The Monarch Butterfly—An Illustration of Transformation—Part 14

Monarch Butterfly

Introduction and Review

The previous article in this series studied the transformative aspects of transition and transformation in the lives of Isaac and Jacob.

This installment will examine these same aspects in the Exodus narrative.

Pharaoh and the Plague of Flies by James Tissot
Brooklyn Museum

The Exodus

While in Egypt, the sons of Jacob developed into an entire nation. The due date for delivery arrived after 400 years of development (human gestation is 40 weeks) when God raised Moses to lead the people through the birth canal of the Red Sea. God identified Himself with Moses and His people.

“I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.”
— Exodus 3:6

He does this a total of four times. (Exodus 3;6,15,16, and 4:5)

The fourth plague of the Exodus account records a change. The previous plagues affected the children of Israel, but the fourth one did not. God sets apart and distinguishes his people during the plague development. The text also records the first of four compromises that Pharaoh makes, which illustrate the same compromise that human flesh proposes when attempting to leave our own Egypt, a metaphor for our worldly lives.

"Go, sacrifice to your God in the land." (Exodus 8:25)
"I will let you go, that you may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only you shall not go very far away. Intercede for me." (Exodus 8:28)
Go now, you who are men (but not the little ones as requested) (Exodus 10:8-11)
"Go, serve the Lord; only let your flocks and your herds be kept back. Let your little ones also go with you." (Exodus 10:24)

1444 (4 x 361) BC (25 April -fourth month) is the date given in the Hebrew Bible for the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt.

Egyptian Scarab Amulet

Fourth Plague and the Sun God Ra

This fourth plague is translated as 'flies' in English, but is more likely the deeply revered scarab beetle. This beetle was sacred to the sun god Ra. Recall that the sun was made on the fourth day.

The Egyptian scarab amulet above is inscribed with praise to the goddess Maat, who was believed to regulate the stars and seasons (fourth-day events) and to bring order from the chaos at creation.
— Wikipedia (parentheses mine)

In both the Old and New Testaments, God's children were commanded not to worship these things.

“You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth;
— Exodus 20:4

We, the created, are to worship the creator and not the creation.

Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
— Romans 1:24-25

If we count the events that occurred during the Exodus showdown with Pharaoh, including the casting down of the rod, the fourth event involves the earth's dust.

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the earth, that it may become gnats through all the land of Egypt.’They did so, and Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff, and struck the dust of the earth, and there were gnats on man and beast. All the dust of the earth became gnats throughout all the land of Egypt. The magicians tried with their secret arts to bring forth the gnats, but they could not; so there were gnats on man and beast. Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, This is the finger of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he did not listen to them, as the Lord had said.
— Exodus 8:16-19

Greek letter Chi

X Marks the Spot

Before moving on from Exodus, the next section will be examined in terms of its literary structure.

There are several different types of literary structures in the Bible. One of them is known as a Chiasm, and its name comes from the Greek letter chi, which is shaped like an X. This letter has two lines that intersect and cross in the middle. The concepts portrayed in the scriptures many times follow this same pattern. In this particular layout of a biblical text, the most important idea is placed in the middle of its section and is surrounded on each side by parallel supporting details. You could say "X," where the outside concepts meet, marks the spot.

We could also think of the top half of the X and the bottom half of the X pointing towards the middle, heart, or most central point of the discussion. It's much like the bullseye of an intended target. The word Torah, which means God's instruction and direction, is rooted in an archery term for hitting the bull's-eye.

Kenneth E. Bailey, the author of several books that examine the Bible's varied literary structures, recommends thinking of this structure as a sandwich, with the meat in the middle. The central theme is surrounded by parallel texts detailing the main point on each side. They give both sides of the central theme's story.

Optic Chiasm

Optic Chiasm

Another fascinating fact that concerns chiasmus is that our vision is structured in the same way. It is called the "optic chiasm" and is shown in the image above. The diagram illustrates how our brain processes sighted information. What a wonder the Bible is, structured according to the same pattern as our vision. This design enables us to have depth perception and focus properly. Without both sides of information, we lose depth and focus. This concept could apply on a larger scale to both the Old and New Testaments. One without the other leaves us with an unbalanced and shallow understanding.

... one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.
— John 9:25

Our hearing also uses chiastic-type processes; when we only hear from one ear, we lose both volume and direction. The Word of God is more audible and directional when we hear the parallel from both sides in stereo, leading us to the central conclusion.

Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
— Romans 10:17

No wonder Jesus spent so much time healing the blind and the deaf.

The Fourth Contest

The Third Plague—The Fourth Contest

The portion of Scripture we will look at, which illustrates the following lesson, is the first contest brought forth by Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh, including the casting down of the rod that turned into a snake or alligator. Based on the Hebrew word used in this text, it was most likely an alligator

Four human subjects participated in the contest: Moses and Aaron, on behalf of God, and Jannes and Jambres, on behalf of Pharaoh.

Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith. But they will not make further progress, for their folly will be obvious to all, just as Jannes’s and Jambres’s folly was also.
— II Timothy 3:8-9

The next contest but first plague was the turning of the water into blood. The third contest, but the second plague was the frogs. The third plague, but fourth contest was the plague of gnats or lice.

This particular contest is not announced like the others. Also, the contests between Moses and the Magicians end.

Lice
Gilles San Martin

The Chiastic Parallels of the Fourth Contest

A ) Then the Lord said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the earth, that it may become gnats through all the land of Egypt.’”

Central axis) They did so, and Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff, and struck the dust of the earth, and there were gnats/lice on man and beast. All the dust of the earth became gnats/lice throughout all the land of Egypt.

A) The magicians tried with their secret arts to bring forth gnats, but they could not; so there were gnats/lice on man and beast.

Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, This is the finger of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened (Pharaoh's heart was hardened four times), and he did not listen to them, as the Lord had said ["as the Lord had said is used four times in the contest account (7:13, 7:22, 8:15, 8:19) in the creative account God spoke and it was].

— Exodus 8:16-19

The chiasm shows the combining of the "land of Egypt" in the first "A" and with "man and beast" in the second "A." The middle verse or central axis contains both of these elements, "land of Egypt, and "man and beast," only in reverse order. Also, note that "the dust of the earth" sandwiches "man and beast" in the middle."

Then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
— Genesis 2:7
I said to myself concerning the sons of men, “God has surely tested them in order for them to see that they are but For the fate of the sons of men and the fate of beasts is the same. As one dies, so dies the other; indeed, they all have the same breath, and there is no advantage for man over beast, for all is vanity. All go to the same place. All came from the dust and all return to the dust.
— Ecclesiastes 3:18-20

There is also a chiasm with Egypt at the center that helps us understand that Egypt represents this earthly, dusty, and worldly life. The phrase "Land of Egypt" in this portion of Scripture is flanked on both sides by "dust of the earth" statements.

The Dust of the Earth

Dust of the Earth, Man and Beast, Land of Egypt—"This World

What do "dust of the earth," "land of Egypt," and "man and beast" reveal? Humankind, without the breath of God in him, is nothing but a mere beast or, in his most decomposed state, like the dust of the earth. He is subject to the physical laws of this physical realm and totally dependent upon God for his deliverance. God is also laying the foundation for us to associate Egypt with a type of "this world" metaphor, as it will be used throughout the entire Scripture. Jesus discusses this in the following verses from the Book of John that follow the same pattern as God judging Egypt/sin.

... you are of this world, I am not of this world.
— John 8:23
Now judgment is upon this world.
— John 12:31
... and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.
— John 16:11

Paul also comments on the "this world" idea and explains that being of this world, not united with Christ, is subject to judgment.

... in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.
— Ephesians 2:2

We see all of these New Testament elements in the anti-Christ Pharaoh and the plagues of Egypt.

The Egyptian God Set
Notice the rod in his hand and compare it to God's command for Moses to strike the earth with the rod.

The Spiritual Contest in the Physical Realm

God designed each plague to challenge the gods that Egypt worshiped. This particular one was the god Set, who was considered the god of the earth or the desert. There is a spiritual component to this, and a challenge.

They made Him jealous with strange gods;
With abominations, they provoked Him to anger.
They sacrificed to demons who were not God.

— Deuteronomy 32:16-18

The contest playing out in the physical realm was, technically, a "behind-the-scenes" spiritual battle. The Bible Knowledge Commentary by John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck makes another possible suggestion.

"It also may have been directed against the Egyptian priesthood. The priests prided themselves in their purity with their frequent washings and shavings, and their wearing of linen robes. Here the Lord polluted the religionists with pesky insects."

We will see how both of these ideas will come together in a contest between Jesus and the religious rulers of His time when Jesus delivers a man from a demon by the finger of God.

"The Finger of God" Nebula
Hubble

The Finger of God

This portion of Scripture in Exodus chapter 8 caps off in verse 19 with the magicians who could not replicate the miracle as they had the others, and declared to Pharaoh that

"This is the finger of God.”

— Exodus 8:19

"God showed these pagan people that He controlled the creation and could do with it as He wished".

— Forerunner commentary

The exact phrase "the finger of God" is used four times in Scripture. Three of them are in the Old Testament, and one of them is in the New Testament. This also forms a type of chiasm. The verse we are looking at is its first occurrence, and it is our first slice of bread.

