Exodus 10:1-13:16
“Adonai said to Moshe, ‘Go to Pharaoh, for I have made him and his servants hardhearted, so that I can demonstrate these signs of mine among them, so that you can tell your son and grandson about what I did to Egypt and about my signs that I demonstrated among them, and so that you will all know that I am Adonai.’ Moshe and Aharon went in to Pharaoh and said to him, ‘Here is what Adonai, God of the Hebrews, says: How much longer will you refuse to submit to me? Let my people go, so that they can worship me’” (Exodus 10:1-3).
This parashah is entitled Bo. In Hebrew, bo has two meanings: ‘Go’ and ‘Come.’ As Adonai continues to judge Egypt, He is bringing Pharaoh to the point where he tells the Hebrews to ‘Go’ while also preparing the Israelites to ‘Come’ to Him. This parashah describes the last three judgments on Egypt and ends with Passover.
Locusts, Locusts, Locusts – Plague 8
“Moshe and Aharon went into Pharaoh and said to him, ‘Here is what Adonai God of the Hebrews says, How much longer will you refuse to submit to me? Let my people go, so that they can worship me. Otherwise, if you refuse to let my people go, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your territory. One won’t be able to see the ground, so completely will the locusts cover it. They will eat anything that you still have that escaped the hail, including every tree you have growing in the field. They will fill your houses and those of your servants and all the Egyptians’” (Exodus 10:3-6).
The judgment of the seventh plague is against three of Egypt’s gods: Set, Anubis, and Osiris. Set, the god of storms and disorder was depicted as an animal with a curved snout, long, rectangular ears, a forked tail, and dog-like body. He held a scepter which set him apart as a ruler over Egypt, except that he had no power over the eastern wind that brought locusts and disorder to the land.
Anubis, the jackal-headed god associated with death and embalming, weighed the heart of a deceased person using an ostrich feather to determine its place in the afterlife. He also protected the fields. Under his watch, every fruit tree along with its fruit was devoured. His power had been quenched by ‘I Am.’ Anubis’ authority over the ‘heart’ of man was challenged by the ability of ‘I Am’ to harden Pharaoh’s heart. Pharaoh’s servants, not Anubis, began to weigh their leader’s heart and found it lacking when it came to the lives of his people and his nation.
Osiris, the central figure in the ‘Order of the Morning Star,’ was the god of the afterlife, underworld, and the dead. He was depicted with green skin, a beard, and legs partially wrapped like a mummy. He wore a crown with two large ostrich feathers and held a crook and flail. With no green thing left in Egypt, it became clear that Osiris had been defeated by ‘I Am.’
The day after the plague of hail and fire, Pharaoh learns that locusts will cover his land. There will be so many locusts that they will eat what the hail and fire have not destroyed. They will fill the houses from Pharaoh’s palace to the poorest Egyptian. With the prospect of this plague, Pharaoh’s servants begin to rebel against him.
“Let the people go and worship Adonai their God. Don’t you understand yet that Egypt is being destroyed?” (Exodus 10:7)
Pharaoh considers what his servants say and calls Moshe and Aaron. He tells them they may go worship Adonai; however, he wants to know who is actually leaving with them. Moshe explains that the Hebrews will take everyone, their young and old, their sons and daughters, and their flocks and herds.
Pharaoh’s response: “Adonai will certainly be with you if I ever let you go with your children. It’s clear that you are up to no good. Nothing doing! Just the men among you may go and worship Adonai” (Exodus 10:10-11).
The plague arrives by an east wind that blows on Egypt all day and night. In the morning, the locusts invade more severely than ever before or would ever again. They completely cover the ground so that it looks black. They eat every plant growing from the ground and all the fruit on the trees left by hail. Nothing green remains, not a tree nor a plant in the fields in the land of Egypt.
Pharaoh’s response: ”I have sinned against Adonai your God and against you. Now, therefore, please forgive my sin just this once; and intercede with Adonai your God, so that he will at least take away from me this deadly plague!” (Exodus 10:17)
Pharaoh calls Moshe and Aaron and confesses he has sinned against Adonai. He asks Moshe to intercede for him as his gods have no power. ‘I Am’ reverses the wind and it blows from the west so forcefully that it drives the locusts into the Mediterranean Sea –– not one locust remained on Egyptian soil.
“But Adonai made Pharaoh hardhearted, and he didn’t let the people of Isra’el go” (Exodus 10:20).
