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Our text for tonight's message is taken from Exodus chapter 9, verse 8 to 12. Before we consider this passage, first let us turn to Proverbs 27, verse 22. Allow me to read for you Proverbs 27, verse 22: "Thou shouldest break a fool in a mortar among wheat with a pestle," which means to grind the wheat grain into flour between the mortar and pestle. "Yet will not his foolishness depart from him." In other words, no matter how many times a fool is crushed by the consequences of his foolish actions, somehow his foolishness would not be crushed, and he remains foolish.

There was a picture of the Pharaoh. No matter how many times he was plagued, he still persisted in making foolish decisions. First, God turned the rivers into blood, but the Pharaoh hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses. Then came the frogs, and the Pharaoh asked for prayers, but as soon as he got some relief, he hardened his heart again. Next came the lice, and the magicians said it was the finger of God, but the Pharaoh refused to listen. The fourth plague was the flies, and Pharaoh finally decided to let God's people go, but as soon as the flies were gone, he changed his mind.

Then all the animals in the field were killed, and yet the Pharaoh's heart refused to give in. Five plagues, and he was still not crushed by the consequences of his foolish actions, and he remained a fool to fight against God. It is so easy for us to point our fingers at the Pharaoh and say, "How foolish is this man?" But isn't it true that this is also happening to many of us? We fall into sin and we face the consequences, and then we plead for God's mercy. God graciously delivers us, but the moment we receive some relief, we forget, and then we go back to sin, and the cycle repeats itself again and again. We are just like the Pharaoh, despite being crushed by the consequences of our foolish actions, and yet we remain a fool to sin against God. May the Lord have mercy on us.

This was the third plague in the second cycle. Remember, there were three cycles, and each cycle would begin with Moses going to the Pharaoh early in the morning, followed by Moses going to the Pharaoh's residence, and then God would strike the Pharaoh without any prior warning or confrontation. So here in this third plague in the second cycle, we see God striking the Pharaoh without any prior warning. Let us begin with verse 8.

"And the Lord said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh." In the previous five plagues, the Egyptians were afflicted externally, including the fifth plague, although it was the first plague that brought about death on the land of Egypt. But it was still external in the sense it was the death of the animals, not the Egyptians. So what would it take to move the heart of Pharaoh? If all the external afflictions could not move Pharaoh, perhaps he might give in if his own physical body was touched. Sometimes physical suffering can get a person's attention in a way that nothing else can.

Let us take a moment and consider this: a person may lose his job and his belongings; he may face rejections and adversities. The whole world may seem to have collapsed, and yet he remains unfazed. He is not moved even when his loved ones are taken away; he is still not moved. But the moment he is afflicted with an illness, that is when his attention is gripped. That is why we say sometimes physical suffering can get a person's attention in a way that nothing else can.

So God sent the plague of boils when the ashes of the furnace were thrown up into the sky. Verse 9 says, "And it shall become small dust in all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil breaking forth with blains upon man and upon beast throughout all the land of Egypt." The word "boil" can mean a variety of infectious skin diseases. This word can be used to refer to leprosy or smallpox or boils, as in those big painful swellings on the skin. But whatever be the case, the Egyptians had contracted a skin disease that was extremely unpleasant and painful, if not life-threatening.

The word "blains" means blisters or sores. You can imagine the whole body being covered with blistering boils from head to toe. It must be very painful. Again, some so-called Christian scientists have tried to provide natural explanations for this plague, and they said it was because of the fifth plague. When the animals died, it brought forth this infectious disease, which was transmitted upon both men and animals. But dear friends, they cannot explain how the boils would spread the moment Moses and Aaron sprinkled the ashes into the sky. It was a genuine miracle. No natural possibility can ever explain this divine miracle.

There are several things we can learn from this divine miracle. Firstly, the miracle was personal. You can see things were starting to get personal. True, Moses, God had repeatedly said to the Pharaoh, "Let my people go, that they may serve me, and if you refuse, you will face serious consequences." The Pharaoh had stubbornly refused, and God turned the rivers into blood. He brought forth the frogs, the lice, and the flies. And when the Pharaoh still refused to let God's people go, God killed all the animals in the field. Those animals—horses, donkeys, camels, oxen, sheep, and cattle—were the precious properties of the Egyptians.

As we said in our previous message, it was as if God was saying to the Pharaoh, "The Israelites belong to me; they are my property. And if you refuse to let my property go, I will touch your property, and you will suffer the loss of your property in great numbers." That was what had happened in the fifth plague when all the animals were killed. And if you still refuse to let my people go, you will not only experience the loss of your property, but I will touch your lives, and you yourself will be afflicted with boils.

