh was not calculated to compromise or pacify.)

²And Pharaoh said, Who is the LORD, that I should obey His Voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go. (Satan will not easily allow his captives to go free; and God permits the bitter experience of Satans power in order to exercise and strengthen Faith. Mackintosh says: When we contemplate Israel amid the brick kilns of Egypt, we behold a graphic figure of the condition of every child of Adams fallen race by nature. There they were, crushed beneath the enemys galling yoke, and having no power to deliver themselves. The mere mention of the word liberty only caused the oppressor to bind his captives with a stronger fetter, and to lade them with a still more grievous burden. Consequently, it was absolutely necessary that deliverance should come from without. Nevertheless, Pharaoh will soon find out exactly Who is the Lord!)

³And they (Moses and Aaron) said, The God of the Hebrews has met with us: let us go, we pray you, three days journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the LORD our God; lest He fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword. (This simple statement tells us, even as given to Moses by the Lord, that it is the Cross only which holds back the Judgment of God. In other words, the only thing standing between man and Hell is the Cross of Christ.)

HARDENED HEART

⁴And the king of Egypt said unto them, Why do you, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works? get you unto your burdens. (They will now find that the burdens are increased. As the Children of Israel, it seems that many do not too very much mind being slaves to Satan, until the burdens become so heavy that they cannot be borne. Invariably, that will happen!)

⁵And Pharaoh said, Behold, the people of the land now are many (the Israelites), and you make them rest from their burdens.

⁶And Pharaoh commanded the same day the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying,

⁷You shall no more give the people straw to make brick, as heretofore: let them go and gather straw for themselves. (Oftentimes, the setting to carry out the Will of God will result in Satans anger, with opposition being increased.)

⁸And the tale (number) of the bricks, which they did make heretofore, you shall lay upon them; you shall not diminish ought thereof: for they be idle; therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our God. (At the mention of Sacrifice, Pharaoh increased the pressure and the workload, almost to a killing pace. When the Believer first begins to hear the Message of the Cross, he will find the opposition of Satan greatly increasing. This will be confusing at first, but the Believer should take heart. The enemy does this because he knows the Believer has now found the source of victory; therefore, he seeks to move the Believers faith from the Cross to other things, by discouragement, etc.)

⁹Let there more work be laid upon the men, that they may labor therein; and let them not regard vain words. (Pharaoh regarded the offering of Sacrifices as vain words. Regrettably, much of the modern Church does the same, as it regards the Cross.)

¹⁰And the taskmasters of the people went out, and their officers, and they spoke to the people, saying, Thus sa ys Pharaoh, I will not give you straw.

¹¹Go ye, get you straw where you can find it: yet not ought of your work shall be diminished. (Even though you have to get the straw yourselves, you must turn out just as much work as previously.)

¹²So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble instead of straw. (It is good for a man to learn painfully the nature of sins dominion, and his absolute helplessness in the grip of that monarch.)

¹³And the taskmasters hasted them, saying, Fulfill your works, your daily tasks, as when there was straw. (The first move of Israel toward deliverance plunged her into deeper misery so that the people would have preferred being left quiet in their slavery. This is oftentimes the spiritual experience of awakened sinners, or even awakened Christians to the Message of the Cross.)

¹⁴And the officers of the Children of Israel, which Pharaohs taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and demanded, Wherefore have you not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and today, as heretofore? (Satan wanted them to be willing to remain as slaves in Egypt. He almost succeeded!)

¹⁵Then the officers of the Children of Israel came and cried unto Pharaoh, saying, Why do you deal thus with your servants? (Instead of crying unto the Lord, these leaders of the Israelites turned unto Pharaoh for relief. So often we as modern Believers follow suit. We appeal to man instead of God.)

¹⁶There is no straw given unto your servants, and they say to us, Make brick: and, behold, your servants are beaten; but the fault is in your own people. (The natural man ever prefers to lean upon an arm of flesh than be supported by Him Who is invisible.)

¹⁷But he (Pharaoh) said, You are idle, you are idle: therefore you say, Let us go and do Sacrifice to the LORD. (It is the Sacrifice which rankled Pharaoh, even though he would not have been aware as to what exactly it all meant. The Cross always rankles Satan.)

¹⁸Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you, yet shall you deliver the tale (number) of bricks. (We should learn that its not Scriptural for us to make plans and then ask God to bless those plans. If God makes the plans, they are assured of blessing. So, leave Pharaoh alone, and depend exclusively on the Lord for all that is to be done.)

MOSES

¹⁹And the officers of the Children of Israel did see that they were in evil case, after it was said, You shall not minish (reduce) ought from your bricks of your daily task.

²⁰And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh:

²¹And they said unto them, The LORD look upon you, and judge; because you have made our savour to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us. (Moses was no doubt prepared for the rebuff which he had himself received from Pharaoh, for the Lord had plainly said that He would harden the kings heart. But, so far as the inspired record informs us, nothing has been told him that he would meet with discouragement and opposition from his own brethren. A real testing was this for Gods servant, for it is far more trying to be criticized by our own Brethren, by those whom we are anxious to help, than it is to be persecuted by the world.)

²²And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, LORD, wherefore have You so evil entreated this people? why is it that You have sent me? (The second sentence of this Verse should read: Lord, wherefore have you suffered Your people to be so evil entreated?)

²³For 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. (The opposition of Pharaoh, and the unbelief and anger of Israel, were a double discouragement for Moses.)