At the end of 430 years
Exodus 12:29-42; 5/24/2026; BCBC/IOUC; Rev. Paul Wang
Introduction
Finally, the hammer of the Lord God fell upon the firstborn of Egypt. And God had already spoken beforehand: “Every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die — from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on the throne, even to the firstborn of the servant girl behind the mill, and all the firstborn of the livestock as well.” (Exodus 11:5) From the time God gave this warning until now, when the judgment on the firstborn is finally carried out, we have already gone through five messages together. Now let us look at the first point.
The death of all the firstborn
To be honest, even though God had already given warning beforehand, there is still a sense of sorrow in our hearts. And from this, we can also begin to understand something of how God Himself must have felt at that very moment. First of all, God is righteous. And righteousness simply means that whatever God sees as right, is right. God said, “In the day that you eat of it, you shall surely die,” and so death came upon all mankind. God also said that in the land of Egypt, from man to livestock, every firstborn would die — and now, every one of them has been struck down. Perhaps the magicians of Egypt, or even some rabbis and elders among the Israelites, might have wondered, “Has God gone too far?” But what I want to emphasize today is this: in the revelation of Scripture, the killing of the firstborn was an act of righteousness. This is extremely important. Because it lays the foundation for how we discern right and wrong in this world. It shapes the core values of our spiritual life, and even becomes the standard by which we conduct ourselves and live before God.
Secondly, God is almighty. When God’s appointed time was fulfilled, He said the word — and all the firstborn were struck down. What does this show us? It shows us His power — the mighty power of God. God not only speaks; He also accomplishes what He says. And the important thing is this: God’s declaration and God’s power are inseparable. What He says and what He does are perfectly united. What He has spoken will happen — either immediately, or in the exact time He has appointed. That is why mankind ought to stand before God with reverence and holy fear. The Bible says, “God is not to be mocked.” Those words carry great weight. And if we look throughout history, we will often see that those who despise God — especially those who set themselves against Him — eventually experience His wrath. But on the other hand, those who are willing to trust in God will surely experience His power as well.
Finally, God was grieved. Why do I say that God was grieved? The Scripture says: “Pharaoh and all his servants and all the Egyptians rose up during the night, and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where someone was not dead.” When we look at the flow of the passage, this verse almost seems unnecessary. It feels as though verse 29 could go straight into verse 31. So then, why is verse 30 recorded for us? The more we read this verse, the more we can feel the sorrow and the pain in it. But whose sorrow is this? Certainly, it was the sorrow of the Egyptians. That is true. But perhaps that is not the main emphasis of God’s revelation here. After all, from Egypt’s perspective, their first priority would have been national crisis management, would it not? So the deeper emphasis here seems to be that God Himself is expressing grief and sorrow. Now let us move to the second point.
Meeting again
After the plague of darkness, Pharaoh no longer wanted to see Moses again. He even threatened him, saying: “Get away from me! Take care never to see my face again, for on the day you see my face, you shall die.” (Exodus 10:28) And now, here they are, meeting again. What an awkward and painful moment that must have been. First, do not speak too absolutely. That is life, isn’t it? When we speak too confidently, sooner or later we discover our own weakness and limitations. Do you agree? In reality, our words reflect our judgment about life and circumstances. To speak too strongly or too absolutely means that our words have gone beyond the limits of our understanding. We end up saying more than we truly know. And why does that happen? On one hand, because human beings are limited and ignorant. On the other hand, because emotions take over. Isn’t that true? When emotions rise and the mind grows heated, people easily say things that go too far. The Bible teaches us that even what we think we know is still far from complete understanding. Therefore, when facing the future —and facing our own ignorance and limitations — choosing to remain quiet, or slow to speak, is often the wiser path.
Secondly, do not get your face slapped too badly. The more confidently you speak, the more painfully you may be “slapped in the face.” So-called “face” is something others give you, but shame is something you bring upon yourself. Pharaoh said to Moses, “You shall never see my face again.” Moses essentially responded, “Fine, so be it.” But it did not take long before the reversal came. In every household, there was death. Pharaoh could not even wait until morning. “At night Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, ‘Up! Leave my people, you and the Israelites! Go, worship the LORD as you have requested!’” Isn’t it a pity? If only he had said this earlier. Pharaoh being humiliated is a small matter in comparison; the tragedy is that the entire land of Egypt was dragged into it. And at this point, even if he wanted to turn back, it was already too late.
