But HaShem said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them out, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.” God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am HaShem. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty] but by my name HaShem I did not make myself known to them. I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am HaShem, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am HaShem your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am HaShem.’” Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery. (6:1-9)
We saw yesterday that Pharaoh responded negatively to God’s message to let His people go on a three days’ journey into the wilderness to worship him—not only did he not let them go, he made their workload unbearable. So, the Israelites, with their situation worsened, were upset at Moses. As a result, Moses cried out to God (as we saw yesterday in chapter five).
Chapter six begins with God’s answer to Moses. God reminded Moses that although he appeared to the Patriarchs as “God Almighty” (El Shaddai), He made Himself known to Moses by His name, I Am. This indicates a greater intimacy, a closer relationship. God repeated His plans to bring the people out of Egypt, delivering them from slavery with great acts of judgement, and bringing them to the land that he swore to their forefathers, to possess. Moses delivered this encouraging message to the people of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery (6:9).
I can’t judge the people for not listening. After all, Moses and Aaron had come with God’s promise of deliverance and things had only gotten worse. It’s not as if these people had been walking in a close relationship with God and knew Him well enough to not worry about their dire circumstances.
I can’t judge them, but I would judge myself if I reacted like that, because I have all of Scriptures to see who God is and how He works, as well as decades of walking with Him and knowing that He is trustworthy.
Knowing the Scriptures really helps in discouraging times. In fact, I keep coming back to this story in Exodus – the delivery of our people from slavery in Egypt to remind myself that God’s will is going to be accomplished in His perfect time. The Israelites had been in bondage for a while, then they had hope that God was going to deliver them, but things got worse, and even though God had begun His work of deliverance, it would take some time.
Knowing this history helps me to persist in prayer, in hope, and in trusting that in spite of how things currently look, God is currently at work in Israel (as I write this, Hamas is still holding 136 Israeli hostages) and in the world. The Scriptures (God’s Word) are life-giving, and the absolute best habit you can have is to read them daily. It is for this reason that I began writing this series on God’s “Live-giving Words.”
Prayer: God, you are so trustworthy. Help me to never give up hope, even when things look hopeless. You are still in control, and still working. Thank You for Your live-giving Word that daily reminds me of this.
