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And Jehovah said to Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, Thus saith Jehovah the God of the Hebrews: Let my people go, that they may serve me.

For if thou refuse to let them go, and shalt retain them still,

behold, the hand of Jehovah shall be on thy cattle which is in the field, on the horses, on the asses, on the camels, on the oxen and on the sheep, with a very grievous plague.

And Jehovah will distinguish between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt; and there shall nothing die of all that the children of Israel have.

And Jehovah appointed a set time, saying, To-morrow will Jehovah do this thing in the land.

And Jehovah did this thing on the following day, and all the cattle of Egypt died; but of the cattle of the children of Israel died not one.

And Pharaoh sent, and behold, there was not one of the cattle of the Israelites dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.

And Jehovah said to Moses and to Aaron, Take to yourselves handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses scatter it toward the heavens before the eyes of Pharaoh.

And it shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and shall become boils on man and on cattle, breaking out [with] blisters, throughout the land of Egypt.

10 And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it toward the heavens; and it became boils [with] blisters breaking out on man and on cattle.

11 And the scribes could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boils were on the scribes, and on all the Egyptians.

12 And Jehovah made Pharaoh's heart stubborn, and he did not hearken to them, as Jehovah had told Moses.

13 And Jehovah said to Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and set thyself before Pharaoh, and say to him, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of the Hebrews: Let my people go, that they may serve me.

14 For I will at this time send all my plagues to thy heart, and on thy bondmen, and on thy people; that thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth.

15 For now shall I put forth my hand, and I will smite thee and thy people with pestilence; and thou shalt be cut off from the earth.

16 And for this very cause have I raised thee up, to shew thee my power; and that my name may be declared in all the earth.

17 Dost thou still exalt thyself against my people, that thou wilt not let them go?

18 Behold, to-morrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as hath not been in Egypt since its foundation until now.

19 And now send, [and] secure thy cattle, and all that thou hast in the field: all the men and the cattle that are found in the field, and are not brought home—on them the hail shall come down, and they shall die.

20 He that feared the word of Jehovah among the bondmen of Pharaoh made his bondmen and his cattle flee into the houses.

21 But he that did not regard the word of Jehovah left his bondmen and his cattle in the field.

22 And Jehovah said to Moses, Stretch out thy hand toward the heavens, that there may be hail throughout the land of Egypt, upon men, and upon cattle, and upon every herb of the field in the land of Egypt.

23 And Moses stretched out his staff toward the heavens, and Jehovah gave thunder and hail; and the fire ran along the ground; and Jehovah rained hail on the land of Egypt.

24 And there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there had been none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation.

25 And the hail smote throughout the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both men and cattle; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and broke every tree of the field.

26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail.

27 And Pharaoh sent, and called Moses and Aaron, and said to them, I have sinned this time: Jehovah is the righteous [one], but I and my people are the wicked [ones].

28 Intreat Jehovah that it may be enough, that there be no more thunder of God and hail; and I will let you go, and ye shall stay no longer!

29 And Moses said to him, When I go out of the city, I will spread out my hands to Jehovah: the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail; that thou mayest know that the earth is Jehovah's.

30 But as to thee and thy bondmen, I know that ye do not yet fear Jehovah Elohim.

31 And the flax and the barley were smitten; for the barley was in the ear, and the flax was bolled.

32 But the wheat and the spelt were not smitten; for they were not come out into ear.

33 And Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread out his hands to Jehovah; and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not [any more] poured on the earth.

34 And Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders had ceased, and he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he, and his bondmen.

35 And the heart of Pharaoh was stubborn, neither would he let the children of Israel go, as Jehovah had spoken by Moses.

10 And Jehovah said to Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh; for I have hardened his heart, and the heart of his bondmen, that I might do these my signs in their midst,

and that thou mightest tell in the ears of thy son and thy son's son what I have wrought in Egypt, and my signs which I have done among them; and ye shall know that I am Jehovah.

And Moses and Aaron came to Pharaoh, and said to him, Thus saith Jehovah the God of the Hebrews: How long dost thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me.

