Exodus 9:1-35 The Lord Shall Sever Between the Cattle of Israel and the Cattle of Egypt
Exo 9:1-35 The Lord Shall Sever Between the Cattle of Israel and the Cattle of Egypt
[Study Aired May 9, 2022]
Exo 9:1 Then the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
Exo 9:2 For if thou refuse to let them go, and wilt hold them still,
Exo 9:3 Behold, the hand of the LORD is upon thy cattle which is in the field, upon the horses, upon the asses, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep: there shall be a very grievous murrain.
Exo 9:4 And the LORD shall sever between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt: and there shall nothing die of all that is the children’s of Israel.
Exo 9:5 And the LORD appointed a set time, saying, To morrow the LORD shall do this thing in the land.
Exo 9:6 And the LORD did that thing on the morrow, and all the cattle of Egypt died: but of the cattle of the children of Israel died not one.
Exo 9:7 And Pharaoh sent, and, behold, there was not one of the cattle of the Israelites dead. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.
Exo 9:8 And the LORD said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh.
Exo 9:9 And it shall become small dust in all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast, throughout all the land of Egypt.
Exo 9:10 And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward heaven; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast.
Exo 9:11 And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boil was upon the magicians, and upon all the Egyptians.
Exo 9:12 And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had spoken unto Moses.
Exo 9:13 And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
Exo 9:14 For I will at this time send all my plagues upon thine heart, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people; that thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth.
Exo 9:15 For now I will stretch out my hand, that I may smite thee and thy people with pestilence; and thou shalt be cut off from the earth.
Exo 9:16 And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.
Exo 9:17 As yet exaltest thou thyself against my people, that thou wilt not let them go?
Exo 9:18 Behold, to morrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as hath not been in Egypt since the foundation thereof even until now.
Exo 9:19 Send therefore now, and gather thy cattle, and all that thou hast in the field; for upon every man and beast which shall be found in the field, and shall not be brought home, the hail shall come down upon them, and they shall die.
Exo 9:20 He that feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his cattle flee into the houses:
Exo 9:21 And he that regarded not the word of the LORD left his servants and his cattle in the field.
Exo 9:22 And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch forth thine hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man, and upon beast, and upon every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.
Exo 9:23 And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt.
Exo 9:24 So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation.
Exo 9:25 And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field.
Exo 9:26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail.
Exo 9:27 And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time: the LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked.
Exo 9:28 Intreat the LORD (for it is enough) that there be no more mighty thunderings and hail; and I will let you go, and ye shall stay no longer.
Exo 9:29 And Moses said unto him, As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will spread abroad my hands unto the LORD; and the thunder shall cease, neither shall there be any more hail; that thou mayest know how that the earth is the LORD’S.
Exo 9:30 But as for thee and thy servants, I know that ye will not yet fear the LORD God.
Exo 9:31 And the flax and the barley was smitten: for the barley was in the ear, and the flax was bolled.
Exo 9:32 But the wheat and the rie were not smitten: for they were not grown up.
Exo 9:33 And Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread abroad his hands unto the LORD: and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not poured upon the earth.
Exo 9:34 And when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders were ceased, he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants.
Exo 9:35 And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, neither would he let the children of Israel go; as the LORD had spoken by Moses.
This chapter focuses on the fifth, sixth and the seventh plagues – the death of Egyptian cattle, outbreak of boils and the raining down of hail. All these are part of the Lord’s judgment of the old man or the beast within symbolized by Pharaoh. As we are aware, the Lord’s four sore judgments entail the following:
Eze 14:21 For thus saith the Lord GOD; How much more when I send my four sore judgments upon Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the noisome beast, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast?
The mention of four sore judgments means that the whole of the Lord’s judgment involves the sword, famine, noisome beast and pestilence. This means that the judgments we encounter in this life, leading to the death of the old man, are related to the sword, famine, noisome beast or pestilence.
Exo 5:3 And they said, The God of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days’ journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the LORD our God; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword.
As indicated in the previous studies, the turning of the waters of Egypt into blood, the unleashing of frogs, lice and swarms of flies all have to do with the pollution of the word of the Lord by lies and false doctrines propagated by evil agents of the devil. This results in famine of the word of the Lord as indicated by Amos:
Amo 8:11 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:
Amo 8:12 And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.
