The God Who Draws Lines Text: Exodus 8:20-32
Introduction: No Neutral Ground
We are in the midst of a great cosmic war. This is not a war of equals, not a contest between two rival powers. It is the war between the Creator of all things and one of His obstinate, stiff-necked creatures who has set himself up as a god. Pharaoh is not just a king; he is the embodiment of the pagan state, the man who claims total sovereignty. And the ten plagues are not simply a series of unfortunate ecological disasters. They are targeted, theological strikes against the gods of Egypt. Each plague is a public humiliation of a specific Egyptian deity, demonstrating that Yahweh alone is God. The Nile god, the frog goddess, and so on, are all being systematically dismantled. This is God proving, in the public square, that every idol is a fraud.
The central issue, from the beginning, has been worship. "Let My people go, that they may serve Me." The goal of deliverance is doxology. The purpose of freedom is to rightly order our worship. Pharaoh, the rival god, wants to keep God's people in bondage so that they will serve him, building his treasure cities. Yahweh, the true God, is liberating His people so that they might serve Him in the wilderness. There is no third option. You will either build treasure cities for Pharaoh or you will build a Tabernacle for Yahweh. You will serve a tyrant, or you will serve the living God. There is no neutral ground.
In this fourth plague, the plague of flies, God introduces a new and crucial element into His confrontation with Pharaoh. Up to this point, the plagues have afflicted both Egyptians and Hebrews alike. But now, God is going to draw a line in the sand. He is going to make a distinction. This plague is not just about judgment; it is about election. It is about God setting His people apart, not just for salvation, but as a sign to the watching world. This distinction is the central lesson of this passage. God saves His people, and He does so in a way that forces the world to acknowledge that He is God, and that He is present and active in the midst of the land.
The Text
And Yahweh said to Moses, “Rise early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh as he comes out to the water, and you shall say to him, ‘Thus says Yahweh, “Let My people go, that they may serve Me. For if you do not let My people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies on you and on your servants and on your people and into your houses; and the houses of the Egyptians will be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground on which they stand. But on that day I will make a distinction for the land of Goshen, where My people are living, so that no swarms of flies will be there, that you may know that I, Yahweh, am in the midst of the land. And I will put a division between My people and your people. Tomorrow this sign will happen.” ’ ” Then Yahweh did so. And there came heavy swarms of flies into the house of Pharaoh and the houses of his servants, and the land was laid waste because of the swarms of flies in all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God within the land.” But Moses said, “It is not right to do so, for we will sacrifice to Yahweh our God what is an abomination to the Egyptians. If we sacrifice what is an abomination to the Egyptians before their eyes, will they not then stone us? We must go a three days’ journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to Yahweh our God as He says to us.” And Pharaoh said, “I will let you go, that you may sacrifice to Yahweh your God in the wilderness; only you shall not go very far away. Entreat for me.” Then Moses said, “Behold, I am going out from you, and I shall entreat Yahweh that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people tomorrow; only may Pharaoh not deal deceitfully again in not letting the people go to sacrifice to Yahweh.” So Moses went out from Pharaoh and entreated Yahweh. And Yahweh did according to the word of Moses and caused the swarms of flies to depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; not one remained. Then Pharaoh hardened his heart with firmness this time also, and he did not let the people go.
(Exodus 8:20-32)
The Divine Distinction (vv. 20-24)
The confrontation begins with the now-familiar demand and a new, specified threat.
"For if you do not let My people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies on you... But on that day I will make a distinction for the land of Goshen, where My people are living, so that no swarms of flies will be there, that you may know that I, Yahweh, am in the midst of the land." (Exodus 8:21-22)
The first three plagues were general. They fell on the whole land. This was a necessary first step. Israel was in bondage, and they needed to be reminded that they too were under the judgment of God apart from His grace. They needed to feel the sting of the curse before they could appreciate the wonder of the deliverance. But now the lesson shifts. God is not just a generic deity with power over nature. He is the covenant God of a particular people.
The word for "make a distinction" here is a powerful one. It means to set apart, to make separate, to treat as wonderful or special. This is the doctrine of election made visible. God is drawing a geographical and spiritual line. On one side, judgment. On the other, salvation. The land of Goshen becomes a type of the church, an ark of safety in the midst of a world under God's wrath. And notice the stated purpose: "that you may know that I, Yahweh, am in the midst of the land." This is not a secret, private salvation. It is a public demonstration. God's election of His people is a sign to Pharaoh, a sign to the world, that He is not some distant, tribal god. He is present and sovereign right here, in Egypt, on Pharaoh's home turf.
God puts a "division" or a "redemption" between His people and Pharaoh's people. The line is drawn. There is no longer any middle ground. You are either in Goshen or you are under the swarm. When God acts, He creates division. He separates light from darkness, the clean from the unclean, the sheep from the goats. Our modern, effeminate sensibilities hate this. We want a God who blurs lines, who embraces everyone without distinction. But the God of the Bible is a God who distinguishes. He chooses. And His choice is our only hope.
