Let us turn now in our Bibles to the Old Testament, to the book of Exodus, the eighth chapter. Exodus, chapter eight. We'll read the entire chapter. Nile is turned into blood. And now we come to chapter 8 and read the entire chapter where there are the plague of frogs, lice, and flies. And the Lord spake unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Let my people go, that they may serve me. And if thou refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all thy borders with frogs. And the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into thine house, and into thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and into the house of thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thine ovens, and into thy kneading troughs. And the frog shall come up both on thee and upon thy people and upon all thy servants. And the Lord spake unto Moses, say unto Aaron, stretch forth thine hand with thy rod over the streams, over the rivers and over the ponds and cause frogs to come up upon the land of Egypt. And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt And the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt. And the magicians did so with their enchantments and brought up frogs upon the land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron and said, and treat the Lord that he may take away the frogs from me and from my people. And I will let the people go that they may do sacrifice unto the Lord. And Moses said unto Pharaoh, glory over me, when I shall entreat for thee and for thy servants and for thy people to destroy the frogs from thee and thy houses, that they may remain in the river only. And he said, tomorrow, and he said, be it according to thy word that thou mayest know that there is none like unto the Lord our God. And the frog shall depart from thee and from thy houses, and from thy servants, and from thy people. They shall remain in the river only.' And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried unto the Lord, because of the frogs which he had brought against Pharaoh. And the Lord did according to the word of Moses, and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the villages, and out of the fields. And they gathered them together upon heaps, and the land stank. But when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart and hearkened not unto them as the Lord had said. And the Lord said unto Moses, say unto Aaron, stretch out thy rod and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt. And they did so. For Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod and smote the dust of the earth and it became lice in man and in beast. all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt. And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not. So there were lice upon man and upon beasts. Then the magician said unto Pharaoh, this is the finger of God. And Pharaoh's heart was hardened and he hearkened not unto them as the Lord had said. And the Lord said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh. Lo, he cometh forth to the water and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Let my people go, that they may serve me. Else, if thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee and upon thy servants and upon thy people and into thy houses. and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are. And I will sever in that day the land of Goshen in which my people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall be there, to the end that thou mayest know that I am the Lord in the midst of the earth. And I will put a division between my people and thy people, Tomorrow shall this sign be. And the Lord did so. And there came a grievous swarm of flies into the house of Pharaoh and into his servants' houses and into all the land of Egypt. The land was corrupted by reason of the swarm of flies. And Pharaoh called for Moses and for Aaron and said, Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land. And Moses said, It is not meet so to do for we shall sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians to the Lord our God. Oh, shall we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes and will they not stone us? We will go three days journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the Lord our God as he shall command us. And Pharaoh said, I will let you go that she may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness only He shall not go very far away and treat for me. And Moses said, behold, I will go. Behold, I go out from thee and I will entreat the Lord that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants and from his people tomorrow. But let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully anymore in letting the people go to sacrifice to the Lord. And Moses went out from Pharaoh and entreated the Lord. And the Lord did according to the word of Moses. And he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people. There remained not one. And Pharaoh hardened his heart. At this time also, neither would he let the people go." We can't look at everything in this chapter, but we do hope to consider these three plagues and then draw some application. And I want to especially draw your attention to verse 19a. Then the magician said unto Pharaoh, this is the finger of God. Dear boys and girls, how strong are your fingers? What do you do with your fingers? We can do all kinds of things with our fingers. We take up a pen with our fingers and we write or We color with pencil crayons. We can do intricate things with our fingers. We open doors with our fingers. We use tools with our fingers. Some people