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The Plague of Dying Egyptian Livestock

Then Yahweh said to Moses, “Come to Pharaoh and speak to him, ‘Thus says Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, “(A)Let My people go, that they may serve Me. For (B)if you refuse to let them go and [a]continue to hold them, behold, (C)the hand of Yahweh [b]will come with a very heavy pestilence on your livestock which are in the field, on the horses, on the donkeys, on the camels, on the herds, and on the flocks. (D)But Yahweh will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that (E)nothing will die of all that belongs to the sons of Israel.”’” Yahweh also set a definite time, saying, “Tomorrow Yahweh will do this thing in the land.” So Yahweh did this thing on the next day, and (F)all the livestock of Egypt died; (G)but of the livestock of the sons of Israel, not one died. And Pharaoh sent, and behold, there was not even one of the livestock of Israel dead. But (H)the heart of Pharaoh was [c]hardened with firmness, and he did not let the people go.

The Plague of Boils

Then Yahweh said to Moses and Aaron, “Take for yourselves handfuls of soot from a kiln, and let Moses toss it toward the sky in the sight of Pharaoh. And it will become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and it will become (I)boils breaking out with sores on man and beast through all the land of Egypt.” 10 So they took the soot from the kiln and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses tossed it toward the sky, and it became boils breaking out with sores on man and beast. 11 (J)And the [d]magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils were on the magicians [e]as well as on all the Egyptians. 12 And (K)Yahweh [f]hardened Pharaoh’s heart with strength, and he did not listen to them, just as Yahweh had spoken to Moses.

The Plague of Hail

13 And Yahweh said to Moses, “(L)Rise up early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh, and you shall say to him, ‘Thus says Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, “(M)Let My people go, that they may serve Me. 14 For this time I will send all My plagues against your heart and amongst your servants and your people, so that (N)you may know that there is no one like Me in all the earth. 15 For if by now I had sent forth My hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, you would then have been wiped out from the earth. 16 But, indeed, (O)for this reason I have caused you to stand, in order to show you My power and in order to recount My name through all the earth. 17 Still you [g]exalt yourself against My people [h]by not letting them go. 18 Behold, about this time tomorrow, (P)I will rain down very heavy hail, such as has not been seen in Egypt from the day it was founded [i]until now. 19 So now, send, bring (Q)your livestock and whatever you have in the field to safety. (R)Every man and beast that is found in the field and is not brought home, the hail will come down on them, and they will die.”’” 20 (S)The one among the servants of Pharaoh who [j]feared the word of Yahweh made his servants and his livestock flee into the houses; 21 but he who did not [k]consider in his heart the word of Yahweh [l]left his servants and his livestock in the field.

22 Now Yahweh said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky, that (T)there may be hail on all the land of Egypt, on man and on beast and on every plant of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.” 23 So Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, and Yahweh gave forth [m]thunder and (U)hail, and fire went down to the earth. And Yahweh rained down hail on the land of Egypt. 24 So there was hail, and fire [n]flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very heavy, such as had not been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. 25 (V)And the hail struck all that was in the field through all the land of Egypt, from man to beast; the hail also struck every plant of the field and shattered every tree of the field. 26 (W)Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, there was no hail.

27 Then Pharaoh (X)sent and called for Moses and Aaron and said to them, “(Y)I have sinned this time; Yahweh is the righteous one, and I and my people are the wicked ones. 28 (Z)Entreat Yahweh, for God’s [o]thunder and hail are too much; and (AA)I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.” 29 And Moses said to him, “As soon as I go out of the city, I will (AB)spread out my [p]hands to Yahweh; the [q]thunder will cease, and there will be hail no longer, that you may know that (AC)the earth is Yahweh’s. 30 (AD)But as for you and your servants, I know that (AE)you do not yet [r]fear [s]Yahweh God.” 31 (Now the flax and the (AF)barley were struck down, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud. 32 But the wheat and the spelt were not struck down, for they are late-ripening.) 33 (AG)And Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh and spread out his [t]hands to Yahweh; and the [u]thunder and the hail ceased, and rain [v]no longer poured on the earth. 34 But Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the [w]thunder had ceased. So he sinned again and [x]hardened his heart with firmness, he and his servants. 35 And Pharaoh’s heart was [y]hardened with strength, and he did not let the sons of Israel go, just as (AH)Yahweh had spoken by the hand of Moses.

