THE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN PLAGUES

(What Do They Mean For Us Today?)

THE PLAGUES OF EGYPT

Part Two of a Series

In part one of this study we examined the first plague that God brought upon the land of Egypt. All of its rivers, streams, ponds, and pools of waters were turned to blood, (Exodus 7:19). We saw that similar (almost identical) language was used in Isaiah 41:18, where God describes, in metaphorical terms, the Gospel waters of salvation being equated to rivers, streams, ponds, and fountains of water. Many other verses confirm the Gospel of Jesus Christ as being symbolically portrayed in this same fashion. With the commencement of this first plague, God turned Egypt’s waters (streams, pools, rivers) into blood.

We’re told the condition of their waters “stank,” (Exodus 7:21). It was a stench which rose up throughout all the land of Egypt. This entire historical event, as agonizing as it was for the Egyptians, held a spiritual connotation of which was not and could not be realized until the church finally neared the latter days, wherein Scriptural knowledge would be increased and God’s end-time purpose unsealed, (Daniel 12:4,9). The stench which arose from these waters no doubt signified the spiritual pollution and apostasy which God had predetermined would come forth from the Gospel waters (congregations) of the world shortly before our Lord’s second coming. (For a more detailed study ask for “The Stench of Sin.”)

As we turn to the second plague that God delivered upon Egypt, we find that its rivers brought forth FROGS abundantly, (Exodus 8:3). It is no surprise that frogs would fall into the category of “unclean” during the Old Testament Era.

Leviticus 11:42 - “Whatsoever goeth upon the belly, and whatsoever goeth upon all fours, or whatsoever hath more feet among all creeping things that creep upon the earth, them ye shall not eat, for they are an abomination.”

It is this plague of frogs (creeping and abominable) that God sends forth from the bloodied waters of Egypt (Exodus 8:3). They are found in Pharaoh’s house, bedroom, and bed as well as in his servant’s quarters. The frogs go out upon all the people of Egypt and even into their ovens and kneading troughs.

Exodus 8:3

“And the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into thine house, and into thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and into the house of thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thine ovens, and into thy kneadingtroughs:”

The fact that frogs are unclean and come forth from the waters of Egypt (Egypt symbolizing the unsaved world), should indicate rather strongly that God is painting a spiritual picture of a time when false gospels and false prophets would come forth abundantly from the waters of spiritual Egypt, once they have been turned to blood. Yes, once the congregations of the world have turned apostate and Satan is standing or ruling in most churches (the Abomination of Desolation; Daniel 11:31,12:11; Matthew 24:15; Mark 13:14), it is then that spiritual frogs will go forth into all the land of Egypt (the world) as the ultimate fulfillment of this second plague of Exodus Chapter Eight.

OVENS AND KNEADING TROUGHS

We know that frogs were literally found in abundance throughout the land of Egypt. It was a massive plague in the most literal sense. The frogs were everywhere and yet because of the extreme spiritual importance of this parable, God focuses our attention on two unsuspecting areas in which these frogs are found. God reveals two specific places which hold extreme importance to the believer. These are the ovens and the kneading troughs. The kneading troughs are bowls in which dough for bread was stored while rising. And of course the oven is where the bread was baked. Of all the areas where these frogs would most likely have been found, why does God focus our attention on two specific places - the ovens and the kneading troughs? Why would one think of looking in the ovens and the kneading troughs? Perhaps it is because both have everything to do with the baking of bread.

Jesus said in John 6:35 “I am the bread of life; he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thrist.” Over and over again throughout Scripture we learn that Christ is the manna or the bread of life. Old and New Testaments both speak of the good news of Jesus Christ as “living waters” and again as the “bread of life.”

Isaiah 55:1-2 declares “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.”

“Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? And your labour for that which satisfieth not? Hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.”

Those who spiritually hunger and thrist can come to the waters of Christ without money and without price. Why, God asks, do you spend money for that which is not bread? God, in pointing the way to salvation, spoke of the Anointed One - Christ the Savior - who, as God incarnate, hundreds of years later would walk this earth and declare:

“I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” (John 6:51).

