QUEST TO UNDERSTAND ELEMENTARY SCRIPTURAL TRUTH

Trust: The Key to Courage

Exodus 4:18-31 · Pastor Craig R. Jarvis

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1When we Left Moses…

God’s People are in bondage and under oppression in Egypt from a cruel Pharaoh
Moses was simply paralyzed by fear in front of a burning bush (that didn’t burn up)
God has asked Moses to go back to Egypt and tell Pharaoh to “Let My People Go!” (T/F?)
Moses felt like he had options during his meeting with God at the burning bush. (T/F? Why or why not?)
How many different objections did Moses give in the hopes that God would reconsider.
Moses was the best candidate for this job assignment
Name some reasons why Moses was the best choice for this job?
What tools has Moses been given to do the job assignment?
The miracle of
The miracle of
The miracle of
God simply asked Moses to “trust Him.”
How would you have responded?

2Moses Prepares to Return to Egypt

Moses breaks the news to his father-in-law Ex.4:18
God tells Moses to go…again Ex.4:19
- Possibly, Moses is still ?
- “All the people are dead who were seeking your life” – again, the reader is reminded of the significant amount of

3Note the emphasis on 40’s again for Moses (all you 40 Days of Purpose fans)

40 years in Egypt Acts 7:23
- 40 years in hiding
- 40 years in the wilderness (Deut.29:5; 31:2)
- Note the significance of comparing Moses’ life to Jesus’ life (CF: Mt.2:19-20)
God gives Moses a taste of what is to come Ex.4:20-21
- would harden Pharaoh’s heart (What is the significance of this statement?)
- The Egyptians understood the seat of man’s will to originate in the
- [To understand these verses adequately, we must take a look at how the culture viewed the Pharaoh of Egypt…see the following section.]

4Some Notes on “Pharaoh”

Pharaoh was the incarnation of “Ra” (sun god) and “Horus” (falcon god) (sovereign gods in ancient Egyptian culture)
Pharaoh was the embodiment of the
Pharaoh’s will was the sovereign “will” (heart)
Notes:
God controls the heart of the Pharaoh (and any other person on the earth – only He is the sovereign King) Ex.4:21
- What does this phrase indicate to us in our day?
- There is a “divine dominion” (John Currid, Exodus, vol.1, p.114) over the unfolding of the events in history

5God’s Demands on the Pharaoh

Moses is given the message to take to Pharaoh
“Thus says Yahweh” Ex.4:22-23
- This is a typical Near Eastern form of a from
- This phrase carried the of the gods and was not to be altered by the messenger in any way
- This phrase underscores that the conflict was between the gods of Egypt (including Pharaoh) and
- God refers to His children as His “first-born son”
- The status of the first-born was a great privilege in the ANE
- Right of headship
- Right of ownership (a double-portion of the inheritance)
- A position of prominence in society – a great privilege
- God is using familial language to describe His affection and responsibility to Israel
- God would strike at the heart of Egypt’s future
- God would strike a direct assault on the royal succession in Egypt
- The new Pharaoh was to be a ‘ ’ as his father before him
- The new Pharaoh was seen as eternal, omniscient, omnipotent, and worthy of
- God would be the One who would decide who Egypt has as king
- As the Hebrews were in a familial relationship with God, so the Egyptians were in a familial relationship with their embodiment of god, Pharaoh
- A Human man, viewed as a god,
- Is about to pit his own will against the will of Almighty God.
- Who do you think will win?

6The Road to Egypt

Verse 24-26 should be understood as a single package Ex.4:24-26
- Who is the “him” in these verses?
- Most translators believe this is reference to Moses’ (Gershom)
Some notes on the Hebrew writing of these verses:
- In Scripture: refers to son-in-law, father-in-law, and even mother-in-law
- Used to describe “family relationship” (IE: The person has become ‘family’ in relationship through a covenant made with the person – not through bloodline.) Through the symbol of circumcision, Moses’ son has entered into the covenant community/family.
- Hebrew writing: anything from the waist down (Jg.3:24; 1 Sam.24:3)
- Zipporah smeared the blood perhaps around the wound
- This would be a pre-cursor to the blood smeared on the doorposts at Passover in Egypt
- In both circumstances, blood smeared at these places would stand for protection against God’s wrath
- “ ” because of the sign of the covenant upon him, God passed over him (Ex.4:26) – This is great proof that this action was a paradigm of the upcoming Passover event. (CF: Ex.12:13)
Moses informs Aaron of the arrangement Ex.4:27-28
- Moses already begins the format by telling Aaron what God said – Moses was God’s mouthpiece
- Aaron would be Moses’ mouthpiece to the people
Moses and Aaron inform the elders of the Hebrews about the message of God Ex.4:29-31
- Moses journey of trust is about to begin.
- He will be the mouthpiece for Almighty God.
- This will not be a battle against oppression
- This will be a battle of the gods.
- “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood,
- but against the rulers, against the authorities, against
- the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual
- forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
- “Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when
- the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground,
- and after you have done everything, to stand.”
- (Ephesians 6:12, NIV)