When Leader’s Decisions Make the Land Stink LIke Dead Fish

April 20

Read: Exodus 7:13 - 12:32 (The Plagues)

*Feel free to skim over / read in chunks

When Leader’s Decisions Make the Land Stink

(The Plagues Part 1)

“The fish in the Nile shall die, and the Nile will stink, and the Egyptians will grow weary of drinking water from the Nile…And the fish in the Nile died, and the Nile stank, so that the Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile. There was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.” (v.7:18,21)

I had a chance to go fishing yesterday with some new friends form our ministry (3GEN). It was an amazing experience - I have never caught fish like this before - but one of the things I noticed was how there were so many “odors” involved! There is a reason we say that something seems “fishy”. Dead fish stink… frankly alive ones smell pretty bad as well. This morning as I was reading through this passage it stood out to me that the “stink” of red fish was mentioned directly multiple times: “…the Nile will stink… the fished died and the Nile stank…” Dude! how bad must it smell to have an entire river turn to blood and all the fish in it die? What a graphic display of opposition to God… to stand opposed to God JUST FLAT OUT STINKS… I mean BAD… DEAD FISH STINKS.

I thought about the “normal”people in Egypt… the blue collar, work hard each day, normal Egyptians. How aware were they of these conversations taking place at the palace? How much did they know of the plight of the Hebrews? How involved were they in the slavery of God’s people? It is hard to tell. In some ways, my heart breaks for those “every-day-normal” Egyptians who had to endure the rot and stink of blood and dead fish! But, truth be told, it is a sobering reminder of how we cannot remain “neutral” or “exempt”… “friendship with the world is enmity between you and God.” (cf. James 4:4) You are either for God or against him… there is no middle ground. Ignorance to this does not change the truth. As these plagues hit the country, I bet these “regular Egyptians” began to wonder what was up!

The leaders of Egypt - The Pharaoh, his court, the wise men, the sorcerers, the magicians - they drew their power from Satan. They sat opposed to the people of God. Their decisions impacted every person in the land. of Egypt. Before Pharaoh’s heart was hardened by God, decades… even centuries… had pasted where the Hebrews were exploited and enslaved. No matter how the current Pharaoh’s heart is hardened by God, the truth still remains that for a long time the people of God were treated this way. This is why I will say: the decisions of the leadership in a place have the ability to really make that place STINK… river full of blood and and dead fish everywhere STINK! The long term effects of Satan’s influence are always the same: death and misery… they stink!

The people in a land will experience this to lesser and greater degrees… but sooner or later it will impact EVERYONE who lives in the land! I am sure God’s people had to put up with the stench as much as anyone else. When the down-steam effects of decisions made (decisions made in friendship with the enemy / the world and set against the one true God) start to swell up and stink… the people in the land have a decision to make. How will you respond to the “stink”? Opposition to God will eventually drain all joy out of what used to give you life. Look at what God says about the Egyptians: “…the Egyptians will grow weary of drinking water from the Nile.” (v. 7:18) That is a profound statement. Remember what the Nile meant to Egyptians! It brought water, life, opportunity into the desert. The Nile was how their entire civilization was able to thrive. The Nile was literally cool water in a hot desert. The scriptures say that the people will “grow weary” of drinking from the Nile… that thing which used to satisfy and quench your thirst will no longer do so.

For the people of God, I bet it made them all the more excited to “leave”… I bet they were glad that wasn’t their permanent home. Sometimes the same goes for us… the “stink” reminds us this is not our permanent home. I wonder if the “stink” actually opened the eyes for the “everyday Egyptians” so that the would press back against the decisions of their Pharaoh? (Despite the fact that they were able to reap some clear benefits of the enslavement of God’s people.) How will we respond when the “stinky” decisions of our leaders make our land “stink”?

God was the ultimate source of the plague… the punishment… the discipline… the “stink”. It was a graphic display (the first of many) of his power, justice, and righteousness. It was a reminder that wrongs will not go unpunished, that opposition to him holds NO LIFE, and that the cries of the wounded, hurt, and oppressed are heard but the Lord. The “stink” that we experience today can and should remind us of the same things! Praise God that the Blood-Nile-Death-Fish-Stank only lasted for 7 days. As “stinky” as it was… it did not last forever.

Think of this passage when you feel like the world “stinks” right now. When you are angry with your “Pharaohs” decisions… let this passage come to you. Where is your heart in that moment? Where is your allegiance? How will you endure the “stink”… how will you respond to it? More to come. - JDP