have very strong fingers and strong hands. I'm wondering, what can you carry with one finger? I read of someone who lifted a 268-pound weight with one finger. But who can bring judgments with his finger? Who can bring plagues with his finger? Only God can. That's what the Egyptian magicians say in Exodus 8 verse 19. This is the finger of God. And that's what you can write over the sermon this morning. This is the finger of God. We'll see three things. First of all, the devastation God brings. Secondly, the declaration God affects. and thirdly, the division God makes. This is the finger of God, the devastation God brings, the declaration God affects, and thirdly, the division God makes. Seven days had passed after the Lord had turned the river into blood. But a river of blood did not bring Pharaoh to his knees before the Lord. He refused to repent and he refused to let the people of Israel go to worship their God. But still God demanded the unconditional release of his people. And Pharaoh has issued another solemn warning that if he will not let the people of Israel go, Egypt will be plagued with frogs. And that's what happened. Moses and Aaron returned to Pharaoh, and Aaron did as the Lord commanded. He stretched out his hand with his staff over the waters of Egypt, and frogs come up out of the Nile River. This river of blood in which all the fish had died suddenly began to team with life again in the form of thousands and millions of frogs. Now maybe, boys and girls, maybe you think that frogs are cute little creatures. And they are, in a certain sense. And they're amazing jumpers and swimmers. And they're harmless little creatures, in a sense. But no one wants to be overrun by them. And that's exactly what happened in Egypt. Frogs. came out of the rivers of Egypt, out of the canals, out of the streams, out of the ponds, and they hopped everywhere. They hopped right into the houses of the people. Pharaoh's soldiers could not keep the frogs out of the palace. There were too many of them. They were outnumbered. Yes, the frogs outnumbered the citizens of Egypt. They overpowered the soldiers of Egypt. There were frogs everywhere. They hopped into every nook and cranny in their kitchens and in their bedrooms. They even went into their hot dry ovens. They went into their beds. Imagine that, boys and girls. Frogs in your bedsheets. Frogs on your pillow. Frogs everywhere. What a judgment of God! Matthew Henry says, God has many ways of disquieting those that live at ease. There is no avoiding divine judgment when it is sent by God. God is at work to disquiet those that are at ease. And there is no avoiding His judgments. The magicians of Egypt They were able to imitate this plague. They conjured up more frogs, as if Egypt needed more frogs. But the magicians, you see, could not command the frogs to vanish. They could not order the frogs to leave, and the frogs would remain in Egypt until God removed them. And Pharaoh begins to understand this. That's why he summoned Moses and Aaron and asks for prayer in verse 8. Entreat the Lord that he may take away the frogs from me and from my people and I will let the people go that they may do sacrifice unto the Lord. Did you hear that? Pharaoh's asking for prayer. Pray for me. Pray for us. He, remember, who before had spoken with contempt for the Lord and for Moses, now is thankful for the power of God and the prayers of a man of God. Matthew Henry says something like this, those that bid defiance to God and prayer in a day of extremity will see their need for entreaty. Those who have despised prayer And the God who hears and answers prayer will see their need for prayer sooner or later. Moses asked, when should I pray for this? Pharaoh answers, tomorrow. Really? Tomorrow? Why not today, Pharaoh? Did Pharaoh maybe hope that the plague would end yet on its own? Or did he think that it would take some time for God to answer? Whatever the reason, it seems to me that Pharaoh is not desperate enough. Yes, Moses did pray for relief. He cried to the Lord, and the Lord did what Moses asked, and the frogs died. They died all over the land of Egypt, and their bodies were piled into heaps of rotting, stinking flesh. And Pharaoh hardened his heart and would not let the people of Israel go. So God sent the next plague, the third plague. Aaron must stretch out his staff and strike the dust of the ground, and the dust will become lice. And when Aaron did so, the dust of the ground, imagine that, boys and girls, began to start moving. And lice came up on both animals and people. Now, lice are not nice. They are these insects that live and feed on the bodies of people and animals. They bite, they hurt, they itch, they burrow into the flesh and lay eggs in the hair of their hosts. They cause weakness and sickness and madness. They drive people crazy with their itching and scratching. And once a place is infected with lice, it's almost impossible to get rid of them. But God has sent the lice. And someone has said, with every bite, these tiny torturers had a message. Let my people go. The Egyptian magicians tried to do likewise, but they couldn't. They could not create lice, and they couldn't destroy lice. They struck the ground with their staffs maybe, just as Aaron had done, but nothing happened. Satan could only do what God allows him to do. Satan can only do what God gives permission for him to do. And when God does not permit him to do something, then Satan is powerless and the magicians explain. This is the finger of God. We hope to come back to this. And Pharaoh's heart is hardened, again. And he would not listen. And maybe Pharaoh thought