The following two occurrences, which will be the meat of this revelation, are both related to the giving of the tablets of testimony (Ten Commandments)

When He had finished speaking with him upon Mount Sinai, He gave Moses the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written by the finger of God.

— Exodus 31:8

The Lord gave me the two tablets of stone written by the finger of God; and on them were all the words which the Lord had spoken with you at the mountain from the midst of the fire on the day of the assembly.
— Deuteronomy 9:10

The fourth and final occurrence—the second slice of bread—is found in Luke chapter 11, where "people" identified as Pharisees in Matthew and further refined as scribes in Mark accuse Jesus of casting out demons by Beelzebul. Jesus argues their ridiculous reasoning with some examples, and He concludes with the following.

... if I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? So they will be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
— Luke 11:19-20

The fact that they were Pharisees and scribes would mean they were very familiar with the Scriptures and most likely had them memorized. When Jesus uses the phrase "the finger of God," they know he is pointing back to the first occasion of its use in Exodus, when the Egyptian sorcerers had enough sense to recognize the work of God in their midst. Adam Clarke notes on this topic.

" ... they (Egyptian sorcerers) are convinced that no man could do these miracles which these holy men did, unless God were with him."

E. Woods, author of "The Finger of God," adds the following to this thought.

It follows that the final force of Jesus’ ‘finger of God’ statement would be that even the pagan Egyptian magicians had the good sense to finally recognize that this was the work of God in their midst, and not that of demons. (Acts 2.22)

Christine Miller, on her website, "A Little Perspective," offers us another chiastic structure from Mark Chapter 9 that confirms this point.

A) Mar 9:11, Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first;

B) Mar 9:12a, He answered, “Indeed, Elijah is coming first and restores all things;

central axis) Mar 9:12b, “And how is it written concerning the Son of Man, that He must suffer many things and be treated with contempt?”

B) Mar 9:13, But Elijah has come + they did to him whatever they wished, as it is written;

A) Mar 9:14-16, When He came to the disciples, the scribes were disputing with them. — Revealed chiasm "

The two outer parallels represented by "A" include "scribes" and their responsibility to know "what is written" rather than argue as they did with Jesus.

Jesus' accusation points the finger at the possibility that they are false teachers who rely on some form of spiritual, witchcraft, or God-otherly magic to accomplish the same feat, not to glorify God but to bolster themselves. Timothy describes the many qualities of these false teachers and compares them to these very magicians.

... those holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power ... their folly will be obvious to all, just as Jannes’s and Jambres’s folly was also.
— II Timothy 3:9

Interestingly, this same scene in the book of Matthew connects "the finger of God" used in Luke with the Holy Spirit. This connection is why they get scolded for speaking against the work of the Holy Spirit. They should have known.

“Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.
— Matthew 12:31-32

Their own private political and religious self-promoting agendas skewed their reasoning. They were infuriated that the people were calling Him the "Son of David" and drawing attention away from their institution.

John's Gospel records another incident with a finger of Jesus that may, once again, "point" to an accusation against these religious rulers of not only false teaching and denial of His rightful Lordship but also adultery. The lesson begins when a woman is brought before Jesus, who had just been caught in the very act of adultery. The scribes (experts in the law) and the Pharisees ask Jesus if they should stone her. Jesus understands that this is simply an attempt to entrap Him, but He has a more important lesson in mind for them.

Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it were convicted by their conscience.
— John 8:6

Have you ever wondered what He wrote that so convicted their hearts? Jeremiah, the prophet, holds the key.

O Lord, the hope of Israel,
All who forsake You shall be ashamed.
“Those who depart from Me
Shall be written in the earth,
Because they have forsaken the Lord,
The fountain of living waters.

— Jeremiah 17:13

These were scribes and legal experts, and if Jesus was writing their names in the earth and asking such a pointed question, they very well knew what He was trying to say. He was essentially accusing them of committing adultery against God. It was just before this, in chapter seven, that Jesus declared

On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive
— John 7:37-39

This event occurs immediately after the rulers reject Jesus' authority and try to prevent others from believing in Him.

Recall that the finger of God" statement was used twice when God wrote the commandments. Between the two events, God's recently delivered children were turning from Him to another god by erecting the golden calf. Idolatry is adultery as far as God is concerned.

The man with whom she was committing adultery wasn't brought with her for the accusation. He was to be convicted as well under the law. This fact gives us an even more in-depth look into this lesson, in that they had excluded themselves from the equation.

Hypocrite! First, remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
— Matthew 7:5

The Ten Commandments

The Central Point—The Ten Commandments

We see the outer parallels of "the finger of God" in the contest between God and the evil forces, played out in the arena of Egypt and between the faithful servants of God and the false magicians. The New Testament enactment in Luke chapter eleven illustrates a common issue Jesus regularly encountered with the Pharisees: their consistent challenge to His authority.

