Exodus 7:1-11:10 NIV
Why Did God
Send the Ten Plagues?
At the time the Egyptians did not
worship the one God that Moses believed in. Instead the Egyptians had many gods
that they worshiped. There were gods of the sky, gods of the waters, gods for
just about everything. Each one of the ten plagues that God sent through Moses was
not just random plagues. Each of the ten plagues was specifically designed to
defy some of the Egyptian gods.
Why Did God Send the Plague of
Blood?
Two of the Egyptian gods were Khnum and Hopi. Khnum was the guardian of the Nile and Hopi was the spirit of the Nile. When God turns the Nile River into blood it is a sign that God is more powerful than Khnum or Hopi.
Why Did God Send the Plague of
Frogs?
The Egyptians also worshiped a god of resurrection named Heqt. Heqt was believed to take the form of a frog. The plague of Frogs was a way of saying that God could control any form of frog.
Why Did God Send the Plague on
Cattle?
Apis was the symbol of fertility and took the form of a bull god. The plague on the cattle was a sign that even God could strike down any cattle, even a bull god.
Why Did God Send the Plague of
Boils?
The Egyptians also worshiped Imhotep, the god of medicine. When boils appeared on the people of Egypt and not even Imhotep can cure them it was a sign that God was more powerful.
Why Did God Send the Plague of Hail?
The plague of hail was sent to defy the god of Nut. Nut was the sky goddess and normally would be the one to control the weather.
Why Did God Send the Plague of
Locusts?
Seth was the Egyptian god that was supposed to be the protector of the crops. The locusts destroyed crops so the plague of locusts was a way to defy Seth.
Why Did God Send the Plague of
Darkness?
The Egyptians had many sun gods. Four of the Egyptian sun gods were Re, Aten, Atum and Hours. The plague of darkness was to challenge the sun gods.
Why Did God Send the Plague of the Firstborn?
Osiris was the Egyptian god that was considered the giver of life. Osiris supposedly has the ability to give people to life but was unable to stop every firstborn from being killed.
Exodus 7:14-11:10
New
International Version (NIV)
The
Plague of Blood
14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s
heart is unyielding; he refuses to let the people go. 15 Go to
Pharaoh in the morning as he goes out to the river. Confront him on the
bank of the Nile, and take in your hand the staff that was changed into a
snake. 16 Then say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent
me to say to you: Let My people go, so that they may worship Me in the
wilderness. But until now you have not listened. 17 This is
what the Lord says: By
this you will know that I am the Lord: With
the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water of the Nile, and it will
be changed into blood. 18 The fish
in the Nile will die, and the river will stink; the Egyptians will not be
able to drink its water.’”
19 The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron,
‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of
Egypt—over the streams and canals, over the ponds and all the reservoirs—and
they will turn to blood.’ Blood will be everywhere in Egypt, even in vessels[a] of wood and stone.”
20 Moses and
Aaron did just as the Lord had
commanded. He raised his staff in the presence of Pharaoh and his
officials and struck the water of the Nile, and all the water was changed
into blood. 21 The fish in the Nile died, and the river smelled
so bad that the Egyptians could not drink its water. Blood was everywhere in
Egypt.
22 But the
Egyptian magicians did the same things by their secret arts, and
Pharaoh’s heart became hard; he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as
the Lord had said. 23 Instead,
he turned and went into his palace, and did not take even this to heart. 24 And all
the Egyptians dug along the Nile to get drinking water, because they could not
drink the water of the river.
The
Plague of Frogs
25 Seven
days passed after the Lord struck
the Nile. 8 1 [b]Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh
and say to him, ‘This is what the Lord says:
Let My people go, so that they may worship Me. 2 If you
refuse to let them go, I will send a plague of frogs on your whole
country. 3 The Nile will teem with frogs. They will come up
into your palace and your bedroom and onto your bed, into the houses of your
officials and on your people, and into your ovens and kneading troughs. 4 The frogs
will come up on you and your people and all your officials.’”
5 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron,
‘Stretch out your hand with your staff over the streams and canals and
ponds, and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt.’”
6 So Aaron
stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and
covered the land. 7 But the magicians did the
same things by their secret arts; they also made frogs come up on the land
of Egypt.
8 Pharaoh
summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray to the Lord to take the frogs away from me
and my people, and I will let your people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord.”
9 Moses
said to Pharaoh, “I leave to you the honor of setting the time for me to
pray for you and your officials and your people that you and your houses may be
rid of the frogs, except for those that remain in the Nile.”
10 “Tomorrow,”
Pharaoh said.
Moses replied, “It will be as you say, so that
you may know there is no one like the Lord our
God. 11 The frogs will leave you and your houses, your
officials and your people; they will remain only in the Nile.”
12 After
Moses and Aaron left Pharaoh, Moses cried out to the Lord about the frogs he had brought
on Pharaoh. 13 And the Lord did
what Moses asked. The frogs died in the houses, in the courtyards and in
the fields. 14 They were piled into heaps, and the land reeked
of them.15 But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he
hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said.
