Exodus 8
8
The Second Plague: Frogs
1Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and tell him: This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me. # 8:1 Ex 3:12,18; 4:23 2But if you refuse to let them go, then I will plague all your territory with frogs. # 8:2 Ex 7:14; 9:2; Rv 16:13 3The Nile will swarm with frogs; they will come up and go into your palace, into your bedroom and on your bed, into the houses of your officials and your people, and into your ovens and kneading bowls. 4The frogs will come up on you, your people, and all your officials.”
5The Lord then said to Moses, “Tell Aaron: Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, canals, and ponds, and cause the frogs to come up onto the land of Egypt.” # 8:3–5 Ex 7:19; 10:6 6When Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, the frogs # 8:6 Ps 78:45; 105:30 came up and covered the land of Egypt. 7But the magicians did the same thing by their occult practices and brought frogs up onto the land of Egypt.
8Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Appeal # 8:8 Ex 8:28; 9:28; 10:17 to the Lord to remove the frogs from me and my people. Then I will let the people go and they can sacrifice to the Lord.”
9Moses said to Pharaoh, “You may have the honor of choosing. When should I appeal on behalf of you, your officials, and your people, that the frogs be taken away from you and your houses, and remain only in the Nile? ”
10“Tomorrow,” he answered.
Moses replied, “As you have said, so that you may know there is no one like the Lord our God, # 8:10 Ex 9:14; Dt 33:26; 2Sm 7:22; 1Ch 17:20; Is 46:9; Jr 10:6–7 11the frogs will go away from you, your houses, your officials, and your people. The frogs will remain only in the Nile.” 12After Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, Moses cried out to the Lord for help concerning the frogs that he had brought against Pharaoh. 13The Lord did as Moses had said: the frogs in the houses, courtyards, and fields died. 14They piled them in countless heaps, and there was a terrible odor in the land. 15But when Pharaoh saw there was relief, he hardened his heart # 8:15 Ex 7:4; Ec 8:11 and would not listen to them, as the Lord had said.
The Third Plague: Gnats
16Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron: Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the land, and it will become gnats # 8:16 Perhaps sand fleas or mosquitoes throughout the land of Egypt.” 17And they did this. Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff, and when he struck the dust of the land, gnats were on people and animals. All the dust of the land became gnats throughout the land of Egypt. 18The magicians tried to produce gnats using their occult practices, but they could not. The gnats remained on people and animals. # 8:18 Ex 7:11; 9:11; Dn 5:8
19“This is the finger of God,” # 8:19 Ps 8:3; Lk 11:20 the magicians said to Pharaoh. But Pharaoh’s heart was hard, and he would not listen to them, as the Lord had said.
The Fourth Plague: Swarms of Flies
20The Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning and present yourself to Pharaoh when you see him going out to the water. Tell him: This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they may worship # 8:20 Or serve me. # 8:20 Ex 2:5; 7:15; 8:1; 9:13 21But if you will not let my people go, then I will send swarms of flies # 8:21 Or insects against you, your officials, your people, and your houses. The Egyptians’ houses will swarm with flies, and so will the land where they live. # 8:21 Lit are 22But on that day I will give special treatment to the land of Goshen, where my people are living; # 8:22 Ex 9:4,6; 10:23; 11:7 no flies will be there. This way you will know that I, the Lord, am in the land. 23I will make a distinction # 8:23 LXX, Syr, Vg; MT reads will place redemption between my people and your people. This sign will take place tomorrow.”
24And the Lord did this. Thick swarms of flies went into Pharaoh’s palace and his officials’ houses. Throughout Egypt the land was ruined because of the swarms of flies. # 8:24 Ps 78:45; 105:31 25Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Go sacrifice to your God within the country.”
26But Moses said, “It would not be right # 8:26 Or allowable to do that, because what we will sacrifice to the Lord our God is detestable to the Egyptians. # 8:26 Gn 43:32; 46:34 If we sacrifice what the Egyptians detest in front of them, won’t they stone us? 27We must go a distance of three days into the wilderness and sacrifice to the Lord our God as he instructs us.”
28Pharaoh responded, “I will let you go and sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness, but don’t go very far. Make an appeal # 8:28 Ex 8:8; 9:28; 1Kg 13:6 for me.”
