Daily Bible Devotionals

“Then the Lord spoke to Moses, ‘Go and tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the Israelites go from his land.’ But Moses said in the Lord’s presence: ‘If the Israelites will not listen to me, then how will Pharaoh listen to me, since I am such a poor speaker?’”  Exodus 6: 10-12 (HCSB)

Often, listening to sermons, I have heard it taught that Moses had a speech impediment. The reason many give for this assumption is from Moses’ own admission, “I am such a poor speaker.” In other Bible translations, the verse is interpreted as “I am a man of faltering lips.” It is easy to see why theologians conclude that Moses couldn’t speak well. Perhaps Moses was not a great orator at that point.

In actuality, the verse literally interprets, “I have uncircumcised lips.” Moses’ argument wasn’t that he had a speech impediment. It was that he had a “righteousness” impediment. He didn’t believe he was righteous enough to minister effectively. He didn’t think he was good enough. As I have said before, Moses had a confidence problem.

We also know that there was nothing wrong with Moses’ speech, based on Stephen’s testimony before his martyrdom.

“So Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in his speech and actions.” Acts 7: 22 (HCSB)

Yet, ultimately, the greatest testimony of Moses’ assured success came from God.

“Therefore, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh so that you may lead my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.” Exodus 3:10 (HCSB)

Why must we be confident in ourselves before placing confidence in God? Faith works the other way around. We are first called to do the thing we are uncertain of. Then, once God has accomplished His will through our obedience, we grow in faith.

God’s calling is our equipping. He gives us all we need to accomplish what He calls us to achieve. We may not have all the supplies we need at the outset, but He will provide them as needed along the way.

As we continue through the book of Exodus, watch as Moses becomes bolder. His confidence builds as he experiences God’s faithfulness. Don’t be afraid of what God is calling you to do. Be afraid of not following.

“Don’t continue to supply the people with straw for making bricks, as before. They must go and gather straw for themselves. But require the same quota of bricks from them as they were making before and do not reduce it. For they are slackers – that is why they are crying out, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’”  Exodus 5:7-8 (HCSB)

The world is out for itself. Make no doubt about it. To the world (and worldly leaders), people are nothing more than resources. They are merely a means to a selfish end.

Pharaoh had one thing on his mind, and that was productivity. Because he was solely focused on the product of their labor, Pharaoh failed to recognize a key factor in the Israelites’ productivity: their spiritual well-being.

In that sense, Pharaoh is not very different from many employers in today’s workforce. This “slave mentality” towards employees was especially true of the Big Bosses of generations past, in the era of the Great Depression. Theirs was the generation of workers fighting against the industrialist giants and forming labor laws to protect work environments.

For such employers, you and I are expendable assets. We are like gasoline in a car’s tank or an air filter in a home HVAC. When the tank runs dry, or the filter gets soiled, you just have to refill and replace it. Most important to the heartless machine operator is that the car runs and the air flows. Who cares about the well-being of “expendable parts”? But isn’t a machine comprised of the sum of its parts? Therefore, every piece is integral to the performance of the machine.

The truth is, YOU are not expendable. You are EXPENSIVE! You are of such great worth to the Lord! In the eyes of God, people are not disposable resources to robotically do His bidding. God loves us, not for what we can do for Him. To Him, we have a value beyond our productivity. He doesn’t need us, but He WANTS us. And His desire to use us is simply because of His great affection for us.  

How much does God love us? He gave His life for us.  (Micah 5:2, John 3:16)

We don’t cry out and worship God because we are “weak slackers,” as Pharaoh alleged. We cry out because God created us with the expressed intent that we worship Him! He designed us to worship, and He invites us to enter into adoption as Sons and Daughters through our belief in His “Son,” Messiah Jesus. Worship is not a weakness; it is the height of performance when we reach our most productive potential.

Bob Dylan once sang, “You gotta serve somebody.”  Given a choice between the “Pharaohs” of this world and the Lord God, should we even have to think twice?

