A lot of people are tentative to confront the government on issues such as abortion and LGBTQ, because they are afraid that this will only incite the government to increase the persecution of the church. John the Baptist confronted Herod the king about his marriage and his illegitimate wife retaliated by having his head cut off. Criticize a dictator, question the ideology of a so-called woke liberal, or warn a self-righteous immoral sinner with a gentle prick of the conscience and you can expect a sledgehammer response. The Lord told Moses and Aaron that this is what would happen with Pharaoh also (Exodus 3:19; Exodus 4:21), and just as he had warned them, Pharaoh’s response was very extreme.
As they saw their boldness backfire, the people of God could learn that they would need to suffer when God’s enemies attacked the Lord. This is an important lesson for us about the consequences of being in a covenant relationship with the Lord. The privilege of following the Lord and being his people came with the danger of being attacked and enslaved by everyone who hated the Lord (see Revelation 12:1–17). Our Lord Jesus experienced this when his enemies sought to kill him for manifesting the glory of God in his miracles, particularly the raising of Lazarus from the dead (John 11:45–53). He warned us that God’s enemies will treat the disciples with the same hatred that they show to the teacher (Matthew 10:24–25). When we see our boldness backfire, we need to remember that this is a part of being the chosen people of the Lord. It is not a sign of God’s abandonment, but of his nearness to us.
4 Et le roi d'Egypte leur dit: Moïse et Aaron, pourquoi détournez-vous le peuple de son ouvrage? Allez à vos travaux.