The
Plague of Gnats
16 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron,
‘Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the ground,’ and throughout
the land of Egypt the dust will become gnats.” 17 They did
this, and when Aaron stretched out his hand with the staff and struck the dust
of the ground, gnats came on people and animals. All the dust throughout the
land of Egypt became gnats.18 But when
the magicians tried to produce gnats by their secret arts, they could
not.
Since the gnats were on people and animals
everywhere, 19 the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” But
Pharaoh’s heart was hard and he would not listen, just as the Lord had said.
The
Plague of Flies
20 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get up early
in the morning and confront Pharaoh as he goes to the river and say to
him, ‘This is what the Lord says:
Let My people go, so that they may worship Me. 21 If you do
not let my people go, I will send swarms of flies on you and your officials, on
your people and into your houses. The houses of the Egyptians will be full of
flies; even the ground will be covered with them.
22 “‘But on
that day I will deal differently with the land of Goshen, where my people
live; no swarms of flies will be there, so that you will know that I,
the Lord, am in this land. 23 I will
make a distinction[c] between My people and
your people. This sign will occur tomorrow.’”
24 And the Lord did this. Dense swarms of
flies poured into Pharaoh’s palace and into the houses of his officials;
throughout Egypt the land was ruined by the flies.
25 Then
Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God here
in the land.”
26 But Moses
said, “That would not be right. The sacrifices we offer the Lord our God would be detestable to
the Egyptians. And if we offer sacrifices that are detestable in their
eyes, will they not stone us? 27 We must
take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to
the Lord our God, as He
commands us.”
28 Pharaoh
said, “I will let you go to offer sacrifices to the Lord your God in the wilderness,
but you must not go very far. Now pray for me.”
29 Moses
answered, “As soon as I leave you, I will pray to the Lord, and tomorrow the flies will leave
Pharaoh and his officials and his people. Only let Pharaoh be sure that he does
not act deceitfully again by not letting the people go to offer sacrifices
to the Lord.”
30 Then
Moses left Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord, 31 and the Lord did what Moses asked. The
flies left Pharaoh and his officials and his people; not a fly remained. 32 But this
time also Pharaoh hardened his heart and would not let the people go.
The
Plague on Livestock
9 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh
and say to him, ‘This is what the Lord,
the God of the Hebrews, says: “Let My people go, so that they may worship Me.” 2 If you
refuse to let them go and continue to hold them back, 3 the Hand of
the Lord will bring a
terrible plague on your livestock in the field—on your horses, donkeys and
camels and on your cattle, sheep and goats. 4 But the Lord will make a distinction
between the livestock of Israel and that of Egypt, so that no animal
belonging to the Israelites will die.’”
5 The Lord set a time and said, “Tomorrow
the Lord will do this in
the land.” 6 And the next day the Lord did it: All the livestock of
the Egyptians died, but not one animal belonging to the Israelites died. 7 Pharaoh
investigated and found that not even one of the animals of the Israelites had
died. Yet his heart was unyielding and he would not let the people go.
The
Plague of Boils
8 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take
handfuls of soot from a furnace and have Moses toss it into the air in the
presence of Pharaoh. 9 It will
become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt, and festering boils will
break out on people and animals throughout the land.”
10 So they
took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh. Moses tossed it into the
air, and festering boils broke out on people and animals. 11 The
magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils that were on
them and on all the Egyptians. 12 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart and
he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said to Moses.
The
Plague of Hail
13 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get up early
in the morning, confront Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: Let
My people go, so that they may worship Me, 14 or this
time I will send the full force of my plagues against you and against your
officials and your people, so you may know that there is no one like Me
in all the earth. 15 For by now I could have
stretched out My hand and struck you and your people with a plague that would
have wiped you off the earth. 16 But I
have raised you up[d] for this very
purpose, that I might show you My power and that My name might be
proclaimed in all the earth. 17 You still
set yourself against My people and will not let them go. 18 Therefore,
at this time tomorrow I will send the worst hailstorm that has ever fallen
on Egypt, from the day it was founded till now. 19 Give an
order now to bring your livestock and everything you have in the field to a
place of shelter, because the hail will fall on every person and animal that
has not been brought in and is still out in the field, and they will die.’”
20 Those
officials of Pharaoh who feared the Word of the Lord hurried to bring their slaves
and their livestock inside. 21 But those
who ignored the Word of the Lord left
their slaves and livestock in the field.
22 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out
your hand toward the sky so that hail will fall all over Egypt—on people and
animals and on everything growing in the fields of Egypt.”23 When
Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, the Lord sent thunder and hail, and lightning
flashed down to the ground. So the Lord rained
hail on the land of Egypt; 24 hail fell
and lightning flashed back and forth. It was the worst storm in all the land of
Egypt since it had become a nation. 25 Throughout
Egypt hail struck everything in the fields—both people and animals; it beat
down everything growing in the fields and stripped every tree.26 The only
place it did not hail was the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were.
27 Then
Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. “This time I have sinned,” he
said to them. “The Lord is
in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. 28 Pray to
the Lord, for we have had
enough thunder and hail. I will let you go; you don’t have to stay any
longer.”
