Exodus 5. Making Bricks Without Straw

Making Bricks Without Straw

• Chapter 5 is a picture of the reality of following God’s plan. It isn’t always going to be rainbows and sunshine right away, in fact it might get very worse before it gets better.

Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’” 

• Exodus 5:1 serves as the first prophetic announcement “Thus says YHWH” (even though prophecies have already happened).
• This is a different Pharaoh than the one Moses grew up with
• Moses asks what God told him to in Exodus 3:18 And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’

² But Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.” 

• Pharaoh said he did not know of YHWH but he is surrounded by Israel who worships Him. Is it that he did not know the name or had so little care for the Hebrews that he didn’t even know who they worshipped? Or was he rejecting the authority of YHWH?
• “Who is YHWH?” Well he is about to find out

³ Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God, lest he fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword.” ⁴ But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people away from their work? Get back to your burdens.” ⁵ And Pharaoh said, “Behold, the people of the land are now many, and you make them rest from their burdens!” 

• What would have been the plan if Pharaoh allowed the 3 day journey to festival? Would Moses have then asked for complete freedom?

⁶ The same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people and their foremen, 

Therefore they cry, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God.’ ⁹ Let heavier work be laid on the men that they may labor at it and pay no regard to lying words.”

• Pharaoh making the Hebrews gather their own straw could be seen as a psychological tactic by making them so weak and tired they had no hope to rebel.

¹⁰ So the taskmasters and the foremen of the people went out and said to the people, “Thus says Pharaoh, ‘I will not give you straw. ¹¹ Go and get your straw yourselves wherever you can find it, but your work will not be reduced in the least.’” ¹² So the people were scattered throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. ¹³ The taskmasters were urgent, saying, “Complete your work, your daily task each day, as when there was straw.” ¹⁴ And the foremen of the people of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten and were asked, “Why have you not done all your task of making bricks today and yesterday, as in the past?”

• Things were about to get much harder for Israel. They were now tasked to gather straw, with no time added.

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.”

• Interesting that they go to Pharaoh first- or that they were even allowed to.

²² Then Moses turned to the Lord and said, “O Lord, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? ²³ For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not delivered your people at all.”

• Israel didn’t turn to God, but Moses did. He speaks boldly to God. Although Moses should have remembered what God told him in Exodus 3:19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand.