What does "I could have stretched out My hand" reveal about God's patience? Setting the Scene As the seventh plague is about to fall, God speaks to Pharaoh through Moses. Behind every word stands absolute power; yet those same words unveil astonishing restraint. Key Verse “For by now I could have stretched out My hand and struck you and your people with a plague, and you would have been cut off from the earth.” (Exodus 9:15) What God’s Statement Shows About His Patience • Immediate judgment was fully justified—Pharaoh had repeatedly hardened his heart (Exodus 8:15, 32; 9:12). • God’s “could have” underscores withheld action; the plague that might have ended Egypt instantly was deliberately delayed. • Suspended wrath demonstrates mercy extended even to a defiantly rebellious ruler. • Patience here is not weakness but purposeful control—He governs both timing and intensity of judgment (Psalm 103:8). • The pause magnifies His longsuffering nature, later codified in His name: “slow to anger” (Exodus 34:6). Why God Held Back • To display His power and proclaim His name “in all the earth” (Exodus 9:16). • To give Egypt and Israel unmistakable evidence that the LORD alone is God (Exodus 7:5; 12:12). • To allow time for possible repentance by Egyptians who would later fear His word and seek shelter (Exodus 9:20). • To set a pattern: divine patience leading to salvation opportunity, echoed in 2 Peter 3:9. Echoes of the Same Patience Elsewhere • Nahum 1:3 – “The LORD is slow to anger and great in power.” • Nehemiah 9:17 – Despite Israel’s stubbornness, “You did not forsake them.” • Isaiah 30:18 – “The LORD longs to be gracious to you.” • Romans 2:4 – Kindness and patience are meant to lead to repentance. The Comfort for Believers Today • His hand is mighty enough to judge instantly, yet He chooses to wait, opening a window for salvation and growth. • When we sin, His patience provides space for confession and restoration (1 John 1:9). • Seeing God’s restraint toward Pharaoh encourages us to extend patience to others (Ephesians 4:2). • Ultimately, patience is not endless—judgment did fall on Egypt and will come upon an unrepentant world (Acts 17:31). Until then, every sunrise is a fresh testimony that He “could have stretched out” His hand, but graciously has not. |
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