Day 1000: The day it will really matter! - Exodus 9 vs 1 - 7

1-3 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. For if you refuse to let them go and still hold them, behold, the hand of the Lord will fall with a very severe plague upon your livestock that are in the field, the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the herds, and the flocks.

4 But the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing of all that belongs to the people of Israel shall die.”’” 5 And the Lord set a time, saying, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this thing in the land.”

6-7 And the next day the Lord did this thing. All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one of the livestock of the people of Israel died. And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not one of the livestock of Israel was dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go. Exodus 9:1-7 English Standard Version

There are some solemn verses in the Bible which speak of the relationship between sin and death. But in its very first chapter there’s no mention of either. Instead we read that “God saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31) But in the next chapter we're told that “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” (Genesis 2:15-17) Death would be the outcome of disobedience to a good Creator.

The apostle Paul brings this connection out when he wrote that “sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned.” (Romans 5:12) And in the next chapter he states it bluntly, and says: ”The wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23) Disobedience to God is the ultimate sin, and leads to death.

And so, in the account of the plagues God sent upon Egypt because of Pharaoh's obstinate defiance, it now reaches the stage where the plagues are not just frogs, gnats and flies. The next plague would bring death upon the horses, donkeys, camels, herds, and flocks. But what was the important difference Pharaoh would see? (vs 4)

This plague of death would not touch the livestock of the people of Israel. And verses 6-7 describe how that is exactly what took place. Pharaoh sent, and behold, not one of the livestock of Israel was dead. Was that because the Israelites were not sinners? Not at all. It was because God said He would “make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing of all that belongs to the people of Israel shall die.” The Israelites were beginning to experience what we know as ‘the grace of God’.

In that earlier verse where Paul said “the wages of sin is death”, he went on to say “but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” The lifelong perfect obedience of the Lord Jesus Christ meant that death had no claim upon Him. But He voluntarily gave His life as a sacrifice for the covering of the sins of all those who God sets apart for Himself. Paul puts it this way: “If many died by the trespass of the one man (Adam), how much more did God’s grace, and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!” (Romans 5:15) Grace separates the redeemed from the stronghold of death.

But this is why vs 5 of our reading is so important. Moses said to Pharaoh “Tomorrow the Lord will do this thing in the land.” A judgment on the land was imminent. Pharaoh ought to have thrown himself to the ground and cried out for mercy, confessing his sinful defiance that had led to such a dire situation. But he didn't, and tomorrow came, and death stalked the land. The gospel’s message is that “God commands all people everywhere to repent, for He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising Him from the dead.” (Acts 17:30-31) That's the day God's distinction will really matter! The difference will be “have I repented of sin? Am I in Christ?”