The Lord kills the horses, donkeys, camels, oxen, and sheep. Then there is the plague of boils, which inflicts the magicians, and the sores must have inflicted Pharaoh as well. Then there is hail that destroyed everything in the fields, whether animal, plant, or person. Those animals, by the way, could have been other livestock, such as goats.

This last plague adds a dimension to the separation. God’s people and their property are protected, but God also protects those who fear Him.

The Lord tells Moses to warn them to bring in their slave workers and animals from the fields to protect them from the hail. Those who feared the Lord did so and were saved. Those who didn’t fear the Lord are not saved.

While God makes clear who His chosen people are, He also makes clear He loves the whole world and wants to make Himself known to everyone. And to know God is to have eternal life!

The Lord says in this chapter of Exodus that He didn’t just kill off all the Egyptians because He wanted His power to be known. Why? It’s not because He’s got a big ego and needs it stroked. It’s because He made man in His image. He desires that all come to a saving knowledge of Him.

We see Gentiles welcomed into the kingdom of God in Acts. We see Gentiles receiving miracle healing from God in the Old and New Testaments. We see people like Rahab and Ruth, outsiders, welcomed into the family of God’s chosen because they feared the Lord and loved His people.

God’s not killing some and saving others at whim like a mad man. He’s showing Himself to the world, which He’s done from the beginning by just the magnificence and wonder of His creation. He welcomes all who acknowledge Him for who He is, which includes humbling yourself; otherwise, you aren’t understanding who He is!

Pharaoh had the opportunity to be saved. He just wouldn’t choose it for himself. God turned it for good, using the hardness of Pharaoh’s heart for the good of God’s people and to God’s eternal glory.