Daily Devotional | Plundering the Egyptians

Do you love yard sales? Someone else’s junk might become your “treasure.” And if the seller really wants to get rid of stuff, they offer bargain prices. What’s more, if you show up near the end of the sale, they’re more likely to sell things cheaply or even give them away for free.

This might be something like how it felt for the Israelites as they fled Egypt. God had commanded them to ask the Egyptians for clothing and valuable items, including gold and silver (Ex. 11:1–3). Given that all their firstborn had just died, the Egyptians were in a rush to get rid of their former slaves (12:33). Pharaoh hurried them out: “Go, worship the LORD as you have requested. Take your flocks and herds, as you have said, and go. And also bless me” (vv. 31–32).

The Israelites were ready since God through Moses had prepared them. They’d made bread without yeast for the Passover, so that they could be ready to go in a hurry (v. 34). As instructed, they also asked the Egyptians for clothing, gold, and silver (v. 35). At one level, this might be regarded as wages for four centuries of slavery (v. 41). At another level, it met their practical needs for a journey. Much of the silver and gold would end up in the Tabernacle (Ex. 25:1–8), signifying God’s total triumph over the gods of Egypt.

More than fear was at work here. God made the Egyptians “favorably disposed” to give generously to the Israelites. “So they plundered the Egyptians” (v. 36). The Lord provided generously what was needed for the Exodus, albeit from unexpected sources!

God had told Moses about this “plundering” as far back as the burning bush (Ex. 3:21–22). Even long before that, He had promised it to Abraham (Gen. 15:13–14)!