Passage: Exodus 11

The Big Idea

Before the final plague, Exodus 11 resets our perspective. God gives Israel riches they didn’t earn, a picture of the riches of grace we receive in Christ, even though Israel was still clinging to Egypt’s idols. And God announces the coming judgment on Egypt’s firstborn. Moses leaves Pharaoh in hot anger, heartbroken over people he grew up with. So what’s the difference between those God blesses and those He judges? Not their goodness. Both were sinners. The difference is faith.

Fixing Our Perspective

Sometimes we’re too close to the trees to see the forest. Exodus 11 resets our hearts before the Passover. It reminds us of two things: the undeserved riches of grace God gave Israel, and why He was judging Egypt. Without that perspective, we could get lost in all the “whys.”

Three pastors were debating the best position for prayer while a telephone repairman worked nearby. “Kneeling is best,” said one. “No, standing with hands raised to heaven,” said another. “You’re both wrong. Lying face down on the floor is the most effective.” Finally the repairman couldn’t hold back: “Fellas, the best praying I ever did was hanging upside down from a telephone pole.”

Position isn’t the key in prayer. Sincere desperation is.

Riches They Didn’t Earn (Exodus 11:1-3)

The Lord told Moses, “I’ll bring one more plague on Pharaoh and Egypt. After that he’ll let you go; in fact, he’ll drive you out completely. Tell the people that every man and woman should ask their neighbors for articles of silver and gold.” The Lord gave the people favor in the eyes of the Egyptians. And Moses himself was highly respected in Egypt by Pharaoh’s officials and the people.

This was a promise God made long before. At the burning bush He said Israel wouldn’t leave empty-handed (Exodus 3:21). And centuries earlier He told Abraham that He would judge the nation that enslaved his descendants, and they would come out with great possessions (Genesis 15:14).

Why is this in the Bible? What was literal and tangible for Israel is a picture for us: the immeasurable riches of God’s grace and kindness to us in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:7). Peace. Joy. Love. Guidance. Belonging. Everything the world is chasing is given in Jesus to anyone who believes. That’s grace.

What Was So Great About Israel?

How did Israel get these blessings? Did they earn them? What made them so special?

Nothing.

Look at Israel’s spiritual condition at the time:

God later had to command them to stop offering sacrifices to the goat-demons they had prostituted themselves to (Leviticus 17:7).
Joshua told them to throw away the gods their ancestors had worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt (Joshua 24:14).
Ezekiel records that when God promised to bring them out, He told them to throw away the detestable idols of Egypt. But they rebelled and wouldn’t listen. They didn’t get rid of Egypt’s idols. God was ready to pour out His wrath on them right there in Egypt. But He acted for the sake of His name, so it wouldn’t be dishonored among the nations, and He brought them out (Ezekiel 20:6-9).

So:

Israel worshiped idols in Egypt.
God confronted them about it.
They ignored Him and even defied Him.
God delivered them anyway, for His own name’s sake. Not because they were worthy or better.

They knew they were enslaved. They cried out to God, and He came to save them. They saw His power. And they still couldn’t let go of their idols or love God only. Their hearts longed for the idols.

That would be a constant problem for Israel.
It’s still a problem for us.
There’s only one solution: God must make a new heart in us, a heart that loves Him because it comes from Him: His own Holy Spirit (Ezekiel 36:26-27).

The people were ungodly, even as God was redeeming them.

God justifies the ungodly

“To the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness” (Romans 4:5).

No work can justify a person. God doesn’t look at what we do to decide whether we’re justified.
Only faith saves: real trust in the person and work of Jesus for you. Trust in His works, not ours.
And if faith is real, good works will grow out of it. But even those works are worked into our lives by God’s grace (Ephesians 2:10). He produces them, just as He arranged blessings for Israel they could never have gained on their own.

“The law came in so that the offense would increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more” (Romans 5:20).

Our sin can’t stop God’s gift of grace.
And we have more sin than we can imagine. We’re completely unworthy.
God gave the law so we’d begin to understand just how bad we are.
But His grace is greater than our sin. He washes our sin away by the blood of Jesus, and He produces righteous living in sinful hearts by His Holy Spirit. He changes our desires. He changes us by grace.