Before Christ appeared in the world, Israel, being directed of God, looked in the future for their long awaited Messiah, who would be their ultimate meat and drink offering. Christ was foreshadowed by the many offerings of the Old Testament Jew. Leviticus 2:4 speaks of the meat offering being baked in an oven.

“And if thou bring an oblation of a meat offering baked in the oven, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil.” The meat offering that was baked in the oven was ultimately in anticipation of the coming of Christ Himself.

Leviticus 2:15 gives us a partial but beautiful insight and parallel to the adoration of the new born king:

“And thou shalt put oil upon it, and lay frankincense thereon: it is a meat offering.” Frankincense ( a type of incense) was placed before the meat offering as an important and mandatory part of the procedure and preparation.

 Matthew 2:11, in speaking of the adoration of Christ by the wise men, declares: “And when they were come into the house, they saw the yound child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshiped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.”

The significance of the frankincense was being in fulfillment of the Old Testament preparation of the meat offering. Christ is the ultimate meat offering. Christ represents every Old Testament offering.

God’s salvation plan throughout Scripture is pictured as manna in the wilderness and the bread of life. It is also pictured as leaven in Matthew 13:13 - “Another parable spake he unto them; the kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.”

This bread is left in the kneading troughs to rise and then baked in the over. Leaven, which is actually sour dough in a high state of fermentation, was used in general in making bread. It required time to fulfill the process. Hence, when food was required at short notice, unleavened cakes were used, e.g. (Genesis 18:6, 19:3; Exodus 12:8).

The Israelites were forbidden to use “leaven” for seven days at the time of Passover, that they might be reminded that the Lord brought them out of Egypt “in haste,” (Deuteronomy 16:3 and Exodus 12:11). The unleavened bread, reminding them also of their afflictions, and of the need of self-judgment, is called “the bread of affliction.”

As the Church approaches the end of the age, what becomes of this bread or manna? In Isaiah 3:1 we read:

“For , behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff, the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water.”

The focal point is on two elements - the bread and the water. This is just one of many verses prophesying of the cutting off of the true Gospel, and yet much of the church today sees this simply as being fulfilled in the past history of national Israel. This verse speaks of the bread and the water being taken away from Jerusalem, i.e. the Word of God being taken from the corporate church near the time of the end. (Requires a study of the different renderings of “Jerusalem.”)

Lamentations 4:4 declares “The tongue of the sucking child cleaveth to the roof of his mouth for thirst: the young children ask bread, and no man breaketh it unto them.”

Again we read in Ezekiel 12:19 - “And say unto the people of the land, thus saith the Lord God of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and of the land of Israel; they shall eat their bread with carefulness, and drink their water with astonishment, that her land may be desolate from all that is therein, because of the violence of all them that dwell therein.”

In Leviticus 26:21-26 we read of God’s stern warning to national Israel ( a picture of the New Testament Church):

21- “And if ye walk contrary to me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins.”

22- “I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, and destroy your cattle, and make you few in number; and your high ways shall be desolate.”

23 -“And if ye will not be reformed by me by these things, but will walk contrary unto me,”

24- “Then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins.”

25- “And I will bring a sword upon you, that shall avenge the quarrel of my covenant: and when ye are gathered together within your cities, I will send the pestilence among you: and ye shall be delivered into the hand of the enemy.”

26- “And when I have broken the staff of your BREAD, ten women shall bake bread in one oven, and they shall deliver you your bread again by weight: and ye shall eat, and not be satisfied.”

These warnings to national Israel had long reaching implications. They indeed are picturing the wrath of God in the form of spiritual plagues in these final years of the church-age. Notice carefully in verse twenty-two God says that He will send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children. The horrors of this verse.

WILD BEASTS

[That wonderful pastor down the street has been tutoring your children for years now in the things of God. Isn’t it great! And I can leave it all up to him. Oh, he changed a few things about God and uses a much different Bible, even has additional “ordained” books. But he’s so great and caring with the kids - we just love him!]

If God were to lift the Vail and allow us spiritual eyes, we would see (in this example) your children’s eternal bliss being plundered by a wild beast.

One of the most avid examples in all of Scripture that shows God’s spiritual definition of “wild beast” is found in Mark 1:13.

