Exodus 8:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
2  And if thou refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all thy borders with frogs:
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:
4  And the frogs shall come up both on thee, and upon thy people, and upon all thy servants.
5  And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch forth thine hand with thy rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come up upon the land of Egypt.
6  And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt.
7  And the magicians did so with their enchantments, and brought up frogs upon the land of Egypt.
8  Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, Intreat the LORD, that he may take away the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the LORD.
9  And Moses said unto Pharaoh, Glory over me: when shall I intreat for thee, and for thy servants, and for thy people, to destroy the frogs from thee and thy houses, that they may remain in the river only?
10  And he said, To morrow. And he said, Be it according to thy word: that thou mayest know that there is none like unto the LORD our God.
11  And the frogs shall depart from thee, and from thy houses, and from thy servants, and from thy people; they shall remain in the river only.
12  And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh: and Moses cried unto the LORD because of the frogs which he had brought against Pharaoh.
13  And the LORD did according to the word of Moses; and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the villages, and out of the fields.
14  And they gathered them together upon heaps: and the land stank.
15  But when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart, and hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.

Moses needed to learn to walk by faith, not by sight. The LORD again told him to go before Pharaoh. His message to Pharaoh was the same. The Hebrews were the LORD’s people and Pharaoh needed to let them go. In verse 2 we are again reminded that God does not make idle threats. He is all powerful and He would bring frogs up in the land. These frogs would be everywhere in Egypt.
Frogs usually like to be where there is moisture. They like to be in water or near the water in the sloughs and muddy areas. However, these frogs would be in the Egyptians’ houses, and even in their ovens and kneading troughs. None of the Egyptians would escape this invasion of the frogs.
In verse 5 the LORD gave specific instructions to Moses for Aaron. Again we are reminded of the inspiration of the Scriptures and that Moses was God’s choice for directing Aaron’s actions. Aaron was to take his rod and stretch it over the streams, rivers and ponds. Keep in mind this was after the waters were turned to blood and all the fish died. God can destroy life in a moment, but He can also bring life in a moment. He created the fish and the frogs in the first place. He would prove Himself to be able to do what man might assume to be impossible.
In verse 7 we again read that the magicians worked their enchantments and they too brought up frogs. Just because God allows the devil to copy Him, does not mean what the devil does is equal to what God can do. The book of Job makes it very clear that the devil is limited by God in what he can do. The truth is what makes a person free, not some copycat.
In verse 8 we read that Pharaoh did not call his magicians to remove the frogs. He called Moses and asked him to entreat the LORD to take away the frogs. The magicians were powerless to take away this invasion. Pharaoh lied to Moses, suggesting that he would let the Hebrews go to sacrifice to the LORD, if he would get the LORD to remove the frogs.
Moses wanted to believe Pharaoh. He would ask the LORD to remove the frogs. He already knew that Pharaoh would not let the people go yet. God told him that.
Interestingly, in verse 9 Moses asked when Pharaoh wanted the LORD to remove the frogs. He did not say ‘immediately’, but tomorrow. Pharaoh was willing to put up with this invasion for the rest of that day. Moses told him that he would bring his request before the LORD. At the set time, the frogs would be removed from all places but the rivers.
Moses took his request before the LORD. The LORD was gracious to Moses and to Pharaoh. He caused the frogs that were on land and in the people’s houses, to die. The people now had more work to do. They needed to clean up all the dead frogs. They had just dealt with the stink of dead fish. Now they needed to deal with the stink of dead frogs.
In verse 15 we read that Pharaoh followed his old pattern. He saw that there was relief from the frogs, so he hardened his heart and refused to let the people go. We read there that Pharaoh did just as the LORD had said. The LORD knew the heart of the king. He knew he had no intention of bowing before the LORD. Pharaoh was given the same opportunities to repent and submit to the fear of the LORD, as any other person. Pharaoh chose to reject the truth and God used his rebellion to prove His power and glory.
Pharaoh suffered, as did his people. The land was being systematically spoiled and broken. Egypt would no longer be the breadbasket of that area. It would no longer be a nation to be looked up to for its building projects, etc. It would become a land that was vulnerable to whoever wanted to come in and take advantage of it.
The Pharaohs had been concerned that the Hebrews would assist in the overthrow of the nation of Egypt. They should have been concerned about the LORD destroying their land. Their misplaced loyalty would be their downfall.
This is again another reminder of the fact that the LORD is in authority. In the Old Testament He protected the nation of Israel and He established them as a fruitful and prosperous nation. He put the fear of God into the hearts of the nations. The nations had great respect for the Hebrews. However, due to Israel’s continued rebellion against Him, He would bring the enemies in to plunder His land and His people.
To this day, Israel is struggling due to their rebellion. A few other nations are trying to support Israel. However, Israel’s enemies are still attacking and creating uncertainty for the Jews in Israel. That uncertainty is rising in other nations as well. In spite of that, Israel will never be destroyed. Those who fight against the Jews are suffering and will suffer.
It is important to learn from what God has recorded in Scripture. There are many lessons that we as Gentiles need to learn. God cares more about the souls of people, than He does for the lives of frogs. He cares more about the health of people than He does about air quality. The stench of dead and rotting frogs was necessary to show the people Who was in charge. As we have noticed, God designed the world in such a way, that the air quality can be cleaned up, even after a major issue like rotting flesh that pollutes the air. The bodies of the frogs would also break down and the ground would absorb those many dead frogs.
It is important to hear the Lord and know Him. God is in charge. He uses different means to get man’s attention. The wise person heeds God’s Word and does not wait for drastic things to happen. God wants man to know Him. He wants man to submit to Him and know His blessing.
Pastor Bartel