Today’s study has to do with the Lord’s judgment on our old man in relation to the sword (raining down of hail) and pestilence (outbreak of boils and the death of cattle and other animals). All these judgments are to bring Pharaoh to the point of allowing the people of Israel to be liberated from their Egyptian bondage in order to serve the Lord. This is reiterated by the Lord as He instructed Moses and Aaron to tell Pharaoh as follows:
Exo 9:1 Then the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
Our Lord’s desire to get rid of the old man (Pharaoh) within us is again stated here in verse 1 where the Lord told Moses to tell Pharaoh to let His people go so they can serve Him. As long as the beast reigns within our members, there is no way we can please or serve the Lord. As we are aware, the Lord had sworn by an oath with our fathers (Abraham, Isaac and Jacob) that He would give their descendants the promised land, which is our bodies. Knowing this, we must have confidence that irrespective of our circumstance and where we are spiritually, the Lord will put to death the old man (Pharaoh) in order for us to serve Him acceptably.
Exo 6:8 And I will bring you in unto the land, concerning the which I did swear to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; and I will give it you for an heritage: I am the LORD.
Heb 6:13 For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself,
Heb 6:14 Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.
Heb 6:15 And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.
Heb 6:16 For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife.
Heb 6:17 Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath:
Heb 6:18 That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:
Heb 6:19 Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;
Having confidence that the Lord will surely cause us to possess the land (overcome the flesh to possess our bodies), all we have to do is believe in the strong hand (His judgments) of the Lord to accomplish it. The stubbornness of the beast, signified by Pharaoh’s resistance to let the people of Israel go from Egypt, brings us to the fifth plague or judgment by the death of cattle, horses, camels, etc. as follows:
The Plague of the Death of Cattle
Exo 9:2 For if thou refuse to let them go, and wilt hold them still,
Exo 9:3 Behold, the hand of the LORD is upon thy cattle which is in the field, upon the horses, upon the asses, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep: there shall be a very grievous murrain.
In the scriptures, cattle, asses, horses, camels, oxen and sheep are symbols of worldly riches as shown in the following examples of Abraham and Job:
Gen 24:35 And the LORD hath blessed my master greatly; and he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses.
Job 1:3 His substance also was seven thousand sheep, and three thousand camels, and five hundred yoke of oxen, and five hundred she asses, and a very great household; so that this man was the greatest of all the men of the east.
These worldly riches represent the things of this world which are the source of sin – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life which we are admonished not to love.
1Jn 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
1Jn 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
1Jn 2:17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
The plague of the death of the cattle, asses, camel, etc. therefore is judgment of the Lord which brings about the death of the world within us and therefore curtails our quest for mammon. The rich young ruler who came to Jesus wanted to serve the Lord as he came to inquire about the way of salvation. However, the cares of the world and his love for riches disqualified him from becoming a son in this life.
Mat 13:22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.
Mat 19:16 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?
Mat 19:17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
Mat 19:18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness,
Mat 19:19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Mat 19:20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?
Mat 19:21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.
Mat 19:22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
Jesus telling the rich young ruler that he should go and sell his riches does not mean that Jesus is having against the riches of this world. No!! The blessing of the Lord also includes the riches of this world. However, Jesus is here speaking in a parable, not to the world, but to His elect. What Jesus said is that the way to the kingdom of God is to be spiritually poor. Being spiritually poor is what the Lord meant when he said that the young man should sell his possessions. Again, when Jesus said that it was almost impossible for those who are rich in this life to enter the kingdom of God, He was speaking in parable. What he meant is that it is impossible for those who think they are spiritually rich to enter the kingdom of God.
Mat 19:23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 19:24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
Exo 9:4 And the LORD shall sever between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt: and there shall nothing die of all that is the children’s of Israel.
Exo 9:5 And the LORD appointed a set time, saying, To morrow the LORD shall do this thing in the land.
Exo 9:6 And the LORD did that thing on the morrow, and all the cattle of Egypt died: but of the cattle of the children of Israel died not one.
