The Third Plague

TRANSCRIPT

In our previous message we have considered the first and second plagues, and tonight we have come to ‘The Third Plague’. Let us begin with Exodus 8:16 and 17; “And the LORD said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt. And they did so; for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust of the earth, and it became lice in man, and in beast; all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt.”

The unique thing about this third plague is that it came without any warning. God simply commanded Moses to say to Aaron, "Stretch out thy rod and smite the dust of the land," without any prior warning to the Pharaoh. This was also the first plague to touch the Egyptians. What do we mean by that? The first plague - turning the water into blood - affected the water system. The second plague - the invasion of the frogs - affected the land. But this third plague was the first time the lives of the Egyptians were touched.

According to verse 17, the lice came upon both men and animals. Historians wrote in their books that these insects were creeping up the nose and ears of the people. Some theologians have tried to organise the plagues into a certain pattern, to be precise, into five parts. The first two plagues, according to them, blood and frogs, affected the river Nile. The next two plagues, lice and flies, involved insects. The fifth and sixth plagues, livestock and boils, were both diseases. The seventh and eighth plagues, hail and locusts, affected the crops. And the last two plagues, darkness and the death of the firstborn, involved different kinds of darkness.

Other scholars have divided the ten plagues into three sets of three, and it was like a cycle. Allow me to briefly explain; notice, before the first plague in each cycle, Moses was commanded to go to the Pharaoh early in the morning. For example, in Exodus 7:15, Chapter 8:20, and Chapter 9:13, the Bible says Moses went to the Pharaoh early in the morning. Then, before the second plague in each cycle, Moses would confront the Pharaoh in his palace; for example, Exodus 8:1, Chapter 9:1, and Chapter 10:1. And the third plague in each cycle would come without any warning or confrontation at all. In other words, God would first send Moses to go to the Pharaoh early in the morning, and then God would send Moses to the Pharaoh's palace. And finally, God would strike the Pharaoh without any prior warning. And then he would repeat this cycle another two times. The tenth plague, the death of the firstborn, which was the worst; it was the climax of God's judgment and it will stand alone on its own. Now, these are very interesting observations about the ten plagues.

I. The Supernatural Miracle

Again, there are some scientists who profess to be believers but yet they deny the miracles of the Bible, and they try to give some natural explanations about this third plague. They suggest that all these plagues were connected. Remember how we discussed in our previous message that they believe that when the water turned into blood, it was not really blood but something that looked like blood. Of course, we reject that. And then the polluted water caused the frogs to come out of the water onto the land, and when the frogs died, maggots appeared. So these lice came from the maggots. So these so-called scientists or professed to be believers, scientists, they would say that there is a connection in all these plagues. But their proposed explanations and possibilities cannot answer certain questions.

Firstly, they cannot explain the timing - why the moment Aaron struck the dust of the land, all of a sudden they became lice? Secondly, they cannot explain the location - why the lice affected only the land of Egypt and not elsewhere? But most importantly, the Bible clearly tells us that the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt. In other words, the insects did not come from the frogs, they did not come from the river Nile - they came from the dust of the land. The biblical principle that all of us must follow is to “let God be true [and] every man a liar” (Romans 3:4).

Here, it does not mean that each grain of dust became lice, but that the whole land was covered with lice. The emphasis was on God, being the Creator, He was the one who created the lice from dust, just like the way He created Adam from dust (Genesis 2:7). Just like the way He promised Abraham that his descendants would be like the dust of the earth (Genesis 13:16). When the Bible tells us that it was a divine miracle, you and I must simply accept it by faith that it was divine and supernatural. A miracle is an act of divine intervention in which God uses His creation to display His glory. In fact, let us take a moment and consider this word "supernatural." What does supernatural mean? Basically, supernatural means it is super, it is above that which is natural. It is above nature. If it is brought about by the law of nature, then it is not supernatural. It is not something brought about by the law of nature. God can employ the forces that are present in nature, but He uses them in a very extraordinary way to produce unexpected results. That is why it is called supernatural. Like in this case, God used the dust of the earth to produce the lice. God is the creator.

