Exodus 10 – May 22

Locusts and Darkness

The plagues found in Exodus 10 were devastating blows to the Egyptian people. There is a mysterious switch in the mind of locusts that causes them to shift from solitary bugs to swarming armies. Hundreds of locust generations will go by without a swarm. Then, for reasons that are often weather related, they will molt, change colors, and begin multiplying feverishly. Unlike grasshoppers, locusts eat everything organic that they can chew. They will often consume not only the plant above the ground, but they will also eat down to the very root and seed of the plant and leave nothing in the ground. For this reason, there is not a single crop that is safe from their bottomless appetites. Egypt was known as the breadbasket of the Mediterranean because it was a prolific producer of wheat. Those crops would have been utterly destroyed by this plague, rendering Egypt desperate for outside sources of food obtained through trade. Verse 15 states, “Not a green thing remained, neither tree nor plant of the field, through all the land of Egypt.”

Darkness was likewise a devastating plague. It is very challenging for us to imagine a world without any kind of electronic lighting. They didn’t have easy access to wax for candles, oil for lamps, or wood for fires. Egypt has minimal natural resources for producing light. Verse 23 tells us that the darkness literally rendered the people so helpless that they remained in bed for three days. In a world where the overwhelming majority of time was spent attempting to grow, produce, and prepare food, this would have been a crushing blow to the general population.

False Repentance

After the locusts had already destroyed the livelihood of the Egyptians, Pharaoh seems to have a breakthrough. He displayed an outward appearance of repentance. He said, “I have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you. Now therefore, forgive my sin, please, only this once, and plead with the Lord your God only to remove this death from me.” That sounds good, but it only lasts as long as the plague. As soon as the Lord sent a wind to push out the locusts, Pharaoh returned to his old ways. Does this sound familiar? Have you ever displayed this kind of false repentance? Have you ever made promises to God that you will live for Him if He will just alleviate your pain or give you the desires of your heart? God sees through false repentance. It was possible for Pharaoh to fool Moses for a time. It is possible for you to be a good actor and fool some of the people some of the time. “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.” Mankind is limited in our options. All we can do is look at the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart. Don’t fake repentance. Confess everything, turn away from all sin, and run to Jesus.

The Heart of a Fool

It never ceases to amaze me how evil rulers in the Bible banish the only people who can help them. Pharaoh should have known that Moses was the only person who could stop the plagues. He should have understood that the only way to stop the anger of the Lord was to listen to God’s commands and do them. Pharaoh’s heart is emblematic of all those who reject the gospel. They would rather push away God’s messengers than simply submit their will to God.