Darkness, Darkness, Darkness – Plague 9
“Adonai said to Moshe, ‘Reach out your hand toward the sky, and there will be darkness over the land of Egypt, darkness so thick it can be felt!’” (Exodus 10:21)
The judgment of the eighth plague is against Ra, the Egyptian god of the sun. He was depicted as a man with the head of a hawk and had a sun disc or halo over his head with a coiled serpent. It is from Ra that catholicism puts halos or shooting rays of the sun on the heads of their saint-gods. Ra was worshiped by the Egyptians as the supreme creator.
Adonai proves the sun god is no match for the deep darkness in the souls of the Egyptians. They spend three days and three nights in the tomb of death’s abyss of darkness.
Pharaoh receives no warning for this judgment. As soon as Pharaoh’s heart is hardened, ‘I Am’ tells Moshe to reach out his hand to the sky. A darkness that could be felt covers the entire land of Egypt for three days. It is so dark that the Egyptians couldn’t see anything. No one could go anywhere for three days. In Goshen, however, all of the Hebrews had light in their homes.
Pharaoh’s response: “Go, worship Adonai, only leave your flocks and herds behind – take your children with you” (Exodus 10:24).
Pharaoh permits the Hebrews to leave and take their children with them; however, they must leave their flocks and herds behind. This is not a sufficient response for Moshe who reminds Pharaoh that in order to worship Adonai they will need their animals for sacrifice.
Pharaoh responds prophetically, not realizing that his own words will return to him.
“But Adonai made Pharaoh hardhearted, and he would not let them go. Pharaoh said to them, ‘Get away from me! And you have better not see my face again, because the day you see my face, you will die!’” (Exodus 10:27-28)
Moshe answers: “Well spoken! I will see your face no more!” (Exodus 10:29)
Death of the Firstborn – Plague 10
“Moshe said, ‘Here is what Adonai says: About midnight I will go out into Egypt, and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt will die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh sitting on his throne to the firstborn of the slave-girl at the hand mill, and all the firstborn of the livestock. There will be a horrendous wailing throughout all the land of Egypt — there has never been another like it, and there never will be again. But not even a dog’s growl will be heard against any of the people of Isra’el, neither against people nor against animals. In this way you will realize that Adonai distinguishes between Egyptians and Isra’el. All your servants will come down to me, will prostrate themselves before me and say, Get out! — You and all the people who follow you!’ and after that, I will go out!’ And he went out from Pharaoh in the heat of anger’” (Exodus 11:4-8)
The tenth and final judgment is against Pharaoh, the god-king of Egypt. He is given a prophetic warning about what is going to happen to his land, his people, and his own family. From the firstborn of Pharaoh to the firstborn of the slave girl to the firstborn of all the livestock, all the firstborn in Egypt will die.
To understand the seriousness of the final plague, it is important understand the hierarchy in Egypt. The firstborn had absolute power within the family unit. Pharaoh was the firstborn of a firstborn who was the firstborn of a firstborn and so on, and through this birthright, he came into power. The judgment against the firstborn was a judgment against a cultural system where the oldest ruled over the youngest and the lower class needed slaves to control and dominate.
Selah
Moshe leaves Pharaoh’s presence “hot with anger.”
The Destroyer
The focus switches from Pharaoh and Egypt to Adonai’s people. Moshe and Aaron are no longer messengers to Pharaoh, but prophets to the Hebrews. Through them Adonai prepares His people for His Passover and their deliverance from Egypt. He begins by sanctifying time.
“You are to begin your calendar with this month; it will be the first month of the year for you” (Exodus 12:1).
Beginning with the new moon, Adonai’s calendar would begin. There are some who teach the timing of this new moon coincides with the barley being ripe or aviv; however, all of the barley had been destroyed in Egypt and would not have been a credible marker. Along with the moon, Elohim set the stars in the heavens to mark His mo’edim. As an agricultural community, the Hebrews would have understood the new month began with the first new moon when the proper spring constellations were in place. Once the new month was established, they could begin counting the days, sunset to sunset, until the tenth day of the month.
“Speak to all the assembly of Isra’el and say, ‘On the tenth day of this month, each man is to take a lamb or kid for his family, one per household — except that if the household is too small for a whole lamb or kid, then he and his next-door neighbor should share one, dividing it in proportion to the number of people eating it’” (Exodus 12:3-4).
Each family is to take a lamb from their flock and keep the animal until the fourteenth day of the month when the entire community will slaughter it at dusk. They are to take some of the blood and smear it with hyssop on the sides and top of the door frame at the entrance to the house where the family would eat the lamb. It is to be roasted in the fire and served with matzah (unleavened bread) and maror (bitter herbs). Nothing is to remain until morning; leftovers are to be burned up (Exodus 4:6-10).