What can we learn from here? If we are living in sin and refuse to repent, what would it take for us to be moved, for us to repent? Remember, when we face the consequences of our sins, sometimes those consequences may not be that severe. It is because God is gracious and patient. He disciplines us enough so that we will repent from our sins. It is like a wake-up call. But if we harden our hearts and we proudly think, "Well, it is just the loss of my job; I can look for another job," or, "It is just the loss of my property; my house; I can make more money and buy another house," or, "It is just the loss of my freedom; I can live with that." If we still refuse to repent, the subsequent consequences would be worse. Our lives may be touched; we may be afflicted with illnesses. God wants us to know that you are not in control; I am in control.

Now that you are lying on your sickbed, what can you do? All it takes is just one illness, whether it be a stroke or a heart attack, and you and I will be incapacitated. What is there for us to be proud of? Instead of being proud, we ought to be humble and know that He is God.

Secondly, the miracle humiliated the gods of Egypt. Look at verse 10. "And they took ashes of the furnace and stood before Pharaoh, and Moses sprinkled it up; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man and upon beast." So Moses and Aaron obeyed the Lord and did as they were told. The ashes became like dust and were carried by the wind. When they fell upon both men and animals, boils started to break out.

Again, God used this plague to set a distinction between the Israelites and the Egyptians. The boils only affected the Egyptians. How do we know? Look at verse 11. "And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boil was upon the magicians and upon all the Egyptians." So all the Egyptians were affected, including the magicians. In the previous plagues of blood and frogs, the magicians were able to counterfeit those miracles. But they were unable to counterfeit the plague of lice. And when it came to the fourth and fifth plagues, somehow they appeared to have given up. Probably they could not do anything but just stood there and witnessed God's power.

But this sixth plague was different. Not only were they powerless to prevent it or counterfeit it, but they themselves were also afflicted by it. They were afflicted so badly that they could not stand before Moses. It was so humiliating. They were completely destroyed, so much so that from now onwards, the book of Exodus never mentioned them again.

We must bear in mind that the magicians were the representatives of the gods of Egypt. So basically, it was the gods of Egypt who were defeated and humiliated. To help us better understand how the gods of Egypt were humiliated, it is good for us to consider why would God command Moses to take the ashes and sprinkle them into the air?

You see, the ancient Egyptians were well-known for their interest in medicine, and oftentimes they looked to their gods for healing. They had different gods for different kinds of sicknesses. When the people were sick, they would go to the priest with their sacrificial offerings. After the priests had offered those sacrifices to their gods, they would take the ashes and sprinkle the ashes into the air as a sign of blessing. So it was a

ritualistic practice for the priests to sprinkle ashes into the air as a symbol of blessing or healing. But God took that ritualistic action and turned it into a curse.

And what was even more interesting was the fact that God commanded Moses to take the ashes from the furnace. Some theologians believe that this was the same furnace which was used to burn bricks. Remember, the Israelites were forced to make bricks for the Egyptians. In other words, the furnace was a symbol of the oppression of the Hebrews, representing all the sweat and tears they had shed to make bricks for the Egyptians. It was a symbol of their curse.

So in a way, God was turning Israel's curse into a blessing, and He was turning Egypt's blessing into a curse. That's just how amazing our God is.

Moses took those ashes, sprinkled it into the air; it became dust carried by the wind. When it fell upon the people, it broke out into boils. It was a curse to the Egyptians.

Another interesting thing to take note of this plague was that it had prevented the Egyptian magicians from carrying out their religious duties. The Egyptians placed high value on purity, so when these magicians—basically, they were priests—were covered with blisters and sores, they would not be able to carry out those religious duties, performing religious ceremonies and rituals. In fact, they could not even stand, let alone walk about to perform those duties. So, through this plague, God had destroyed the whole religious system of Egypt, the entire system of worship. That is why we say the gods of Egypt were humiliated.

What can we learn from here? The Egyptians trusted in their gods for healing. Who do we trust for our healing today? With the advancement of science, technology, and medicine, it is good, but it is also sad that many people, including believers, believe in doctors and medicine more than they trust in God. They go to the hospital believing that they will surely be healed. Can they be 100% sure? Most certainly not. Doctors and nurses are not perfect; they do make mistakes. Sometimes they do not make the right diagnosis or prescribe the right medication and treatment. On top of that, many diseases and illnesses have no cure, so medicine has its limits.

