Exodus 6:1 Then the LORD said to Moses, Now shall you see what I will do to Pharaoh: for with a strong hand shall he let them go… I. THIS REPLY TO THE PRAYER OF MOSES INTIMATED THAT GOD WOULD BRING THE TRUE RESULT OF HIS MISSION MORE THOROUGHLY WITHIN THE COGNIZANCE OF HIS SENSES. "And the Lord said unto Moses, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh." 1. The mission had hitherto been a great tax upon the faith of Moses. The first repulse made him cry out for the visible and the tangible. 2. Now the mission is lowered to the sensuous vision of Moses. II. THIS REPLY TO THE PRAYER OF MOSES VINDICATED HIS CONDUCT AGAINST THE RECENT INSINUATIONS AND REPROACH OF THE ISRAELITES. Men often take a wrong view of our conduct. God always takes the right view. He knows when His servants are doing what He tells them. He sends them messages of approval for so doing. This vindication — 1. Would reassure Moses in his work. 2. Would clear his conscience from all condemnation. 3. Would enable him to interpret his apparent failure. III. THIS REPLY TO THE PRAYER OF MOSES INDICATED HOW THOROUGHLY THE WORK ANNOUNCED BY GOD SHOULD BE ACCOMPLISHED. "For with a strong hand shall he let them go, and with a strong hand shall he drive them out of his land." 1. This shows how wicked men are, under the providence of God, brought to do that which they had once resolutely refused. The sinner knoweth not the future, or he would act with greater wisdom in the present. 2. God makes these revelations in response to prayer, that He may reanimate the dispirited worker. IV. IN REPLY TO THE PRAYER OF MOSES, GOD VOUCHSAFES A NEW AND SUBLIME REVELATION OF HIS CHARACTER. 1. A sublime revelation of His name. 2. A comforting reference to His covenant. 3. A pathetic reference to the sorrow of Israel.Lessons: 1. That God speaks to disappointed souls in prayer. 2. That the Divine communings with a disappointed soul have an uplifting tendency. 3. That God deals compassionately with the weakness of Christian workers. (J. S. Exell, M. A.) Parallel Verses KJV: Then the LORD said unto Moses, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh: for with a strong hand shall he let them go, and with a strong hand shall he drive them out of his land. |
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