Psalm 105:23-45 ~ Egypt was glad when they departed, for dread of them had fallen upon it.

Psalm 105:23-45

23 Then Israel came to Egypt;
Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham.
24 And the Lord made his people very fruitful
and made them stronger than their foes.
25 He turned their hearts to hate his people,
to deal craftily with his servants.

26 He sent Moses, his servant,
and Aaron, whom he had chosen.
27 They performed his signs among them
and miracles in the land of Ham.
28 He sent darkness, and made the land dark;
they did not rebel against his words.
29 He turned their waters into blood
and caused their fish to die.
30 Their land swarmed with frogs,
even in the chambers of their kings.
31 He spoke, and there came swarms of flies,
and gnats throughout their country.
32 He gave them hail for rain,
and fiery lightning bolts through their land.
33 He struck down their vines and fig trees,
and shattered the trees of their country.
34 He spoke, and the locusts came,
young locusts without number,
35 which devoured all the vegetation in their land
and ate up the fruit of their ground.
36 He struck down all the firstborn in their land,
the first fruits of all their strength.

37 Then he brought out Israel with silver and gold,
and there was none among his tribes who stumbled.
38 Egypt was glad when they departed,
for dread of them had fallen upon it.

39 He spread a cloud for a covering,
and fire to give light by night.
40 They asked, and he brought quail,
and gave them bread from heaven in abundance.
41 He opened the rock, and water gushed out;
it flowed through the desert like a river.
42 For he remembered his holy promise,
and Abraham, his servant.

43 So he brought his people out with joy,
his chosen ones with singing.
44 And he gave them the lands of the nations,
and they took possession of the fruit of the peoples' toil,
45 that they might keep his statutes
and observe his laws.
Praise the Lord!

When the children of the Israel leave slavery, they leave in style. In the shadow of God's glory!

Many years after Egypt, the children of God were returning from being slaves in Babylon. King Cyrus of Babylon decreed he would rebuild the Temple of God in Jerusalem. He would return the former slaves to freedom with gold & silver from their former masters and King Cyrus would personally account for all the return of each of the golden Temple Tools. Ezra 1:2-8.

What would it look like to have been Egyptian - to have seen the plagues - to see the former slaves leave with gold & silver given by former masters - to have seen the powerful Pharaoh brought down, who had been revered as a god? The Ipuwer Papyrus, found near the pyramids of Saqqara in Memphis, Egypt, have survived since circa 14th century B.C. (Before Christ, still). Ipuwer now resides in a museum of Leiden in the Netherlands. This particular person saw the Exodus as a failure of government to plan effectively. Interestingly, each time Pharaoh is mentioned, the name has been obliterated. Never before, this letter says, has a Pharaoh been so defeated.

What were some of the problems mentioned? 1. The Nile turned to blood 2. Reptiles began to excessively breed. 3. Hail killed all the crops in the field. 4. Later hail was mingled with fire, the fire ran upon the ground. 5. not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the fields, through all the land of Egypt. 6. the crops of the fields were destroyed in a single day. 7. All animals, their hearts weep. Cattle moan... (Exodus 9:3..Papyrus 5:5). 8. Papyrus 9:11 The land is without light. 10. The statues of the gods fell and broke in pieces. 11..He who places his brother in the ground is everywhere. (Papyrus 2:13, 4:4...Exodus 12:30).

Papyrus 4:2 Forsooth, great and small say: I wish I might die.
5:14f. Would that there might be an end of men, no conception, no birth! Oh, that the earth would cease from noise, and tumult be no more! The escaped slaves hurried across the border of the country. By day a column of smoke went before them in the sky; by night it was a pillar of fire.

Servants abandoning their subordinate status, Papyrus 3:14–4:1,6:7–8, 10:2–3.
Ipuwer Papyrus 1: “The plunderer is everywhere, and the servant takes ”

Papyrus 2: “Indeed, poor men have become wealthy.”

Papyrus 3: “Gold, silver and jewels are fastened to the necks of female slaves.”

Ipuwer Papyrus 5: “Slaves (who have now been freed) are throughout the land.”

Papyrus 10: “The king’s storehouse has now become common property.”


It seems comical, and rather endearing, humanity has not changed in all these millenniums; the writer of the Ipuwer Papyrus concludes while no other Pharoah has ever been defeated by so many disasters - it ended Pharoah's life - this could have been prevented if only the government had planned better. The writer continues by saying, a government as strong as Egypt should be better prepared & hopes these catastrophes will not be allowed to go unsupported in the future.

Not only was Egypt glad when the children of Israel departed, they hoped for better government in the future.

Father God, help us to see clearly the events of our lives as You would have them be seen. We ask You each day for the blessing of wisdom as we rely upon You. In the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.

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