Preparations Complete

Preparations Complete Exodus 4:18-31 Review • In 3:1-10, the LORD commissions Moses to lead his people out of Egypt. • Moses objects five different ways and the LORD counters or countermands each point that Moses makes. • Now the LORD completes final preparations for the mission, which we see in 9 fast-moving developments. Final Preparations 1. Moses Seeks Jethro’s Blessing (4:18): see Genesis 31:20; Moses’s words may be a euphemism or Moses may be minimizing the prominent role he plans to play. 2. The LORD Reassures Moses (4:19): see Matthew 2:20; in the ancient world, criminal offenses were often cleared with the death of their king 3. Moses Packs and Leaves (4:20): God is already transforming Moses physically – the 80-year-old walks while the younger men ride Final Preparations 4. The LORD Reaffirms His Commitment (4:21-23): Two firsts – (a) God references the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart; (b) God calls Israel His “Firstborn” (see Psalm 89:27) 5. The LORD Confronts Moses (4:24-26): extremely challenging and abrupt text – the LORD “sought to cause his death”; unknown pronouns; mysterious conclusion 6. The LORD Calls Aaron (4:27a): further providence that Moses and Aaron could even find one another (300 miles apart; to a location the size of Indiana) Final Preparations 7. Moses and Aaron Reunite (4:27b-28): Aaron becomes Moses’s first convert 8. Moses and Aaron Gather the Elders (4:29-30): no small task; “gathered” is a harvesting word 9. The Elders Believe and Worship (4:31): “and bowing they bowed”; reminder of the major theme of worship in the book of Exodus Looking to the LORD 1. God always keeps His word: 3 specific confirmations 2. God is patient, dogged, and uncompromising: Both Pharaoh and Moses will refuse God’s prompting and God deals severely with both. Pharaoh will harden his “heart” (we would call it our “mind”) through 6 plagues before God judicially hardens; Moses has a lifetime of refusal (see Hebrews 3:8,15; 4:7) 3. God expects us to make individual application: God didn’t want Moses to listen on behalf of Pharaoh, but on behalf of Moses.