Exodus 9

The plague on livestock will crush the hearts of those with an affinity for ungulates such as horses, sheep camels, and, um, goats. God sends a plague on all said animals that happen to be "in the field" (verse 3). These animals weren't just cuddly pets--they formed the livelihood for many Egyptians. Thus, seeing Black Beauty keel over with a final whinny and Shaun expire with one last bleat (which probably translated to, "You fool! Why didn't you listen to God and take me out of the field?") was a double-whammy. As for Joe the camel, he was probably too irascible to say anything when he died, instead electing for one final expectoration. And I am aware that camels usually don't spit unless angered, but you'd be pretty grumpy if you were dying all because of your owner's stupidity. At any rate, Joe's repellant, off-putting demeanor made him the perfect candidate for a cigarette company mascot.

Speaking of repellant, the next plague involves boils popping up on the Egyptians and the animals not killed by the previous plague. A truly nasty bit of business, and not one that I particularly want to dwell on.

Before God unleashes the plague of hail, He has Moses say to Pharaoh, "I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth" (verse 16). I find this disturbing in some ways. We all wonder about the meaning of life, but the truth is, Monty Python addressed that age-old philosophical nugget. OK, maybe a better term to use is "one's purpose in life." Does verse 16 imply that some people's purpose is merely to serve as cannon fodder for God's mighty miracles? I would kind of understand that in Pharaoh's case; he's being a jerk by breaking his promises and disregarding the well-being of his subjects. But what about the subjects themselves? I do think this is a sub-issue of the larger conundrum of why God allows suffering that seems disproportionate. However, if we follow God, He does have plans for us to perform good deeds that will show His love (to reference Ephesians 2:10).

God sends hail down onto Egypt. (For some reason, The Prince of Egypt and that masterpiece of Biblical storytelling The Mummy turn the hail into fireballs, because it apparently just isn't cinematic enough to show people getting conked on the head with gigantic spheroids of ice.) Pharaoh asks Moses to stop the hail, claiming, "This time I have sinned" (verse 27). However, "When Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder had stopped, he sinned again" (verse 34). Isn't that just so emblematic of human nature? I've taken up jogging the past year, and while I can now run for about a dozen miles without feeling like I'm dying, it was quite torturous when I first started. (Because as we all know, people like me who run for fun have a screw or two loose.) "God, please help me get through this," I'd say, and though I wouldn't add, "and I'll never sin again," I would indeed make screw-ups, sometimes not long after my run. Back when I had to give oral presentations, take tests, and, in college, pull all-nighters to finish papers, I'd also have similar thoughts. I know God forgives, but as I've written before, I shouldn't take His grace for granted.