Tale of the Bricks

O.T. #143  "Tale of the Bricks"
Oct. 9, 2013
Exodus 5-Part 3
And the tale of the bricks, which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon them; ye shall not diminish ought thereof: for they be idle, therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our God.  Exodus 5:8

God therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you, yet, shall ye deliver the tale of bricks.  Exodus 5;18

LET IT GLOW

Do you recall the tall tales we used to read when we were children? Ones like Paul Bunyan and Babe, Pecos Bill, and John Henry.  They were fun to read and we could use our imagination of being there with them.

Have you ever heard of the tale of bricks? I did not recall it, yet I have read through the Bible. I think of a tale as a rumor, or a made up story with a meaning.
Webster Dictionary defines a tale as a narrative of events, real or imaginary.

That is not what the Hebrew word is referring to in our two key verses, though. It is completely different from our modern use of the word tale.

According to Young's Concordance, tale (mathkoneth in Hebrew), means measure, quantity, in verse 8; it means a weight, measure, token, in verse 18.

When Moses and Aaron went to the king of Egypt, Pharaoh, they informed him what the LORD God said: Let His people go so they could hold a feast in the wilderness (which was only partly true); Let us go a three days' journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the LORD our God, lest He fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword. (verses 1 and 3)

What was Pharaoh's response to their request?

• He didn't know the LORD and he wasn't letting Israel go.
• He commanded the taskmasters (slave drivers) of the people and their officers (foremen) to no longer provide straw for making the bricks. The Hebrews were to now gather the straw used.
• He required the Hebrews to make the same number of bricks as before, not reducing the quota.
• He accused the Hebrews of being lazy, so that was why they cried out wanting to go sacrifice to their God.
• He ordered the work harder for the men so that they kept working and to pay no attention to their lies.

What resulted? The Hebrews could not maintain the same quota of bricks made as before. The taskmasters (slave drivers) beat the Israelite foremen appointed by Pharaoh's taskmasters. So the Israelite foremen went and appealed to Pharaoh. They blamed his own people for the requirements not being met. Nothing changed the king's mind.

 The foremen blamed Moses and Aaron for the added burden.
Verse 21b NIV says, You have made us a stench to Pharaoh and his officials and have put a sword in their hand to kill us.

Do things seem to go from bad to worse for you sometimes? Most likely we have all had those days.
Yesterday was mine-my new mouth piece I wear at night for TMJ wasn't ordered last week, so I have headaches and a sore jaw, enduring for another week; my glass of tea spilt on my blouse as I bent over to feed my cats (I was going to a meeting at the church); I worn my waste-length hair down and  a woman said it made me look like a witch; I had a confrontation with a friend. All that happened before noon, mind ya. But the rest of the day was okay. I had lunch with a girlfriend.


LET IT GROW

Charles Swindoll enlightens us:
Everything went wrong. Pharaoh rejected his request and tightened the screws of oppression on the Hebrews. Even his people turned against Moses blaming him for their increased labor. Moses did the right thing-he went to talk to the Lord about this.

Moses asked two familiar questions:

• Why? Moses was warned by God that matters would go from bad to worse before they got better (3:19-22). He didn't understand that the Lord was working out HIs plan in this way. The lord told Moses that under compulsion Pharaoh would let them go and drive them out of his land (6:1). The Hebrews didn't believe things would get better. ( Instead of trusting in the Word from God, they trusted in their feelings or outward appearances. Falwell)
• How? The further act of rejection sent Moses back to the Lord in prayer. Moses blamed his lack of eloquence for his failure (6:12). If he couldn't persuade his own people to listen to him, Pharaoh would not heed his words (28-30). 

Was Moses wallowing in the pits of despair? Have you ever been there with Moses?
I don't like leaving us down there, so visit tomorrow's post and read about God's response.
Don't you know it was a tale of the bricks that Moses shared with his sons and grandchildren.
Aren't you glad that Moses wrote these events down. We will see the light of hope for him.

Do we ask why or how of the Lord when things go from bad to worse for us? I think it is a human response. However, do we go to the Lord for answers to our dilemma or problem? Do we listen for His solution?

LET IT GO

Take my problems to the Lord, listening for His answer.

Keep my eyes on Jesus, not my problems.

Trust Him to work things out for my good and His glory.