Day 923: It's the message that matters - Exodus 4 vs 1 - 9

1 Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’” 2-3 The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it. 4-5 But the Lord said to Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand - “that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”

6-7 Again, the Lord said to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” (bosom) And he put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous like snow. Then God said, “Put your hand back inside your cloak.” So he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh. 8 “If they will not believe you,” God said, “or listen to the first sign, they may believe the latter sign. 9 If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.” Exodus 4:1-9 English Standard Version

Moses was being sent back to the people he'd left 40 years earlier to tell their leaders that ‘God had appeared to him’, and was going to use him to bring them out of bondage in Egypt. In the previous chapter, God told Moses that the leaders of Israel “will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’” What Moses' response? (vs 1)

Before we criticize Moses, I can't help but think that it was an understandable response. How would we respond to a family member who arrived after 40 years absence, claiming God had had appeared to them with some marvellous message. And so we see that God graciously gave three very visible signs that Moses could show to the elders when he got to Egypt.

I suspect there may be deeper meanings behind each of the signs, but, if there were, we are not told in this section what those deeper meanings are. The sign of the serpent may be related to the fact that serpents played a big part in Egyptian culture and religion. But Israel would be under a new shepherd when Moses led them out with his rod. The sign of the hand turning leprous, white as snow, and then being instantly restored, may’ve been evidence that it is God who is the true healer and restorer of our bodies, Egypt was famous for it's magicians (as we will see later) and healing would probably have been a big part of their performance.

There’s a sense in which God acknowledges with Moses that there might still be some doubts among the leaders – even after two amazing signs – and He grants a further sign. “If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.” (vs 9) What would your thoughts be on that one?

Once again, we’re not told of any deeper significance, so can only speculate. The Nile river was very central to Egypt's existence. And in the years when Moses was born the land had seen the shedding of much blood because of Pharaoh's command to kill baby boys born to the Hebrews. Perhaps this sign was meant as a warning of things to come upon the Egyptians.

Whether there's more to these signs or not, the obvious point is that God sometimes uses amazing signs to authenticate the messenger He has sent. The ministry of Jesus Christ was marked with many signs. But years later Moses warned Israel to always test signs by the message. He said: “If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a sign or wonder, and if the sign or wonder spoken of takes place, and the prophet says, 'Let us follow other gods' (gods you have not known) 'and let us worship them,' you mustn't listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The Lord your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul.” Deuteronomy 13:1-3