“And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him.”

This verse speaks of the temptation of Christ as He was tempted for forty days in the desert. In Matthew 4:1-11 and Luke 4:1-12 we have detail of Christ’s temptation. The Prince of the power of the air - that old serpent - Satan (the power of darkness) was there to tempt God as He walked this earth as a man. The essence of the temptation was doctrinal in nature. In other words, Satan tried to get Christ to confess that He was not God. Maybe a good teacher and prophet perhaps, but not God. This was the core of the temptation. Do you think God says He was tempted of Satan - and was with wild beasts - just so we would know there were wild animals out there in the wilderness? Is that what we are to understand?

It is more evident that the phrase “wild beasts” has an important spiritual connotation that we must consider. It is likely that it represents those of the world who would want to tear down the divinity of the Godhead and make Christ out to be a mere man, a famous prophet, etc. Christ was indeed tempted by wild beasts (of Satan himself and his false doctrines), who throughout the ages has tried unsuccessfully to destroy the deity of Christ.

The Book of Jude is only one short chapter in length but has much for us today.

Jude 1:4 reads:

“For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.”

This is the thrust of the Book of Jude. And how does Jude describe these ministers of Satan? In verse ten Jude refers to them as BRUTE BEASTS. This is wild beasts! Do you think Jude is speaking of literal wild beasts or wild animals in the desert? Of course not, he is speaking of those who’s desire it is to turn the grace of God into lasciviousness and deny Christ! These are they in which Jude, being in compliance with Scripture, addresses as wild beasts. It is a metaphoric term for those who attempt to dethrone (through false gospels) the deity of the Christ - The Messiah.

Returning to Leviticus 26:21-26 we see not only an historical account of the people of ancient Israel, but we have a prophesy by Christ of what is to come upon God’s New Testament Israel in the latter days (New Testament Era). It is a spiritual plague foreshadowed by the literal plagues upon Egypt in the days of Moses. God will send wild beasts which will rob you of your children. Does anyone care today? Does anyone believe this today? Does anyone strive to learn God’s Word today? The wild beasts are the frogs of Revelation, (among others). They are the ministers (and that can be anyone) who try and preach Christ out of His deity in the most cunning ways that if it were possible, they would deceive the very elect (Matthew 24:24).

These are the same wild beasts that tempted Christ - they are the powers of darkness. It makes no difference if they were embodied during the time of Christ, or the Apostle Paul or in today’s world - they are all wild beasts in God’s eyes.

2 Corinthians 11:13-15

“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. [14] And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. [15] Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.”

Those who bring lies and other false gospels are also ascribed as thieves and robbers in Scripture. Leviticus 26:22 “I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, ...”

Verse twenty-five states that God will send a pestilence among Israel. This of course was an literal and historic parable but in addition it was a then future parable with a heavenly meaning. Israel being an Old Testament “type” and “figure” of the New Testament church. God will deliver them into the hand of their enemy, verse 25 states.

Verse twenty-six: “I have broken the staff of your bread,” God declares. The word “staff” figuratively can mean “life supporting.” God is withdrawing His truth as He states here. This is to occur worldwide in which it is very evident that this is happening before our eyes today. Verse twenty-six alludes to the fact that the true Gospel will become so scarce in the final years, that it is figuratively measured out by weight.

Leviticus 26:26- “And when I have broken the staff of your BREAD, ten women shall bake bread in one oven, and they shall deliver you your bread again by weight: and ye shall eat, and not be satisfied.”

Ten women baking bread in only one oven. Why is this? Because of the spiritual frogs. The unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth (words of deceit) of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and of the mouth of the false prophet (Satan’s hold on the church), see Revelation 16:13. The ten women baking bread in only one oven displays a scarceness of ovens or perhaps another way of looking at it is showing a scarceness of bread. Either way, we see a dreadful picture of the true Gospel becoming less and less effective, and even being rendered useless or dead, thus the Gospel waters were turned to blood - signifying the death of the corporate church.

“And when they <the two witnesses: the True Church> shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit <unclean spirits like frogs from mouth of the beast> . . . shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them <waters turned to blood; signifying spiritual death>, Revelation 11:17.