The silver and gold Israel carried out of Egypt foreshadow this free gift.

The Final Plague Announced (Exodus 11:4-8)

Moses said, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Around midnight I will go throughout Egypt. Every firstborn son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh on his throne to the firstborn of the slave girl at her hand mill, and all the firstborn of the livestock. There will be a loud wailing throughout Egypt, worse than there has ever been or ever will be again. But among the Israelites, not even a dog will bark at a person or animal.'” Perfect peace among God’s people. “‘Then you’ll know that the LORD makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel.’ All these officials of yours will come bowing before me, saying, ‘Go, you and all the people who follow you!’ After that I will leave.” And Moses left Pharaoh, burning with anger.

Moses’ broken heart

Why was Moses so angry? Because Pharaoh’s stubbornness was about to cost countless lives.
Moses grew up among these people. Many had probably been his friends. He was devastated.
You can sense Moses’ hope that Pharaoh would finally listen. But God told him again, “Pharaoh won’t listen to you, so that My wonders will be multiplied in Egypt.” Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he wouldn’t let Israel go (Exodus 11:9-10).

Jesus told us plainly that people will face judgment, including people we know and love. He spoke of Gehenna, of outer darkness and weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 13:42; 25:30). How does that make you feel?

Moses was stirred. He pleaded. He laid it all on the line. He spoke the truth in love.

Do we care? Do we think about the eternal destiny of the people around us?

Don’t wait until you feel like it

Here’s the thing: we don’t obey because we feel like it. We obey in humility and faith. God tells us to share the gospel in love.

If you wait until you feel it, you’ll wait forever.

Do you wait to love your spouse or kids until you feel like it?
Do you wait to forgive until you feel like it? You never will.
That’s walking by faith, not by sight. Step out in obedience to God’s Word, trusting His grace.

“But isn’t it insincere to share the gospel if I don’t feel like it?” No. Sharing the gospel is the most loving thing you can do for someone. Imagine telling your spouse, “Sorry, honey, I’ll only be faithful when I feel like it. I can’t betray my feelings. My feelings are my god.” Feelings make terrible gods.

Moses faithfully spoke the truth, and God was glorified. In fact, when Israel left Egypt, a “mixed multitude” went with them (Exodus 12:38). Some Egyptians apparently believed and joined God’s people. God was moving in hearts behind the scenes.

Even when ministry seems thankless, God is working. You never know who will believe. It isn’t your job to convince anyone. It’s your job to share the truth faithfully, in love.

Pulling It Together

Verses 1-3 show God’s powerful grace supplying unearned blessings to His chosen people, according to His promises.
Then Moses presents the truth to Pharaoh one more time, hoping he’ll repent. He won’t. And God assures Moses that He’ll still be glorified.

God’s promises work for the good of His people through grace, and for the judgment of the wicked through justice. God is glorified in giving grace to you, and God is glorified in judging evil. Every knee will bow to Jesus: the Savior of all who call on His name, and the Judge of the world that rebels against Him (Philippians 2:10-11).

So What’s the Difference?

What’s the difference between the people God blesses and the people God judges?

Faith.

One group believed God’s word. They were just as sinful. But God made them promises, and they believed in their hearts that He was telling the truth.
The other group heard God’s word, hardened their hearts and refused to trust it.

Both were sinners. Both heard God’s word. One responded with faith, the other with a hard heart.

Back at the beginning, when Moses and Aaron first brought God’s message, the people believed, and when they heard that the Lord had seen their misery, they bowed down and worshiped (Exodus 4:31).

Grace Takeaway

Israel walked out of Egypt loaded with riches they hadn’t earned, while still clinging to idols they hadn’t let go of. That’s grace: God justifies the ungodly. The difference between Israel and Egypt wasn’t goodness. It was faith in God’s word. The same is true for us. And if we’ve received such grace, let’s carry the message to others the way Moses did, with a broken heart, whether we feel like it or not.

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