How does Exodus 4:6 demonstrate God's power over physical ailments and healing? Setting the Scene Moses is standing barefoot before the burning bush, overwhelmed by God’s call to lead Israel out of Egypt. To confirm His commission, the LORD gives Moses three signs. The second is recorded in Exodus 4:6. “Furthermore the LORD said to him, ‘Put your hand inside your cloak.’ So Moses put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, his hand was leprous, like snow.” The Sign of the Leprous Hand • Moses’ healthy hand instantly degenerates into advanced leprosy—an incurable, socially isolating disease in the ancient world. • God accomplishes this without medicine, ritual, or time; the transformation is immediate and total. • By placing the hand back into his cloak (v. 7), the same divine power restores it just as instantly. The reversal is as complete as the affliction. God’s Sovereign Power Over Ailments • Creation authority: The hand that formed Adam from dust (Genesis 2:7) can just as easily alter flesh now. • Total control: Disease appears and disappears at God’s word, showing that sickness is never beyond His reach. • Purposeful signs: The miracle authenticates Moses’ message to Israel (Exodus 4:5), revealing that the LORD—not Egyptian deities—governs human health. Echoes Throughout Scripture • Numbers 12:10–15 – Miriam’s sudden leprosy and healing echo the same divine prerogative. • 2 Kings 5:14 – Naaman is cleansed “like the flesh of a little child,” paralleling Moses’ restored hand. • Matthew 8:3 – “Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. ‘I am willing,’ He said, ‘be cleansed.’ And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.” The authority displayed at Sinai shines again in Christ. • Hebrews 13:8 – “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” The power that healed Moses’ hand is unchanged. Foreshadowing the Greater Healer • The sign anticipates the Messianic promise that God will ultimately “forgive all your iniquities, heal all your diseases” (Psalm 103:3). • By revealing mastery over bodily decay, God points forward to resurrection life where “there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain” (Revelation 21:4). Encouragement for Today • Physical maladies are under God’s jurisdiction; nothing is too stubborn or advanced for His touch. • He may choose immediate healing, gradual recovery, or grace to endure (2 Corinthians 12:9), but His sovereignty and goodness never waver. • The same Lord who turned Moses’ healthy skin leprous—and back again—invites trust in every health challenge we face. |
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