The final plague & The first passover
We left off last week after the ninth plague in Egypt. Pharoah rejects God one last time and God will no longer wait for Pharaoh to give in.
Exodus 11:1 | Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will strike Pharaoh and the land of Egypt with one more blow. After that, Pharaoh will let you leave this country. In fact, he will be so eager to get rid of you that he will force you all to leave.”
The final plague is severe and despite Pharoah’s threat the last time they met, Moses has to face Pharoah again to deliver the news-
Exodus 11:4-5 | Moses had announced to Pharaoh, “This is what the Lord says: At midnight tonight I will pass through the heart of Egypt. All the firstborn sons will die in every family in Egypt from the oldest son of Pharaoh, who sits on his throne, to the oldest son of his lowliest servant girl who grinds the flour. Even the firstborn of the livestock will die.”
This news is by far the most difficult to deliver of all the plagues and yet Moses isn’t afraid, doesn’t protest, and no longer seems insecure. In fact, this time Moses is speaking, not Aaron. Moses has seen God’s power over and over again and finally, he trusts God no matter what!
God gives Moses very specific instructions for the Israelites so that they’ll be safe from the destruction of the final plague. The process would be one they would repeat every year to celebrate God’s power and rescue.
The families of Israel were to select a perfect, spotless lamb to sacrifice to the Lord (Exodus 12:5-6). Then, they were to cover their doorpost with some of the blood of that lamb (Exodus 12:7). God tells the Israelites to do this, then eat, get dressed, and be ready to go! (Exodus 12:11). The households covered by the blood of the lamb would be passed over by the Lord and their firstborn sons would live (Exodus 12:13).
Exodus 12:28-30 | So the people of Israel did just as the Lord had commanded through Moses and Aaron. And that night at midnight, the Lord struck down all the firstborn sons in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sat on his throne, to the firstborn son of the prisoner in the dungeon. Even the firstborn of their livestock were killed. Pharaoh and all his officials and all the people of Egypt woke up during the night, and loud wailing was heard throughout the land of Egypt. There was not a single house where someone had not died.
This was a plague that pharoah could not ignore.
Exodus 12:31-33 | Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aarond during the night. “Get out!” he ordered. “Leave my people- and take the rest of the Israelites with you! Go and worship the Lord as you have requested. Take your flocks and herds, as you said, and be gone. Go, but bless me as you leave.” All the Egyptians urged the people of Israel to get out of the land as quickly as possible, for they thought, “We will all die!”
Like we saw last week, even the Egyptians now realize God’s power. They don’t want to stand in the way of the plans of the One True God, so they send the Israelites out of Egypt and even give them all their riches (Exodus 12:36).
Exodus 12:40-42a | The people of Israel had lived in Egypt for 430 years. In fact, it was on the last day of the 430th year that all the Lord’s forces left the land. On this night the Lord kept his promise to bring his people out of the land of Egypt.
Exodus 12:51 | On that very day the Lord brought the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt like an army.
The Israelites were commanded to celebrate the Passover to remember how God spared the lives of their firstborn sons and rescued them from Egypt. They are finally out of Egypt, but we’ll have to wait quite a while longer before they are finally in the promised land.
Moses’ work isn’t done yet, but his transformation during his time with Pharaoh in Egypt is remarkable. He goes from someone who is insecure and doubts God to someone who faces the pharaoh head on even after his life was threatened. The thing is, Moses wasn’t a superhero. He wasn’t strong, notably smart, or clearly, even a good speaker. But as Moses sees God work, he realizes he can trust the Lord and he puts his faith in Him. The New Testament actually explains the source of Moses’ ability to finally keep going without giving up-
Hebrews 11:27 | It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger. He kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible.
Moses’ eyes were fixed on Jesus - God the Son who had appeared to Him in the bush. He stayed focused on the Lord as He directed his time with Pharoah. In fact, God used Moses and the 10th plague to direct all of Israel’s eyes to Jesus when He gave them the instructions for the Passover. The perfect spotless lamb was a picture of Jesus, the Perfect Lamb who would come to take away the sins of the world (John 1:29). After generations of celebrating the Passover, Jesus would be the final Passover Lamb.
1st Corinthians 5:7b | Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed for us.
When our lives are covered by the blood of Jesus, like the doorposts of the Israelites’ homes, we are declared right in God’s sight and freed from the penalty for our sin.
Romans 5:9 | And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation.
Moses was only able to be so radically transformed and powerfully used because of His faith in God. His faith grew as he kept his eyes on the One who is invisible. Our Timeless Truth today is keep your eyes on Jesus. When you do this, even when things are tough, just like Moses your faith grows and you can be powerfully used to point the eyes of others to Jesus too. Keep your eyes on Jesus.
What is something you learned or that stood out to you from the first passover/10th plague?
How did God’s instructions to the Israelites point them to Jesus – the coming Savior?
Why is keeping our eyes on Jesus – or staying focused on God as our leader – important?
If Moses lost focus and forgot who was leading him, what might have changed? Have you ever experienced a loss of focus like this? If so, when? What was the result?