Good Morning.
Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste, and said, “I have sinned against the Lord your God and against you. Now therefore, please forgive my sin only this once, and entreat[a] the Lord your God, that He may take away from me this death only.” (Exodus 10:16-17)
After being overwhelmed with the multitude of locusts, Pharaoh hastily called for Moses and Aaron saying, “Please forgive me this once” which seemed to indicate that he didn’t intend to sin in this way again. The Bible says that Moses prayed and the LORD caused a west wind to drive them into the Sea of Reeds. This is where the locusts met their end -– not one was left.
It is somewhat reminiscent of the account in the New Testament where the unclean spirits were cast out of the man of Gadarene and then allowed to enter a herd of swine feeding nearby. According to the Bible, as soon as they went into the swine, the whole herd “ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters.” (Matthew 8:32). The man who had been delivered of this oppression desperately wanted to follow Messiah but was instructed to go and tell everyone of what had happened — which brings us back to Pharaoh.
As soon as the crisis had passed, the king of Egypt hardened his heart yet again. His “jail house religion” was not sincere but was provoked only by the desire to get rid of the plague. Ironically, when Pharaoh met his end, he too was cast into the waters of the same sea that had received the legions of locusts (Exodus 14:27-28). The point, then, is that when we are given an opportunity to repent and turn from the way that is certain to lead to destruction we must be as the man delivered of the unclean spirit — eager to follow the Messiah where ever He goes. Unfortunately, so many choose the path preferred by Pharaoh and end up meeting the same fate. As God’s people let us be sure that we do not take God’s grace and mercy for granted but be grateful for His kindness and make the most of it. He is loving, compassionate and forgiving but we have the obligation to be faithful. Let us be those who are willing to follow Him anywhere at any time.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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