One of the most amazing and unforgettable experiences I have ever had was to have a face-to-face encounter with Pharaoh king of Egypt. Yes, I am talking about the very same Pharaoh whom Moses confronted with the 10 plagues over 3000 years ago.
Several years ago Susan and I spent a week in Egypt visiting our daughter Anne who was teaching at the time in a private school in Cairo. My Egyptian highlight reel features only two events from that trip: our hike to the top of Mount Sinai and the visit to the Cairo Museum.
The Cairo Museum is an incredible place, literally stuffed with every imaginable artifact from the glory days of Egyptian supremacy. You feel like Indiana Jones walking through it. What made it so significant to me was that the 1000s of years represented in that museum were concurrent with the history of God’s people and the nation of Israel in the Old Testament
Seeing the exquisite craftsmanship of the Egyptian jewelry and furniture gave me an appreciation for how stunning all the furnishings of the tabernacle in the wilderness must have been. Bezalel (Exodus 31:1-6), the chief artisan of the tabernacle undoubtedly learned his craft in Egypt. It was therefore easy for me to imagine what the ark of the covenant and other pieces of furniture and utensils must have looked like.
I saw one Egyptian coffer or chest that was constructed just like the ark. It was made of intricately carved acacia wood overlaid with gold with a solid gold top. Seeing the beauty of it literally took my breath away. And suddenly I found myself transported back in time and space to Old Testament days and I swear I could have been standing in the holy of holies beholding the glories of the ark itself. It blew me away.
But God had even one more surprise for me. When I went into the royal Mummy Room where a number of Egyptian ruling monarchs lie in state I was drawn to the glass-encased exposed view of Ramses II.
It is commonly believed that Ramses II also known as Ramses the Great was the pharaoh ruling in Egypt during the time of the Exodus. His tomb was found in the Valley of the Kings in 1881 and his mummy is now on display in the Cairo Museum.
Let me tell you, it was an eerie feeling being face-to-face with the very man that was made infamous by the Exodus account because of his stubbornness and refusal to obey God. I am talking up close and personal – you can see and count the hairs on his head. It made me tremble to think that this was the same man whom Moses himself looked upon, spoke to and demonstrated all God’s mighty miracles. Wow!
I couldn’t let the opportunity pass. The Mummy Room had just a few people in it and I was alone with Pharaoh, my own personal audience. I wanted to say something to him, something prophetic, give him a piece of my mind if you will. What to say? I bent low with my face to the glass, just inches from his face, man-to-man – “How dare you defy the living God, you should have listened to Moses!” That was it. That was all I had. But it felt great.
What would you have said to Pharaoh?
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I would say, “you knucklehead,how did you let the frogs one more night ,when you had the choice to request for immediate deliverance.” Well there are now also such Nut-cases, who do not visualize the Hand of God.I was one of them.Glory to God & thanks, that he did not give-up after a count of Ten, on me.
Love it! It is amazing is it not that God in His mercy has not given up on the little pharaoh in all of us who once lived in darkness but now dwell in the light. Wonderful that He can count beyond 10. Thanks for sharing.