Jonathan Cahn (note and disclaimer: he is Jewish and converted to Christianity, a position I do not support for Jewish people) aptly describes the rise of paganism and witchcraft in America as versus the worship of God. This is not accidental.
The words of the rabbi last week in synagogue come to my mind again and again. Moses worshiped God. Whatever he learned, it transformed him into a better person.
On the other hand, the evil Pharoah and his magicians were self-oriented. Whatever they learned, they wanted to use it for the purpose of increasing their own power over the world. So if Moshe could perform a wonder, they were interested in taking his knowledge and harnessing it for dominance and tyranny.
We live during a time when knowledge is advancing rapidly. Let’s follow God and use knowledge to transform ourselves into better, more humble, more giving people. Let’s stop the paganists who only want to accumulate knowledge for the purpose of hoarding power, money and ultimately control over others.
“The Egyptians, in turn, worship these visible embodiments of the gods who provide them with sustenance, and they worship Pharaoh as the medium connecting them to these gods. But if the gods whom the Egyptians worship can be appeased and manipulated by the Egyptians, then the worship of those gods is tantamount to self-worship. The Egyptians who worship the gods that they claim to control ultimately worship themselves.” — Malka Simkovich
https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/egyptians-israelites-and-the-sin-of-self-idolatry/
By Dr. Dannielle Blumenthal (Dossy). All opinions are the author’s own. Public domain.
Writing by Dr. Dannielle Blumenthal 