I ran the past month or two over again in my mind. I remember thinking that Moses and Aaron were nut jobs. How foolish that was. Everything they had done... Correction: Everything I Am had done. The first plague, the Nile River into the blood. The Egyptians panicked screams and frantic running made me chuckle. The second plague was frogs. Oh, so many frogs! My brothers spent all day kicking frogs out of the house. My mom screeched when she found tadpoles all in her bathwater. The next plague had made my spine shiver. Lice. Everywhere, in everyone's hair. It didn't matter how many herbs you ate or creams you applied; those things bred like crazy. Thankfully, the Israelites weren't affected by any other plagues. Only the Egyptians. I was filled with a naughty pleasure at their discomfort. The wild animals and flies had come, harming both people and animals. The Pharoah had promised he would let the Israelites go if the devilish animal would go away. The animals left, yet we didn't. Next, I Am killed all the Egyptian livestock. The sixth plague was boils; festering, oozing, stinking boils. The stench plagued the Israelites while the wounds plagued the Egyptians. The hail and fire had rained from the sky next. Moses told the Israelites and all their livestock to be sheltered because everyone outside would die. The windows had flashed with fire, the ground cracked with hail. Screams and crying rang through the night. For the eighth plague, locusts had filled the land, obscuring everything, feeding mercilessly on all the Egyptian food. Darkness followed. Those beginning plagues were tolerable and amusing. These last ones brought terror. The darkness enveloped the land. But, those were nothing compared with the plague that was coming.
Death.
Of every firstborn. They would all die. None would be spared. None, except those with the blood of a lamb, painted on their door. The Israelites would be spared, but the Egyptians... mothers, fathers, sister, brothers; even livestock would be killed. The Pharoah was so stubborn, so evil, so hardened, that he was going to let his innocent people die. My family was preparing. A lamb a year old was killed and was going to be roasted whole. My father put the blood on the lintels and the doorposts. This was a sign that we were going to be saved; that death would not enter this house. None of us were allowed to leave once the blood was painted on our door. We all sat and ate, but we didn't say much. The unleavened bread and bitter herbs were tasteless as I ate in a trance, and I didn't eat much of the lamb whose blood was dripping outside. Two words repeated in my ears, like a mantra of hope and despair: Death, Savior, death, Savior, death, Savior. That night we went to bed grateful for our salvation, knowing that a wail like no other would rise, and weeping would ensue. I realized that night that if we were Egyptian, I would be dead by the morning.
We awoke at night to a cry that broke the heart of every person for miles around. I sat up bolt right and fought back tears, not willing to cry for the Egyptians. "Moses and Aaron have been summoned," my father said. My little brother was crying; the wail had struck his heart with fear. "Ami, Ami," he cried in a soft voice as I rocked him. Soon, word came that Pharoah was done with them! The fear that had been plaguing our hearts cracked as hope burst forth. "Look, now, Awbeeb," I said to my brother. "I Am has heard our cries." Still, Awbeeb cried, not fully understanding. "Ami!" My mother called me to help her pack quickly. We took all our possessions, and the silver and jewelry we had asked the Egyptians to give us. The Egyptians were done with us! We left joyfully, Awbeeb on my back, as I carried a pack and brought along our little goats.
430 years, I thought. 430 years we have been slaves in Egypt. Now, I Am has freed us! We sang praises as we traveled; 600,000 men and their families. I was proud and overjoyed to be counted among these people. After Moses had spoken with God, he addressed us. My eyes filled with tears at the privilege I had of listening to Moses speak. "Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the Lord brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out. And when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which He swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day, there shall be a feast to the Lord. Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory. You shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ And it shall be to you as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the law of the Lord may be in your mouth. For with a strong hand the Lord has brought you out of Egypt. You shall therefore keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year." The men and women among us promised to themselves that they would obey everything that God said. I prayed silently to God with each pound of my foot. Thank You, God. Thank You for saving us. You are the I Am. We have nothing to fear when You are near.
A pillar of smoke, commanding yet beautiful, rose before us to lead us in the day. We followed it, knowing that such a miracle could only come from God. At night, a column of fire, breathtaking and glorious, rose before us. The licks of flame vibrant against the black sky. I had never seen anything so beautiful in my life. It represented everything that God was to me; breathtaking, commanding, beautiful, glorious, leading us to the Promised Land. What will God show us next?, I thought.
If only I knew. The parting of waters, manna from heaven, the law written by the I Am Himself... God really is the Savior. Our Savior. My Savior.
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This is part of a collaborative writing I am doing with a friends, Starcatcher, on Write the World. If you want to read her part, you can find her on WtW.
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