Exodus 10:21  And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.
22  And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days:
23  They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days: but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.
24  And Pharaoh called unto Moses, and said, Go ye, serve the LORD; only let your flocks and your herds be stayed: let your little ones also go with you.
25  And Moses said, Thou must give us also sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice unto the LORD our God.
26  Our cattle also shall go with us; there shall not an hoof be left behind; for thereof must we take to serve the LORD our God; and we know not with what we must serve the LORD, until we come thither.
27  But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not let them go.
28  And Pharaoh said unto him, Get thee from me, take heed to thyself, see my face no more; for in that day thou seest my face thou shalt die.
29  And Moses said, Thou hast spoken well, I will see thy face again no more.

This week our ungodly prime minister declared that Canada will recognize a “Palestinian state”. He is a fool who does not know the Lord and is not interested in knowing the Lord. He had to wait for France and Britain to declare “Palestinian statehood” before he would even come out with his wicked statement. Canada is a nation that has no compass. We are in a state of flux and we are on our way out.
It should be noted that there is no “Palestinian” people. The name “Palestine” was given to Israel by the Romans to try to get the Jews to forget their history. Many maps that are in the back of Bibles list the land of Israel as Palestine. In 1948 when Israel was given back a portion of the land that God promised to Abraham, the land was called Israel. Many maps have not kept up with the facts. The “Palestinians” of today are a manufactured people. They have homelands. The Arab world has “created” this class of homeless refugees in order to deceive the world. Israel is suffering under world pressure at this time because they have rejected the true God.
The decision of the Canadian prime minister to recognize a “Palestinian state” is not the choice of the majority of Canadians. He did not ask us. In fact it is not even a decision made by the parliament of this country. They are not sitting at this time. This is the decree of the dictator of this country. It is made in defiance of the Lord. It is just another nail in the coffin of this country. It is not a surprise to God. God uses those that hate Him for His glory. He uses them to accomplish His goals.
We see in the book of Exodus that God used Pharaoh to prove His power and authority. The nation of Egypt suffered greatly due to the hardheartedness of their king. God did not force this upon them. They chose the way of wickedness. God just accommodated them in their foolishness.
In our text we read that the next plague would be the plague of darkness. This darkness could even be felt and it would last for three days. Egypt had been in darkness now for some time. Now they would experience first hand what that was really like. For three days and three nights they did not see one another. No one left their house. They did not even leave where they were in their house. It was so dark they could not see to get around.
We note as well that in the land of Goshen, where the Hebrews were, there was light. Where God is there is light. What a contrast. Did this fact change the heart of Pharaoh?
In verse 24 we read that he called for Moses and said that the Hebrews should go and serve the LORD. He again restricted who could go. They could not take their flocks with them. The Egyptian flocks were decimated already by the judgments of the LORD. Now Pharaoh wanted to steal the flocks of the Hebrews. He thought he could cover up for the LORD’s judgment upon them by stealing the blessing of the LORD from the Hebrews.
Moses did not agree to the manipulation of Pharaoh. He insisted that their livestock needed to go with them. They needed to have them to be able to worship the LORD as He wanted them to. We read that the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart. Pharaoh was a tool that the LORD would use to demonstrate His glory.
Pharaoh used his energy to express his anger against the LORD and Moses, rather than repent and be forgiven. What an utter fool. No one can defy God and win. Now Pharaoh told Moses not to appear before him again.
Moses agreed with Pharaoh. This demand of Pharaoh was not for his good, nor for the good of the Egyptians. We see that this plague was of extreme darkness. This darkness was an external picture of what was actually going on in Egypt. From the king on down, there was spiritual darkness. The magicians had expressed some awakening, but they were not turning to the LORD.
God will be glorified. The important factor is that we as people submit to Him and know His peace and blessing, rather than face His wrath. Pharaoh and Egypt were suffering due to their own wickedness. They refused to acknowledge the facts. Canada would be wise to study this book and see how we are pushing in the same direction that Pharaoh was pushing.
We will not see Canada turn to the LORD. However, individuals can turn to the LORD. If you are reading this and still resisting God, stop fighting a losing battle. Humble yourself and trust in the true God. You can fight all you want, but you will never win against God. Don’t be deceived by the false teachers who spread lies about who God is. Take the Bible as God’s Word and know His peace and blessing.
Pastor Bartel