Êxodo 9
Steven Cole · Citado em PreceptAustin
Êxodo 9
Cole - This is the first instance in which it was possible for pharaoh and his men to avoid the actual blow by faith and obedience to God. As always, when any ‘gospel’ is preached, some avail ed themselves of the opportunity and some did not. Cattle are usually out of doors in Egypt from January to April; after that, they are kept indoors, for protection from the heat (Driver). (TOTC-Ex) Mattoon - God demonstrates His mercy again. He not only warns of judgment, but instructs them how to avoid destruction. God is giving them a chance to believe His Word. Divine clemency is offered to Pharaoh. The clemency is not in an opportunity to stop the plague as before, but is a warning on how to avoid the effects of the plague. Pharaoh is told that the people and the beasts can be spared if they will stay under shelter. The Lord is saying, "Do what I say and you will be OK." If we will do what the Lord says today, we will also be OK. (Treasures from Exodus) Every man and beast that is found in the field and is not brought home, when the hail comes down on them, will die - Clearly this is not small hail but huge hailstones, shooting down like deadly rockets from God! George Bush - Notes Critical and Practical on the Book of Exodus Send therefore now, and gather, &c. Heb. העז haëz, gather speedily, denoting an action to be performed with the utmost expedition, as is explained in the ensuing verse, ‘made to flee.’ With characteristic clemency the Lord couples with the prediction a gracious warning, to as many as will heed it, to send and gather their servants and cattle out of the field, and place them under shelter before the appointed time arrived. So unwilling is God that any should perish that even in the midst of impending wrath, he kindly provides and points out a way of escape. Exodus 9:20 The one among the servants of Pharaoh who feared the word of the LORD made his servants and his livestock flee into the houses; NET Exodus 9:20 Those of Pharaoh's servants who feared the word of the LORD hurried to bring their servants and livestock into the houses, (Exodus 9) NLT Exodus 9:20 Some of Pharaoh's officials were afraid because of what the LORD had said. They quickly brought their servants and livestock in from the fields. Pr 16:16 Pr 22:3,23 Jon 3:5,6 Mk 13:14-16 Heb 11:7 Related Passage: Proverbs 22:3; The prudent sees the evil and hides himself, But the naive go on, and are punished for it. FEARING THE WORD OF THE LORD IS THE WAY TO FIND REFUGE The one among the servants of Pharaoh who feared the word of the LORD - Did Pharaoh send out the message of warning? Perhaps. But alternatively these could have been servants in his palace who were aware of the coming danger. If the latter, then it makes Pharaoh even more hardened that he would be unconcerned for his own people. Here feared the word indicates that they believed God's warning. Their fear was shown to by their obedience to God's instruction. Recall that there was a one day delay giving them time to shelter their servants and livestock. Mattoon - Those that feared the Word of the Lord obeyed. The reward of their faith was the survival of their cattle and servants. Their obedience involved taking a definite stand. They chose to believe God instead of Egypt's gods (ED: WHO COULD NOT PROTECT!) Even in the country of Egypt, God's Word did not return void or empty. Someone will be affected by the Word of God. (Isaiah 55:11). (ED: AMEN!) (Treasures from Exodus) Currid on feared - That verb often signifies a fear that is associated with reverence, respect and even worship. Its use in the exodus context perhaps suggests a remnant of believers among the Egyptian people. Even if that was the case, it was only a small number. Exodus 9:30 indicates that Pharaoh’s servants as a group did not fear the Lord. (Exodus Commentary) Bruckner on fear - The expression “fear” of the Lord is sometimes translated “reverence” or “respect.” It is certainly not the same as “being afraid” in 20:20. The midwives were the first to “fear the Lord” (Ex 1:17, 21). “Capable men” are defined as those who are trustworthy and “fear the Lord” (Ex 18:21). This “fear” has an element of awe as well as trust in the One who inspires the awe. Trust and “fear of the Lord” are used in parallel in the summary statement: “when