Exodus 10:21 – 29 “Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that darkness may spread over the land of Egypt—a palpable darkness.”
So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and total darkness covered all the land of Egypt for three days. No one could see each other, and for three days no one left his place. Yet all the Israelites had light in their dwellings.
Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and said, “Go, worship the LORD. Even your little ones may go with you; only your flocks and herds must stay behind.”
But Moses replied, “You must also provide us with sacrifices and burnt offerings to present to the LORD our God. Even our livestock must go with us; not a hoof will be left behind, for we will need some of them to worship the LORD our God, and we will not know how we are to worship the LORD until we arrive.”
But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he was not willing to let them go. “Depart from me!” Pharaoh said to Moses. “Make sure you never see my face again, for on the day you see my face, you will die.”“As you say,” Moses replied, “I will never see your face again.”
The ninth plague, darkness, was aimed at the sun god, Re, who was symbolized by Pharaoh himself. For three days, the land of Egypt was smothered with an unearthly darkness, but the homes of the Israelites had light. (What was the meaning and purpose of the ten plagues of Egypt? | GotQuestions.org)
How dense can one man be? The entire country of Egypt is devastated! This destruction is far worse than the famine in Joseph’s time because then they stored up food; now there’s nothing left – no crops, no vegetation, and probably very few animals. All of the Egyptians are trying to heal up from the boils that afflicted them, a difficult thing to do on an inadequate diet. Even Pharaoh’s corrupt advisers have thrown in the towel. And yet Pharaoh STILL has the crazy idea that somehow he is in control.
God is still trying to get Pharaoh’s attention, still trying to prove to Pharaoh that the gods he has served all his life are no gods at all. Now God sends a palpable darkness for three days. What is a “palpable darkness?” Presumably, this darkness would not only be the absence of light but also the absence of anything positive. It’s likely that in addition, the fear of God would fall upon the Egyptians. Remember that God loves those Egyptians also and is trying to demonstrate His power so that the Egyptians will also worship Him instead of the demons they have worshiped. Nobody on the Egyptian side can move at all.
In a last bid to demonstrate power, Pharaoh graciously allows all the Israelites to leave but demands that all their flocks and herd remain behind. Why? Well, remember that at this point, there is no grazing left on the Egyptian side of the boundary and therefore those Israelite flocks and herds represent the only healthy animals left in Egypt. But Pharaoh is still trying to manipulate and threaten Moses, ridiculous as that appears.
APPLICATION: Why did God choose to send the Israelites to Egypt in the first place?
It’s a mistake to think that God only loved the Israelites and that He was not trying to draw other people to Himself. Egypt was close to Canaan and it was the leading world power at the time the Israelites went there. Four hundred years later, Egypt was still one of the leading nations of the time. God chose Egypt so that He could demonstrate His power as the Lord of the Universe. Throughout the plagues, God was constantly calling the Egyptians to come and worship Him and to abandon the false gods who had not helped them. Did God love the Pharaoh with whom Moses contended? Yes! God loved that Pharaoh also. In dealing with someone who had been raised to view himself as a deity, God had to show His power; nothing else would be sufficient.
God sent three days of darkness on Egypt so that all the Egyptians could sit and think about everything that they had already seen. God sent darkness so that Pharaoh, who served as the symbol of the Sun God Re, could realize that Re was powerless and that he, Pharaoh, was equally powerless. What did God say to the Egyptians sitting in darkness? We don’t know, but certainly God was speaking to them, trying to draw them to Himself.
Pharaoh’s final threat to Moses was a death threat. God countered that threat with a death threat of His own. Even three days in utter darkness had done nothing to soften Pharaoh’s heart! It was John Dalberg – Acton who said, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Only God can wield power without becoming corrupted. Those of us in positions of authority must continually watch ourselves, lest we fall into the same trap as Pharaoh.
Are you in darkness right now? Sit quietly and ask God to reveal Himself to you. Be assured that God answers every sincere prayer.
PRAYER: Father God, help us not to walk in darkness but to follow you, the One True Living God. Lord, bring correction where we have stumbled and abused power or influence. And bring righteous leadership throughout the countries of the world. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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