Welcome to Day 2770 of Wisdom-Trek. Thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.

Day 2770 – Wisdom Nuggets – Psalm 105:16-36 – Daily Wisdom

Wisdom-Trek Podcast Script - Day 2770

Welcome to Wisdom-Trek with Gramps! I am Guthrie Chamberlain, and we are on Day two thousand seven hundred seventy of our Trek. The Purpose of Wisdom-Trek is to create a legacy of wisdom, to seek out discernment and insights, and to boldly grow where few have chosen to grow before.  

The title for today’s Wisdom-Trek is: The Sovereign Storyteller – From the Dungeon to the Darkness of Egypt.

Today, we continue our grand historical survey in Psalm One Hundred Five. We are picking up the narrative where we left off, covering verses sixteen through thirty-six in the New Living Translation.  

In our previous trek through the first fifteen verses of this psalm, we established the foundation. We saw God making an unbreakable covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We saw the Patriarchs as "protected wanderers," a tiny group of strangers moving through a hostile world, yet guarded by a God who rebuked kings for their sake, saying, "Do not touch my chosen people."  

But now, the story takes a dark and dramatic turn. The camera shifts from the open pastures of Canaan to the dungeons of Egypt. The protection of the Patriarchs gives way to the slavery of the nation.  

In this section, we will see that God is not just the God of the promise; He is the God of the process. We will witness how He orchestrates famine, imprisonment, and political intrigue to position His people. And then, we will witness one of the greatest cosmic battles in history, as Yahweh enters the ring against the gods of Egypt in a campaign of de-creation known as the Plagues.  

This is not just history; it is spiritual warfare on a national scale. So, let us descend into Egypt and watch the God of Abraham go to war for His children.  

The first segment is: The Providence of the Pit: The Story of Joseph.

Psalm One Hundred Five: verses sixteen through twenty-two.

He called for a famine on the land of Canaan, cutting off their food supply.  Then he sent a man to Egypt ahead of them— Joseph, who was sold as a slave.  They bruised his feet with fetters and placed his neck in an iron collar.  Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the Lord tested Joseph’s character.  Then Pharaoh sent for him and set him free; the ruler of the nation opened his prison door.  Joseph was put in charge of all the king’s household; he became ruler over all the king’s possessions.  He could instruct the king’s aides as he pleased and teach the king’s advisers.

The psalmist begins this section by pulling back the curtain on natural disasters.  

"He called for a famine on the land of Canaan, cutting off their food supply."  

Notice the agency here. The famine wasn't an accident of weather patterns. God "called for" (qara) it. He summoned the famine like a servant. This demonstrates Yahweh’s absolute sovereignty over the ecosystem. He breaks the "staff of bread" (as the Hebrew puts it) to move His people geographically.  

But before He sent the problem, He sent the solution: "Then he sent a man to Egypt ahead of them—Joseph, who was sold as a slave."  

From a human perspective, Joseph was a victim of human trafficking, betrayed by jealous brothers. But from the divine perspective of history, he was "sent" (shalach). God used the sins of the brothers to accomplish the salvation of the family.  

However, being "sent" by God does not mean an easy life. The psalmist gives us a gritty detail about Joseph's imprisonment that isn't explicitly in Genesis:  

"They bruised his feet with fetters and placed his neck in an iron collar."  

The literal Hebrew here is haunting: "His soul came into iron." The iron of the chains didn't just bind his body; it entered his very being. The suffering was deep, psychological, and crushing.  

Why did this happen? "Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the Lord tested Joseph’s character."  

Literally, "The Word of the Lord tested him." The "Word" here refers to the prophetic dreams Joseph received as a boy. Those promises of greatness tested him because his reality (the iron collar) contradicted the promise (the ruling sheaf). This is the crucible of faith: holding onto what God said when everything you see screams the opposite.  

But the "appointed time" always arrives. "Then Pharaoh sent for him and set him free..."  

In a single day, Joseph went from the prisoner with the bruised feet to the Prime Minister of the superpower of the ancient world.  

"Joseph was put in charge of all the king’s household... He could instruct the king’s aides as he pleased and teach the king’s advisers."  

This is a stunning reversal. The young Hebrew slave is now teaching Wisdom (chokmah) to the elders of Egypt. He is instructing the senators of the Nile. God placed His agent at the very top of the Gentile hierarchy to prepare a nursery for the nation of Israel.  

The second segment is: The Trap is Sprung: Multiplication and Hatred.

Psalm One Hundred Five: verses twenty-three through twenty-five.

Then Israel arrived in Egypt; Jacob lived as a foreigner in the land of Ham.  And the Lord multiplied the people of Israel until they became too mighty for their enemies.  Then he turned the Egyptians against his people and made them deal falsely with his servants.

The stage is now set. Jacob (Israel) moves his entire clan into the "land of Ham" (a poetic name for Egypt).  

What happens next is the fulfillment of the Creation Mandate and the Abrahamic Promise: "And the Lord multiplied the people of Israel until they became too mighty for their enemies."  

This supernatural fertility was a threat to the cosmic order of Egypt. Pharaoh was supposed to be the maintainer of Ma'at (order), but this foreign population was growing out of control.  

Then, we have a verse that troubles many modern readers: "Then he turned the Egyptians against his people and made them deal falsely with his servants."  

Did God make the Egyptians sin?  

In the Ancient Israelite worldview, God is the ultimate Director of the drama. While the Egyptians acted according to their own sinful fears and nationalistic pride, the psalmist attributes the shift in history to God. By blessing Israel so abundantly, God provoked the hatred of Egypt.  