Some people may ask, ‘God could have chosen some other ways to convince the Pharaoh to let His people go, right? Wouldn't it be easier for God to give the Pharaoh a sign that was completely outside of nature, rather than a supernatural miracle turning nature against him?’ Like someone said, if God wanted to, He could have written some giant Egyptian hieroglyphics in the sky: 'Let my people go.' Wouldn't that be easier? You see, God has a sovereign purpose in all things, including each and every one of those plagues. And those plagues were designed to defeat the gods of Egypt. Remember, the Egyptians were polytheists; they worshipped many gods. So, God used the first plague, turning the water into blood, to defeat the god of the river Nile. God used the second plague, the invasion of the frogs, to defeat the Egyptian goddess of fertility. And here, in this third plague, God used the lice to demonstrate His power over the gods of the earth. In other words, God was demonstrating His control over the gods that the Egyptians were worshipping.

Another important thing is that the Egyptians believed that Pharaoh was divine and he was the one who had the power to maintain all the land and to preserve it in this world. In fact, they believed that it was the Pharaoh's responsibility, as a divine god, to maintain this cosmic order by controlling the climate, by regulating the seasons, and also by preserving order in this world. So when God struck the Egyptians, plague by plague, He was not just throwing the land of Egypt into confusion without rhyme or reason; God was revealing to the people that Pharaoh could not be a true god because he had absolutely no control over the climate, over the seasons, over preserving order in the world. When the world was turned upside down, God wanted the people to know that it was completely hopeless and futile to believe in someone who had absolutely no power at all to turn the world around. Only God alone is able to do that.

Dear friends, what is the source of your foundation, security, trust, and belief? Some people build their foundation on their jobs and finances. Others base their sense of security on their intelligence, youth, beauty, physical stamina. Yet others depend on the people they know, especially those influential people. But in a day of trouble - when chaos surrounds us, when the financial market collapses, when you find yourself in the hospital, when you lose your job, when calamity strikes, when war breaks out - when our world turns upside down, it is not without rhyme or reason. God is in control of all things, to make us realize that no one and nothing can save us except the Lord Jesus Christ. Colossians 1:16-17 says, "For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” Jesus Christ is the only one who holds everything together. And this is not only true in the physical, natural realm, but it is also true in the spiritual, supernatural realm as well. When our world seems to go out of control, the only stable foundation is faith in Jesus Christ.

As we used to sing the hymn, ‘On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand.’ When our world seems to turn upside down, when chaos surrounds us, God has a purpose, and that is to teach us that only on this solid rock can we stand - all other ground is sinking sand.

Let us move on to verse 18; "And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not: so there were lice upon man, and upon beast.” In our previous two plagues that we had considered, the magicians were quite impressive in that they were able to counterfeit those divine plagues - turning the water into blood, bringing frogs out of the water and onto the land - whether by magic tricks or demonic powers. But this time, when they tried to duplicate the plague of bringing forth lice, they could not. The last phrase, "so there were lice upon man, and upon beast", tells us that even the magicians themselves were not spared. They were also covered with lice, and there was nothing they could do about it.

Remember, the magicians were essentially the religious leaders or priests of Egypt. History tells us that before they performed their daily rituals, they would bathe thoroughly; they would even shave off all their hair, and they took great pride in their personal physical purity. John Davis, the theologian and former president of Grace Theological Seminary, said, "It is rather doubtful that the priesthood of Egypt could function very effectively, having themselves been polluted by the presence of these insects. They, like their worshippers, were inflicted with this pestilence. Their prayers were made ineffective by their own personal impurity with the presence of lice on their bodies."

But we must bear in mind that ultimately, the Pharaoh's magicians were the servants of Satan, and their inability to duplicate this divine plague shows that Satan's power has its limit. Indeed, Satan does have some power. The Bible tells us that he is able to counterfeit miracles, signs, and wonders. He has the power to; rebel, to tempt, to deceive, to accuse, to hold sinners captive in their sins, to torment even the elect with various afflictions including diseases and imprisonment. Satan is very powerful, but his powers are limited. Consider all the things that Satan is unable to do. He cannot create; he can only destroy. He cannot redeem; he can only be condemned. He cannot love; he can only hate. He cannot be humble; he can only be proud. He can pretend to be humble and loving, but that is not genuine love and humility. And the list goes on and on. Basically, he cannot do anything unless God allows him to. Most importantly, he was unable to keep God's only begotten Son in the grave. Christ broke the devil's power by His crucifixion and resurrection. Ultimately, Satan will be completely defeated, and all his evil plans will come to nothing. He himself and all his demons will be sent to the eternal lake of fire forever and ever. Isn't it comforting for all of us to know that Satan has his limitations?

