Exodus 6
Exodus 6
Chapter 5 ends with Moses’ emotional cry to the Lord. The Israelites are in brutal bondage to the Egyptian people, and Moses doesn’t see any hope for their rescue. We know from the story this far that Pharaoh is a power-hungry, violent, and oppressive leader. Yet in Moses’ distress he actually tries to blame Yahweh, the God of Israel, for this oppression, saying in chapter 5, verses 22 & 23:
“...O Lord, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people,and you have not delivered your people at all.”
All of us have been in awful situations caused by circumstances out of our control. Sometimes, it’s easier to blame God for the evil in the world. It’s therapeutic to be mad at somebody. We ask God, “why did you do this to me?” But the beautiful thing about our God, the same God who delivered Israel, is that he is not the author of evil, but rather, redeems evil situations for good. (Genesis 50)
So how does Yahweh respond to Moses’ cry? When things are bleak and he blames God, what does God say?
First, he reminds Moses of his relationship with the Isrealites (6:2-4) He reminds Moses that he has made a covenant with his people, and God does not break covenants.
Then, he tells Moses that he hears their pain. God does not turn a blind eye to the struggle of the Israelites, but instead draws close to them, remembering their covenant relationship, and giving them compassion. (6:5)
Lastly, he charges Moses to tell the people that Yahweh will keep his promise to rescue his people from the bondage of the Egyptians. (6:6-8)
Yahweh does not desire humans to be in bondage, to be hurt and broken, to be oppressed or violated. When Moses looks to blame God for the evil in the world, God responds with empathy, a loving relationship, and a promise to free the Israelites from it.
The vast majority of us have not experienced this caliber of oppression, but all of us face evil in various forms. The same God who made these promises to Moses is the same God who walks with us. He empathizes with your struggle, he draws close to you in love, and he fights for your deliverance. And even if you are not delivered from your struggle in this life, a day is surely coming when he will redeem all things.
The lyrics of the song, Same God, speak to this. They say:
You heard Your children then
You hear Your children now
You are the same God
You are the same God
You freed the captives then
You're freeing hearts right now
You are the same God
You are the same God
Believing these truths about God can be difficult. There are so many barriers and thought patterns that tell us God ignores us in our pain.
Even in this text, the people of Israel didn’t listen to Moses’ proclamations about Yahweh’s character “because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery” (verse 9). Moses’ own insecurities caused him to question if God would use him in Israel’s deliverance. He asks God twice, “I am of uncircumcised lips. How will Pharoah listen to me?
In a similar fashion, forces of evil cloud our view of God. The depravity of circumstances keeps us from seeing his goodness. Our own doubts and insecurities lead us to believe that the God of the universe couldn’t really be with us.
But God is still here. Right now, he is empathizing with you, keeping his close relationship with you, and asking you to trust that he will redeem all things.
Take a moment to think about a situation, relationship, or matter of evil/injustice around you that seems hopeless. Like Moses, approach God with this thing. Ask him for a word, thought, or truth about this struggle.
Is there any insecurity, lie, or situation that is keeping you from trusting that God will redeem this? What is it?
What, if anything, could the Holy Spirit be asking you to do with what you’ve heard from God today?
