Christ's Great Sacrifice

²³ These things are only copies of what is in heaven, and so they had to be made holy by these ceremonies. But the real things in heaven must be made holy by something better. ²⁴ This is why Christ did not go into a tent made by humans and was only a copy of the real one. Instead, he went into heaven and is now there with God to help us.

²⁵ Christ did not have to offer himself many times. He wasn't like a high priest who goes into the most holy place each year to offer the blood of an animal. ²⁶ If he had offered himself every year, he would have suffered many times since the creation of the world. But instead, near the end of time he offered himself once and for all, so he could be a sacrifice that does away with sin.

²⁷ We die only once, and then we are judged. ^28 (A) So Christ died only once to take away the sins of many people. But when he comes again, it will not be to take away sin. He will come to save everyone who is waiting for him.

10 The Law of Moses is like a shadow of the good things to come. This shadow isn't the good things themselves, because it cannot free people from sin by the sacrifices offered year after year. ² If there were worshipers who already have their sins washed away and their consciences made clear, there would not be any need to go on offering sacrifices. ^3-4 But the blood of bulls and goats cannot take away sins. It only reminds people of their sins from one year to the next.

^5 (B) When Christ came into the world, he said to God,

⁷ Then Christ said,

⁸ The Law teaches that offerings and sacrifices must be made because of sin. But why did Christ mention these things and say that God did not want them? ⁹ Well, it was to do away with offerings and sacrifices and to replace them. This is what he meant by saying to God, “I have come to do what you want.” ¹⁰ So we are made holy because Christ obeyed God and offered himself once for all.

^11 (C) The priests do their work each day, and they keep on offering sacrifices that can never take away sins. ^12 (D) But Christ offered himself as a sacrifice that is good forever. Now he is sitting at God's right side,^{[a] 13} and he will stay there until his enemies are put under his power. ¹⁴ By his one sacrifice he has forever set free from sin the people he brings to God.

¹⁵ The Holy Spirit also speaks of this by telling us that the Lord said,

¹⁸ When sins are forgiven, there is no more need to offer sacrifices.

Dead Animals

9 The Lord sent Moses with this message for the king^[a] of Egypt:

The Lord God of the Hebrews commands you to let his people go, so they can worship him. ² If you keep refusing, ³ he will bring a terrible disease on your horses and donkeys, your camels and cattle, and your sheep and goats. ⁴ But the Lord will protect the animals that belong to the people of Israel, and none of theirs will die. ⁵ Tomorrow is the day the Lord has set to do this.

⁶ It happened the next day—all of the animals belonging to the Egyptians died, but the Israelites did not lose even one. ⁷ When the king found out, he was still too stubborn to let the people go.

Sores

⁸ The Lord said to Moses and Aaron:

Take a few handfuls of ashes from a stove and you, Moses, throw them into the air. Be sure the king is watching. ⁹ The ashes will blow across the land of Egypt, causing sores to break out on people and animals.

^10 (A) So they took a few handfuls of ashes and went to the king.^[b] Moses threw them into the air, and sores immediately broke out on the Egyptians and their animals. ¹¹ The magicians were suffering so much from the sores, that they could not even come to Moses. ¹² Everything happened just as the Lord had told Moses—he made the king too stubborn to listen to Moses and Aaron.

Hailstones

¹³ The Lord told Moses to get up early the next morning and say to the king:^[c]

The Lord God of the Hebrews commands you to let his people go, so they can worship him! ¹⁴ If you don't, he will send his worst plagues to strike you, your officials, and everyone else in your country. Then you will find out that no one can oppose the Lord. ¹⁵ In fact, he could already have sent a terrible disease and wiped you from the face of the earth. ^16 (B) But he has kept you alive, just to show you his power and to bring honor to himself everywhere in the world.

¹⁷ You are still determined not to let the Lord's people go. ¹⁸ All right. At this time tomorrow, he will bring on Egypt the worst hailstorm in its history. ¹⁹ You had better give orders for every person and every animal in Egypt to take shelter. If they don't, they will die.

²⁰ Some of the king's officials were frightened by what the Lord had said, and they hurried off to make sure their slaves and animals were safe. ²¹ But others paid no attention to his threats and left their slaves and animals out in the open.

²² Then the Lord told Moses, “Stretch your arm toward the sky, so that hailstones will fall on people, animals, and crops in the land of Egypt.” ^23-24 (C) Moses pointed his walking stick toward the sky, and hailstones started falling everywhere. Thunder roared, and lightning flashed back and forth, striking the ground. This was the worst storm in the history of Egypt. ²⁵ People, animals, and crops were pounded by the hailstones, and bark was stripped from trees. ²⁶ Only Goshen, where the Israelites lived, was safe from the storm.