ח
By smearing blood on the two sides of the door and the top of the door frame, they created the Hebrew letter chet. The Hebrew Word Picture is a ‘fence’ and symbolizes ‘protection in the inner chamber.’ Chet is also the first letter in the word chaim meaning ‘life.’
Hebrew Word Pictures
Life or chai – חי – chet, yod
– protect the finished work
“Sprinkle me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow” (Psalm 51:9).
Hyssop, sometimes translated as oregano, is a Biblical herb that is part of the mint family. It is used for cleansing holy places and objects. It comes from the Hebrew word ezob which means ‘holy herb.‘ Moshe uses hyssop to sprinkle the ‘blood of the covenant’ on the book of Torah (Exodus 24:8). Hyssop is used to bring vinegar to Yeshua’s mouth when he is on the cross (John 19:29). Today, hyssop grows wild between the stones on the Western Wall in Jerusalem. This same herb is used to spread the lamb’s blood on the doorposts and lintel of individual Hebrew homes, symbolizing a cleansing from all the filth and defilement they encountered while slaves in Egypt.
The Hebrews are also told how to eat the meal and what to wear. They are to have their belt fastened, shoes on their feet, and their staff in hand. They are to eat the meal quickly.
“For that night, I will pass through the land of Egypt and kill all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both men and animals, and I will execute judgment against all the gods of Egypt. I am Adonai. The blood will serve you as a sign marking the houses where you are; when I see the blood, I will pass over you–when I strike the land of Egypt, the death blow will not strike you” (Exodus 10:12-13).
In the movie, The Ten Commandments, the ‘angel of death‘ passes over Egypt. However, Adonai is the one going to execute the judgment of death. It won’t be an angel, but the Destroyer or mashkhit. This is not a person, but an attribute of Adonai’s power and the essence of Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh. It is actually a verb form, not a noun, and means ‘that which causes destruction.’ Mashkhit is also used for the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah as well as in reference to the “lion who would destroy the nations” (Jeremiah 4:7). When the mashkhit sees the blood on the house, ‘that which causes destruction’ will pass over that house because it has the ‘fence’ of blood protection.
There are several reasons for Adonai’s Pesach. He wants to once and for all time judge the gods of Egypt and prove their impotence. He wants to reveal His power over life and death to the Hebrews so they will trust Him as their Deliverer. And, He wants a memorial for their children who would ask questions about the meal and pass on His great deliverance to the next generation.
“When your children ask you, ‘What do you mean by this ceremony? Say, ‘It is the sacrifice of Adonai’s Pesach because Adonai passed over the houses of the people of Isra’el in Egypt, when he killed the Egyptians but spared our houses. The people bowed their heads and worshiped. Then the people of Isra’el went and did as Adonai had commanded Moshe and Aaron–that is what they did” (Exodus 12:26-28).
“On that day you are to tell your son, ‘It is because of what Adonai did for me when I left Egypt. Moreover it will serve as a sign on your hand and as a reminder between your eyes, so that Adonai’s Torah may be on your lips, because with a strong hand Adonai brought you out of Egypt. Therefore, you are to observe this regulation at its proper time, year after year’” (Exodus 13:8-11).
The traditional Passover meal was developed to ensure the authenticity of the memorial celebration. Within the haggadah (Telling) booklet, a child asks four questions about the night and why it’s different from all other nights. The father answers each question by explaining what Adonai did when He delivered their ancestors out of Egypt. Each of the items on the seder (Order) plate are a sensory reminder of the events for the eyes, nose, and mouth.
Adonai’s Pesach was about more than just delivering the Hebrews from a culture of death. It was about redemption, buying back His treasured possession from Egypt. Though the sign of the blood kept the firstborn of the Hebrews alive, the Pesach ended the prophecy –– to the exact day –– given to Abraham of Elohim delivering his descendants from oppression and slavery and bringing them back to the Land of Promise.
At midnight on the 14th day of the month, by the light of the full moon, mashkhit kills all the firstborn of Egypt –– from the firstborn of Pharaoh to the firstborn of the prisoner in the dungeon to the firstborn of the livestock. Pharaoh is awakened by horrendous wailing as every house in Egypt has a family member die, including Pharaoh’s firstborn son, his heir. Reeling from the cloud of death, the Egyptians want the Hebrews out of their land as quickly as possible. They don’t want Adonai to kill them too.
Pharaoh’s response: “Bo.”