We are in a spiritual warfare, aren't we? Every day of our lives, we face temptations, we face spiritual opposition of all sorts. Satan is powerful, but he's not all-powerful. We believe in the One who is all-powerful. We serve the One who is infinitely all-powerful than all our greatest enemies. And it's none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. And when our Lord Jesus taught His disciples to pray, "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (Matthew 6:13) do you think Jesus is able to deliver us? Surely. Do you think Jesus will not deliver us? Most certainly He will. That is the Lord we believe in, who is infinitely all-powerful.

II. The Finger of God

Apparently, the magicians realised that they were dealing with a higher power. What really impressed them was not the plague itself, but the fact that this higher power was able to prevent them from duplicating this plague. So when they were unable to turn the dust into lice, verse 19 says, "Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh, This is the finger of God”. Isn't it amazing that they would say, "This is the finger of God"? But it does not mean that the magicians were pointing the Pharaoh to the one living and true God, because the verse went on to say, "and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.” It does not mean that the magicians were confessing their faith in the one living and true God.

And how do we know? Because of the way they addressed God. They addressed God by His general name, Elohim, not His covenant name, Jehovah, which was translated as "the Lord." Remember, God had said very emphatically in the previous chapters, for example, Exodus 7:5, “And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them.” And here, the magicians simply addressed God by His general name, Elohim, not His covenant name, Jehovah.

Interestingly, in the Bible, there was another person who also used this phrase, "the finger of God," and he was King David. I would like you to consider the difference between David and the magicians. Turn with me to Psalm 8:3; David said, "When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained" But before that, look at how David addressed God in verse 1. "O LORD,” - Jehovah- our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens." (Psalm 8:1)

David was a child of God, He believed in the one living and true God. That was why he was able to call upon the covenant name of God, ‘LORD’. How excellent is thy name! The magicians were unbelievers. They could not bring themselves to use God's covenant name. So when they spoke of the finger of God, they were actually attributing this divine plague to one of their gods; in other words, God is just like one of the Egyptian gods, perhaps a very powerful one.

Some years ago, I had a friend who lost his car, and he reported it to the police. Several days later, the police called and asked him to go to the station. The officer said to my friend, ‘Thank God we found your car.’ My friend was a new believer - He was very enthusiastic for evangelism - and I remembered he said to the officer, ‘Which God?’ Isn't it true that people would use the name ‘god’, but they do not believe in the God you and I believe in?

Like the magicians, a person may believe there is a God. He may acknowledge the existence of a creator. He may know a great deal about God. He may address God as a higher power, or the man upstairs. He may even address God with one of His names. He may even call Him ‘Jesus’. When a calamity strikes, he may refer to it as an act of God. But one thing he will not do, and that is to bring himself to call upon Jesus Christ as Lord. And that is a divine work that only God is able to do - to convict the hearts of sinners and cause them to cry out to Him in salvation. And that is precisely what God requires for salvation, not just a general belief in God, not just some general knowledge about God, but a personal faith in the only God, our Lord Jesus Christ - the only one who can save us. That is why Romans 10:9 tells us, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

So, my friends, many, as our Lord Jesus said in Matthew 7, shall call unto Me, "Lord, Lord," but I shall say unto them, ‘depart from Me, ye [workers] of iniquity, I never knew you’ (Matthew 7:22-23). ‘Many’, who are these many? We pray that we will not be found among this ‘many’. But when we call upon this covenant name of our God, we truly believe in Him, we love Him because He first loved us. And the God whom we believe in is an all-powerful God. He is the one who knows all things about us, even to cause us to cry out to Him. Jesus Christ is our Lord and Saviour. Let us pray.

