THE COVERING

"On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn—both men and animals—and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD. The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt. (Exodus 12:12-13 NIV)

“When the LORD goes through the land to strike down the Egyptians, He will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway, and He will not permit the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down.(Exodus 12:23 NIV)

The destroyer is made reference to many times the bible. From the account we have in Exodus 12, we can come to the conclusion that he was not human. Since he was not human, he could not be a companion of the Egyptians who were men. There has been a controversy on the identity of the destroyer. Was he an angel of God used for the purpose of destruction? Some characteristics of his attests to the contrary.

Firstly, he needed a sign to be able to distinguish between the Egyptians and the Israelites; the blood smeared on the doorposts. This presupposes that he was not acquainted with God’s people. If he could not recognize God’s people without a sign, it means he was not acquainted with God himself. Hence, we can draw the conclusion that he was not an angel of God. Furthermore, an angel of God would bear some characteristics that would be coherent with God’s. However, his mission is strikingly in alignment with that of the thief which was described by Jesus in John 10:10 - “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy…” This tells us that the destroyer was the devil himself. 1 Peter 5:8 says- “…Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour”.

The Egyptians were vulnerable to the devil on that night because they were not under the covering prescribed by God for the protection of the Israelites. They were the targets of the devil for destruction. Make no mistakes about it; the devil is always on the prowl for men who are not under cover. It is his nature to kill and destroy. The destroyer was restrained from hurting the Israelites because of the sign on the doorpost.

It is noteworthy that the church serves as that restraining force against the devil in the world today. Our presence and words of power make it impossible for the devil to destroy the whole world. We operate as a protective covering for the people around us because of our place of authority in the spirit. When you learn to recognize the power, presence and glory of God, you can effectively function with that covering that is the restraining power against the destroyer.

 

..:: FOR FURTHER STUDY ::..
LUKE 10:19; LUKE 9:1; MARK 3:23-27.