The Compromise of Syncretism (vv. 25-27)
The plague comes just as God said, and the land is ruined. This brings Pharaoh to the negotiating table for the first time. But his offer is a trap.
"And Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron and said, 'Go, sacrifice to your God within the land.'" (Exodus 8:25)
This is the classic temptation of compromise. It is the offer of syncretism. Pharaoh is saying, "Fine, you can have your religion. You can worship your God. Just do it here, within my system. Do it on my terms. Incorporate your Yahweh into our pantheon." This is the deal the world always offers the church. "You can be Christians, as long as your Christianity remains a private hobby that doesn't challenge the fundamental assumptions of our culture. Worship Jesus, but do it in a way that doesn't offend our gods of sexual autonomy, materialism, and state supremacy."
Moses's refusal is absolute and instructive. "It is not right to do so." Why? Because true worship of Yahweh is an "abomination to the Egyptians." The Hebrews would be sacrificing animals, likely sheep or cattle, that the Egyptians held as sacred. Their very act of worship would be a direct polemic against the Egyptian religion. It would be an act of war. To do it "before their eyes" would be to invite persecution, to be stoned. True worship is never neutral. It always confronts and offends the idols of the age. If your worship is perfectly acceptable to the world, if it is not in some way an abomination to the Egyptians, you are probably doing it wrong.
Moses insists on separation. "We must go a three days' journey into the wilderness." Worship must be on God's terms ("as He says to us") and in God's place. The three-day journey signifies a complete break. It is a death, burial, and resurrection. You have to leave Egypt behind entirely to worship God rightly.
The Compromise of Proximity (vv. 28-32)
Pharaoh, seeing his first offer rejected, tries another tactic. He offers a second, more subtle compromise.
"And Pharaoh said, 'I will let you go... only you shall not go very far away. Entreat for me.'" (Exodus 8:28)
This is the compromise of proximity. "Alright, you can leave the system, but don't go too far. Stay on the leash. Stay within my sphere of influence." This is the temptation to be a worldly Christian, to leave Egypt but to set up camp just outside the city limits where you can still enjoy the sights and smells. It is an attempt to have the benefits of deliverance without the radical separation that true worship requires.
And notice Pharaoh's request: "Entreat for me." The unrepentant man wants the benefits of God's mercy without submitting to God's authority. He wants the flies gone, but he doesn't want Yahweh as his king. He sees prayer as a transaction, a way to manipulate the deity to get what he wants. He wants Moses the intercessor, but he rejects Moses the lawgiver. People still do this today. They want Jesus the healer, Jesus the provider, Jesus the therapist. But they do not want Jesus the Lord.
Moses agrees to pray, but he warns Pharaoh not to deal deceitfully again. The prayer works. God, in His common grace, relents. The relief is total and immediate. "Not one remained." This demonstrates God's absolute control, both in sending the judgment and in removing it. But what is the result? "Pharaoh hardened his heart with firmness this time also." The respite, the moment of mercy, did not produce repentance in Pharaoh. It only served to confirm him in his rebellion. The sun that melts the wax also hardens the clay. God's mercy, when it is not received with a soft heart of faith, becomes an instrument of hardening for the heart of stone.
Goshen is the Church
This entire episode is a paradigm for the people of God in every age. We are living in Egypt. The world system, with its rulers and its false gods, is Pharaoh's kingdom. And we who are in Christ have been set apart in the land of Goshen.
The world is under judgment. The swarms are flying. The culture is being laid waste by its rebellion against God. We see it in the breakdown of the family, the confusion of identities, the corruption of our institutions. This is not random chaos. This is the judgment of God. But in the midst of it all, God has drawn a line. He has set apart His people. The Church is our Goshen. It is the place of distinction, the place of redemption, the place of safety under the Lordship of Christ.
But because we live in Goshen, surrounded by Egypt, we will constantly be faced with Pharaoh's offers of compromise. The world will always try to entice us to worship God "within the land." It will tell us to make our faith compatible with paganism, to sacrifice in a way that is not an abomination to the Egyptians. It will tell us that if we must leave, we should not go "very far away."
Our response must be that of Moses. We must insist on a clean break. Our worship, our lives, our families, and our schools must be ordered according to God's Word, not the world's terms. This will be offensive. It will be an abomination to them. But it is life to us. We have been called out of Egypt, not to camp on the border, but to journey into the wilderness to worship our God as He commands. Christ is our Moses who has led us out. He is our mediator whose intercession saves us from the plague. And He is the one who has purchased our redemption, making a final and eternal division between His people and the people of this world. We are in Goshen by grace. Let us live like it.