For, if thou refuse to let my people go, behold, I will to-morrow bring locusts into thy borders;

and they shall cover the face of the land, so that ye will not be able to see the land; and they shall eat the residue of that which is escaped, which ye have remaining from the hail, and shall eat every tree which ye have growing in the field;

and they shall fill thy houses, and the houses of all thy bondmen, and the houses of all the Egyptians; which neither thy fathers nor thy fathers' fathers have seen, since the day that they were upon the earth unto this day. And he turned and went out from Pharaoh.

And Pharaoh's bondmen said to him, How long shall this man be a snare to us? let the men go, that they may serve Jehovah their God: dost thou not yet know that Egypt is ruined?

And Moses and Aaron were brought again to Pharaoh. And he said to them, Go, serve Jehovah your God. Who are they that shall go?

And Moses said, We will go with our young and with our old, with our sons and with our daughters; with our flocks and with our herds will we go; for we have a feast of Jehovah.

10 And he said to them, Let Jehovah be so with you, as I let you go, and your little ones: see that evil is before you!

11 Not so: go now, ye [that are] men, and serve Jehovah! for it is that ye have desired. And they were driven out from Pharaoh's presence.

12 And Jehovah said to Moses, Stretch out thy hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up over the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land—all that the hail hath left.

13 And Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt, and Jehovah brought an east wind on the land all that day and all that night. When it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts.

14 And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the borders of Egypt, very grievous; before them there were no such locusts as they, neither after them will be such.

15 And they covered the face of the whole land, so that the land was darkened; and they ate every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left; and there remained not any green thing on the trees, and in the herbs of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.

16 And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron in haste; and he said, I have sinned against Jehovah your God, and against you.

17 And now, forgive, I pray you, my sin only this time, and intreat Jehovah your God that he may take away from me this death only!

18 And he went out from Pharaoh, and intreated Jehovah.

19 And Jehovah turned a very powerful west wind, which took away the locusts, and drove them into the Red Sea: there remained not one locust in all the borders of Egypt.

20 And Jehovah made Pharaoh's heart stubborn, and he did not let the children of Israel go.

21 And Jehovah said to Moses, Stretch out thy hand toward the heavens, that there may be darkness in the land of Egypt—so that one may feel darkness.

22 And Moses stretched out his hand toward the heavens; and there was a thick darkness throughout the land of Egypt three days:

23 they saw not one another, neither rose any from his place, for three days. But all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.

24 And Pharaoh called Moses and said, Go, serve Jehovah; only, let your flocks and your herds remain; let your little ones also go with you.

25 And Moses said, Thou must give also sacrifices and burnt-offerings into our hands, that we may sacrifice to Jehovah our God.

26 Our cattle also must go with us: there shall not a hoof be left behind; for we must take thereof to serve Jehovah our God; and we do not know with what we must serve Jehovah, until we come there.

27 But Jehovah made Pharaoh's heart stubborn, and he would not let them go.

28 And Pharaoh said to him, Get thee from me, take heed to thyself, see my face no more; for in the day thou seest my face thou shalt die.

29 And Moses said, Thou hast spoken rightly: I will see thy face again no more!

11 And Jehovah said to Moses, Yet one plague will I bring upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go hence: when he shall let [you] go altogether, he shall utterly drive you out hence.

Speak now in the ears of the people, that they ask every man of his neighbour, and every woman of her neighbour, utensils of silver and utensils of gold.

And Jehovah gave the people favour in the eyes of the Egyptians. Moreover the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt—in the eyes of Pharaoh's bondmen, and in the eyes of the people.

And Moses said, Thus saith Jehovah: About midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt.

And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sitteth on his throne, even unto the firstborn of the bondwoman that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of cattle.

And there shall be a great cry throughout the land of Egypt, such as there hath been none like it, nor shall be like it any more.

But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast; that ye may know that Jehovah distinguisheth between the Egyptians and Israel.

And all these thy bondmen shall come down unto me, and bow down to me, saying, Go out, thou, and all the people that follow thee; and after that I will go out. And he went out from Pharaoh in a glowing anger.