the Israelites saw the great power the LORD displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and put their trust in him” (Ex 14:31). (Exodus (Understanding the Bible Commentary) All uses of fear (yare) in Exodus - some are reverential fear and some are being afraid - Exod. 1:17; Exod. 1:21; Exod. 2:14; Exod. 3:6; Exod. 9:20; Exod. 9:30; Exod. 14:10; Exod. 14:13; Exod. 14:31; Exod. 15:11; Exod. 18:21; Exod. 20:20; Exod. 34:10; Exod. 34:30; Made his servants and his livestock flee into the houses - NLT = "They quickly brought their servants and livestock in from the fields." Here the servants refers to the servants of Pharaoh’s servants. What about the common folk in the rest of the land of Egypt? No description is given but presumably they were not warned. The different responses of the two groups in Ex 9:20 and Ex 9:21 is but a "microcosm" of the response of every man and woman every born, to accept or reject the Gospel, as we see in the response of the Jews upon hearing the message from Paul Some were being persuaded by the things spoken, but others would not believe. (Acts 28:24+) The one who fears God’s word will find shelter from the storm Nah. 1:7 The LORD is good, A stronghold in the day of trouble, And He knows those who take refuge in Him. Ps. 27:1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the defense of my life; Whom shall I dread? Exodus 9:21 but he who paid no regard to the word of the LORD left his servants and his livestock in the field. NET Exodus 9:21 but those who did not take the word of the LORD seriously left their servants and their cattle in the field. (Exodus 9) NLT Exodus 9:21 But those who paid no attention to the word of the LORD left theirs out in the open. paid no regard - Heb. set not his heart unto, Ex 7:23 1Sa 4:20 *marg: 1Ch 22:19 Job 7:17 34:14 Pr 24:32 Eze 40:4 Da 10:12 THINKING LIGHTLY OF GOD'S WARNING but he who paid no regard to the word of the LORD left his servants and his livestock in the field - Paid no regard is literally "did not set his heart to the Word." It is always an issue of the heart, not the head. Intellectually, some servants heard and understood the word of the Lord, but they refused to believe it in their heart, their "control center," and so they suffered disaster. Note the phrase paid no regard is the antithesis of those who feared the Word of the LORD. In short those who paid no regard had no fear of God and those who had fear of God (His word) paid regard. Do you fear the LORD? You can determine your answer by whether or not you keep His commandments, which are not burdensome, but life giving and blessing bestowing! So these were warned but did not fear God, which equates with the fact that they did not believe His Word and they paid for it dearly. What a picture of all who reject God and His Word of warning today. Jesus said in “He who believes in Him (FEARS HIM, BELIEVES HIS WORDS OF WARNING AND GIFT OF REFUGE IN CHRIST) is not judged; he who does not believe (DOES NOT FEAR THE WORD OF THE LORD) has been judged already, because (EXPLAINS THE OBJECT OF BELIEF THAT SAVES FROM JUDGMENT) he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world (THE LIGHT HAS A NAME - JESUS - Jn 8:12), and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for (EXPLAINS HOW TO IDENTIFY ONE WHO LOVES DARKNESS) their deeds were evil. 20 “For everyone who does (HABITUALLY, AS THERE DAILY PRACTICE -- BELIEVERS DO EVIL BUT IT IS NOT THE HABITUAL PRACTICE OF THEIR LIFE!) evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed (SO DON'T BE SURPRISED WHEN YOU TELL SOMEONE ABOUT SALVATION IN JESUS, BECAUSE HE IS LIGHT AND EXPOSES THEIR DARKNESS AND THEY HATE HIM FOR IT). (John 3:18-20+)
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Cole remarks that "ironically, after the discussion of the Egyptian horror of animal sacrifice. The next plague deals particularly with ‘beasts’. Like the turning of the Nile waters to blood, this is a direct blow at Egypt’s gods. The LORD said to Moses, "Go to Pharaoh and speak to him - Presumably in his palace. Note in all these plagues, Moses no longer expresses any hesitation or reservation (or excuse). He has seen the power of Jehovah and surely grown in his trust in Jehovah with each plague that left a clear imprint of the sovereign power of God over the secular power of Pharaoh.