Our Father in Heaven, we thank Thee for enabling us to consider this passage, this third plague. Although, there are only a few verses but we are able to learn much from how the people of old, especially the magicians - the unbelievers - how they responded to Thee, and how Thy beloved servants Moses and Aaron responded to Thee. We thank Thee for giving us this opportunity that we can learn from Thy precious Word, help us that we will be able to learn Thy truth and also to apply Thy truth into our lives. Grant to us many such opportunities that we can come together to consider Thy Word - Thy infallible and inerrant Word. We give Thee thanks, and we pray all this in Jesus' name. Amen.

SERMON OUTLINE

• I. The Supernatural Miracle
• II. The Finger of God

THE BOOK OF EXODUS

God’s Prophecy and Promise Had Come To Pass

God’s Prophecy and Promise Had Come To Pass

Exodus 1:1-7

From Prosperity to Persecution

From Prosperity to Persecution

Exodus 1:8-14

God’s Protection in the Midst of Adversities

God’s Protection in the Midst of Adversities

Exodus 1:15-21

The Faith of Jochebed

The Faith of Jochebed

Exodus 1:22-2:10

Moses in Egypt

Moses in Egypt

Exodus 2:11-15

Moses in the Desert of Midian

Moses in the Desert of Midian

Exodus 2:16-25

Moses and the Burning Bush

Moses and the Burning Bush

Exodus 3:1-9

Who Are You?

Who Are You?

Exodus 3:10-15

Who Am I?

Who Am I?

Exodus 3:10-15

God’s Message to Israel and Egypt

God’s Message to Israel and Egypt

Exodus 3:16-22

What If They Still Don’t Believe?

What If They Still Don’t Believe?

Exodus 4:1-9

Send Someone Else

Send Someone Else

Exodus 4:10-17

Moses’ Return to Egypt

Moses’ Return to Egypt

Exodus 4:18-20

When Things Seemed to Get Better, They Got Worse

When Things Seemed to Get Better, They Got Worse

Exodus 5:10-21

When We Have Done Everything Right, and Yet Trouble Comes

When We Have Done Everything Right, and Yet Trouble Comes

Exodus 5:22-6:5

Having to Learn the Same Lesson Twice

Having to Learn the Same Lesson Twice

Exodus 6:6-12

Faithful or Unfaithful

Faithful or Unfaithful

Exodus 6:13-27

What God Wants Is Our Faithfulness and Obedience

What God Wants Is Our Faithfulness and Obedience

Exodus 6:28-7:7

The First Plague - The River of Blood

The First Plague - The River of Blood

Exodus 7:14-25

The Second Plague - The Frogs

The Second Plague - The Frogs

Exodus 8:1-15

The Third Plague

The Third Plague

Exodus 8:16-19

The Fourth Plague

The Fourth Plague

Exodus 8:20-32

The Fifth Plague

The Fifth Plague

Exodus 9:1-7

The Sixth Plague

The Sixth Plague

Exodus 9:8-12

The Seventh Plague

The Seventh Plague

Exodus 9:13-35

The Eighth Plague

The Eighth Plague

Exodus 10:1-20

The Tenth Plague

The Tenth Plague

Exodus 11:1-10

The First Passover

The First Passover

Exodus 12:1-13

The Feast of the Unleavened Bread

The Feast of the Unleavened Bread

Exodus 12:14-28

Departure From Egypt

Departure From Egypt

Exodus 12:29-42

This Do In Remembrance of Me

This Do In Remembrance of Me

Exodus 12:43-51; 1 Corinthians 11:23-32

Message 2: What is Church to you? My Covenantal Family!

Message 2: What is Church to you? My Covenantal Family!

Exodus 12:48-49, Colossians 2:11-12

Redemption and Consecration

Redemption and Consecration

Exodus 13:1-2, 11-16

Precious Lord, Take My Hand

Precious Lord, Take My Hand

Exodus 13:17-22

Between the Desert and the Red Sea

Between the Desert and the Red Sea

Exodus 14:1-14

Crossing the Red Sea

Crossing the Red Sea

Exodus 14:15-31

The Song of Praise

The Song of Praise

Exodus 15:1-21

Will You Obey Or Not?

Will You Obey Or Not?

Exodus 15:22-27

The Danger of a Complaining Spirit

The Danger of a Complaining Spirit

Exodus 16:1-3

If Thy Presence Go Not with Me, Carry Us Not Up Hence

If Thy Presence Go Not with Me, Carry Us Not Up Hence

Exodus 33:12-23