Then he said, “Tomorrow.”

Exodus 8:1-15 (NASB) from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Let My people go, that they may serve Me. ² But if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite your whole territory with frogs. ³ The Nile will swarm with frogs, which will come up and go into your house and into your bedroom and on your bed, and into the houses of your servants and on your people, and into your ovens and into your kneading bowls. ⁴ So the frogs will come up on you and your people and all your servants.”’” ⁵ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, over the streams and over the pools, and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt.’” ⁶ So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt. ⁷ The magicians did the same with their secret arts, making frogs come up on the land of Egypt.

⁸ Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron and said, “Entreat the Lord that He remove the frogs from me and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may sacrifice to the Lord.” ⁹ Moses said to Pharaoh, “The honor is yours to tell me: when shall I entreat for you and your servants and your people, that the frogs be destroyed from you and your houses, that they may be left only in the Nile?”

¹⁰ Then he said, “Tomorrow.” So he said, “May it be according to your word, that you may know that there is no one like the Lord our God. ¹¹ The frogs will depart from you and your houses and your servants and your people; they will be left only in the Nile.” ¹² Then Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried to the Lord concerning the frogs which He had inflicted upon Pharaoh. ¹³ The Lord did according to the word of Moses, and the frogs died out of the houses, the courts, and the fields. ¹⁴ So they piled them in heaps, and the land became foul. ¹⁵ But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and did not listen to them, as the Lord had said.

There are a few things which stood out to me as I read the account of the plague of frogs in today’s text. The first thing is in verses 7-8, where it says:    The magicians did the same with their secret arts, making frogs come up on the land of Egypt. ⁸ Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron and said, “Entreat the Lord that He remove the frogs from me and from my people. The magicians, those operating under the false powers of darkness, were able to mimic or copy the signs that were done by Moses and Aaron through the hand of God. Satan himself has the ability to copy and duplicate some of the things of God. Yet he does not have true creative power, he cannot do anything original, he only manipulates and deceives, twisting truth to promote his lies. If the magicians of Egypt had true power and authority over things they would have been able to stop or reverse the plagues rather than duplicating them. Man under the influence of evil can create much evil and chaos. God alone, as He did in the beginning, can speak to what is formless and void, what is chaos and create something good.

The next thing that stands out to me is in verses 9-10, after Pharaoh entreats Moses to ask God to take away the frogs, the text says:   “The honor is yours to tell me: when shall I entreat for you and your servants and your people, that the frogs be destroyed from you and your houses, that they may be left only in the Nile?” ¹⁰ Then he said, “Tomorrow.” So he said, “May it be according to your word, that you may know that there is no one like the Lord our God.    It seems completely foolish that Pharaoh would want to wait, to defer his deliverance until later. Why would he not say do it now? How often do we see people today doing the same thing? Those, in the midst of troubles of all kinds, recognize that it is only God who can deliver them, yet they wait, they say I’m not ready yet, perhaps tomorrow. Even as believers, we too will often delay in the things God is calling us to allow Him to change in our lives. We know we should pray more, but we delay. We know we should read His word more, but we say perhaps tomorrow. Is it that we, like Pharaoh, want to hold onto some level of control in our lives? Are we not ready to fully yield to God, giving Him the right to do what He wants, whenever He wants to? Pharaoh didn’t really believe that he was subject to God. He thought he could control God. When we keep control of our lives, not yielding to God’s direction and His timing, we too, like Pharaoh, are guilty of trying to manipulate God, trying to use Him for our own purposes.

Or do we simply like the way things are? Are we comfortable maintaining the status quo, even if it means tolerating the plagues that come with evil and darkness? John 3:19 says:   This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.     When we choose to remain in the mess of the world rather than the deliverance of God we open ourselves to the judgment of God. In the story of the prodigal, when the wayward son recognized his condition, that he was living like the pigs, he determined to go and become a servant of his father. We too must be willing to be servants of God. When we yield completely to Him and recognize that He is Lord, we become God’s children, fellow heirs with Christ. In Matthew 14:30-32, when Peter walked on the water to Jesus we see what happens when Peter recognizes Jesus as Lord.     But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” ³¹ Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him      Peter recognized the urgency of his situation and cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus responded. If we will also cry out to Him, calling and believing Him to be Lord, He will respond immediately. Sometimes we will be immediately delivered. Other times we will have the assurance, like the psalmist who says:   Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. ⁵ You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies (Psalm 23:4-5)    Sometimes our situation or circumstances may not change, but if Jesus is Lord of our lives even death is a mere shadow. In Christ we have eternal life.  

The final thing in today’s text is this:   Then Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried to the Lord concerning the frogs which He had inflicted upon Pharaoh. ¹³ The Lord did according to the word of Moses, and the frogs died out of the houses, the courts, and the fields. ¹⁴ So they piled them in heaps, and the land became foul. ¹⁵ But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and did not listen to them, as the Lord had said.     How often do we see people make deals with God? How often do we ourselves do it? We pray and say to God if You will just do this for me I’ll do this for You. If You will deliver me out of this mess I am in I’ll do better, I’ll live for You. Sometimes it may be that we actually mean it. We have good intentions, but we fall back into our routine once God has moved in our lives. Then the next crisis comes along and we again, after all else fails, find ourselves trying to make a deal with God. Are our hearts so hard, like Pharaoh, that we think we can continue to ask God to deliver us from our troubles and not listen to Him? God loves us and wants to give us His best.  In Matthew 7:7-11 Jesus says:  “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. ⁹ Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone? ¹⁰ Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? ¹¹ If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!       We must also though keep in mind what it says in Romans 8:28-29:    And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. ²⁹ For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son.  

If we continually return to our old ways, whether out of failure to make following Jesus our priority or out of the hardness of our heart, God will cause all things, even the hard and difficult circumstances we find ourselves in, to work for good in our lives. God doesn’t cause the bad things in our lives. Many we cause ourselves, others are caused at the hands of other people and some are the result of living in a fallen world. Whatever the source, God will use it, all the good and all the bad things that happen, to conform us to the image of Christ.

Just as God’s purpose for the plagues against Pharaoh and Egypt were meant to bring God people deliverance from bondage and oppression, so too will God use everything in our lives to free us from our bondage, to bring us to the point where we truly cry out “Lord save me”

Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ; precious Holy Spirit, I acknowledge that You alone are the true God. There is none like You. You alone can bring order to chaos. You alone can fill every void. Forgive me for all the times I delay and say tomorrow, trying to hold on to control in my life, doing it my way in my time. Forgive me for putting You to the test, for thinking that I can make a deal with You. Thank You for the deal You have already given me, redemption through the cross, the abundant resurrection life in Christ and Your promise to be with me always, in every circumstance.      Amen.