Against All The Gods Of Egypt

by Russell Carnley
[ Printer Friendly Article ]

The book of Genesis closes with the children of Israel dwelling in the land of Egypt. They had been delivered from famine by the providence of God through their brother Joseph. When Joseph was dying he made clear to them that their situation was only temporary, and that God would bring them back to the land of Canaan (Gen. 50:24,25). This was to happen in the fourth generation of their sojourn (Gen. 15:13-16). During their stay, the children of Israel multiplied and grew. After the death of Joseph "...there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph," (Ex. 1:8). This king decided to oppress the Israelites, and to put them to forced labor, because he was afraid of them. Yet the more he afflicted them, the more they grew. He even issued the order that all of the male children should be cast into the river to try and stop their growth.

This is the world in which Moses was born. God was preparing a great deliverance for His people, and Moses was to lead them out of their bondage. This purpose is set forth as God spoke to Moses from the burning bush. And the Lord said: "I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and I have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey..." (Exod. 3:7,8)

As God spoke to Moses, it seems that Moses was busy thinking up his excuses, yet God would accept no excuse, and Moses did just as he was told. He went before Pharoah, spoke the words of God, and confirmed these words with miraculous signs. Yet Pharoah would not listen, nor would he let the people go. After nine plagues ravaged the land of Egypt, Pharoah's heart was still hard.

Before the final plague, God uttered these words: "For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord," ( Ex. 12:12). Pharoah's faith was misplaced as he trusted in his imaginary gods to deliver him from the true and living God. In the battle for the souls of men, God demonstrated His superiority over all of these foolish notions.

The gods of Egypt

A brief discussion of some of the gods to which Jehovah refers will help us to see the effect that the plagues had on their religious system.

The Cobra This animal represented the goddess of eternal life. The Pharoah wore an image of the cobra on his forehead.
Hapi The god of the Nile river. The Nile was/is the mainstay of Egypt. Without the regular flooding of the Nile, the land would be desolate. Thus, this god was very important to them.
Heket The water goddess who often took the form of a frog. They believed she was responsible for the birth of Egyptian rulers.
Ra The god of the sun. According to their belief, each night he went out to do battle with darkness and storms. He had to defeat them before he could rise the next morning.
Apis The sacred bull.
Hathor The goddess associated with the sky and its control.
Imhotep This was a man highly esteemed for his wisdom. He was an architect and a chief ritualist. After his death he was deified as god of medicine.
Shu The god of the atmosphere.

These are a few of the "gods" which the Egyptians worshiped during the time of the Exodus. When we see their descriptions, we can see how the plagues devastated the false religions of Egypt. God's word has the same power to destroy false religions today if people will only listen.

The Plagues Of Jehovah

The contest began in the presence of Pharoah as Moses cast his rod down and it became a serpent. Pharoah called his magicians in and they did the same thing with their rods, only Moses' serpent ate all of the others. How did the Egyptians work this sign? One possibility is that they paralyzed a serpent by pinching a nerve in its neck, enabling them to release it at their will. Another is that they were able to do these things by the power of Satan. Whatever be the case, the God of Israel still prevailed. In all of the ten plagues, God's power over the god's of Egypt was displayed and magnified, until the Egyptians had nowhere else to turn. Just as God had said: "And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord..." (Ex. 7:5). To trust in anything or anyone besides God is futile. It is just as foolish for us to trust in the wealth and wisdom of this world as it was for the Pharoah to trust in his useless gods. May we learn to trust in our God who is able to do great and wonderful things, keeping us safe until we go to meet Him in our heavenly home.

The information about the gods of Egypt was taken from "Studies in Exodus" The 23rd Annual Lectureship, East Tennessee School of Preaching, 1997, pp 82,83.