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 9:2 Lit still hold
  2. Exodus 9:3 Lit will be
  3. Exodus 9:7 Or glorified, cf. 14:4; lit heavy
  4. Exodus 9:11 Or soothsayer priests
  5. Exodus 9:11 Lit and on all
  6. Exodus 9:12 Lit strengthened
  7. Exodus 9:17 Lit Or build up
  8. Exodus 9:17 Lit so as not to let
  9. Exodus 9:18 Lit and until now
  10. Exodus 9:20 Or reverenced
  11. Exodus 9:21 Lit set
  12. Exodus 9:21 Lit then left
  13. Exodus 9:23 Lit sounds
  14. Exodus 9:24 Lit taking hold of itself
  15. Exodus 9:28 Lit sounds
  16. Exodus 9:29 Lit palms
  17. Exodus 9:29 Lit sounds
  18. Exodus 9:30 Or reverence
  19. Exodus 9:30 Lit before Yahweh God
  20. Exodus 9:33 Lit palms
  21. Exodus 9:33 Lit sounds
  22. Exodus 9:33 Lit was not poured
  23. Exodus 9:34 Lit sounds
  24. Exodus 9:34 Or glorified, cf. 14:4; lit made heavy
  25. Exodus 9:35 Lit strengthened

A Plague against Livestock

“Go back to Pharaoh,” the Lord commanded Moses. “Tell him, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so they can worship me. If you continue to hold them and refuse to let them go, the hand of the Lord will strike all your livestock—your horses, donkeys, camels, cattle, sheep, and goats—with a deadly plague. But the Lord will again make a distinction between the livestock of the Israelites and that of the Egyptians. Not a single one of Israel’s animals will die! The Lord has already set the time for the plague to begin. He has declared that he will strike the land tomorrow.’”

And the Lord did just as he had said. The next morning all the livestock of the Egyptians died, but the Israelites didn’t lose a single animal. Pharaoh sent his officials to investigate, and they discovered that the Israelites had not lost a single animal! But even so, Pharaoh’s heart remained stubborn,[a] and he still refused to let the people go.

A Plague of Festering Boils

Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from a brick kiln, and have Moses toss it into the air while Pharaoh watches. The ashes will spread like fine dust over the whole land of Egypt, causing festering boils to break out on people and animals throughout the land.”

10 So they took soot from a brick kiln and went and stood before Pharaoh. As Pharaoh watched, Moses threw the soot into the air, and boils broke out on people and animals alike. 11 Even the magicians were unable to stand before Moses, because the boils had broken out on them and all the Egyptians. 12 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and just as the Lord had predicted to Moses, Pharaoh refused to listen.

A Plague of Hail

13 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh. Tell him, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so they can worship me. 14 If you don’t, I will send more plagues on you[b] and your officials and your people. Then you will know that there is no one like me in all the earth. 15 By now I could have lifted my hand and struck you and your people with a plague to wipe you off the face of the earth. 16 But I have spared you for a purpose—to show you my power[c] and to spread my fame throughout the earth. 17 But you still lord it over my people and refuse to let them go. 18 So tomorrow at this time I will send a hailstorm more devastating than any in all the history of Egypt. 19 Quick! Order your livestock and servants to come in from the fields to find shelter. Any person or animal left outside will die when the hail falls.’”

20 Some of Pharaoh’s officials were afraid because of what the Lord had said. They quickly brought their servants and livestock in from the fields. 21 But those who paid no attention to the word of the Lord left theirs out in the open.

22 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Lift your hand toward the sky so hail may fall on the people, the livestock, and all the plants throughout the land of Egypt.”

23 So Moses lifted his staff toward the sky, and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and lightning flashed toward the earth. The Lord sent a tremendous hailstorm against all the land of Egypt. 24 Never in all the history of Egypt had there been a storm like that, with such devastating hail and continuous lightning. 25 It left all of Egypt in ruins. The hail struck down everything in the open field—people, animals, and plants alike. Even the trees were destroyed. 26 The only place without hail was the region of Goshen, where the people of Israel lived.

27 Then Pharaoh quickly summoned Moses and Aaron. “This time I have sinned,” he confessed. “The Lord is the righteous one, and my people and I are wrong. 28 Please beg the Lord to end this terrifying thunder and hail. We’ve had enough. I will let you go; you don’t need to stay any longer.”

29 “All right,” Moses replied. “As soon as I leave the city, I will lift my hands and pray to the Lord. Then the thunder and hail will stop, and you will know that the earth belongs to the Lord. 30 But I know that you and your officials still do not fear the Lord God.”

31 (All the flax and barley were ruined by the hail, because the barley had formed heads and the flax was budding. 32 But the wheat and the emmer wheat were spared, because they had not yet sprouted from the ground.)

33 So Moses left Pharaoh’s court and went out of the city. When he lifted his hands to the Lord, the thunder and hail stopped, and the downpour ceased. 34 But when Pharaoh saw that the rain, hail, and thunder had stopped, he and his officials sinned again, and Pharaoh again became stubborn.[d] 35 Because his heart was hard, Pharaoh refused to let the people leave, just as the Lord had predicted through Moses.

Footnotes

  1. 9:7 Hebrew heavy.
  2. 9:14 Hebrew on your heart.
  3. 9:16 Greek version reads to display my power in you; compare Rom 9:17.
  4. 9:34 Hebrew made his heart heavy.