In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Welcome back to Purify the Heart. This is Pastor Zachary Courie. In Exodus 10, the Lord plagued Egypt with locusts and darkness they could feel. In Exodus 11, we come to the final plague threatened by God through Moses against Pharaoh and his people.
Exodus 11
11 The Lord said to Moses, “Yet one plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will drive you away completely. 2 Speak now in the hearing of the people, that they ask, every man of his neighbor and every woman of her neighbor, for silver and gold jewelry.” 3 And the Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover, the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants and in the sight of the people.
4 So Moses said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘About midnight I will go out in the midst of Egypt, 5 and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle. 6 There shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there has never been, nor ever will be again. 7 But not a dog shall growl against any of the people of Israel, either man or beast, that you may know that the Lord makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel.’ 8 And all these your servants shall come down to me and bow down to me, saying, ‘Get out, you and all the people who follow you.’ And after that I will go out.” And he went out from Pharaoh in hot anger. 9 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you, that my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.”
10 Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh, and the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go out of his land. (Exodus 11:1–10, ESV)
This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
The Lord reveals to Moses that there will be one final plague, after which Pharaoh will finally let the Israelites go. He then commands Moses to have all the Israelites ask their Egyptian neighbors for silver and gold jewelry. Not only will the Egyptians give these willingly, but they will hold Moses in high regard.
Moses announces the final plague: the death of the firstborn. This will be the most devastating blow to Egypt, for now the Lord will make clear the value of His beloved people. Back in Exodus 4:21–23, the Lord had told Moses to say to Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, ‘Let my son go that he may serve me.’ If you refuse to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.” Pharaoh has refused to listen, and now the Lord will act.
To some, the final plague—and indeed all the plagues—may seem like cruel and unusual punishment. But they serve to reveal the serious and real judgment of the personal Creator, who alone sustains and redeems His creation. Besides, all of this was avoidable. Pharaoh’s stubborn rebellion has led to devastating consequences.
It is important to recognize that while the firstborn of Egypt were condemned to death, this does not necessarily mean they were condemned to hell. This may have been a temporal judgment rather than an eternal one. In verse 8, Moses tells Pharaoh that all his servants “shall come down to me and bow down to me, saying, ‘Get out, you and all the people who follow you.’” This may suggest that at least some among the Egyptians feared the Lord—including perhaps some of the firstborn who perished.
The death of Egypt’s firstborn points us to Jesus. John’s Gospel declares that Jesus is the only-begotten Son of God, and St. Paul calls Him the “firstborn of all creation” (Colossians 1:15). Scripture makes clear that the Son of God became man so that He might die and rise again for the salvation of mankind. This is why He had to be born a Jew—He came as the true Israel, the nation reduced to one, to bear their sins and fulfill their calling.
Why is the firstborn significant? The firstborn receives the inheritance of his parents and has the authority to share that inheritance with his siblings. This points us to Christ, the firstborn and only-begotten Son of God, who shares His rightful inheritance of eternal glory with us. As St. Paul wrote to the Ephesians:
“In [Christ] you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.” (Ephesians 1:13–14)
Let us pray. O Lord God, You led Your ancient people through the wilderness and brought them to the promised land. Guide the people of Your Church that following our Savior we may walk through the wilderness of this world toward the glory of the world to come; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Let us pray. Almighty and everlasting God, You despise nothing You have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent. Create in us new and contrite hearts that lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness we may receive from You full pardon and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Thanks for joining me to Purify the Heart! Tomorrow, we’ll continue with Exodus 12, the Passover. Until then, grace be with you. Amen.
