Exodus 10:12 - Meaning and Application

Here is, I. The invasion of the land by the locusts, God’s great army (Joel 2:11). God told Moses to stretch out his hand (Exodus 10:12), as if to summon them, for they came at a call. Moses stretched out his rod, as he had done before (Exodus 10:13; compare Exodus 9:22-23). He says it was not really his own hand, but the rod of God, the appointed sign of God’s presence with him. The locusts obeyed the command and flew in on the east wind, along with countless caterpillars, as Psalm 105:34-35 says. A strong army of horse and foot would have been easier to face than this swarm of insects. Who then can stand before the great God?

II. The ruin they caused in the land (Exodus 10:15). They covered the whole land and ate up its produce. God has given the earth to people, yet when he chooses, he can disturb their hold on it and send locusts and caterpillars to drive them out. Plants grow for human use, yet when God wills, these small creatures can become like fellow owners with us, strip the land, and eat the bread from our mouths. Let us work, then, not only for food and a home that can be taken away so easily, but for what lasts to eternal life, which cannot be invaded or spoiled.

III. Pharaoh’s response after this (Exodus 10:16-17). He had just driven Moses and Aaron away (Exodus 10:11), likely saying he wanted nothing more to do with them. Now he calls for them in haste and treats them with the respect he had recently refused them. Those who reject wise counsel and despise correction will one day be glad to seek help from the very people they once slighted. The foolish virgins asked the wise for oil, and see Psalm 141:6.

1. Pharaoh admits his sin: “I have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you.” He now sees the folly of the insults and refusals he had shown to God and his messengers, and he seems to feel some regret for them. When God convicts people of sin and humbles them for it, their contempt for God’s ministers and for the Lord’s word through them will certainly be part of the charge against their conscience. Some think that when Pharaoh said, “the Lord your God,” he was really saying, “the Lord will not be my God.” Many deal with God as with a powerful enemy they want peace with, but not as their rightful King, whom they should obey with loyal love. True repentance grieves over sin as committed against God, even one’s own God, who has every claim on us.

2. He asks for pardon, but not from God, as true penitents should. Instead, he asks Moses, which was more understandable in his case, since God had given Moses a special role as God’s representative to Pharaoh, and whoever’s sins Moses forgave were forgiven. When Pharaoh says, “Forgive this once,” he is, in effect, promising not to do it again, though he is reluctant to say that plainly. He does not say anything specific about letting the people go. Counterfeit repentance often hides behind vague promises and avoids naming the particular sin.

3. He asks Moses and Aaron to pray for him. Some people, in trouble, beg others to pray for them, but have no desire to pray themselves. That shows they have no real love for God and no joy in fellowship with him. Pharaoh wants prayer so that only this death may be removed, not his sin. He begs relief from the plague of locusts, but not from the plague of a hard heart, which was far more dangerous.

IV. The removal of the judgment in answer to Moses’ prayer (Exodus 10:18-19). This was, first, as clear a display of God’s power as the judgment itself. An east wind brought the locusts, and now a west wind carried them away. Whatever direction the wind blows, it is carrying out God’s word and turning as he directs it. The wind blows where it wants, so far as we can control it, but not so with God. He directs it across the whole sky.

Second, it was as clear a proof of Moses’ authority and a firm confirmation of his calling and his standing with the God who makes peace and creates trouble (Isaiah 45:7). More than that, it won Moses the respect and goodwill of the Egyptians. The judgment came when he called for it, but its removal came when he prayed. He never wanted the day of disaster, though he warned of it. His commission was against Egypt, but his prayer was for Egypt, and that was a good reason for them to love him, even if they feared him.

Third, it gave them as strong a reason to repent as the judgment itself. It showed that God is ready to forgive and quick to show mercy. If he removes a particular judgment, as he often did with Pharaoh, or delays it, as in Ahab’s case, when there is some outward sign of repentance, what will he do when repentance is sincere? How welcome true penitents will be to him! Oh, that God’s kindness would lead us to repentance!

V. Pharaoh went back again to his wicked decision not to let the people go (Exodus 10:20). This was through God’s righteous hand on him, hardening his heart and confirming him in his stubbornness. Those who have often pushed aside conviction and resisted it for a long time lose the benefit of it. God justly gives them up to the desires of their own hearts, which, however strong their convictions may be, prove stronger than they are.