The same thing goes for people who trust in vitamins and other health products. They believe that by taking all these minerals, they will surely have good health and strength. Can they be 100% sure? Most certainly not. Dear friends, we are not sovereign over our bodies; only God alone is sovereign over our bodies. Medicine is but an instrument. Think about this: sometimes God would use medicine to heal us; at other times, He may heal us without using any medicine. God may also use this sickness to take us home to a better place, to be with Him forever and ever. God is sovereign.

So what should be our attitude towards sicknesses and illnesses? Whenever we visit the doctor, or when we get the prescription, or we go for a medical procedure or begin chemotherapy, always remember our healing comes from God. God is in control; only God alone is sovereign over our bodies.

When Pharaoh found himself covered with painful boils from head to toe, what should he do? The right thing to do would be to be like Job. Remember Job? He also experienced those symptoms very similar to Pharaoh. Job was a righteous man, and he suffered at the hand of Satan. God allowed Satan to afflict His dear servant not because of sin, but because of his righteousness. Sometimes God allows trials into our lives, not because we have sinned, but because we are doing well, and He wants to mold us into a better person, a stronger person than we were before.

Maybe you can turn with me to Job chapter 2, verse 7. So when Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown (Crown means the top of his head), Job lost his livestock, his servants, and his children. Yet he continued to praise God. This made Satan so angry that he went forth out of the presence of the Lord and afflicted Job with painful sores from the feet all the way to the head. The pain was so excruciating that the Bible tells us in verse 8 that Job took a potsherd to scrape himself with, and he sat down among the ashes.

In other words, Job took a piece of broken pottery to scrape himself with that instrument. You can imagine how painful and itchy it must have been. He was so miserable when his wife urged him to curse God and die. Verse 9: "Then said his wife unto him, 'Dost thou still retain thy integrity? Curse God and die!'"

Job's response in verse 10: "Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?" In all this, Job did not sin with his lips. Job understood the sovereignty of God. Whether in good health or in sickness, God is in control; He is sovereign. So even when he was greatly afflicted, he did not sin against God. This is a classic example for us to follow.

Pharaoh did not do that. Back to our text: "And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them, as the Lord had spoken unto Moses." After each of the first five plagues, the Bible says Pharaoh's heart was hardened. Here, for the first time, the Bible says that God was the one who hardened Pharaoh's heart.

In a sense, when Pharaoh hardened his heart and continued to harden his heart, it came to a point whereby God Himself would harden his heart. And when that happens, it would be a point of no return. When God hardened Pharaoh's heart, He was simply confirming the decision that Pharaoh had already made. One theologian said, "God hardens those who harden themselves." You harden your heart and keep on hardening your heart; God Himself will harden your heart.

As we have said before, believers may also experience hardening—not as in losing his or her salvation, but when we keep disobeying God, we keep refusing to listen to His Word and live in sin. We will face serious consequences because God will be the one who deals with us.

Dear friends, when you read about Pharaoh hardening his heart, how do you feel? Does it remind you of your unbelieving loved ones and friends, how they are so hard and so hostile toward His gospel? They keep rejecting His gospel again and again. Does it not grieve your heart? I believe surely it would. It grieves our heart because it reminds us of Pharaoh, who kept hardening his heart. And we know that if they keep on hardening their hearts and rejecting the Gospel of Jesus Christ, it will come to a point whereby God Himself would harden their hearts. Then it would be a point of no return.

That is why we always pray for them, that they will not go down this path because it will be a path of no return. You harden your heart, and you keep on hardening your heart. It will come to a point when God Himself will harden your heart. May the Lord have mercy on us.

Let us pray. Father in Heaven, we thank Thee for enabling us to consider this sixth plague. How we learned about this miracle that was so personal—how Thou hast dealt with Pharaoh and the Egyptians; how Thou hast set the distinction between the Israelites and the Egyptians. Indeed, this miracle was also so humiliating to the gods of Egypt. The people of Egypt trusted in those gods, but who do we trust for our healing? God forbids that we trust in anything or anyone other than the almighty God.

We ought to trust in Thee and Thee alone, for only God is in control, and only God alone is sovereign over our bodies. So help us to draw valuable lessons that we may apply in our lives in times of affliction, in times of blessings, in good health, and in sicknesses. We want to be like Job, that in all these things, we sin not against Thee, for we trust in Thy sovereignty. So help us that we will remember. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.