"The Night the Dogs Did Not Bark"
Exodus 12:28-51

“29 And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle. 30 And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead. 31 And he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the LORD, as ye have said. 32 Also take your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone; and bless me also.

"33 And the Egyptians were urgent upon the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste; for they said, We be all dead men. 34 And the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneadingtroughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders. 35 And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they borrowed of the Egyptians jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: 36 And the LORD gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they lent unto them such things as they required. And they spoiled the Egyptians.

"37 And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot that were men, beside children. 38 And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle. 39 And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they brought forth out of Egypt, for it was not leavened; because they were thrust out of Egypt, and could not tarry, neither had they prepared for themselves any victual. 40 Now the sojourning of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years. 41 And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt. 42 It is a night to be much observed unto the LORD for bringing them out from the land of Egypt: this is that night of the LORD to be observed of all the children of Israel in their generations.

"43 And the LORD said unto Moses and Aaron, This is the ordinance of the passover: There shall no stranger eat thereof: 44 But every man’s servant that is bought for money, when thou hast circumcised him, then shall he eat thereof. 45 A foreigner and an hired servant shall not eat thereof. 46 In one house shall it be eaten; thou shalt not carry forth ought of the flesh abroad out of the house; neither shall ye break a bone thereof. 47 All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. 48 And when a stranger shall sojourn with thee, and will keep the passover to the LORD, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as one that is born in the land: for no uncircumcised person shall eat thereof. 49 One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you. 50 Thus did all the children of Israel; as the LORD commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they. 51 And it came to pass the selfsame day, that the LORD did bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their armies.” (Ex 12:29-51 AV)

It was truly a night of miracles in the land of Egypt, the culmination of the prophetic ministry of Moses to Pharaoh, to Egypt, and to the people of Israel. The Lord God Jehovah demonstrated that He is truly God over all the earth and all men must bow to him. I would like to make several important observations to turn the light of the Scriptures upon this great event. The detail I will leave to the reading, for they are all clear. It is true that the history of Egypt records that the rapid expansion of Egypt as a world power abruptly ceased at this time, and that the nation entered a period of monotheism that lasted for a number of years before the nation reverted to the old paganism. It was several generations before Egypt entered the world stage. But I pass that by, for the world does not understand the workings of God and their histories are not to be trusted. The Bible is the Word of God and the writings are inspired of God and validated by the Lord Jesus and the Apostles.

There are several things:

I. The judgment upon Egypt was a token judgment that foreshadowed the judgment of the world at the last day. There are many such judgments in the Scriptures and these warnings are not to be taken lightly.

a. The exile of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. But God spared Adam and Eve that the whole race not be destroyed: The promise of the seed of the woman meant that the human line from Eve to Mary must be preserved.

b. The great Flood in the days of Noah. But God spared Noah and his family that the whole race not be destroyed. No more by flood, the rainbow said; the end would come by flaming fire.

c. Sodom and Gomorrah: a figure of the fire at the end of time. God spared Lot, because Ruth was in his loins, the great grandmother of King David from whom the Lord Jesus would come.

d. Egypt: Moses had told Pharaoh, "Let my Firstborn go." Christ was in Israel, and Pharaoh must let them go so that God’s purposes in Christ might be fulfillled. For Israel to fulfill their destiny as prophesied by Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Christ must fulfill His. So Israel must be delivered from death, just as Adam was, just as Noah was, just as Lot was. There must be people if there is to be a blessing on the nations.

e. God intended future blessings of Egypt, so that they were not utterly destroyed. There are many prophecies concerning Egypt that were fulfilled in the evangelization of Egypt by St. Mark and the establishment of the great Coptic Church that exists even to this day.

f. The Passover indicated that Israel, too, lay under the condemnation and wrath of God, and they would have experienced the wrath of God if God had not provided a remedy for them to escape. God always provides a way of escape for His people:

i. God gave a promise to Adam and Eve and instituted sacrifices pointing to Christ.

ii. God gave Noah an Ark and the waters carried him above the flood.

iii. God sent Angels who dragged Lot out of Sodom with his daughters. This was to preserve his family from whom Ruth and Jesus would come through David.

iv. God now provides an escape for Israel for the wrath of God upon the firstborn. That brings us to the second point.

II. The keeping of the Passover was an act of faith in Christ, according to Hebrews ll:

a. The Scripture

24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter;
25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;
26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.
27 By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.
28 Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.

b. Comments

i. Moses rejected Egypt because of faith in Christ, who was more precious to him than the riches of Egypt. The promise to bless the world, given to Abraham, was a preaching of the gospel, according to the Scriptures

Ga 3:8 And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, [saying], In thee shall all nations be blessed.

Heb. 4: 1 Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. 2 For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.

ii. The Passover Lamb is a type, or figure of Christ. It was a real lamb, but pointed to the Lamb of God. Thus we read in 1Cor 5:7: "For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us:"

iii. The representative judgment on Egypt, which is a symbol of God’s coming judgment on the whole world did not fall upon Israel, because God had given them a remedy: the blood on the door. What beautiful figure; what a great picture of redemption.

iv. Christ is found in all the Scriptures: See Luke 24:

26 Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?
27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.

v. Jesus is the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world. 1Peter 1:

2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,

vi. All the blood sprinkled in the Old Testament points to the blood of Jesus Christ: His sacrifice is sufficient to turn away the wrath of God from everyone that believes.

III. Finally: This was the night the dogs didn’t bark. Sometimes the little miracles are as astounding as the big ones. My dog has to bark when a jogger goes by our house.

a. How come no dogs barked that night, and why did Moses record it? Because the blood of the Passover stops the mouths of all who would raise them against the people of God. “But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that ye may know how that the LORD doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel.” (Ex 11:7 AV) This difference would be the blood of the Passover.

b. God had made a way for Israel to escape the Angel of Death: the blood of the New Covenant, in a figure—that would be shed in reality when they nailed Christ to the Cross and opened His side.

1Cor. 10:13. There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

c. God stops the mouths of all accusers, even the dogs of Egypt. Romans 8:

31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
32 He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?
33 Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.
34 Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.