Moses and Aaron go to Pharaoh to ask that he allow the Israelites go on a 3 day journey into the wilderness to worship their God. The Pharaoh does not know or honor God. He has many other gods of his own, plus he thinks himself a god (humanism). He accuses them of just trying to get out of work and being lazy. So, he takes away the resource of straw to make the bricks so they have to find some on their own, plus demands they make the same amount of bricks. When that cannot happen, they are beaten. They accuse Moses and Aaron of causing Pharaoh to hate them and making their lives worse. Moses goes to God and asks why He is allowing His people more harm and oppression…..why did you send me here……why are you doing nothing to rescue your people?
Application to a situation we may encounter that may not be quit as brutal, but similar. We might encounter employers in the world under the influence of Satan who burden their employees with high quotas, minimum pay, and no real benefits. When the employees want to honor God and have time set aside to worship God, it offends the wicked employer. They see it as laziness and poor work ethics. They expect their employees to work every day and be ready by phone at every moment. They begin to strongly dislike the employee and put them under review. The supervisors as well as Human Resources may begin to persecute and pressure them. Their work load is increased. If there is no obedience and consistent production, the employee is fired and without resources for survival. Things are getting worse and there seems nowhere to go. It feels like imprisonment in the cubicle. That employee of God’s chosen people may turn to God and ask…why am I here…why is this still happening…..why don’t you come to my rescue and get me out of this situation?
In the next chapter, we see that God has not forgotten His people…He is working His plan in His timing….in His way.
