Good Morning.
So the Egyptians made the children of Israel serve with rigor. And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage—in mortar, in brick, and in all manner of service in the field. All their service in which they made them serve was with rigor. (Exodus 1:13-14)
By setting taskmasters over the Hebrews, Pharaoh’s intended to “afflict them.” The Hebrew root word translated as “afflict” is anah and means to “make dependent.” It is also used to mean, “to humble someone,” or “to make poor” and even describes a “state of poverty.” In other words, his goal was to systematically make the Hebrews “dependent” upon the state which would eventually lead to a scenario whereby Pharaoh could destroy them. As a matter of fact, there is sufficient reason to believe that the Hebrew words translated as “taskmaster” could more accurately be rendered “tax masters.” Initially, the “burdens” placed upon the children of Israel may not have been physical loads but may have been financial burdens which then led to the physical burdens — working in the fields and building the treasure cities.
Yet, the more they were afflicted, the more they grew and multiplied. Pharaoh’s attempts to restrain and choke them out simply didn’t work; actually it seemed to have the opposite affect. Thus we learn that, just as strong winds scatter seed allowing plants to propagate, persecution actually serves as the force to help spread God’s purpose through the earth. Consider the early believers and how they were scattered abroad as a direct result of persecution.
At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. … Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word. (Acts 8:1, 4)
Evil men may conspire against God’s people and may, in fact, cause their lives to become complicated. However, time and again we see that God’s people thrive in spite of their evil plans. Therefore, let us not become dismayed or intimidated when evil men make threats and instigate persecution; it simply means that our Father is getting ready to spread His Word and His Will throughout the earth so that there can be a great harvest of souls. Let’s make sure to do our part by bolding proclaiming His truth to those we encounter.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
Recent Comments