Ten women baking bread in only one oven. The ovens might well be figures of the corporate church, i.e. the congregations worldwide. That is where the bread is baked , i.e. the blood of Christ (the bread from heaven) is preached. Of course it is to be proclaimed from the mouth of all believers but as an entity, it comes from the corporate church. That is where the Gospel is generated and where the true God is worshiped.

In Isaiah 4:1 we have an interesting parable of these last days.

“And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, we will eat our own bread, and wear our own APPAREL: only let us be called by thy name, and take away our reproach.”

These seven women seem to be representative of the apostate condition of the worldwide church at the end of time. Why do they desire to wear their own apparel?

Zephaniah. 1:8

“And it shall come to pass in the day of the LORD'S sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king's children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel.”

The seven women who desire to wear their “own apparel” are in reality clothed in “strange apparel” They do not want Christ and His spiritual apparel that is required for salvation. They do not believe it is required for salvation. As a true believer, we are to be clothed with Christ’s apparel of righteousness. (Not that man can be like Christ in his sinful body - we cannot. It is impossible, apart from the resurrection of the physical body at the Last Day. Even then we will still be the creature but what a wonderful paradise it will be.)

We are to be clothed with the spiritual apparel of Christ; with His garments, His doctrines, His truth, His faith, His all in all. We, as the Bride of Christ, are to be spiritually clothed in our wedding garment.

Matthew 22:11-14

“And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:

[12] And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.

[13] Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

[14] For many are called, but few are chosen.”

In the final years of this age, God will bring upon the unbelieving world (including the unbelieving church), the plague of deception. The true Gospel waters will be poisoned (turned to blood) by the inundation or flood of Satan’s power through his servants (spiritual frogs) that teach contrary to the Word of God. These are the spiritual frogs coming up out of the blood red waters of biblical apostasy, exercising their false views of the doctrines of God within the ovens and the kneading troughs, spiritually and allegorically speaking.

As there was no escape for the Egyptians during the days of the Exodus, likewise there will be little chance to escape this time of great tribulation. As the frogs of Egypt invaded all peoples from the poor peasant Egyptian farmer to the King of Egypt himself, in like fashion all from the least to the greatest shall not escape this plague, once the Gospel waters have turned to blood, producing frogs abundantly (Exodus 8:3) upon the world scene (spiritual Egypt).

These are just samples of many passages that would have their spiritual fulfillment during the final few years of the church-age. Here again we see that the focal point is the bread and the water. This water and bread are also the origins of the first two plagues of Exodus.

1. The waters of Egypt being turned to blood.

2. The frogs invading the kneading troughs and the ovens.

“Moreover, he said unto me, son of man, behold, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem: and they shall eat bread by weight, and with care <meaning anxiety>; and they shall drink water by measure, and with astonishment.” (Ezekiel 4:16)

Scripture discloses the intent and the purpose of the frogs in Exodus as being two-fold. They invaded the peoples of Egypt and also the kneading troughs and ovens, which we saw were used for the baking of bread. There is no question that God highlights the objective of this second plague as being an over abundance of frogs and their trespassing, transgressing, and infringing upon the bread.

As we saw in Part One of this study, frogs are mentioned only once in the Old Testament, Exodus chapter eight. Psalm chapter seventy-eight and chapter one hundred and five mention frogs in reference to the plagues of Egypt. Frogs are mentioned only once in the New Testament, Revelation chapter sixteen, which teaches the spiritual deception during the Great Tribulation, immediately preceding Judgment Day. As the frogs came up from the rivers of Egypt during the days of Moses, wrecking havoc upon all of Egypt, this surely was a portrait of the end-time spiritual deception upon all the unsuspecting world perpetrated by the three unclean spirits like FROGS of Revelation 16:13. Much of the ten plagues of Egypt are paralleled and repeated in a spiritual manner at the time of the end.

WATER AND BLOOD

We have looked at the first two plagues of Exodus and found them to be destructive to the water and to the bread. The New Testament tells us precisely, and in no parabolic terms, what the bread represents.

