Daily Devotions
Exodus
"They have mouths but they do not speak; Eyes they have, but they do not see." Psalm 115:5
Text: Exodus 32
AARON THE LEVITE
When Moses was hesitant and diffident about going to speak to Pharaoh, the Lord said to him.
“Is not Aaron the Levite your brother?
I know that he can speak well…”
EXODUS 4:14
1. Aaron the spokesman-prophet
It was the Lord who gave Aaron to be the spokesman to Moses (Cf. Exodus 4:16). His role would be similar to that of a prophet for Moses (Cf. Exodus 7:1)
2. Aaron the Assistant of Moses
From the very beginning, when Moses returned to Egypt, Aaron was with him. He was deeply privileged to have shared Moses’ ministry. He may have been a spokesman-prophet for Moses, but he was at all times an assistant to Moses the man of God.
3. Aaron the high-priest elect
It was God who spoke to Moses about making Aaron the first high priest of Israel. He would be greatly honoured in his high-priestly office (Cf. Exodus 29).
4. Given a significant role in the absence of Moses
Moses knew that he would be up in Mount Sinai for an extended period of time. He entrusted the leadership of Israel to Aaron and Hur (Cf. Exodus 24:14). The children of Israel were to turn to them should they run into difficulties. (They may be said to be “acting heads of state”).
It was to Aaron that the people turned when Moses seemed to be long delayed up in Mount Sinai. How would he fare as a leader? How wise and astute would he be?
CLEVERLY DISGUISED WORDS
The people turned to Aaron, the designated leader-in-charge. Hur was not mentioned at all! What was their difficulty?
1. “As for this Moses, the man who brought us out of the land of Egypt…”
Did Aaron not catch the slur cast on his brother, Moses? Did he not sense their hostility? Moses was his own brother! He was indeed that MAN whom the Lord had used mightily to emancipate Israel from the hardship imposed upon them, by Moses! How could he have allowed the people to cast aspersions on his brother?
2. “We do not know what has become of him”
The people moved from using innuendoes to casting doubts. Was Moses even alive? How could he have survived so long without food and water? And if he was indeed dead, would they not need “gods” to lead them! Couldn’t Aaron see through them?