he was winning this war against God because, well, he had resisted and withstood God for three plagues already. He had not surrendered to God's demand. But Pharaoh was deceived. No one can fight against God. and win. And then comes the fourth plague. Moses warned Pharaoh the Lord would send swarms of flies upon them and the flies would crawl over Pharaoh and his people. The king too would not be spared. Their homes would be full of flies. Even the ground would be covered with masses of crawling, buzzing flies. And this plague would be different from the other plagues because Verse 23 tells us that the Lord would spare His people. There would be no flies in Goshen, but in Egypt they would swarm. And I don't know if these were regular flies or dog flies or deer flies which would bite the people. Psalm 78 verse 45 says of this plague that He sent diverse sorts of flies among them which devoured them. That's what the Lord did. What devastation! God brought. What devastation God brought. We're meant to see that. Then and now, in the words of Psalm 46 verse 8, come behold the works of the Lord, what desolations He has made in the earth. He brings desolation in the earth, devastation. Joseph Hall says, see what desolations the Lord hath wrought in all the earth, desolations by wars, desolations by famine, desolations by plague and pestilence, desolations by flood, desolations in battles, desolations by wild beasts, desolations by swarms of obnoxious and noisy creatures, desolations of all kind. Whoever the instrument is, God is the author. The devastation He brings. And from those devastations, we're meant to see the hand and the finger of God. And that's our second point, the declaration God affects. The declaration God affects. That's what we find in our text verse, verse 19. The dust of Egypt. had turned into lice, biting lice, itchy lice. And when the Egyptian magicians tried to do the same thing, they couldn't. They couldn't create lice, and they couldn't destroy lice. They struck the ground, but nothing happened. God had given Satan permission to imitate several plagues, remember? But not this one. And when God doesn't give Satan permission, then Satan is powerless, and the magicians stand still, and they explain to Pharaoh, this is the finger of God. That's their confession. That's their declaration. They say to Pharaoh, this is God's doing. This is the finger of God. Let's stand still. at this confession. This is the finger of God. Now, of course, God is a spirit. He doesn't have a body like us. But while He doesn't have literal fingers like us, it's a way of speaking about the power and greatness of God. It's a way of speaking about His activity and that He's almighty. And it's meant to be a warning. If this is what the finger of God can do, beware of an angry blow by the mighty hand of God and by His stretched out arm. If this is a mere touch of God's punishment, how dreadful would be the weight of His anger unleashed on us. Don't we need to stand still at this, dear congregation? Don't we have to reckon with the finger of God? A year has passed since the lockdowns in the Wuhan province in China. And while a year has passed, the world is in deep crisis. I found a sermon by J.C. Ryle on this very text, Exodus 8. Verse 19, he wrote that sermon during the great cattle plague of Egypt that lasted from 1865 to 1867. I'd like to draw upon what J.C. Ryle has said in his sermon and apply it to us, to our times. He says that that's about a cattle plague. It's a great calamity among us, a heavy calamity among us, a widespread calamity, a perplexing calamity, he says, that baffles the abilities of men and governments and rulers. And where does this plague come from? Where does this calamity come from? From the finger of God. He has sent this scourge upon us. Who sent the flood in the days of Noah? God did. Who sent the famine in the days of Joseph? God did. Who sent the plagues on Egypt? God did. Who sent disease on the Philistines when the ark was among them? God did. Who sent the pestilence in the days of David? God did. Who sent the famine in the days of Elisha? God did. Shall we deny the providence of God over our world? Does He not govern all things in our world, including wars, famines, pestilence, cattle plagues, then and now? In the words of Amos 3 verse 6, shall there be evil in the city and the Lord hath not hath not done this? We're not going to deny the providence of God, are we? Whatever our own opinion of this virus may be, this is the finger of God. What other cause can be given? What other explanation can be given? This plague is the finger of God. And then we need to ask, as J.C. Ryle says, why has the Lord sent it upon us? Why is he centered upon our world? Why is he centered upon us in our communities? Do we think about that? Is it not because of many things which are among us which displease him? He sends plagues like this, viruses like this, to awaken us to a sense of our sin. What are some of our sins? Oh, rileless sin, sin of covetousness, the love of money, the desire to be rich in the world, luxury and the love of pleasure. Never was there a time when people ran so eagerly after excitement, amusement, gratification of their senses. Many are lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God. You ever think about that in your own life? Are we lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God? Trying to gratify our senses? Covetous? Isn't that a reason for God to send a plague? Or think of the neglect of the Lord's Day. You have greatly polluted my Sabbaths. There's the sin of drunkenness. We've forgotten that no drunkard shall inherit