Did you see the explanation Beth shared with us about the intention behind the plagues? I was fascinated! It’s such a reminder of how intentional God is.
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What questions did these chapters bring up? Here are some of mine:
Why did God harden Pharaoh’s heart? (This gets addressed in Romans 9, but is still hard to ignore when you’re reading the text.)
Why did God involve Moses? I noticed several times, God would intervene with the weather, like when he shifted the wind to bring the locusts down. It reminded me that God didn’t need Moses to talk to Pharaoh, and it wasn’t Moses’ own power that activated the plagues, just a mere signal. (As the story progresses, we’ll see their relationship grow, and Moses refers to God as a friend. Sometimes it’s good to ask questions, even if you know they get answered later on in the text. The Bible is so multi-faceted, there’s always more to learn.)
How were the magicians able to pull off most of these plagues? Do not underestimate the powers people can call upon. The more we familiarize ourselves with God, the easier it is to decipher when someone’s imitating him.
What thoughts or observations did you have?
-Carly