Exo 9:7 And Pharaoh sent, and, behold, there was not one of the cattle of the Israelites dead. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.
The cattle of Israel stand for spiritual riches as against the cattle of Egypt which represent the love of the world. The cattle of Israel not experiencing death in verse 4 means that spiritual riches are eternal, while the cattle of Egypt, which stand for the things of this world, are temporal or dying.
Rom 11:33 O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!
Col 2:2 That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ;
Col 2:3 In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.Col 1:27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
The cattle of Israel, which signify spiritual riches, entail getting to know the wisdom and knowledge of God which is precious in the Lord’s sight as indicated in the verses above. It is those whose eyes are being opened who value spiritual riches. The flesh, signified by Pharaoh, does not care about spiritual things, and therefore it is no wonder that Pharaoh’s heart became hardened even after seeing the cattle of Israel not affected by the plague, as he did not take it to heart at all.
The Plague of the Outbreak of Boils
Exo 9:8 And the LORD said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh.
Exo 9:9 And it shall become small dust in all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast, throughout all the land of Egypt.
Exo 9:10 And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward heaven; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast.
Exo 9:11 And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boil was upon the magicians, and upon all the Egyptians.
Exo 9:12 And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had spoken unto Moses.
Boils are a skin disease caused by bacterial infection. In the scriptures, when one has a skin disease, he/she must appear before a priest to give his verdict on the nature of the skin disease whether it is a defiling skin disease or a rash, in which case the person is declared clean.
Lev 13:1 And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, saying,
Lev 13:2 When a man shall have in the skin of his flesh a rising, a scab, or bright spot, and it be in the skin of his flesh like the plague of leprosy; then he shall be brought unto Aaron the priest, or unto one of his sons the priests:
Lev 13:3 And the priest shall look on the plague in the skin of the flesh: and when the hair in the plague is turned white, and the plague in sight be deeper than the skin of his flesh, it is a plague of leprosy: and the priest shall look on him, and pronounce him unclean.
Lev 13:4 If the bright spot be white in the skin of his flesh, and in sight be not deeper than the skin, and the hair thereof be not turned white; then the priest shall shut up him that hath the plague seven days:
Lev 13:5 And the priest shall look on him the seventh day: and, behold, if the plague in his sight be at a stay, and the plague spread not in the skin; then the priest shall shut him up seven days more:
Lev 13:6 And the priest shall look on him again the seventh day: and, behold, if the plague be somewhat dark, and the plague spread not in the skin, the priest shall pronounce him clean: it is but a scab: and he shall wash his clothes, and be clean.
What this means is that through the Lord’s judgment of our flesh (outbreak of boils), we are taken through a humbling experience (judgment of boils) which causes us to depend on our brothers and sisters (Priest). This was what happened to Hezekiah when he got sick and was about to die. Isaiah told him initially that he would die, but after Hezekiah sought the Lord to show mercy to him, he was given an additional fifteen years. Hezekiah was humbled by this near-death experience, and he submitted to Isaiah’s words. In healing Hezekiah, Isaiah took a lump of figs and placed it on Hezekiah’s boil, and he was healed. As we may be aware, figs in the scriptures represent the Lord’s people, so a lump of figs represents the body of the elect through whom healing comes to us when through the Lord’s experience, we are humbled.
2Ki 20:1 In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live.
2Ki 20:2 Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, saying,
2Ki 20:3 I beseech thee, O LORD, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore.
2Ki 20:4 And it came to pass, afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court, that the word of the LORD came to him, saying,
2Ki 20:5 Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the LORD.
2Ki 20:6 And I will add unto thy days fifteen years; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake.
2Ki 20:7 And Isaiah said, Take a lump of figs. And they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered.
Pharaoh’s stubbornness became evident once again as the Lord hardened his heart and therefore was not willing to let the Israelites go. This is all to show us that dealing with the beast within or the old man is not our work – it is the Lord’s work!! In Romans, we are reminded that the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart is all part of the Lord’s way to show us how He has been merciful to us and to cause us to trust in Him through the showing forth of His power.
Rom 9:17 For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
Rom 9:18 Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.