the kingdom of God, 1 Corinthians 6 verse 10. And immorality. How much do people not pursue impurity? Entertain adulterous thoughts? Sinful lusts and pleasures? On top of that, skepticism and unbelief. People ignore God. People ignore the Bible. People don't read the Bible. Nothing is so offensive, Ryle says, as dishonoring and disregarding the Word of God. This is the finger of God. Is there nothing in our lives that makes us be still and recognize that this is the finger of God, and what does this plague call us to do? It calls us to several things. It calls us to consider our ways. Yes, we need to think. We need to reflect on the Lord and on ourselves and what we've done. And we have to humble ourselves before God and acknowledge His hand. We're proud people. We're self-conceited. We're inclined to think that we know the answers, that we're the wisest, that we're the greatest, that we're the richest, that we're the bravest people in the world. We're so blind to our many faults and to our own sins. Surely, when God's hand is so plainly stretched out against us, it's high time to give up this boastful spirit. Shall we not remember that God hates pride? Let us endeavor to break off, Ryle says, with our besetting sins. Amend our ways. It's easy work, he says, to find fault with the government. It's easy to blame others when we're in trouble. That's what Ryle says. When the better course is to look within and to repent for our own sins. and let us resolve to give ourselves to prayer to God for the removal of His judgment upon us. If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land, to Chronicles 7, verse 13 and 14. Shall we not take our trials and our burdens to the Lord. Shall we not bring them to Him, also in these perplexing times, to the Lord Jesus, the friend and advocate of sinners, who says, call upon me in the day of trouble. I will deliver thee and thou shalt glorify me. Don't we need that? Don't we desire that? Shall we not take these things to heart? This is the finger of God. Should we not remember the work of His fingers? Psalm 8 verse 3. That finger of God that lifts Him high is meant to bring us low. And should we not remember that our fists of rebellion are no match for the finger and power of God? And should we not seek to know the power and grace of the Lord Jesus who cast out demons with the finger of God Remember how he took, as Pastor Klaver preached about last week, took that deaf and mute man, put his fingers into the man's ears and healed him. Don't we need those fingers of grace and power in our lives? Has his fingers cleared out the grime and dirt of sin and death in our lives, enabling us to hear and to see? Don't we need His fingers in mercy? Or will His judgments come over us and devastate you? What a blessing when we see the finger of God and we bow before the hand of God and we take our sins to Him and He shows us His nail-pierced hands in mercy in the gospel. Have you learned to recognize, dear congregation, the finger of God? Is this your confession in love and in truth? Or does it do nothing to you? There's the devastation God brings. Secondly, the declaration God affects. And thirdly, the division God makes. That came during the fourth plague. a swarm of flies. There would be no flies in the land of Goshen, verse 22, 23. Verse 23, the Lord says, and I will put a division between my people and thy people. It's the first time that this is mentioned. That implies that the people of Israel suffered under the first three plagues, just like the people of Egypt. Their water Supplies, too, must have turned into blood. They, too, must have suffered from the frogs and from the lice. There was no difference between the people of Egypt and the people of Israel during the first three plagues. The Israelites had to suffer with the same things as the Egyptians. And Ecclesiastes 9 verse 2 says, There is one event to the righteous and to the wicked, to the good, to the clean and to the unclean. Yes, Egypt and Israel experienced the same plagues, at least for the first three. And Israel deserved that too, didn't they? They were no better than the Egyptians. The Hebrew people were fallen guilty sinners, sons of Adam. They had been drawn in by the idols of Egypt. Joshua 24 verse 14 will explain. They'd been marked by unbelief. They had complained. They had murmured. They had set themselves against the appointed leaders of God, Moses and Aaron. And when God sent the frogs, then he sent the frogs into the land of Goshen too. And when he sent the lice, he sent the lice into the land of Goshen too. And there are times when God's judgments run through the earth and both the godly and the ungodly are affected. When God's judgments go through the earth, both the righteous and the unrighteous suffer. That's why we do well to remember the words of Psalm 130, verse 3. If thou shouldest mark transgressions, who can stand? You felt this? That counts for you too? Counts for all of us? Do we realize It's not only the world that deserves the plagues and judgments of God, but the church does too? Do we see that we deserve the plagues and judgments of God because of our sins? With all the knowledge that we have, the light that the Lord has given, the gospel that has come to us for years? Yes. The first three plagues came upon Egypt and Israel alike. And maybe Pharaoh thought with these opening three plagues that the Lord wasn't even able to protect his people, that the Lord wasn't even Defending his people, he wasn't even sparing his own people these judgments. But then the fourth plague came, the swarm of flies, and God brought division. The swarm of