The hail brings death on man and beast: 7th sign. Exodus 9:13-35 The Lord gave Moses three signs to demonstrate to Pharaoh and the people of Egypt that He exists and to reveal His power and authority. He not only exists as an infinite God, but everything about Him is limitless. As the Creator of all things, He has power over everything in nature. He knows what is happening among nations and individuals on earth. Human beings can see proof of Him in giving life and taking life away. He uses whatever He chooses to accomplish the results He desires. He is patient even with sinful people, but that patience ends when He is rejected repeatedly. Justice will prevail because He is a holy God.
The first sign in each set—blood, flies, and hail—begins with Moses meeting Pharaoh face to face early in the morning with a message from the “Lord God of the Hebrews.” The second sign in each set—frogs, the death of livestock, and locusts—is the simple response to “Go to Pharaoh.” The third sign in each set happened without any confrontation beforehand—lice, boils, and darkness occurred without any verbal warning.
God reasons with people in grace so they have the opportunity to repent and believe in Him. If people do not accept the message given to them by His servants, consequences will follow in God’s timing. Repeated warnings remind us of God's mercy and patience as He patiently waits for sinners to repent and trust in Him through faith. There will come a cutoff time when those who stubbornly refuse God's mercy, grace, and patience, and reject Him, will no longer have the salvation He offers to them.
The last group of three plagues no longer aimed to answer the question, "Who is the Lord that I should obey Him?" Now, the plagues shift to punishment, and for the first time, humans die under God's judgment as hail, thunder, and lightning streak across the ground. Pharaoh and his people have learned of God's power and the futility of Egypt's false gods. He has received enough lessons to understand God's greatness but still fights against Him in a weak attempt to impose his own will. His stubbornness should have shown him that he has no power over God and His people, just as a dog howling at the moon to try to turn off its light.
The seventh plague is described in more detail than any other sign of God’s power. Pharoah was warned that God said, “All My plagues” would now be unleashed without restraint. God told him through Moses that if the Lord had previously chosen to strike down Pharaoh, he and all the Egyptians would already be dead. By the mercy of the Lord, who repeatedly shows grace to guilty, hell-deserving sinners, they are allowed to live day after day even though they reject Him at this time.
A Gospel hymn states, “O sinner, God’s patience may grow weary someday, and leave thy sad soul in despair. By willful resistance, you’ve crossed the deadline at last.” When sharing the Gospel message with those who are not saved, it is right to tell them about the mercy and grace of God that offers salvation to all who put their faith in Christ. In love, God desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. He is longsuffering, not willing that any should perish. However, rejected love, ignored mercy, and spurned grace will bring righteous judgment in God’s timing.
The apostle Paul quoted verse sixteen in Romans 9:17 as an example of God's sovereignty and explained why He allowed Pharaoh to live as long as he did despite his rejection of God. God's power is shown in how He let a stubborn, disobedient man who thought he was a god survive long enough to keep defying Him repeatedly. Ultimately, the time was up. Payday had arrived.
Instead of being recognized as a great leader, he is known worldwide as a failure and a warning to those who refuse to submit to the Sovereign God. When God is obeyed and we work in harmony with the natural laws of life, the earth produces its bounty, and we are blessed by God, who sends "the rain on the just and the unjust." If we constantly resist God's grace and will, we will learn that God can control the forces of nature He created to bring both severe judgment and great blessings.
Around the world, the plagues in Egypt and God's power under His gracious control testify that God exists. Today, uncontrollable natural events are called “An act of God” because, no matter what people try, they can’t stop rain, floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, and pestilence that bring danger, disease, and death. Wise people who go through these things know that God has many ways to speak to people without words.
Like the Egyptians who learned to fear the word of the Lord and fled to safety, those who confront their sin and guilt today can run to Christ for salvation and refuge from the coming wrath. Just as in the past, those who ignore divine warnings face judgment. The storm of hail and lightning, which brought down trees, destroyed crops, and killed animals and people who had no shelter, offered a preview of the time when the Lord will be revealed in flaming fire, taking vengeance on all who do not know God and refuse to obey the Gospel.
Teachers should not misuse their authority by speaking for others who do not understand what they mean or how their words affect their hearts. A sincere desire for salvation is recognizable by those who have been with the Lord and follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The Lord is close to all who call on Him with an honest heart and recognize their need.
As Moses and Aaron stepped into the hailstorm, unaffected by the hail that killed others, people must have looked through their windows with awe. The faith of those the Lord trusts with His message will be clear to anyone seeking to remove the “terrors of law and of God” from their lost souls. When Moses raised his hands before the Lord just outside the city in prayer, the Lord halted everything. His servant had interceded for the guilty, and God responded with grace. Peace was restored.
We cannot make a guilty person receive salvation, but we can intercede for them. We don’t know what is in the minds of those who do not believe in God and do not obey the Gospel, but we do know the consequences of unbelief and disobedience. Our role is that of ambassadors for Christ, reaching out to them. We urge them to be reconciled to God. God is willing and ready to receive those who call on the name of the Lord with a broken and contrite heart.