29“As soon as I leave you,” Moses said, “I will appeal to the Lord, and tomorrow the swarms of flies will depart from Pharaoh, his officials, and his people. But Pharaoh must not act deceptively again by refusing to let the people go and sacrifice to the Lord.” 30Then Moses left Pharaoh’s presence and appealed to the Lord. 31The Lord did as Moses had said: He removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, his officials, and his people; not one was left. 32But Pharaoh hardened his heart this time also and did not let the people go.
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Exodus 8: CSB
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© 2017 Holman Bible Publishers
Exodus 8
8
1he said to Moses:
Go to the palace and tell the king#8.1 the king: See the note at 1.11. of Egypt that I order him to let my people go, so they can worship me. 2If he refuses, I will cover his entire country with frogs. 3Warn the king that the Nile will be full of frogs, and from there they will spread into the royal palace, including the king's bedroom and even his bed. Frogs will enter the homes of his officials and will find their way into ovens and into the bowls of bread dough. 4Frogs will be crawling on everyone—the king, his officials, and every citizen of Egypt.
5Moses, now command Aaron to hold his stick over the water. Then frogs will come from all rivers, canals, and ponds in Egypt, and they will cover the land.
6Aaron obeyed, and suddenly frogs were everywhere in Egypt. 7But the magicians used their secret powers to do the same thing.
8The king sent for Moses and Aaron and told them, “If you ask the LORD to take these frogs away from me and my people, I will let your people go and offer sacrifices to him.”
9“All right,” Moses answered. “You choose the time when I am to pray for the frogs to stop bothering you, your officials, and your people, and for them to leave your houses and be found only in the river.”
10“Do it tomorrow!” the king replied.
“As you wish,” Moses agreed. “Then everyone will discover that there is no god like the LORD, 11and frogs will no longer be found anywhere, except in the Nile.”
12After Moses and Aaron left the palace, Moses begged the LORD to do something about the frogs he had sent as punishment for the king. 13The LORD listened to Moses, and frogs died everywhere—in houses, yards, and fields. 14The dead frogs were placed in piles, and the whole country began to stink. 15But when the king saw that things were now better, he again did just as the LORD had said and stubbornly refused to listen to Moses and Aaron.
Gnats
16The LORD said to Moses, “Command Aaron to strike the ground with his walking stick, and everywhere in Egypt the dust will turn into gnats.” 17They obeyed, and when Aaron struck the ground with the stick, gnats started swarming on people and animals. In fact, every speck of dust in Egypt turned into a gnat. 18When the magicians tried to use their secret powers to do this,#8.18 to do this: Or “to get rid of the gnats”. they failed, and gnats stayed on people and animals.
19The magicians told the king,#8.19 the king: See the note at 1.11. “God has done this.”#Lk 11.20.
But, as the LORD had said, the king was too stubborn to listen.
Flies
20The LORD said to Moses:
Early tomorrow morning, while the king#8.20 the king: See the note at 1.11. is on his way to the river, go and say to him, “The LORD commands you to let his people go, so they can worship him. 21If you don't, he will send swarms of flies to attack you, your officials, and every citizen of your country. Houses will be full of flies, and the ground will crawl with them.
22-23“The LORD's people in Goshen won't be bothered by flies, but your people in the rest of the country will be tormented by them. That's how you will know that the LORD is here in Egypt. This miracle will happen tomorrow.”
24The LORD kept his promise—the palace and the homes of the royal officials swarmed with flies, and the rest of the country was infested with them as well. 25Then the king sent for Moses and Aaron and told them, “Go and sacrifice to your God, but stay here in Egypt.”
26“That's impossible!” Moses replied. “Any sacrifices we offer to the LORD our God would disgust the Egyptians, and they would stone us to death. 27No indeed! The LORD has ordered us to walk three days into the desert before offering sacrifices to him, and that's what we have to do.”
28Then the king told him, “I'll let you go into the desert to offer sacrifices, if you don't go very far. But in the meantime, pray for me.”
29“Your Majesty,” Moses replied, “I'll pray for you as soon as I leave, and by tomorrow the flies will stop bothering you, your officials, and the citizens of your country. Only make sure that you're telling the truth this time and that you really intend to let our people offer sacrifices to the LORD.”
30After leaving the palace, Moses prayed, 31and the LORD answered his prayer. Not a fly was left to pester the king, his officials, or anyone else in Egypt. 32But the king turned stubborn again and would not let the people go.
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© British and Foreign Bible Society 2012