1 Corinthians 10:17 reads “For we being many are one bread, and one body; for we are all partakers of that one bread.”

The plagues of the end-time not only attack the true Gospel, but naturally assault the true believers as well, since we are partakers of that one bread. “For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven; and giveth life unto the world.” John 6:33.

To be a partaker of this bread requires our being born from above. We must be born-again (John 3:7). The true believer has been crucified and resurrected with Christ in his spiritual essence. We have become an everlasting part of that “one bread” as Scripture declares.

The cutting off of these spiritual elements, the bread and the water, were, even in the days of the exodus, an historic parable pointing to the time when these plagues would spiritually and ultimately come upon not just the land of Egypt, but all the world in general, as represented by Old Testament Egypt.

It can be shown from Scripture that with the mingling of water and blood comes the judgment of God. As the waters turned to blood in the days of the exodus, so shall they be turned to blood once more at the end of time (in the spiritual sense) when the Church’s testimony is all but silenced. Thus, with the mingling of water and blood it may be safe to suppose that God is teaching judgment. As with ancient Egypt, with these plagues came the cutting off of the true Word of God, as Israel departed from Egypt. In this same sense, God’s true Israel (God’s true witness) in these last days will be cut off from this world. As Israel of old was spared the plague, so shall God’s New Testament Israel (all true believers) be spared; nevertheless with the mingling of blood and water comes judgment upon this world.

Scripture speaks of the mingling of the blood and water once Christ died on the cross - the Word of God (which is Christ) was taken out of the world. Had Christ not been resurrected, this judgment would have stayed and man would be hopelessly and eternally lost. As Christ was ready to be taken down from the cross, God records the following passage for us:

“But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came out blood and water,” John 19:34.

This passage might be associated with the mingling of blood and water in Exodus and in Revelation. We know positively that God is today smiting the Gospel waters and turning them to blood as a judgment upon the unbelievers outside and within the corporate church. When Christ went to the cross to atone for the sins of the believers, He became SIN for us.

“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him,” (II Corinthians 5:21).

Even that horrible day at the cross saw the mingling of blood and water (signifying God’s judgment) within the very incarnation and personification of the Word of God Himself! With this, likewise came judgment and the cutting off of the Word of God, as Christ was cut off from the world.

“ . . . for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken . . . “ (Isaiah 53:6).

Daniel 9:26 tells us: “ . . . And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself . . .”

With the crucifixion of Christ came forth judgment upon the earth. Christ’s death did not bring us eternal life, but His resurrection did. It gives every true believer the assurance of possessing the eternal Kingdom of God. Christ’s death and resurrection, on the other hand, ensures every unbeliever an eternity away from Christ; an eternity in a spiritual outer darkness.

Thus far we have seen in Part One and Part Two that the first two plagues God sent upon Pharaoh and his kingdom were indeed literal occurrences, sometimes called historic parables. While these events were fulfilled in the natural realm, we should realize that within these verses of Exodus chapters seven through eleven God has hidden another level of interpretation that would not be understood or unsealed until the time of the end, Daniel 12:4. We have been in the latter days since the beginning of the church-age. We see the whole of the plagues of Exodus paralleling the spiritual decline and degradation of the corporate church as we near the end of these “latter days.”

Revelation 8:10-11 -

“And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters; [11] And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.”

God uses many different pictures in portraying the cutting off of His Word in these last days. “Wormwood” is a word defined as bitter or poison.

Those who can attest that they truly know Christ, the only God of Creation, as their Savior, are urged to continue on in your reading and studying of the Bible only. You are surrounded by spiritual plagues. Look only within God’s Word for biblical truth and interpretation. The poison does not lie outside of the organized church as many assume. The congregations of the world are inundated with the bitter artificial waters of man’s doctrines. The poison waters do not lie strictly outside of the corporate church. It has infiltrated the congregations as never before on a global scale. The poison is in the ovens and kneading troughs, i.e. the corporate church of Jesus Christ worldwide.

As God sustained the Israelites from these plagues in the very midst of Egypt, He will likewise sustain His elect in the very midst of Egypt (the world in bondage to sin) in the final and ultimate fulfillment of His plagues

The safety is God’s Word alone.

Christ is the WORD OF GOD.