“Moses said, ‘Please, Lord, send someone else.’ Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses, and He said, ‘Isn’t Aaron the Levite your brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, he is on his way now to meet you. When he sees you, his heart will rejoice. You will speak to him and tell him what to say. I will help both you and him to speak and will teach you both what to do. He will speak to the people for you. He will be your spokesman, and you will serve as God to him. And take this staff in your hand that you will perform signs with.’” Exodus 4:13-17 (HCSB)

Has the Lord ever asked you to do something, and your reply to him was, “Could you send someone else?”  It seems ridiculous, but we do it all the time. Perhaps you have felt that internal nudge, that whispering “heart voice” urging you to share the gospel with a stranger. “Oh no!” you reply. “That’s a preacher’s job…someone more eloquent and knowledgeable than me!” This is precisely what Moses was doing.

I have heard preachers go on & on about Moses having some kind of speech impediment. But that is simply NOT true. Check out the testimony about Moses, given by the early Church martyr, Stephen:

“So Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was POWERFUL in his speech and actions.” (emphasis mine) Acts 7:22 (HCSB)

Moses didn’t have a speech problem; he had a confidence problem!! As we continue reading in Exodus, notice how Aaron’s role as “spokesman” diminishes as Moses’ confidence grows. Eventually, Moses does all the talking.

Consequences. Whenever we disobey the Lord and fail to heed his Word by faith, there are consequences. One of the consequences of Moses’ lack of faith in this instance remains to this day. God designed a situation where He would speak to Moses, and then Moses spoke to the people. When Aaron was added to the equation, God was left out. Notice:

“He will speak to the people for you. He will be your spokesman, and you will serve as God to him.” Exodus 4:16 (HCSB)

To this day, in essence, “Moses” (the Torah of God) still seems to occupy a more centric place in Judaism than Adonai, the God of the Torah. And in many respects, the Talmud (rabbinic opinion) is even more centric than the Torah. Are you allowing something to come between you and God’s calling? Doing so may add an unnecessary link between your unbelieving friends and the Lord. What is it you lack which keeps you from being bolder? Like Moses, do you simply lack experience with God’s faithfulness? That is exactly why we are reading God’s Word. Over and over, we experience God’s faithfulness in Scripture…and in turn, our confidence in Him builds.

“Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” Romans 10:17 (NKJV)

“God replied to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM.’  This is what you are to say to the Israelites:  I AM has sent me to you.”  Exodus 3:14 (HCSB)

I AM WHO I AM. In Hebrew, Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh – the self-existent and eternal God; a declaration of the unity and spirituality of the Divine Nature, the exact opposite of all the forms of idolatry, human, animal, and celestial, that prevailed anywhere else.

I AM WHO I AM is not merely a philosophical phrase. To the Israelites in bondage, the meaning would most likely be received as, “Although He has not yet displayed His power towards you, He will do so. He is eternal, and He will redeem you.”  

Another way to translate God’s statement is, “I AM WHO I WILL BE.” No words can sum up ALL that He will be to His people. Furthermore, His everlasting faithfulness and unchanging mercy will continually manifest themselves in the guidance of those who follow Him.

The answer He gives Moses is the equivalent of, “I will save in the way that I will save.”  It assures the Israelites of the FACT of deliverance but does not disclose the MANNER of deliverance.

How does this apply to us today? Perhaps you are going through a difficult season of life and looking for a way out for deliverance. Find comfort in knowing that HE IS WHO HE IS (His character never changes), HE WILL BE WHO HE WILL BE (He has a plan, even though He has not revealed it to you), and HE WILL SAVE IN THE WAY THAT HE WILL SAVE (He has the power to save, and WILL at His appointed time).  

To followers of Jesus: He gives the power to become sons and daughters. (John 1:12)

For those who place their faith in Him, He promises “never to leave or forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5).

Our hope is in God’s promise to His children of every generation, backed up by His unchanging character, in that He cannot lie. While we cannot predict HOW we will be delivered, that should not deter us from the fact that we WILL be delivered. Therefore, simply TRUST and OBEY, leaving the future up to Him.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 (NKJV)

“Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, ‘Should I go and call a woman from the Hebrews to nurse the boy for you?’ ‘Go.’ Pharaoh’s daughter told her. The girl went and called the boy’s mother. The Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will pay your wages.’ So the woman took the baby and nursed him.”  Exodus 2:7-9 (HCSB)

At a time when Egyptian men were killing Hebrew babies, God used a force unstoppable by men to save Moses. He used women!