On one of the days, while He was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes with the elders confronted Him, and they spoke, saying to Him, “Tell us by what authority You are doing these things, or who is the one who gave You this authority?”

— Luke 20:1-3

The Ten Commandments are the two central verses that attribute works to "the finger of God," as shown above in this phrase's four uses. This explains why Jesus was granted this authority because He perfectly fulfilled them, making Him the only one authorized to deliver and save.

Then Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowds, I find no guilt in this man.”
— Luke 23:4
For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.
— Hebrews 4:15

Of course, we see Him delegate this to His followers, but only under His Lordship. He was the first man who had not transgressed the law, which qualified Him to have dominion over the earth as Adam was supposed to do. Adam should have cast out that devil in the garden, and he would have had the authority to do so had he not sinned. After Jesus died for our sins and was resurrected, He appeared to His disciples and said the following.

All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
— Matthew 28:18

Four specifically named earthly representatives were called to ascend the Mount: Moses, Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu.

... he said unto Moses, Come up unto the Lord, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off.
— Exodus 24:1

According to C.I. Scofield in his commentary on Deuteronomy, the newly formed tribe under the Lordship of YHWH had four missions.

To be a witness to the unity of God amid universal idolatry.
To illustrate the greater blessedness of serving the one true God.
To receive and preserve the divine revelation.
To produce the Messiah, Earth's Savior and Lord.

The Messiah/Christ was also four types of sons.

Son of God
Son of Man
Son of Abraham
Son of David

He "brought us out," a phrase used in Scripture 28 (4 x 7) times. Seven is the number of fulfillment. Our Messiah Savior came to the earth (4) and fulfilled (7) our obligation to the one who created us so that we may live in a relationship with Him once again.

In the New Testament, Passover is mentioned 28 times (4 x 7). The Passover Lamb types and shadows for us, God's one and only Son, who would bring us out by the shedding of His blood as the satisfactory payment for our sins. He brought us out by Jesus, our Passover Lamb.

Therefore, take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.

— Acts 20:28

Therefore, purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.
— I Corinthians 5:7

The fingers of God are used in a Psalm to express the marvel with which God created the physical universe.

O Lord, our Lord,
How majestic is Your name in all the earth ...

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained;

What is man that You take thought of him,
And the son of man that You care for him?

— Psalm 8:1,3,4

The Mind

The Territory of the Mind

This new creation of people descending from nomadic ancestors (a picture of our wandering state before Christ) was assured a permanent promised land (a view of eternal dwelling with God). Before their arrival, they received God's instructions and requirements, including the requirement to take possession of the land. Could it be that the "renewing of our mind," in our foundation verse, has to do with taking possession of the territory of our minds as newly formed creations in Christ? There are four hemispheres of the brain (frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital), and we are to bring every sphere into submission to His Lordship.

... bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.

— II Corinthians 10:4

God's original intention in the creation account was that man would be a vassal king under the Lordship of the King of Heaven. His purpose was to communicate and authorize the heavenly spiritual kingdom in the natural realm of the earth.

Charles Spurgeon keenly observes the four "gracious operations, through the desert of our nature" that occur in those who make a straight path through repentance (meaning a change of mind) for the King to stake His claim on the territory of our souls.

1. Every valley shall be filled
2. And every mountain and hill brought low;
3. The crooked places shall be made straight
4. And the rough ways smooth;

— Luke 3:5

Considering that the brain consists of valleys and mountainous-looking white matter that has been conformed to this world, isn't it a wonder that this is the language God uses to describe what He is going to do?

By what means does God make this transformation? God's life-changing attributes are revealed in the Bible's four descriptions of who God is in Scripture.

1. God is light.
— John 1:5
2. God is love.
— I John 4:8
3. God is Spirit.
— John 4:24
4. God is a consuming fire.
— Hebrews 12:29

Each attribute has transforming qualities and purposes. God's nature changes ours as we submit ourselves to Him and to the work He wants to do in us.

... we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.

— II Corinthians 3:18

The brain also has four ventricles that support the flow of cerebrospinal fluid and help keep the brain floating. They consist of two lateral ventricles, the third ventricle, and the fourth ventricle.

The brain fully forms by the fourth week of preborn human development.

Neurotransmitters

The four main criteria for identifying neurotransmitters, the chemical messengers of the brain:

1. The chemical must be synthesized in the neuron or otherwise be present in it.
2. When the neuron is active, the chemical must be released and produce a response in some target.
3. The same response must be obtained when the chemical is experimentally placed on the target.
4. A mechanism must exist for removing the chemical from its site of activation after its work is done.

— Wikipedia online encyclopedia

Search This Blog

Blog Mover