CHAPTER 11

(1491 B.C.)

VALUABLES

¹And the LORD said unto Moses, Yet will I bring one plague more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt (this tenth and last plague would touch the dearest of all in Egypt, the firstborn, and that from Pharaoh down; sin touches all!); afterwards he will let you go hence: when he shall let you go, he shall surely thrust you out hence altogether. (Egypt, by now, was wreckage. What had formerly been the most powerful nation on the face of the Earth was now virtually destroyed. Anyone or anything who and which sets themselves against God, no matter how strong, rich, or powerful, will face certain doom. As well, regarding the Believer who totally places his Faith and trust in Christ and what Christ has done at the Cross, to be sure, Satan will let them go. He has no choice [Rom. 6:14].)

²Speak now in the ears of the people, and let every man borrow (ask) of his neighbour, and every woman of her neighbour, jewels of silver and jewels of gold. (The Hebrew word Shaal, translated borrow, actually should have been translated ask. Borrow carries the connotation that the object obtained will be returned; however, Israel wasnt coming back into Egypt, so there was no thought of returning these items, and the Egyptians understood that as well! By the silver and gold being given to the Israelites in copious amounts, the Lord was paying Israel for their years of servitude; therefore, they left out of Egypt rich.)

³And the LORD gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaohs servants, and in the sight of the people. (At the beginning, Moses was disdained; however, by the Power of God, the situation has radically changed. In the coming Kingdom Age, the world will look at all Believers in the same light that Egypt then looked at Moses.)

DEATH

⁴And Moses said, Thus says the LORD (believed to have been spoken at the conclusion of the plague of darkness), About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt (Moses gives Pharaoh the final word from the Lord and, to be sure, it is a chilling assessment; truly it was midnight for Egypt; the day of Grace was over, and the final judgment is about to begin):

⁵And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant who is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts. (The death of all the firstborn in Egypt constituted a severe blow. The monarchy was hereditary, and the oldest son was known as the hereditary Crowned Prince. Estates descended to the oldest son and, in many cases, high dignities also. As well, it was believed by the Egyptians that their afterlife [life after death] continued through the firstborn. In other words, if the firstborn was lost, there was no afterlife. So, this plague was the greatest of all and, as well, the most far-reaching.)

⁶And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it any more. (The cry that was registered in Egypt must not be blamed on a loving and compassionate God, but on the stubbornness of Pharaoh and, as well, of a hardhearted people. Men tend to blame God; however, if this situation is studied carefully, we find that God dealt with Egypt through Grace upon Grace, but they would not yield. In such cases, even the judgment of God must be concluded as Grace.)

⁷But against any of the Children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that you may know how that the LORD does put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel. (As is obvious here, there is a great difference between the Redeemed and the unredeemed. The former are protected by the Lord, while the latter enjoy no such protection.)

⁸And all these your servants (Pharaohs servants) shall come down unto me (to Moses), and bow down themselves unto me, saying, Get thee out, and all the people who follow you (get out of Egypt): and after that I will go out. And he (Moses) went out from Pharaoh in a great anger. (This Passage portrays Moses delivering the last message to Pharaoh. It is straight and to the point. Moses went out from the presence of Pharaoh with great anger, because he knew that all of this was so unnecessary. Hundreds of thousands would die, and the truth is, not one single person needed to die. Moses was angry at the stubbornness of the Monarch, who had watched Egypt, little by little, as it was destroyed, but who still refused to acquiesce to the demands of Almighty God.)

⁹And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you: that My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt. (The Lord would use the stubbornness of the Monarch to glorify the Power of God.)

¹⁰And Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh: and the LORD hardened Pharaohs heart, so that he would not let the Children of Israel go out of his land. (But the hour would shortly come when Pharaoh would have no choice; as well, Satan has no choice but to let go of the Believer who has placed his Faith exclusively in Christ and the Cross [Rom. 6:3-14].)