God drew from the innate nurturing tendencies that He naturally instills in females. Soldiers could kill a baby out of duty, but women would have to betray their natures, go against their very souls, to let a baby perish. To that end, I am utterly dumbfounded about how any woman could work at an abortion clinic. The whole process goes against the nature of a woman at her deepest core.

In the words of one rabbinic commentary, “Pharaoh’s plans for the annihilation of the Israelite children are defeated by women: the human feelings of the midwives, the tender sympathy of a woman of royal birth, and a sister’s watchful resourcefulness in the face of extremity. It was to the merit of pious women that Israel owed its redemption in Egypt.”  

I would add that God directed those women's hearts to respond in the way He created them to, naturally.

Do you struggle beneath the weight of this World? Do you find it more & more difficult to honor God in your thoughts and actions because of the “enemy’s” intimidation? Perhaps it will help to remember the simple Proverb that we teach our children:  

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your understanding; acknowledge Him in all your ways, and He will guide you on the right paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6 (HCSB)

Sometimes, when it seems the Lord has allowed us to drift into the enemy’s hands, it is there that He provides our shelter and eventual deliverance. It is comforting to know we don’t have to save ourselves. Salvation does not depend on our resourcefulness, strength, or piety. We need only to trust and obey the Lord with all we have and let Him guide our “basket” downstream into the arms of His deliverance.

“A new king who had not known Joseph came to power in Egypt. He said to his people, ‘Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and powerful than we are. Let us deal shrewdly with them; otherwise they will multiply further, and if war breaks out, they may join our enemies, fight against us, and leave the country.’”  Exodus 1:8-10 (HCSB)

I find it interesting that the Pharaoh stated no specific fault with the Israelites. In fact, there is no accusation of wrongdoing, only suspicion. Pharaoh’s suspicion seems to be evidence of the guilty conscience of a viciously ambitious man. He was hard-hearted.

There are two well-known Biblical times when Hebrew infants were murdered:  Pre Exodus-Egypt and Pre-advent Bethlehem. Both Herod and (this particular) Pharaoh shared similar climbs to power. They took their positions by force and dirty politics.

The monarch of this new Egyptian dynasty was probably Rameses II. Joseph served one of the Hyskos (Shepherd) kings, an Asian dynasty whose rule in Egypt began in Egypt centuries before him. The Hyskos rule came to an end not long after the death of Joseph. The Hyskos were driven back into Asia, and a descendant of a native Egyptian dynasty regained the throne.

This new Pharaoh undoubtedly was raised on nationalistic pride, fueled by generations of hatred and mistrust of foreigners.

I grew up in the Southern United States. In those days, there were intense race struggles between Americans of African and European descent. Most often, the hatred had nothing to do with the character or actions of any particular individual. It was rooted in base fear and ambitious competition for power and control of an uncertain future.

Similarly, Pharaoh’s prejudice against the Hebrews was completely unfounded and irrational, as was Herod’s in Jesus’ day. Pharaoh simply loved power more than people. Because his power was secured through violence, he believed that any shift in that power must surely come through violent means.

So, what great lesson can we learn from this injustice? Several, but let’s focus on this notion:  In the times immediately preceding God’s deliverance of Israel, The Lord began simultaneously preparing Egypt to expel the Hebrews and Israel’s desire to leave.

Take a moment and reflect on your present life situation. Has the Lord given you a vision and begun a “calling” for you toward which you are to start moving? Do you sense He wants you in a particular place or position? What factors is He allowing to develop in your life in preparation for your release from your present situation to ensure your reception into His place of deliverance or mission?

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Genesis 50. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“Then Jacob called his sons and said, ‘Gather around, and I will tell you what will happen to you in the days to come.’” Genesis 49:1 (HCSB)

Before giving attention to the details of the prophecies in Genesis 49, it would be good to look at the passage as a whole.