More deeply, this sets the stage for the conflict of the gods. If Egypt had just remained friendly, Israel would have assimilated and never left. They would have become Egyptians. To get them out, the nest had to become thorny. God allowed the political winds to shift to prepare for the Exodus.  

The third segment: The War of the Gods: The Plagues Begin.

Psalm One Hundred Five: verses twenty-six through thirty-six.

He sent his servant Moses, along with Aaron, whom he had chosen.  They performed miraculous signs among the Egyptians, and wonders in the land of Ham.  The Lord sent darkness and made the land black, but the Egyptians argued against his commands.  He turned their waters into blood, poisoning all the fish.  Then frogs overran the land, even invading the king’s bedrooms.  When the Lord spoke, flies descended on them, and gnats swarmed across Egypt.  Instead of rain, he sent hail, and flashes of lightning overwhelmed the land.  He ruined their grapevines and fig trees and shattered all the trees.  He spoke, and hordes of locusts came— young locusts beyond number.  They ate up everything green in the land, destroying all the crops.  Then he killed the oldest son in each Egyptian home, the pride and joy of every family.

Now, the war begins.  

God sends His generals: "He sent his servant Moses, along with Aaron, whom he had chosen."  

They are commissioned to perform "miraculous signs" (literally, "the words of His signs"). These are not just magic tricks; they are theological messages.  

In the Divine Council worldview, the Plagues of Egypt were not just random disasters. They were a systematic dismantling of the Egyptian pantheon. As Exodus Twelve, verse twelve says, "Against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment." Yahweh is going to war against the spiritual powers that held Egypt—and Israel—in bondage.  

The psalmist lists the plagues, but interestingly, he doesn't follow the exact chronological order of Exodus. He groups them for poetic impact.  

He starts with the ninth plague: "The Lord sent darkness and made the land black, but the Egyptians argued against his commands."  

Why start with Darkness? Because it is the ultimate attack on the chief god of Egypt: Ra, the Sun God. By blotting out the sun, Yahweh demonstrated that Ra was powerless. He de-created Egypt, turning it back into the primeval chaos of darkness.  

Then, He attacks the life-source of Egypt: "He turned their waters into blood, poisoning all the fish."  

This is an assault on Hapi, the god of the Nile. The river that was supposed to be the source of life became a source of death.  

Next comes a grotesque invasion: "Then frogs overran the land, even invading the king’s bedrooms."  

This mocks Heket, the frog-headed goddess of fertility and birth. Frogs were considered sacred and couldn't be killed. Yahweh makes their "sacred" symbol a repulsive curse that hops into Pharaoh’s bed, violating the sanctity of the royal palace.  

Then, the air itself becomes a weapon: "When the Lord spoke, flies descended on them, and gnats swarmed across Egypt."  

The gods of healing and protection could not stop the lice and the flies. The magicians of Egypt, who tried to replicate the earlier signs, bowed out here, admitting, "This is the finger of God."  

Next, the assault from the sky: "Instead of rain, he sent hail, and flashes of lightning overwhelmed the land. He ruined their grapevines and fig trees..."  

Egypt receives very little rain; they depended on the Nile. But here, Yahweh brings a storm from the north. This is a challenge to Nut, the sky goddess, and Seth, the god of storms. Yahweh destroys their economy—the vines and the figs.  

Then, the final stripping of the land: "He spoke, and hordes of locusts came... They ate up everything green in the land."  

Whatever the hail left, the locusts finished. This is the reversal of creation. The green earth is stripped bare.  

And finally, the ultimate blow: "Then he killed the oldest son in each Egyptian home, the pride and joy of every family."  

The "oldest son" (the firstborn) was the strength of the family. But for Pharaoh, the firstborn was the successor to the throne—a god-king in waiting. By killing the firstborn of Pharaoh, Yahweh broke the line of succession of the "divine" rulers of Egypt. He proved that Pharaoh had no power over life and death. Only Yahweh determines who lives and who dies.  

This section of Psalm One Hundred Five is a terrifying but triumphant account of Sovereignty.  

It teaches us that God’s plan often involves a descent before the ascent.  

Joseph had to wear the iron collar before he could wear the gold chain.

Israel had to groan in slavery before they could sing on the shores of the Red Sea.

It also teaches us that God is the Master of History. He calls the famine. He sends the man. He turns the hearts. He commands the locusts.  

When we look at the chaos in our own world—political upheaval, economic trouble, or personal "iron collars"—we can take comfort in this: The God of Joseph and the God of Moses is still on the throne. He is writing a story that ends in liberation, even if the chapter we are in right now is full of darkness and frogs.  

Join us tomorrow as we finish this psalm and see how God brings His people out with joy and silver and gold!  

If you found this podcast insightful, please subscribe and leave us a review, then encourage your friends and family to join us and come along tomorrow for another day of, ‘Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy.’  

Thank you so much for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and, most importantly, I am your friend as I serve you through this Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal.   As we take this Trek of life together, let us always: Live Abundantly.   Love Unconditionally.   Listen Intentionally.   Learn Continuously.   Lend to others Generously.   Lead with Integrity.   Leave a Living Legacy Each Day.  

I am Guthrie Chamberlain, reminding you to’ Keep Moving Forward,’ ‘Enjoy your Journey,’ and ‘Create a Great Day…Everyday! See you next time for more daily wisdom!