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Spiritual Gifts, Volume 3
was superior to all others. That his name might be declared throughout
all the earth, he would give exemplary and demonstrative proof to all
nations of his divine power and justice. It was the design of God that
these exhibitions of his power should strengthen the faith of his people,
and that their posterity should steadfastly worship him alone who had
wrought such merciful wonders in their behalf.
The miracle of the rod becoming a serpent, and the river being
turned to blood, did not move the hard heart of Pharaoh, only to
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increase his hatred of the Israelites. The work of the magicians led him
to believe that these miracles were performed by magic. But he had
abundant evidence that this was not the case when the plague of frogs
was removed. God could have caused them to disappear, and return
to dust in a moment; but he did not do this, lest after they should be
removed, the king and the Egyptians should say that it was the result
of magic, like the work of the magicians. They died, and then they
gathered them together into heaps. Their bodies they could see before
them, and they corrupted the atmosphere. Here the king, and all Egypt,
had evidences which their vain philosophy could not dispose of, that
this work was not magic, but a judgment from the God of Heaven.
The magicians could not produce the lice. The Lord would not
suffer them to make it even appear to their own sight, or to that of the
Egyptians, that they could produce the plague of the lice. He would
remove all excuse of unbelief from Pharaoh. He compelled even the
magicians themselves to say, “This is the finger of God.”
Next came the plague of the swarms of flies. They were not such
flies as harmlessly annoy us in some seasons of the year; but the
flies brought upon Egypt were large and venomous. Their sting was
very painful upon man and beast. God separated his people from the
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Egyptians, and suffered no flies to appear throughout their coasts.
The Lord then sent the plague of the murrain upon their cattle, and
at the same time preserved the cattle of the Hebrews, that not one of
them died. Next came the plague of the boil upon man and beast, and
the magicians could not protect themselves from it. The Lord then sent
upon Egypt the plague of the hail mingled with fire, with lightnings
and thunder. The time of each plague was given before it came that it
might not be said to have happened by chance. The Lord demonstrated
to the Egyptians that the whole earth was under the command of the
God of the Hebrews—that thunder, hail, and storm obey his voice.