In verse 8, Moses was commanded to take the ashes of the furnace which became transformed to dust and finally led to the plague of boils. We are the ashes in the furnace. We are the ones who are being called out of the furnace of affliction. What this means is that in the fullness of time, the Lord will use us to bring boils or judge the world.
Isa 48:10 Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction.
Isa 48:11 For mine own sake, even for mine own sake, will I do it: for how should my name be polluted? and I will not give my glory unto another.Rev 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Exo 9:13 And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
Exo 9:14 For I will at this time send all my plagues upon thine heart, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people; that thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth.
Exo 9:15 For now I will stretch out my hand, that I may smite thee and thy people with pestilence; and thou shalt be cut off from the earth.
Exo 9:16 And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.
Exo 9:17 As yet exaltest thou thyself against my people, that thou wilt not let them go?
As shown earlier, the stubbornness of Pharaoh, or the old man within us, is all the work of the Lord in bringing us to appreciate that being an overcomer is through the power of the Lord and not by anything that we do. This power of the Lord comes to us through the knowledge of His divine word.
Rom 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
Mar 12:24 And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God?
In verse 15, the Lord stated that He will smite the old man with pestilence and that the old man shall be cut off from the earth. Being cut off from the earth means the old man shall surely be destroyed and therefore will not influence our earthly members. This destruction is through judgment.
The Plague of Hail
Exo 9:18 Behold, to morrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as hath not been in Egypt since the foundation thereof even until now.
Exo 9:19 Send therefore now, and gather thy cattle, and all that thou hast in the field; for upon every man and beast which shall be found in the field, and shall not be brought home, the hail shall come down upon them, and they shall die.
Exo 9:20 He that feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his cattle flee into the houses:
Exo 9:21 And he that regarded not the word of the LORD left his servants and his cattle in the field.
Exo 9:22 And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch forth thine hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man, and upon beast, and upon every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.
Hail comes down from heaven and is very destructive to things on earth. In verse 19, we are told about the destructive nature of hail. It destroys all our cattle and all that remains in the field. As we are aware, the field is the world.
Mat 13:38 The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
As indicated earlier, all that is in the world – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life – are not of the Lord, and His judgment of hail destroys the love of this world within us.
1Jn 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
1Jn 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
1Jn 2:17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
Hail is a kind of rain and therefore represents the truth of the word of God which particularly destroys our false doctrines and lies.
Isa 28:17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
Exo 9:23 And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt.
Exo 9:24 So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation.
Exo 9:25 And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field.
In verse 23, we are given additional information about the judgment of hail. We are told that the Lord sent thunder, hail and fire that ran on the ground. This is repeated in verse 24 where fire mingled with hail came over the land of Egypt and wreaked havoc. This plague of hail meted out against the land and the people of Egypt is the same as the sounding of the first trumpet by one of the seven angels when the seventh seal was opened.
Rev 8:6 And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.
Rev 8:7 The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.
As we have indicated, hail refers to the truth of the word of the Lord. Fire also represents the word of the Lord as shown as follows:
Jer 5:14 Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.
However, when the word of the Lord is described as fire, it is referring to the ability of the word of the Lord to judge us and in the process destroy that which is not in line with the word of the Lord within us.
Mat 13:20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it;
Mat 13:21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.
So, hail mingled with fire, which was unleashed in the land of Egypt, means that getting to know the truth of the word of the Lord comes with the judgment of ‘our earth’ which is represented here as the land of Egypt. In other words, tribulation and persecution come as the result of the word we are receiving. As indicated in verse 25, this judgment results in the destruction of all that is in the field, both man and beast, and every herb and tree in the field. We have already shown that all that is in the field represents the love of the world in us. The reference to all that is in the field, both man and beast, is to let us know the impact of the Lord’s judgment on the beast within us. The scriptures speak in several places of trees representing mankind. We are all trees which do not bring forth good fruit and therefore must be brought down by hail mingled with fire to produce good fruit.
Luk 3:9 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: every tree therefore which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
Luk 6:44 For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes.
Herbs in the scriptures signifies spiritual immaturity as used in the following:
Rom 14:1 Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations.
Rom 14:2 For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs.
