3 Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Now let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God, or he may strike us with plagues or with the sword.” Exodus 5:3
What we have here are two conversations going on at the same time. Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh, and the Israelites were rejoicing over them being blessed by God. They believe it’s a foregone conclusion that they were traveling to sacrifice to God. If they were in a free country, they’d have reason to rejoice.
But they’re being held captive in Egypt. They will have to scrape and scratch for every bit they get. In the very near future, life will become unbaringly impossible for them.
Yes, they will eventually be free, but not now, not yet. They had an obstacle to overcome, namely, the Pharaoh.
But for now, Moses and Aaron have given them hope that they will soon be free to sacrifice to God. Those two men would be their intermediaries. They were flawed individuals but they would speak on the Israelites’ behalf.
Our intermediary is flawless and perfect. He “lobbies” on our behalf day and night.
Still, though, after all these years of following Christ, I have to ask simply, “Why?” Why does He do this?
The answer keeps coming back. “Because it’s His nature to do that.”