¹² And the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand^(A) over Egypt so that locusts swarm over the land and devour everything growing in the fields, everything left by the hail.”

¹³ So Moses stretched out his staff^(B) over Egypt, and the Lord made an east wind blow across the land all that day and all that night. By morning the wind had brought the locusts;^{(C) 14} they invaded all Egypt and settled down in every area of the country in great numbers. Never before had there been such a plague of locusts,^(D) nor will there ever be again. ¹⁵ They covered all the ground until it was black. They devoured^(E) all that was left after the hail—everything growing in the fields and the fruit on the trees. Nothing green remained on tree or plant in all the land of Egypt.

³ And out of the smoke locusts^(A) came down on the earth and were given power like that of scorpions^(B) of the earth. ⁴ They were told not to harm^(C) the grass of the earth or any plant or tree,^(D) but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads.^{(E) 5} They were not allowed to kill them but only to torture them for five months.^(F) And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion^(G) when it strikes. ⁶ During those days people will seek death but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them.^(H)

⁷ The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle.^(I) On their heads they wore something like crowns of gold, and their faces resembled human faces.^{(J) 8} Their hair was like women’s hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth.^{(K) 9} They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the thundering of many horses and chariots rushing into battle.^{(L) 10} They had tails with stingers, like scorpions, and in their tails they had power to torment people for five months.^(M)