Exodus 11

The conversation between Moses and Pharaoh from the previous chapter concludes in this chapter. In Ex.10:28, Pharaoh told Moses, “Get away from me!” And told Moses that he could no longer see his face and live; however, before departing, Moses tells Pharaoh that it is Pharaoh’s son who will die and every first born son in Egypt will die. The Lord spoke to Moses either before coming to Pharaoh or while in Pharaoh’s presence. The Lord told Moses about the tenth and final plague; after which, Pharaoh will not only let the sons of Israel go but will drive them out. The Lord told Mose to tell the sons of Israel to ask for articles of silver and gold from their Egyptian neighbors. The text says, “The Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians.” As if the hearts of the Egyptians towards the sons of Israel and the hearts of Pharaoh’s servants towards Moses had been changed but Pharaoh’s heart was hardened to stone. All of the previous nine plagues that Moses warned Pharaoh about came to be; demonstrating, that the word of the Lord that Moses spoke is truth. Now, as Pharaoh is excluding Moses from face to face conversation, Moses tells Pharaoh about one last plague. The Lord is going out into the midst of Egypt, at midnight, and all the firstborn of Egypt shall die. The Lord will not make a distinction between the lowest servant and the king of Egypt’s first born, all well die; however, the Lord does make a distinction between the first born of the Egyptian and the first born of the Hebrew, none of the Hebrew first born will die. The fact that not even a dog will bark at the sons of Israel means peace (shalom) for the sons of Israel. In Ex.4:21-23, the Lord told Moses that after all of these plagues, Pharaoh’s heart would be hardened and in that text the Lord called Israel My Son, My firstborn. Then he told Moses that he, the Lord, will kill the first born son of Pharaoh. It is not that the Lord saw something good in the sons of Israel. (cf.Deut.7:6-8) He is a covenant making and a covenant keeping God. For reasons only known to God, he chose them; keeping the covenant that he made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.