The Lord Sends Moses and Aaron Again to Pharaoh

7:1 So the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet. 7:2 You are to speak everything I command you, and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh that he must release the Israelites from his land. 7:3 But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and although I will multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt, 7:4 Pharaoh will not listen to you. I will reach into Egypt and bring out my regiments, my people the Israelites, from the land of Egypt with great acts of judgment. 7:5 Then the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord, when I extend my hand over Egypt and bring the Israelites out from among them. 7:6 And Moses and Aaron did so; they did just as the Lord commanded them. 7:7 Now Moses was eighty years old and Aaron was eighty-three years old when they spoke to Pharaoh.

Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible®, copyright ©1996, 2019 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

The Lord sends Moses and Aaron back to Pharaoh with a clear command. Moses will speak God’s words, Aaron will speak for Moses, and Pharaoh will refuse. Yet God will use that refusal to show his power, judge Egypt, and bring Israel out.

The Lord gives Moses a new commissioning before Pharaoh. Moses is given a special representative role, and Aaron is to serve as his spokesman. Moses must say only what the Lord commands, and Aaron must tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go.

The Lord also says that Pharaoh will not listen. God will harden Pharaoh’s heart and multiply signs and wonders in Egypt. This does not mean the rescue has failed. It means God is carrying out his purpose through Pharaoh’s resistance. The Lord will bring his people out through great acts of judgment, and the Egyptians will know that he is the Lord.

The passage ends with a brief record of obedience. Moses and Aaron did exactly what the Lord commanded. Their ages are also given, showing that this work depends on God’s strength, not human power or youth.

• God speaks with authority and sends his servants with his command.
• Moses is God’s appointed representative before Pharaoh.
• Aaron acts as Moses’ spokesman.
• Pharaoh will refuse to listen.
• God will harden Pharaoh’s heart and use that resistance for his purpose.
• The signs and wonders in Egypt will display God’s power.
• God will judge Egypt and bring Israel out.
• The Egyptians will know that the Lord is the Lord.
• Faithful servants obey what God commands.
• The ages of Moses and Aaron show that deliverance comes by God’s power, not human strength.

• You are to speak everything I command you.
• Your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh that he must release the Israelites from his land.
• Pharaoh will not listen to you.
• God will harden Pharaoh’s heart.
• The Lord will bring out his people with great acts of judgment.
• The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.
• Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord commanded them.

This passage continues the Lord’s saving plan for Israel. It moves the exodus story forward from earlier discouragement to the coming plagues. It shows the Lord keeping his covenant purpose to bring Abraham’s descendants out of Egypt. It also reveals that God uses judgment on Egypt to make his name known and to free his people.

God’s servants may be sent into hard places with only his word. Opposition does not mean God has failed. Sometimes resistance is part of how God shows his power. This passage also warns that repeated refusal of God’s word hardens the heart. The right response is obedience, even when results are not yet visible.

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