flies came over all Egypt, but not into Goshen. Imagine that. While the people of Egypt are covered with flies in Egypt, there's no plague of flies in Goshen. Goshen is a no-fly zone for the flies. And God placed His hand between Egypt and Goshen so that the people of God are not troubled by the plague. What an undeserved blessing. What a reason for gratitude. And when the fifth plague of the deadly disease comes upon the cattle of Egypt, then the cattle of the Hebrews are spared, Exodus 9 verse 4. There were thousands of dead animals belonging to the Egyptians, but the animals of the Hebrews were spared. And when the plague of hail fell upon Egypt, huge hailstones that beat furiously upon everything, Hebrews 9 verse 26 says that the people of Israel had no hail in their borders. And when thick darkness came upon Egypt, then chapter 10 verse 23 says so simply, But the children of Israel had light in their dwellings. And in the tenth plague, the firstborn of the Hebrews were spared while the firstborn of the Egyptians died. How good the Lord is. He doesn't deal with us after our sins, is what Israel would have to say. God takes it up for His people. And they can feel what Psalm 91 says. He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress, my God. In Him I will trust. Surely He shall deliver thee from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night, nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness, nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side and ten thousand at thy right hand, but it shall not come nigh thee. There are times when God's people can feel that and sense the protecting care of the Let's be honest, sickness is unavoidable. And there's a time and place for regulations to try and curb a sickness, but you can't stop it. Only when God holds it back. And God held it back at Goshen. God held back hail at Goshen. God gave light in the homes of Israel when everywhere else in Egypt it was dark. He governs all things and nothing happens by chance. All things come by His fatherly will. He sends plagues and He keeps plagues away. He can give sickness and He can protect us from sickness. Lord's Day 10 says that rain and drought, fruitful and barren years, sickness and health, and all things come from His fatherly hand. All that happens is under His control. And that gives reason, whether sick or healthy, to worship Him and to bow before Him. And do you do that? Has the finger of God and the hand of God brought you to bow down before Him, to worship Him for who He is and what He does? Sickness and health, riches and poverty. Yes, God's people get sick too. Soldiers who are true Christians die on the battlefield too. God's people endure hardships. There are times when you can hardly notice a difference between what the godly experience and what the ungodly experience, what the righteous go through and what the unrighteous go through. The same things happen to both of them. But the Lord makes a difference. He makes a division. And soon that division will be for all the world to see at the judgment seat of the great white throne. The sheep will be separated from the goats. The one will be sent to the left, the other to the right. Why? Was the one better than the other? No. Blood made the difference. God's people are delivered through blood. And then you see the great separation actually takes place not at the great white throne on the day of judgment. The great separation takes place at the old rugged cross where the one turns for mercy and the other turns away. in unbelief. The separation takes place at the cross now. Have you learned to bow there? Have you learned to shelter there? Or do you turn away in unbelief, in unrepentance, hardening your heart? Or does the Lord bless the gospel, preaching by His Holy Spirit so that you see, this is where the finger of God is pointing me to, the cross of Golgotha. He's pointing me to the Lamb of God, the cross of Jesus. That's where sin is taken away. That's where I can shelter with my guilt and sin and trials and find shelter and peace learn to bow and worship for the sake of the Lord Jesus. Amen. Let us give thanks and pray. O most good-doing, gracious Lord, help us to be still and know that Thou art God in the midst of the judgments sent around this world, in famine, in war, in pestilences, that has much of our world in lockdown. Whether or not that's the right response is not for us to decide. But thou art speaking to us in these times and how dreadful when we would push away thy finger and not let it press us down and say thy hand was heavy upon me. and to confess our own sins and iniquities and family sins and congregational sins. Lord, bring us not just to make the declaration stoically or coldly, and maybe even in unbelief, but with love and humility, pointing to Thy hand and pointing to Thy cross, finding there is the life and the salvation that we need. and grant that that division may come by grace, that thy people are sheltering in the cross of Jesus, and they may find themselves safe there even when they do become sick, and even when they have to suffer, and even though a host should encamp against them, they may know their safety and security is in the Lord Jesus. and nothing will happen outside of Thy will and that for the glory of Thy name and the good of Thy people. Remember us further this day in our own families and homes. Help us to meditate on Thee, to speak well of Thee. Forgive our sins in preaching and in listening. We thank Thee for giving Thy servant a voice to preach. Remember us further. take away our sins, blot them out in Jesus, in whose name we pray, Amen.