29 Moses
replied, “When I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands in
prayer to the Lord. The
thunder will stop and there will be no more hail, so you may know that the
earth is the Lord’s. 30 But I
know that you and your officials still do not fear the Lord God.”
31 (The flax
and barley were destroyed, since the barley had headed and the flax was in
bloom. 32 The wheat and spelt, however, were not
destroyed, because they ripen later.)
33 Then
Moses left Pharaoh and went out of the city. He spread out his hands toward the
Lord; the thunder and hail
stopped, and the rain no longer poured down on the land.34 When
Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder had stopped, he sinned again: He
and his officials hardened their hearts. 35 So
Pharaoh’s heart was hard and he would not let the Israelites go, just as
the Lord had said
through Moses.
The
Plague of Locusts
10 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh,
for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his officials so that I
may perform these signs of Mine among them 2 that you
may tell your children and grandchildren how I dealt harshly with the
Egyptians and how I performed My signs among them, and that you may know that I
am the Lord.”
3 So Moses
and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said to him, “This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘How
long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, so
that they may worship Me. 4 If you
refuse to let them go, I will bring locusts into your country
tomorrow. 5 They will cover the face of the ground so that
it cannot be seen. They will devour what little you have left after the
hail, including every tree that is growing in your fields. 6 They will
fill your houses and those of all your officials and all the
Egyptians—something neither your parents nor your ancestors have ever seen from
the day they settled in this land till now.’” Then Moses turned and left
Pharaoh.
7 Pharaoh’s
officials said to him, “How long will this man be a snare to us? Let the
people go, so that they may worship the Lord their
God. Do you not yet realize that Egypt is ruined?”
8 Then
Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh. “Go, worship the Lord your God,” he said. “But tell
me who will be going.”
9 Moses
answered, “We will go with our young and our old, with our sons and our
daughters, and with our flocks and herds, because we are to celebrate a
festival to the Lord.”
10 Pharaoh
said, “The Lord be with
you—if I let you go, along with your women and children! Clearly you are bent
on evil.[e] 11 No! Have
only the men go and worship the Lord,
since that’s what you have been asking for.” Then Moses and Aaron were driven
out of Pharaoh’s presence.
12 And the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out
your hand 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 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;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, nor will
there ever be again. 15 They
covered all the ground until it was black. They devoured 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.
16 Pharaoh
quickly summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned against the Lord your God and against you. 17 Now
forgive my sin once more and pray to the Lord your God to take this deadly plague away from me.”
18 Moses
then left Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord. 19 And the Lord changed the wind to a very
strong west wind, which caught up the locusts and carried them into the Red
Sea.[f] Not a locust was left
anywhere in Egypt. 20 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and
he would not let the Israelites go.
The
Plague of Darkness
21 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out
your hand toward the sky so that darkness spreads over Egypt—darkness that can
be felt.” 22 So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky,
and total darkness covered all Egypt for three days. 23 No one
could see anyone else or move about for three days. Yet all the Israelites had
light in the places where they lived.
24 Then
Pharaoh summoned Moses and said, “Go, worship the Lord. Even your women and children may
go with you; only leave your flocks and herds behind.”
25 But Moses
said, “You must allow us to have sacrifices and burnt offerings to present
to the Lord our God. 26 Our
livestock too must go with us; not a hoof is to be left behind. We have to use
some of them in worshiping the Lord our
God, and until we get there we will not know what we are to use to worship the Lord.”
27 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and
he was not willing to let them go. 28 Pharaoh
said to Moses, “Get out of my sight! Make sure you do not appear before me
again! The day you see my face you will die.”
29 “Just as
you say,” Moses replied. “I will never appear before you again.”
The
Plague on the Firstborn
11 Now the Lord had said to Moses, “I will
bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt. After that, he will let you go from
here, and when he does, he will drive you out completely.2 Tell the
people that men and women alike are to ask their neighbors for articles of
silver and gold.” 3 (The Lord made the Egyptians favorably
disposed toward the people, and Moses himself was highly regarded in
Egypt by Pharaoh’s officials and by the people.)
4 So Moses
said, “This is what the Lord says:
‘About midnight I will go throughout Egypt.5 Every
firstborn son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who
sits on the throne, to the firstborn son of the female slave, who is at her
hand mill, and all the firstborn of the cattle as well. 6 There
will be loud wailing throughout Egypt—worse than there has ever been or
ever will be again. 7 But among
the Israelites not a dog will bark at any person or animal.’ Then you will know
that the Lord makes a
distinction between Egypt and Israel.8 All these
officials of yours will come to me, bowing down before me and saying, ‘Go, you
and all the people who follow you!’ After that I will leave.” Then Moses,
hot with anger, left Pharaoh.
9 The Lord had said to Moses, “Pharaoh
will refuse to listen to you—so that My wonders may be multiplied in
Egypt.” 10 Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders
before Pharaoh, but the Lord hardened
Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not let the Israelites go out of his
country.
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