So, the destruction of herbs by hail mingled with fire is the destruction of our false doctrines and lies which hold us captive to the rudimentary aspect of the word of the Lord.
Exo 9:26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail.
As we have indicated, hail represents the truth of the word of the Lord or the mysteries of the kingdom of God. Goshen means ‘drawing near’. The absence of hail where the people of Israel were (Goshen) is another way of saying that as the Lord draws us nearer to Himself through His judgments, the mystery of God (hail) shall be finished.
Rev 10:7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.
Exo 9:27 And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time: the LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked.
Exo 9:28 Intreat the LORD (for it is enough) that there be no more mighty thunderings and hail; and I will let you go, and ye shall stay no longer.
Exo 9:29 And Moses said unto him, As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will spread abroad my hands unto the LORD; and the thunder shall cease, neither shall there be any more hail; that thou mayest know how that the earth is the LORD’S.
Exo 9:30 But as for thee and thy servants, I know that ye will not yet fear the LORD God.
Pharaoh’s admission that indeed he had sinned and that he and his people are wicked in contrast to the Lord’s righteousness is another way of saying that the old man (the heart) is desperately wicked and that the new man after the image of Christ is righteous. In verse 30, Moses made a statement that Pharaoh and his servants (the old man) can never fear the Lord. What Pharaoh said is the same as what Saul told David after David spared Saul’s life when he had the opportunity to kill Saul – that is, David (new man) is more righteous than Saul (old man).
Jer 17:9 The heart (the old man) is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
Jer 17:10 I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.Col 3:9 Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;
Col 3:10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:
Pharaoh’s request for Moses to entreat the Lord to stop the thunderings and the hail so that he would let the people of Israel go is also the same as Saul’s admission that David would be king. In other words, the Lord’s elect (David) will surely overcome the flesh or the old man (Saul or Pharaoh).
1Sa 24:16 And it came to pass, when David had made an end of speaking these words unto Saul, that Saul said, Is this thy voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his voice, and wept.
1Sa 24:17 And he said to David, Thou art more righteous than I: for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil.
1Sa 24:18 And thou hast shewed this day how that thou hast dealt well with me: forasmuch as when the LORD had delivered me into thine hand, thou killedst me not.
1Sa 24:19 For if a man find his enemy, will he let him go well away? wherefore the LORD reward thee good for that thou hast done unto me this day.
1Sa 24:20 And now, behold, I know well that thou shalt surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in thine hand.
Exo 9:31 And the flax and the barley was smitten: for the barley was in the ear, and the flax was bolled.
Exo 9:32 But the wheat and the rie were not smitten: for they were not grown up.
It is insightful to note that the hail destroyed the flax and barley, the source of food. The coming of hail in our lives, which represents the truth of the word of the Lord, destroys all false doctrines and lies which were our source of food during our time in Babylon. The wheat and the rie, however, were not affected by the hail because they were not grown. In the parable of the weeds, Jesus described the wheat as being the children of the kingdom. The coming of the judgment of hail, therefore, does not destroy the elect in their spiritually immature state.
Mat 13:38 The field is the world; the good seed (the wheat) are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
Exo 9:33 And Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread abroad his hands unto the LORD: and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not poured upon the earth.
Exo 9:34 And when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders were ceased, he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants.
Exo 9:35 And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, neither would he let the children of Israel go; as the LORD had spoken by Moses.
As we have stated in our previous study, when the Lord grants us relief from our suffering, our flesh or the old man (Pharaoh) has the tendency to go back to its vomit. This is the same as the Israelites claiming back their freed servants when there was relief in the Babylonian siege during the time of king Zedekiah.
Jer 34:8 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to make a proclamation of liberty to them,
Jer 34:9 that everyone should set free his Hebrew slaves, male and female, so that no one should enslave a Jew, his brother.
Jer 34:10 And they obeyed, all the officials and all the people who had entered into the covenant that everyone would set free his slave, male or female, so that they would not be enslaved again. They obeyed and set them free.
Jer 34:11 But afterward they turned around and took back the male and female slaves they had set free, and brought them into subjection as slaves.
Our prayer today is that may the Lord grant us the grace to continue to submit to His judgment of our old man so that we may be presented faultless and without blame. Amen!!
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