Finally, do not go too far in doing things. At this moment, the Israelites and the Egyptians had seemingly become opposing sides—almost enemies of one another. Imagine if we were there ourselves. What kind of feelings would we have? Would we wish that all the Egyptians would perish? Or that all the Israelites would be unable to leave? Would people wish that either Iran or America were completely gone? Or at the very least, the heart may quietly wish that president Trump would simply no longer be there. This is human nature, and this is the human heart. But what we see here is that God still leaves space for grace between the Israelites and the Egyptians. At the very least, the Israelites were allowed to ask the Egyptians for articles of silver, articles of gold, and clothing. And even more, the Scripture says that the LORD gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they granted them what they requested. In this way, they “plundered the Egyptians.” Now let us move to the third point.
Finally, they left
In our journey through Exodus, we have finally reached the main point of the book—Israel is finally setting out. From this moment on, God’s people also step onto the path of their calling. It is a journey through the wilderness, a path of testing, and even more so, a journey of grace. First, where they came from and where they are going. It had already been 430 years since they left the land of Canaan. Perhaps the Israelites no longer even recognized the way home, right? When the long road is unclear, then begin with a shorter step. So God set the first near-term destination for Israel: “The Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Succoth.” Where is Rameses? The exact location is no longer certain, and there is no solid archaeological evidence to confirm it. However, it is clear that Rameses was the place where the Israelites were gathered at that time—likely in the land of Goshen, or somewhere near it. The location of Succoth is also uncertain. Some believe it corresponds to Tell el-Maskhuta in the Wadi Tumilat region of modern-day Egypt, which may have been the first stop of Israel after the Exodus.
Secondly, seventy came in, and over a million went out. The Bible records that “all those who came to Egypt with Jacob were seventy in all” (Genesis 46:27). But at the time of the Exodus, Scripture says: “On that very day, after 430 years had passed, all the LORD’s armies went out from the land of Egypt.” It also records that “the number of men on foot, besides women and children, was about 600,000.” More precisely, the number is 603,550 (Numbers 1:46). Interestingly, this figure does not include the Levites, who numbered 38,580 (Numbers 4:48). So how many Israelites were there altogether? If we estimate based on an average of two children per married couple, the total population of Israel at the time of the Exodus would have been at least about 2.5 million people.
Finally, the night of God, and the covenant of Christ. For this night, Moses leaves a poetic footnote, saying: “This is a night to be observed to the LORD, because on it He brought them out of the land of Egypt; so this night belongs to the LORD, and all the Israelites are to observe it throughout their generations.” This is the day appointed by the LORD—a day that echoes the timeless command of Christ’s Great Commission: “Go therefore…” If the Israelites had not left Egypt, they would have remained hopeless slaves with no future. The same is true for the Church. We must also leave the “Egypt” in our lives—our comfort zones, our places of ease—and move toward the mission fields the Lord has called us to. We gather because we are in covenant with God; we go because we are sent to fulfill His mission. We go out, and we live for God. Are you willing?
Conclusion
When God’s appointed time was fulfilled, the firstborn of Egypt were struck down, Pharaoh and Moses met once again, and God’s people finally set out—leaving Egypt behind. In the same way, the Church must also go out—to step onto the path of mission, the path of the Gospel. The question is: are you ready?
Let us pray together……
29 At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the livestock.
30 And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he and all his servants and all the Egyptians. And there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where someone was not dead.
31 Then he summoned Moses and Aaron by night and said, “Up, go out from among my people, both you and the people of Israel; and go, serve the Lord, as you have said.
32 Take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone, and bless me also!”
33 The Egyptians were urgent with the people to send them out of the land in haste. For they said, “We shall all be dead.”
34 So the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading bowls being bound up in their cloaks on their shoulders.
35 The people of Israel had also done as Moses told them, for they had asked the Egyptians for silver and gold jewelry and for clothing.
36 And the Lord had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. Thus they plundered the Egyptians.
37 And the people of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children.
38 A mixed multitude also went up with them, and very much livestock, both flocks and herds.
39 And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had brought out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, because they were thrust out of Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves.
40 The time that the people of Israel lived in Egypt was 430 years.
41 At the end of 430 years, on that very day, all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt.
42 It was a night of watching by the Lord, to bring them out of the land of Egypt; so this same night is a night of watching kept to the Lord by all the people of Israel throughout their generations.