“Up and leave my people, both you and the people of Isra’el; and go, serve Adonai as you said. Take both your flocks and your herds, as you said; and get out of here! But bless me, too!”
(Exodus 12:31-32)
Blessings are only bestowed upon the obedient, and Pharaoh has not been obedient. He does not admit his sin nor does he repent. He has hardened his heart against Adonai. He has not listened to the cries of his own people or the wisdom of his servants. He has not accepted his humanity in presence of the Adonai. He has not willingly submitted to Adonai’s command to let His people go. Only because of his sorrow at the loss of his firstborn, he relents. However, soon after the Hebrews leave Egypt, he is arrogantly chasing them down. He has cursed Abraham’s children and has brought the curse upon himself, his family, and his nation.
The First Mo’ed – Pesach
“This Pesach will be a day for you to remember and celebrate as a festival to Adonai from generation to generation you are to celebrate it by a perpetual regulation” (Exodus 12:14).
The Hebrews have hope for the first time in centuries. They have been given a calendar created by Adonai Himself. On this calendar, two dates are circled: one for bringing an animal into their house and another for slaughtering and eating it. Though the Pesach will be a one-time deliverance from Egypt, it will be remembered annually. They aren’t going to remain as slaves or be destroyed by Pharaoh; they will become and remain for all time, through all their generations, Adonai’s chosen people, the nation of Isra’el (Jeremiah 33:19-22).
“This is the regulation for the Pesach lamb; no foreigner [non-Jew] is to eat it. But if anyone has a slave he bought for money, when you have circumcised him, he may eat it. Neither a traveler nor a hired servant may eat it. It is to be eaten in one house. You are not to take any of the meat outside the house , and you are not to break any of its bones. The whole community of Isra’el is to keep it. If a foreigner staying with you wants to observe Adonai’s Pesach, all his males must be circumcised. Then he may take part and observe it; he will be like a citizen of the land. But not uncircumcised person is to eat it. The same teaching is to apply equally to the citizen and to the foreigner living among you” (Exodus 12:43-49).
Adonai gives Pesach instructions for foreigners who desire to take part in the memorial, as many Egyptians have become god-fearers through the judgments. Any foreigner living among the Hebrews must become a citizen of Isra’el through circumcision of the flesh. No uncircumcised person may take part in Pesach, even uncircumcised Hebrews.
According to Adonai, circumcision and the faith it symbolizes is necessary for becoming a citizen of Isra’el. This wasn’t about converting to Judaism as Judaism didn’t exist at this time. It wasn’t about a conversion process as was the problem in Galatia. Circumcision in Egypt allowed the foreigner to take part in Adonai’s mo’ed with His chosen people, as one adopted into His family. For Adonai, circumcision is not a religious act, it is a sign of joining the faith covenant He made with Abraham. ‘Signs’ are very important to Adonai; the ‘sign’ of the lamb’s blood on the doorpost and lintel made the difference between life and death.
Yeshua and Pesach
On the night of Judas’ betrayal, Yeshua celebrates a Pesach seder with his disciples. The evening begins as every seder does with a memorial to the Hebrews’ deliverance from Egypt. However, as his seder progresses, Yeshua uses two of the cups of wine and the matzah to renew the marriage covenant that had been broken by the Israelites in the wilderness. The disciples share the first cup of wine, the Cup of Sanctification, setting them apart as Yeshua’s betrothed bride. As with every Jewish marriage betrothal, there is a bride price. Yeshua takes the second cup of wine, the Cup of Redemption and a piece of matzah and explains the payment for his bride will be his broken body and blood –– his very life (Luke 22:17-20).
With anti-semitism infiltrating the community of believers in the first centuries, the Pesach seder was reduced to ‘communion.’ It is no longer used to teach children about Adonai’s deliverance of the Hebrews from slavery. It has even lost the fullness of what Yeshua offered those who would trust in Him: a betrothal, a bride price, and the marriage feast in the coming Kingdom. To understand the prophetic vision of Pesach, it is important to keep it as Adonai commanded, whether an Israelite or a foreigner. It was to be a perpetual memorial throughout all the generations of Isra’el –– not just until the Messiah came.
Sha’ul, the apostle to the foreigners to the covenant, tells the Corinthians, a gentile congregation, to “celebrate the Pesach seder” (1 Corinthians 5:8). It is the way followers of Yeshua remember his death until he comes again, not that his death ended the celebration. A proper and complete Pesach seder celebrated in truth as a memorial to Yeshua’s work on the cross will unveil the eyes of the Jewish people and renew their covenant relationship with HaShem.