First of all, these are Jacob’s last words. The prophecy is literally the final word of Jacob, spoken with his dying breath. The dying words of any man should not be taken lightly, much less those spoken by a patriarch and recorded under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

Secondly, this is poetry. We might tend to think that a man’s last words, spoken with great effort, should be disorganized and difficult to follow. There are numerous indications that these final words of Jacob were thought out carefully in advance.

Thirdly, more than poetry, it is prophecy. While the form is poetry, the substance is prophecy. Jacob’s words reveal “things to come” for his descendants. The future foretold is the nation’s future as manifested in the twelve tribes, not necessarily predictions for the individual sons being blessed.

Fourthly, the words spoken by Jacob are a blessing. All the sons of Jacob were blessed in that they were to be a part of the nation of Israel. All would enter the land of Canaan and receive an inheritance there. Some would certainly receive a greater blessing than others. Even those rebuked by Jacob and whose futures were portrayed as dismal were blessed.

Fifthly, the prophecy is not independent of the past but an extension of it. Moses (who penned Genesis) told us that every one of the sons was given “the blessing appropriate to him.” As we think through these blessings of Jacob, we find that each of them is related to the past. Prophecy, then, is not necessarily detached from history but an extension of it into the future.

Whatever path you choose, if you continue in it, the outcome of your life (as well as those who follow after you) will be highly predictable. Choose the way that leads to life…the only true life offered…through faith in Jesus. (Deuteronomy 30:19)

“This is what the Lord says: Stand by the roadways and look. Ask about the ancient paths: Which way is good? Then take it and find rest for yourselves. But they protested, ‘We won’t!’” Jeremiah 6:16 (HCSB)

“There is a path which seems right to a man, but the end of its way leads to death.” Proverbs 14:12 (HCSB)

“If serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve - But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15 (NIV)

“So he blessed them that day with these words: The nation Israel will invoke blessings by you, saying, ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh,’ putting Ephraim before Manasseh. Then Israel said to Joseph, ‘Look, I am about to die, but God will be with you and will bring you back to the land of your fathers. Over and above what I am giving your brothers, I am giving you the one mountain slope that I took from the hand of the Amorites with my sword and bow.’” Genesis 48:20-22 (HCSB)

This blessing is significant for several reasons.  

First of all, it is an adoption, or more precisely, a declaration that Joseph’s two sons (born to him in Egypt by an Egyptian bride) are legitimate descendants of Israel. This is a foreshadowing that all spiritual offspring between Jesus and His Church are considered “grafted into” the covenant of Abraham. Jew or Gentile believers, it makes no difference with respect to salvation. (Romans 11:17-24)  We have all received a spirit of adoption, whereby we cry out, “Abba Father!”  (Romans 8:15)  That is to say, all of us who believe, by faith, that Jesus is Messiah.

Secondly, to this day, every pious Jewish father on Erev Shabbat (The day before Shabbat) places his hands on the head of his son and blesses him with the words: “God make you as Ephraim and Manasseh.”  Ephraim and Manasseh would not barter away their Jewish identity for social or political power in Egypt.  

These twins voluntarily gave up their place in Egyptian aristocracy and openly identified themselves with their “alien” kinsmen, who were despised for being shepherds. While “in the World,” they chose not to be “of it.”  Similarly, when we have genuinely received spiritual adoption, we should no longer desire worldly privilege over the eternal honor of being co-inheritors with the Messiah.  

Finally, at the end of this chapter, there is a reference to a plot of ground purchased by Jacob in Genesis 33. It seems this plot of land had (at one time) fallen into the hands of the Amorites and had to be retaken by force. This military exploit is not mentioned elsewhere in the Bible. The statement could also be a prophetic reminder of how Israel will have to retake and maintain Canaan by force and struggle, perhaps several times. The taking and holding of Canaan are ultimately determined by the power and will of God because of His promise alone. And it is not necessarily dependent upon Israel’s collective righteousness.

“You are not going to take possession of their land because of your righteousness or your integrity. Instead, the Lord your God will drive out these nations before you because of their wickedness, in order to keep the promise He swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”  Deuteronomy 9:5 (HCSB)