Have you wondered if God was the one to count on if you needed someone who would really lead you the way, vanquish all enemies who stand against you and your destiny? Most people doubt this, but according to the Holy Bible, the Almighty One has really done this (At least back in the Old Testament). In one story, he led Israel to freedom against their cruel captors, the Egyptians. Here's the story...
Thousands of years ago (think B.C.), the people of Israel were ruled by Egyptians. The reason the Egyptians were ruled by Egypt was because that the Pharaoh feared that Israel would soon conquer Egypt if left alone. For this reason, the Pharaoh ordered his country's unfortunate neighbors to be slaves. This way there would be no rebellion against Egypt. After years of brutal work and mistreatment, God decided to put a stop to all this evil.
God sent a former Israelite fugitive named Moses to the Pharaoh to send a message from God to let the Lord's people go. The Pharaoh refused to comply to His request, so He sent a terrible chain of disasters upon the evil Egyptians.
1. The Red River
God started his first offense on Egypt by turning all the water sources in Egypt into blood. In the River Nile, the crystal-clear river turned into an unbearably disgusting flow of blood. With all the water sources useless, you'd expect the Pharaoh to give in and let Israel out of captivity, but NO, the relentless ruler still refused to let his prisoners go.
2. The Frogs
Next, God sent literally sent a whole country of frogs to infest Egypt (I bet the Egyptians were "hopping" mad). The annoying amphibians scared the citizens, pestered the Pharaoh, and horrified the officials. The Pharaoh pretended to give the Israelites permission to leave the country, and God called off the plague the next day. However, when the frogs were cleaned from Egypt, the Pharaoh instantly recalled Israel back to Egypt (Let's call this tactic "The Fake Promise" to put it in shorter terms, OK?)
3. The Parasites
(If you're terrified of massive colonies of insects, I suggest you skip this bit) "Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt." God said to Moses. Moses did so, triggering every grain of dust to transform into lice (or gnats or fleas, it didn't really say in the bible). The incredibly irritating insects assaulted Egypt, causing everlasting chaos (and hygiene problems) among the whole country, "bugging" the people. After doing "The Fake Promise", the Pharaoh still kept the poor Israelites in the country.
4. The Flies
Following the lice attack (which is, by the way, a VERY GOOD reason to take baths), God unleashed a swarm of flies to Egypt (what was the big deal with bugs back then? They seem to be the star of ancient annoyances!). The Pharaoh exercised "The Fake Promise" a third time so he could keep Israel in Egypt.
5. The Cattle Tipper
(This plague may be the reason that livestock are potential carriers of disease) This plague is a bit "futuristic". After irritating the relentless ruler, God decided to turn up the pressure a bit and start using murder and life-threatening threats. This time God unleashed a kind of cattle-killing disease (think anthrax) upon the Egyptians. Although the epidemic didn't kill the Egyptians, you can bet than they were less than happy when they saw their farm animals sprawled on the floor (At least they were able to salvage meat from the cattle and have a few tons of steak to eat. It always pays to look at the bright side). Hmm, I wonder if this was the start of livestock-carrying diseases? Anyway, you know what happened next. Fake promise, Israel still stays in Egypt.
I'll continue the story in another post. Sorry for any inconvenience caused, but don't worry. I'll post the next part on the next update. Peace out for now!
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