THE FEAR OF GOD

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"Now Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation died, but the Israelites were fruitful and multiplied greatly and became exceedingly numerous, so that the land was filled with them. Then a new king, who did not know about Joseph, came to power in Egypt. "Look," he said to his people, "the Israelites have become much too numerous for us. Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country." So they put slave masters over them to oppress them with forced labor, and they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh. But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites and worked them ruthlessly. They made their lives bitter with hard labor in brick and mortar and with all kinds of work in the fields; in all their hard labor the Egyptians used them ruthlessly. The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, "When you help the Hebrew women in childbirth and observe them on the delivery stool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live." The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live. Then the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, "Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live?" The midwives answered Pharaoh, "Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive." So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous. And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own." Exodus 1:6-21

At the end of the book of Genesis, first Jacob and then his son Joseph passes away. The rest of Jacob’s sons and their families remain in Egypt until the sons pass away as well. As we enter the book of Exodus, we find that God’s promise of plenty to the Israelites coming to pass. For we read that "the Israelites were fruitful and multiplied greatly and became exceedingly numerous, so that the land was filled with them." All was going well but that was about to change.

Question: Have you ever gone through a season of joy, peace and plenty only to have that time disrupted by change? Sometimes that change comes in the way of circumstances. Still other times, change can come though people around us. This ended up being the case with the people of Israel in Egypt.

For scripture tells us that a change in leadership occurred with a new Pharoah coming into power. Unlike the prior leader who blessed the Israelites because of the status of Joseph, this ruler saw the people of Israel as a potential threat and he decided to do something to nullify it. His insecurity is evident in his words as he says, "…the Israelites have become much too numerous for us. Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country." Pharoah had at least part of his vision right because the Israelites would leave his country but it wouldn’t be them he would go to war with…it was to God.

The maltreatment of Israel started as Pharoah appointed "slave masters over them to oppress them with forced labor, and they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh." Pharoah had intended to stunt the growth of Israel by breaking the people down through enslavement but the scriptures reveal his efforts were fruitless for the "more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread" In return, Pharoah treated them even more harshly and "made their lives bitter with hard labor in brick and mortar and with all kinds of work in the fields." And as if hard labor wasn’t enough, Pharoah also summoned the Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah, and gave them an order saying, "When you help the Hebrew women in childbirth and observe them on the delivery stool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live." It wasn’t enough to just oppress anymore. Pharoah sought to sanction murder as a way to stop the growth of Israel. In doing so, he underestimated the people of God. For the Hebrew midwifes did not carry out his order because scripture tells us they "feared God."

Question: Do you fear God? Do you seriously consider everything you do against whether it will or will not be in accordance with God’s will…and do so with a concern for the consequences that come through willful disobedience to Him? Too often, I think God is disrespected and disregarded.

Sure we typically wouldn’t ever think of doing something like killing another person but we don’t hesitate for a moment to hate someone. Both are sinful…and sin is sin to God. Yet we discount some sins as being less significant and adopt the attitude that somehow God will give us a pass for some wrongs over others. That’s not the way it works. It’s no wonder that Jesus would teach that anger and hatred for someone was just as subject to judgment as murder. The fear of God begins with a zero tolerance for wrongdoing out of respect for Him and the power He possesses…power that can easily punish any of us into oblivion. The Hebrew midwifes weren’t willing to test God even if they were being ordered by a Pharoah who could kill them for their disobedience to him. Disobedience to God would have been far worse. We should learn from their actions.

When Pharoah calls the midwifes to him and inquires as to why they hadn’t carried out his order, they tell him, "Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive." Their actions saved the lives of countless Israelite baby boys so God blessed them likewise and "gave them families of their own" because they feared Him. Once again, we see how God blesses the obedient. The midwifes stood firm on the side of righteousness when presented with a situation where they were expected to sin. Their choice not only saved the lives of others but brought an abundant blessing unto their own household. And it all happened because they feared God more than anything the world could place before them.

Question: Are you ready to stand firm like the midwives, willing to fear God enough that you refuse to allow the world to draw you into anything that you know as being sinful against God? Psalm 110:11 gives us the perfect closing for today’s devotion. It states, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." A lot of people deemed intelligent by the world’s standards have fallen because they lacked the wisdom to fear God. Where do you stand?

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

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