“Get rid of the old chametz [leaven], so that you can be a new batch of dough, because in reality you are unleavened. For our Pesach lamb, the Messiah, has been sacrificed. So let us celebrate the [Pesach] Seder not with leftover chametz [leaven], the chametz of wickedness and evil, but with the matzah of purity and truth” (1 Corinthians 5:7-8).
The Second Mo’ed – Matzah
“You are to observe the festival of matzah, for on this very day I brought your divisions out of the land of Egypt. Therefore, you are to observe this day from generation to generation by a perpetual regulation” (Exodus 12:17-18).
Pesach is bound to Matzah (Unleavened Bread) through the exodus from Egypt. Both memorials include the removal of chametz from the house and eating bread without leaven. Chametz literally means ‘soured dough.’ In ancient times, leavening was done through a starter dough called chamtez. Some of this starter dough or ‘soured dough’ was mixed with flour creating a leavened dough. Leavening a loaf of bread with ‘soured dough’ is a process that takes about 24 hours. The Hebrews didn’t have that much time so Matzah would remind them how quickly they left Egypt. During the seven days of Matzah, the Israelites were to eat only unleavened bread.
By removing the chametz from their homes, the Israelites were literally throwing away the ‘lump of dough’ and had to eat unleavened bread for seven days until a new started could be created ((1 Corinthians 5:7).
“They baked matzah loaves from the dough they had brought out of Egypt, since it was unleavened; because they had been driven out of Egypt without time to prepare supplies for themselves” (Exodus 12:39).
Like Pesach, Matzah is a perpetual regulation to be celebrated from generation to generation because it is the memorial to the exact day the Hebrews were set free from Egyptian slavery. Matzah marked the end of the prophecy that Abraham’s descendants would be oppressed and enslaved for four generations. It is also the exact day, 400 years later, of Isaac’s ‘weaning’ and the start of the oppression suffered beginning with Ishmael and Esau. Through the blessing of Adonai, the nation of 70 that entered Egypt had grown to 600,000 men, not including women and children.
“All the people of Isra’el did just as Adonai had ordered Moshe and Aharon. On that very day, Adonai brought the people of Isra’el out of the land of Egypt by their divisions” (Exodus 12:50-51).
Pidyon Ha-ben – Redemption of the Firstborn
“Set aside for me all the firstborn. Whatever is firstborn from the womb among the people of Isra’el, both of humans and of animals belongs to me…. When Adonai brings you into the land of Canaan, and gives it to you, you are to set apart for Adonai everything that is first from the womb. Every firstborn male animal will belong to Adonai. Every firstborn from a donkey, you are to redeem with a lamb, but if you choose not to redeem it, you must break its neck. But from people, you are to redeem every firstborn son” (Exodus 13:1,11-13).
Because Adonai protected the firstborn of the Hebrews, they became His possession and needed to be redeemed back to their families. Firstborn sons of the Hebrews were redeemed with a lamb. In the wilderness, Adonai takes possession of the Tribe of Levi in place of the Israelites’ firstborn sons. The difference between the number of Israelite firstborns and the Levites were ‘bought back’ for five shekels of silver each (Numbers 3:40-51).
“With a strong hand Adonai brought us out of Egypt, out of the abode of slavery. When Pharaoh was unwilling to let us go, Adonai killed all the firstborn males in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of humans and the firstborn of animals. That is why I sacrifice to Adonai any male that is first from the womb of an animal, but all the firstborn of my sons, I redeem. This will serve as a sign on your hand and at the front of a headband around your forehead that with a strong hand Adonai brought us out of Egypt” (Exodus 13:14-16).
Yeshua, the Firstborn
“He will call to me, ‘You are my father, my God, the Rock of my salvation.’ I will give him the position of firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. I will keep my grace for him forever, and in my covenant be faithful with him” (Psalm 89:27-29).
“When the time came for their purification according to the Torah of Moshe, they took him up to Yerushalayim to present him to Adonai (as it is written in the Torah of Adonai, ‘Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to Adonai’) and also to offer a sacrifice of a pair of doves or two young pigeons, as required by the Torah of Adonai” (Luke 2:22-24).
“Grace and shalom to you from the One who is, who was and who is coming; from the sevenfold Spirit before his throne; and from Yeshua the Messiah, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead and the ruler of the earth’s kings” (Revelation 1:5).
“Also he [Yeshua] is head of the Body, the Messianic Community — he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might hold first place in everything. For it pleased God to have his full being live in his Son and through his Son to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace through him, through having his Son shed his blood by being executed on a stake” (Colossians 1:18-20).
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