Mensa Otabil - Lice On Man and Beast
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Exodus chapter 8, verse 17: «And they did so. For Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod and struck the dust of the earth, and it became lice on man and beast. All the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt.»
When Aaron struck the rod in his hand against the dust of Egypt, a miracle of transformation took place. The dust turned into lice. The word that is translated as lice in this passage only occurs here and also in Psalm 105, verse 31. In other translations, it is rendered as gnats or winged biting insects. Some scholars believe that these lice were actually mosquitoes, and if that were so, then our good old Anopheles mosquitoes were deployed from the dust.
We are not sure of the true nature of the lice, but they could just be ticks on the skin of the people. Whatever the lice were, they were a plague; it’s not a pleasant experience to have any form of insect on your skin. The plague covered the land similarly to how a sandstorm would cover the land in ancient Egypt, or even modern Egypt, and it enveloped every part of the land where there was dust, very pervasive. The passage says it was on man and beast, and that’s something to pay attention to because this is the first time a plague affected the people directly. The water turning to blood affected them, but not directly; the frogs affected them directly, but this one hit them directly on their skin, not only on human beings but also on animals.
As you know, God said to Moses that the plagues would be escalating; so this is an escalation. It is not only hitting the people directly but also their animals. This plague struck without warning; God did not say, «I’m going to do it.» Before they realized it was happening, before anybody could say «hi,» there were lice all over their skin.
What does it teach us about the nature of God’s judgment? There are two things I want you to focus on. First, it shows us the severity of God’s judgment. It is severe to come under God’s judgment; when God says He’s judging something, it’s not a joke, and it’s not child’s play. That is why we should take the warnings He gives us about eternal judgment very seriously. You can joke about judgment; you can make fun of it. However, when we face God’s judgment, which will come one day at the end of time, it is not going to be fun, and it will not be a joke. God’s judgment is severe; His mercy is everlasting, and His judgment is severe. There is coming a judgment upon the earth that we need to be aware of.
The second thing about God’s judgment is the extent of God’s judgment. It touches every place; when God is judging, in this case, it is extensive. Nobody can escape it, and that is also the nature of God’s judgment. In the final judgment, nobody can escape it. The only people who escape it are those who are in covenant with Him, who live for Him, and who love Him. But if you don’t, this judgment will hit you. May the Lord help all the peoples of our world to escape the judgment that He has been warning us about.
Let us pray. Say with me: «Heavenly Father, help me not to take Your warnings for granted. Deliver my soul from Your judgments. In Jesus' name, Amen.»