Exodus 9:8-12 And the LORD said to Moses and to Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace… I. THEY ARE HELPLESS BECAUSE THEY HAVE NOT THE ABILITY TO AVERT THE RETRIBUTIONS OF GOD. Sin ever makes men helpless. II. THEY ARE HELPLESS BECAUSE THEY HAVE NOT THE COURAGE TO ENDURE THE RETRIBUTIONS OF GOD. Sin makes men cowardly. Hell cannot inspire the wicked heart with courage in the hour of trial. III. THEY ARE HELPLESS BECAUSE THEY LACK THOSE MORAL QUALITIES WHICH ALONE CAN AID MEN IN THE HOUR OF RETRIBUTION. Lessons: 1. That though men have experience of Satan's inability to help them in their trouble consequent upon sin, they will not desist from it. 2. That all Satan's instruments are vanquished by the plague of God. (J. S. Exell, M. A.) Parallel Verses KJV: And the LORD said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh. |