8 He struck down the firstborn of Egypt, the firstborn of men and animals. 9 He sent his signs and wonders into your midst, O Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his servants. 10 He struck down many nations and killed mighty kings--11 Sihon king of the Amorites, Og king of Bashan and all the kings of Canaan--12 and he gave their land as an inheritance, an inheritance to his people Israel.

The study of this section of the Old Testament is difficult for many to understand. It is not the story that is so difficult but the idea of how a loving and caring God could destroy so many people; men, women, children and even their animals. With the ten plagues that God sent upon Egypt he devastated the entire nation. The farms, the army, the economy and finally all families were destroyed. As the Israelites marched toward the promised land of Canaan to take possession of it, they defeated kings and nations with bloodshed left in their path. How could our God be behind such atrocities? There are at least two things involved in what and why God did this. First are the promises he had made many years earlier to Abraham that he would make a great nation of his descendents and that he would give them the land of Canaan as their own. God had chosen the Israelites as his own special people and had promised his favor to be on them as long as they served him. This meant that they would have to destroy anyone who would dare to oppose them. God gave them these victories to show his greatness and glory in keeping his promises. God showed his love and compassion to them so all people could see he was a God of mercy and a God who really cared about his people. They could always depend on him and trust him to take care of their every need.

Secondly, God did this because he is a just God. The nations that opposed Israel were people who had been given opportunity to submit to and serve God but had rejected him. On many occasions he had warned them and yet they still spurned him and increased in their immorality and wickedness. It was never an arbitrary decision when God would destroy a king and a nation. It was because of their wickedness and their stubborn rebellion against him. Today we serve this same God who is infinitely just and will repay every sin against himself. Yet, because he is a loving God, he has offered the payment for our sin in the sacrifice of his own Son on the cross. It is up to each of us to accept his gracious gift and live for him.

Lord God, please help me to understand your greatness, your power, your justice but also your love and compassion toward me. Make my heart soft to be touched with your goodness so that I might yield every thought and action to your will. Make me more like you I pray, in Jesus name.

May God bless each of us as we conform to the image of Jesus.