Exodus 5:15–21 (ESV) —
15 Then the foremen of the people of Israel came and cried to Pharaoh, “Why do you treat your servants like this? 16 No straw is given to your servants, yet they say to us, ‘Make bricks!’ And behold, your servants are beaten; but the fault is in your own people.” 17 But he said, “You are idle, you are idle; that is why you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the Lord.’ 18 Go now and work. No straw will be given you, but you must still deliver the same number of bricks.” 19 The foremen of the people of Israel saw that they were in trouble when they said, “You shall by no means reduce your number of bricks, your daily task each day.” 20 They met Moses and Aaron, who were waiting for them, as they came out from Pharaoh; 21 and they said to them, “The Lord look on you and judge, because you have made us stink in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants, and have put a sword in their hand to kill us.”
NOTE: The Israelites believe the Egyptians are at fault. The Pharaoh tells them that they are not working hard enough if they have time to discuss "going to a sacrifice." Obviously, it is not the best way to treat your workers, whatever the reason. What was Pharaoh's big time crunch that he could not have let the go for three days? Of course, he did have a fear that they would not return. He could have sent troops with them. I believe he was the only great power at the time, there were no threats. And God has not even hardened his heart yet. He makes a classic mistake of poor and young leadership, "turn the screws harder." Rehoboam will makes the same mistake 500 years later and split the country into two entities. Part of the problem is that we tend to NOT "think the best" but assume the worst. If Pharaoh had dealt with it in a more empathetic way, maybe things could have been different.
Which leads us to the other difficult question -- was the request to worship deceptive since it was intended to get the people out of the country? While the excuse held through all the negotiations, it was Pharaoh who came after the people with his army to destroy them and was destroyed himself. So any obligations were lost when Pharaoh decides to attack. If this wasn't the worse of all the Pharaohs, things could have turned differently, but God knew how he would react, and in the process, God later hardened Pharaoh's heart (in response to Pharaoh's repeated hardening). Pharaoh and Egypt were judged for what they did to Israel. God knew what he was doing. And the story becomes an important part of the gospel, since Jesus is the Passover lamb for all of mankind.
PONDER:
True leadership cares for the employee. Are those who work for me a means to the end, or the end itself? Most employers never figure that one out.
PRAYER: Father, I am retired now, but fortunately I learned this lesson early on from good bosses. Even though I was fortunate, I don't see very many people who understand the importance of taking care of their employees. I pray for opportunities to teach and display these principles even in my retirement.
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