Exodus 7:2Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Moses exemplified righteousness; however, the followers of Christ are called to an even higher standard: “Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:20). This expectation arises from the fact that the disciples were not dispatched to Egypt, but rather to the entire world, which found itself in a more dire state than Egypt itself. Their mission was not to engage with Pharaoh, but to confront the chief adversary—Satan.

Moses, with a divine silence on his lips and sacred inspiration in his mind, was destined to exert a far greater influence on Pharaoh and the Egyptians than if he had spoken directly. Pharaoh, in a sense, was deemed unworthy to engage directly with God's messenger, necessitating the presence of the prophet Aaron as the intermediary. The acknowledgment of Moses's significance in Egypt is evidenced in Exodus 9:3, which states, “Moses was very great in the land of Egypt in the eyes of Pharaoh's servants and in the eyes of the people.”