August 1, 2025 Morning Devotional

Morning Devotion: Read Exodus - The Third Plague: Gnats

Exodus 8:16  And the LORD said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt. 17  And they did so; for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust of the earth, and it became lice in man, and in beast; all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt. 18  And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not: so there were lice upon man, and upon beast. 19  Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh, This is the finger of God: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.

This third plague came without notice to Pharaoh. Moses and Aaron did not go before Pharaoh. The LORD simply said do it.

They stretched out the rod and smote the dust and it brought forth lice. Lice covered the all the land of Egypt. Everyone suffered because of the lice. Everything from man to beast was covered with lice. Can you imagine the very ground moving and pulsating with lice? Everywhere you walked you were walking in lice which covered the ground.

Lice are parasites eating and biting the flesh of their host.

Symptoms of head lice include: Itching; it gives you the feeling like something in your hair is moving, makes you scratch yourself where they bite creating sores on your skin. Having lice makes sleeping difficult because lice are most active at night.

This third plague was a slap in the face of the false god Geb. “This judgment brought loathing upon Geb, the earth god. Geb was closely related to the earth in all of its states. Geb was the one who made his report to Osiris on the state of the harvest.”

Ged was depicted as a black bull which was worshiped. Black bulls were not only worshiped, they were embalmed and preserved for worship.

There are certain religions who worship the earth and the water and the wind and fire. These worship false gods which, as we said before, are no gods. They are simply the conjuring of the mind influenced by the devil to bring about a false worship directing one away from the only real God.

2 Corinthians 4:3  But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: 4  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

Romans1:22  Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 23  And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

I remember back in the 80’s traveling and visiting Catholic churches throughout Germany and seeing people embalmed and placed in glass caskets so they could be worshiped. Caskets, sitting in the churches with dead people in them being worshiped by the living. How can people be so deceived? How can people pray to dead saints who don’t even have to power to live? This is nothing more than fruitless worship of false gods.

Exodus 8:18  And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not: so there were lice upon man, and upon beast. 19  Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh, This is the finger of God: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.

Ultimately man must come to a place where he realizes he cannot create, imitate nor replace the wonderful works of God. Doing so ultimately results in suffering spiritually, physically and eternally.

Man proposes; God disposes.

The choice is still yours,

Pastor Cook