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Cole - Warning Against a Hard Heart HARDNESS OF HEART The action or state of resistance to and rejection of the Word and will of God. Hardness of heart can be a refusal to hear the Word of God, or it can be a refusal to submit and obey the will of God. This rejection can include both the message delivered and the messenger who delivers it. “Hardening” is a process whereby a person ceases to have a conscience about an evil action that is committed or a sinful attitude that is embodied, such as pride, godlessness, hatred, lust, etc. (Heb. 3:13; 1 Tim. 4:2). Sinful habits can produce or compound this hardened condition. Hardness of heart can eventually destroy one’s sense of sin, ruling out the possibility of repentance. One of the major issues in this topic concerns the agent of the hardening. The Bible pictures both God and individuals as agents of hardening. For example one passage in the book of Exodus states that Pharaoh hardened his own heart (Exod. 8:15). In other places, God is said to be the one who hardened Pharaoh’s heart (Exod. 4:21; 10:1). Paul asserts that God will harden whomever He wants and will bestow mercy on whomever He chooses (Rom. 9:18). The Bible also gives strong warnings against hardening the heart, implying that persons are responsible for the condition of their hearts (Ps. 95:8; Heb. 3:8, 15; 4:7). Hardening may therefore be considered both the work of God and the individual. The significance of the passages that speak of hardness of heart is that God uses these destitute conditions as a means of accomplishing His purposes. Because of the hardness of Pharaoh’s heart, God liberated the Israelites from Egyptian slavery and eventually led them to the promised land (Josh. 11:20). God used the hardness of Israel to bring salvation to the Gentiles (Rom. 11:7–25). In these passages God’s sovereign purposes are manifested. The entrenched hardness of people’s hearts may be the occasion through which God manifests His mercy and grace. The brightness of God’s redemption is highlighted against the darkness of humanity’s sin. (Stan Norman - Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary) William
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Cole - Pharaoh has been treated mercifully so far: his life has been prolonged so that YHWH’s name and power should be exalted (verse 16; cf. Rom. 9:17). This brings, as corollary, the further thought that all the plagues came in mercy, rather than judgment; for each one was an opportunity for pharaoh to repent. Instead, he hardened his heart, making his final judgment both certain and inexcusable. (TOTC-Ex) Cassuto - If you will not release My people, I shall release upon you—measure for measure—all My plagues, terribly severe plagues, which will go straight to your heart and to the heart of your servants and people (hinting at the last plague, the plague of the first-born), that you may know—you who said, ‘I do not know the Lord’ (5:2)—that there is none like Me [כָּמֹנִי kāmōnī] in all the earth (הָאָרֶץ hā’āreṣ, which here connotes ‘the world’ [not ‘land’]: there is none like Me among your gods, and I alone can perform deeds that have not their like in any part of the world. (A Commentary on the Book of Exodus) So that - (Term of purpose) This introduces the purpose of God's "heart attack" on Pharaoh. J
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Cole - The hail appears to have been accompanied at the same time by a violent thunderstorm, not unusual in sultry weather, marked by the electrical discharges popularly called ‘fire balls’ (verse 24; cf. Ezek. 1:4). As on Sinai, thunder and lighting are signs of God’s presence (Exod. 19:16). Hyatt maintains that hailstorms are much rarer in Egypt than Palestine: if so, this heightens the miracle. Mattoon - This plague touches both men and beast. Men died from jagged stones of ice falling like bullets from Heaven. This plague was also an attack to discredit the gods of Egypt. (Treasures from Exodus) • Nut-sky goddess • Osiris-god of crops and fertility. He couldn't protect the crops. • Set-god of storms. He could not prevent them. • Isis-goddess of the air. George Bush - Notes Critical and Practical on the Book of Exodus The Lord sent thunder and hail. Heb. נתן קלת וברד nathan koloth ubarad gave voices and hail. The Lord’s ‘voice,’ is an expression often used as equivalent to ‘thunder.’ See Note on Gen. 3:8. Thus Rev. 6:1, ‘And I heard as it were the noise (φωνη, voice) of thunder.’ Rev. 10:3, ‘And when he had cried (the) seven thunders uttered their voices.’ The fire ran along upon the ground. Heb. ארצה aretzah, towards the earth. This is the exact rendering, and there can be no doubt that the fire meant was the lightning that accompanied the hail. The Psalmist thus speaks of this judgment, Ps. 78:47, 48, ‘He destroyed their vines and their sycamore-trees with frost. He gave up their cattle also to the hail and their flocks to hot thunderbolts.’ To this seventh plague of Egypt is compared the effect of the seventh vial of the Apocalypse; Rev. 16:17–21, ‘And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air … and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth … and there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent;’ where in the mention of the hail-stones there is an allusion probably to the passage of Joshua, ch. 10:11, ‘The Lord cast down great stones from heaven upon them unto Azekah, and they died: they were more which died with hail-stones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword.’ Exodus 9:24 So there was hail, and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very severe, such as had not been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. such as had not been - Ex 9:23 10:6 So there was hail, and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very severe, such as had not been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation - "Egypt became a nation in 3100 B.C. So we’re being told here that for 1700 years there had never been a storm like this. That’s fairly impressive." (J Ligon Duncan Exodus 9:8-35 The 6th & 7th Plagues: Boils and Hail) Cassuto - The fire of lightning is termed מִתְלַקַּחַת mithlaqqaḥath [‘taking hold of itself’] because it does not travel in a direct line, but in zigzag fashion, as though it took hold of itself, every now and again, to turn back or to turn aside. (A Commentary on the Book of Exodus) The words such as had not been remind us of Jesus' warning words describing the last 3.5 years of the Tribulation, the time Jesus referred to as the Great Tribulation... “For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will. (Mt 24:21+) George Bush - Notes Critical and Practical on the Book of Exodus Fire mingled with the hail. Heb. אש מתלקחת בתוך הברד esh mithlak kahath bethok habbarad, fire catching hold, infolding, involving itself in the midst of the hail. The words are no doubt intended to depict a complication of elemental terrors which it is not easy distinctly to conceive. Amid peals of deep and portentous thunder, the lightning gleamed with terrific flashes, and at the same time a tremendous hailstorm poured its fury over a land of which the inhabitants had probably never before witnessed or heard of a similar phenomenon. If a violent tempest or tornado is an appalling occurrence in countries where they are not uncommon, what overwhelming dread must this have produced in Egypt! How could they but imagine that heaven and earth were mingling together in wild confusion! And then, when its fury had somewhat abated, to behold the desolations it had caused! Men and cattle killed and promiscuously scattered over the fields—all kinds of trees, plants, and grain battered down and destroyed—and the whole face of the ground appearing to have been swept by the besom of destruction! And yet, to enhance the wonder still more, in the land of Goshen not a solitary vestige of the wide-spreading havoc was to be seen. Here all nature was smiling unruffled in its usual fertility and beauty. What a contrast between the verdant fields and tranquil flocks of the one region, and the fearful spectacle of scathing and ruin in the other! ‘And my people shall dwelt in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting-places, when it shall hail, coming down on the forest; and the city shall be utterly abased.’ No wonder that the visitation should, for a time at least, have overpowered the obduracy of Pharaoh, and prompted him to send in haste for Moses and Aaron, and address them in the language of the humbled penitent. Exodus 9:25 The hail struck all that was in the field through all the land of Egypt, both man and beast; the hail also struck every plant of the field and shattered every tree of the field. smote every - Ps 105:33 The hail struck all that was in the field through all the land of Egypt, both man and beast - All is hyperbole to an extent. While it may have hit everything, it did not destroy everything for those who had their animals sheltered were safe. This was supernatural for a hailstorm never affects an entire country. the hail also struck every plant of the field and shattered every tree of the field - Every plant is hyperbolic. Cassuto writes "The word כָּל kol [‘all’, ‘every’], which occurs five times in succession (vv. 24–25), is used here, too, in a hyperbolic sense, not literally; further on reference will still be made to the plants of the field and the fruit of the trees (Ex 9:32; 10:5, 12, 15)." (A Commentary on the Book of Exodus) George Bush - Notes Critical and Practical on the Book of Exodus The hail smote every herb of the field. That is, some of all sorts, as is evident from Ex. 10:15. Thus, Acts, 10:12, ‘Wherein were all manner of four-footed beasts of the earth.’ Gr. παντα τα τετραποδα, all four-footed beasts. Exodus 9:26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, there was no hail. Ex 8:22-32 9:4,6 10:23 11:7 12:13 Isa 32:18,19 GOD PROTECTS HIS PEOPLE Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, there was no hail - And if you still doubt it was supernatural this verse should convince you! God’s providential care of Israel was evident in each of the last seven plagues, because the Jews escaped each one of them (Ex 8:22–23; Ex 9:4, 11, Ex 9:26; Ex 10:6, Ex 10:23; Ex 11:7). Just as God miraculously protected Israel from swarms of flies, etc, so too He miraculously protected them from hail. John