²⁷ The king sent for Moses and Aaron and told them, “Now I have really sinned! My people and I are guilty, and the Lord is right. ²⁸ We can't stand any more of this thunder and hail. Please ask the Lord to make it stop. Your people can go—you don't have to stay in Egypt any longer.”

²⁹ Moses answered, “As soon as I leave the city, I will lift my arms in prayer. When the thunder and hail stop, you will know that the earth belongs to the Lord. ³⁰ But I am certain that neither you nor your officials really fear the Lord God.”

³¹ Meanwhile, the flax and barley crops had been destroyed by the storm because they were ready to ripen. ³² But the wheat crops^[d] ripen later, and they were not damaged.

³³ After Moses left the royal palace and the city, he lifted his arms in prayer to the Lord, and the thunder, hail, and drenching rain stopped. ³⁴ When the king realized that the storm was over, he disobeyed once more. He and his officials were so stubborn ³⁵ that he refused to let the Israelites go. This was exactly what the Lord had said would happen.

Locusts

10 The Lord said to Moses:

Go back to the king.^[e] I have made him and his officials stubborn, so that I could work these miracles. ² I did this because I want you to tell your children and your grandchildren about my miracles and about my harsh treatment of the Egyptians. Then all of you will know that I am the Lord.

³ Moses and Aaron went to the king and told him that the Lord God of the Hebrews had said:

How long will you stubbornly refuse to obey? Release my people so they can worship me. ⁴ Do this by tomorrow, or I will cover your country with so many locusts^{[f] 5} that you won't be able to see the ground. Most of your crops were ruined by the hailstones, but these locusts will destroy what little is left, including the trees. ⁶ Your palace, the homes of your officials, and all the other houses in Egypt will overflow with more locusts than have ever been seen in this country.

After Moses left the palace, ⁷ the king's officials asked, “Your Majesty, how much longer is this man going to be a troublemaker? Why don't you let the people leave, so they can worship the Lord their God? Don't you know that Egypt is a disaster?”

⁸ The king had Moses and Aaron brought back, and he said, “All right, you may go and worship the Lord your God. But first tell me who will be going.”

⁹ “Everyone, young and old,” Moses answered. “We will even take our sheep, goats, and cattle, because we want to hold a celebration in honor of the Lord.”

¹⁰ The king replied, “The Lord had better watch over you on the day I let you leave with your families! You're up to no good. ¹¹ Do you want to worship the Lord? All right, take only the men and go.” Then Moses and Aaron were chased out of the palace.

¹² The Lord told Moses, “Stretch your arm toward Egypt. Swarms of locusts will come and eat everything left by the hail.”

¹³ Moses held out his walking stick, and the Lord sent an east wind that blew across Egypt the rest of the day and all that night. By morning, locusts ^14 (D) were swarming everywhere. Never before had there been so many locusts in Egypt, and never again will there be so many. ¹⁵ The ground was black with locusts, and they ate everything left on the trees and in the fields. Nothing green remained in Egypt—not a tree or a plant.

¹⁶ At once the king sent for Moses and Aaron. He told them, “I have sinned against the Lord your God and against you. ¹⁷ Forgive me one more time and ask the Lord to stop these insects from killing every living plant.”

¹⁸ Moses left the palace and prayed. ¹⁹ Then the Lord sent a strong west wind^[g] that swept the locusts into the Red Sea.^[h] Not one locust was left anywhere in Egypt, ²⁰ but the Lord made the king so stubborn that he still refused to let the Israelites go.

Darkness

^21 (E) The Lord said to Moses, “Stretch your arm toward the sky, and everything will be covered with darkness thick enough to touch.” ^22 (F) Moses stretched his arm toward the sky, and Egypt was covered with darkness for three days. ²³ During that time, the Egyptians could not see each other or leave their homes, but there was light where the Israelites lived.

²⁴ The king^[i] sent for Moses and told him, “Go worship the Lord! And take your families with you. Just leave your sheep, goats, and cattle.”

²⁵ “No!” Moses replied. “You must let us offer sacrifices to the Lord our God, ²⁶ and we won't know which animals we will need until we get there. That's why we can't leave even one of them here.”

²⁷ This time the Lord made the king so stubborn ²⁸ that he said to Moses, “Get out and stay out! If you ever come back, you're dead!”

²⁹ “Have it your way,” Moses answered. “You won't see me again.”

Trust God

The Value of Wisdom