Read Online The Deliverer by Linda Rios Brook - Free Book Online

brothers. You’re welcome here, and you will be safe. After all, those who wanted your life are now dead.” He rose from his throne and walked around Moses as if seeing him from every side might reveal some hidden thing.
    Ramses must be psychic, I thought to myself. That is exactly what God said to Moses in the desert. Why else would Ramses think to say it?
    Moses turned around to face his brother. “Pharaoh knows that I am a Hebrew, a brother of the slaves you hold in bondage. Their cries have gone up to the God of heaven, who has sent me for them.”
    I swear the temperature in the room dropped ten degrees as Ramses’ eyes iced over at the words of Moses. If you ask me, God skipped an important step in the “get ready” phase when He failed to insist that Moses brush up on his diplomatic skills before encountering the ruler of Egypt. Moses had spent too many years talking to goats. God should have provided him with a life coach for a couple of weeks. Someone to help him learn the social graces he’d long forgotten, such as how monarchs like a little polite chitchat to break the ice before jumping right down to the nonnegotiables. At least a few opening words like this, maybe:
    “Hi, how are you doing, brother? What’s new with the family? The castle looks great; I like what you’ve done with the place. Sorry I haven’t written. By the way, I just dropped by to walk out with your entire labor force. Nice seeing you.”
    No, Moses didn’t give Ramses a chance to warm up to the idea at all. No sugarcoating whatsoever. All eyes were on Pharaoh. Maybe Ramses thought Moses’s comments were so ridiculous they didn’t merit a response. After an uncomfortable silence, it was Moses who blinked and spoke again.
    “This is what the God of Israel says: ‘Let My people go so that they may hold a festival to Me for three days in the desert.’” The snickering in the court came from the palace guards who couldn’t contain their giggles at the absurdity of what Moses had said.
    Pharaoh laughed as well. “My brother hasn’t lost his sense of humor. You were always the prankster.”
    Moses remained silent.
    Ramses stopped smiling and sat down on his throne. “Who is this God that I should obey Him and let the slaves go?”
    “He is the God of Israel and the Creator of all that is.”
    Moses had summed it up nicely, I thought—briefly but nicely.
    “Is he greater than the gods of Egypt?” Ramses shot back.
    “He is.”
    Again I was concerned Moses wasn’t investing nearly enough words into this conversation. Ramses opened the door to dialogue, but Moses was not walking through it.
    “So your God cares about the Hebrews, does He? They’ve been the slaves of Egypt for four hundred years. Where’s He been all this time if He is so concerned?”
    “Let them go, Ramses.”
    “Here’s what I think of your God.” With that, Ramses turned to the foreman of the slaves.
    “Give them no more straw to make bricks. Obviously they have too much time on their hands. Now let them gather the straw themselves, and let the daily quota remain the same.”
    Moses didn’t flinch, but Aaron looked like he might run. They should have anticipated that Pharaoh would resist the idea of a total shutdown in the brick-making business. Aaron swallowed hard but didn’t say a word as he waited to see what Moses would do with this unfortunate turn of events.
    “Pharaoh, for your own sake, let them go.”
    Ramses bristled in indignation. He rose from his throne and stormed out of the room without saying another word. Moses and Aaron were summarily dismissed and booted out the same door they’d come in. It didn’t take very long for the word about the straw to get to the slave masters, who themselves were Hebrews. In one grumbling group they petitioned a meeting with Ramses and got it.
    “It can’t be done,” they said, groveling before him. “The people can’t gather straw and produce the same number of bricks. We’ll fall behind.