Exodus, 8
18. The magicians tried by their secret arts to bring forth gnats, but they could not. So there were gnats on man and beast.
18. The magicians tried by their secret arts to bring forth gnats, but they could not. So there were gnats on man and beast.
Exodus 8 narrates the continuation of the pests sent by God to Egypt so that Pharaoh will free the people of Israel. In this chapter Moses and Aaron present Pharaoh the plague of frogs, and in the face of their refusal to free the people, God sends a large amount of mosquitoes to the earth. The chosen verses are:
Psalm 78:45-46: "He sent swarms of mosquitoes that devoured them, and frogs that ruined them. He handed his picking to the grasshopper, and the fruit of his work to hungry locusts." This psalm refers to the pests sent by God to Egypt and shows how the crops were destroyed by the pests.
Exodus 8:10: "Said Pharaoh, tomorrow." Moses answered, "According to your word, that you may know that there is no one like the Lord, our God." Moses reaffirms God's authority over Pharaoh and his ability to control the pests.
Matthew 12:39-40: "He answered," A bad and adulterous generation asks for a sign! But no sign will be given to him except the sign of the prophet Jonas. For just like Jonas was three days and three nights in the womb of a Great fish, so the son of man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. " In this verse, Jesus makes a reference to the prophet Jonah and his role as a sign to the people of Israel.
Isaiah 51:9-11: "Awaken, awake, dress up with strength, O arm of the Lord; awaken, as in the past days, as in the ancient generations. ? You are not the one who dried the sea, the waters of the great abyss, who made the bottom of the sea a way, for the redeemed to pass? Those who rescued will come back, will come to Zion with songs of joy; their heads; the rejoicing and joy will reach them, and will flee sadness and moan. " This verse highlights God's sovereignty and its ability to liberate His people.
John 2:18-21: "Then the Jews asked: What sign shows us to do these things? Jesus answered: destroyed this sanctuary, and in three days I will get him back again. The Jews said, This temple was built in forty-six Years, and you will get up in three days? But the sanctuary he spoke was his own body. " This verse makes a reference to the resurrection of Jesus and shows how God has the power to raise what was destroyed.
“Que Nossa Senhora nos obtenha o amor à cruz, aos sofrimentos e às dores.” São Padre Pio de Pietrelcina