And Jehovah had said to Moses, Pharaoh shall not hearken to you; that my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.

10 And Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh; but Jehovah made Pharaoh's heart stubborn, and he did not let the children of Israel go out of his land.

The Plague on Livestock

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(A) me.” If you refuse to let them go and continue to hold them back, the hand(B) of the Lord will bring a terrible plague(C) on your livestock in the field—on your horses, donkeys and camels and on your cattle, sheep and goats. But the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and that of Egypt,(D) so that no animal belonging to the Israelites will die.’”

The Lord set a time and said, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this in the land.” And the next day the Lord did it: All the livestock(E) of the Egyptians died,(F) but not one animal belonging to the Israelites died. Pharaoh investigated and found that not even one of the animals of the Israelites had died. Yet his heart(G) was unyielding and he would not let the people go.(H)

The Plague of Boils

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. It will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt, and festering boils(I) 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(J) 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(K) and he would not listen(L) 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(M) 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(N) that there is no one like(O) me in all the earth. 15 For by now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your people(P) with a plague that would have wiped you off the earth. 16 But I have raised you up[a] for this very purpose,(Q) that I might show you my power(R) 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(S) that has ever fallen on Egypt, from the day it was founded till now.(T) 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(U) the word of the Lord hurried to bring their slaves and their livestock inside. 21 But those who ignored(V) 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(W) and hail,(X) 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.(Y) 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.(Z) 26 The only place it did not hail was the land of Goshen,(AA) where the Israelites were.(AB)

27 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. “This time I have sinned,”(AC) he said to them. “The Lord is in the right,(AD) and I and my people are in the wrong. 28 Pray(AE) to the Lord, for we have had enough thunder and hail. I will let you go;(AF) 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(AG) in prayer to the Lord. The thunder will stop and there will be no more hail, so you may know that the earth(AH) is the Lord’s. 30 But I know that you and your officials still do not fear(AI) the Lord God.”

31 (The flax and barley(AJ) were destroyed, since the barley had headed and the flax was in bloom. 32 The wheat and spelt,(AK) 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(AL) 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(AM) and the hearts of his officials so that I may perform these signs(AN) of mine among them that you may tell your children(AO) and grandchildren how I dealt harshly(AP) with the Egyptians and how I performed my signs among them, and that you may know that I am the Lord.”(AQ)

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(AR) yourself before me? Let my people go, so that they may worship me. If you refuse(AS) to let them go, I will bring locusts(AT) into your country tomorrow. They will cover the face of the ground so that it cannot be seen. They will devour what little you have left(AU) after the hail, including every tree that is growing in your fields.(AV) They will fill your houses(AW) 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.’”(AX) Then Moses turned and left Pharaoh.

Pharaoh’s officials said to him, “How long will this man be a snare(AY) to us? Let the people go, so that they may worship the Lord their God. Do you not yet realize that Egypt is ruined?”(AZ)

Then Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh. “Go, worship(BA) the Lord your God,” he said. “But tell me who will be going.”

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(BB) 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.[b] 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(BC) 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(BD) 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;(BE) 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,(BF) nor will there ever be again. 15 They covered all the ground until it was black. They devoured(BG) 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(BH) Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned(BI) against the Lord your God and against you. 17 Now forgive(BJ) my sin once more and pray(BK) to the Lord your God to take this deadly plague away from me.”

18 Moses then left Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord.(BL) 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.[c] Not a locust was left anywhere in Egypt. 20 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart,(BM) 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(BN) spreads over Egypt—darkness that can be felt.” 22 So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and total darkness(BO) 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.(BP)

24 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and said, “Go,(BQ) worship the Lord. Even your women and children(BR) may go with you; only leave your flocks and herds behind.”(BS)

25 But Moses said, “You must allow us to have sacrifices and burnt offerings(BT) 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,(BU) 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(BV) 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(BW) from here, and when he does, he will drive you out completely.(BX) Tell the people that men and women alike are to ask their neighbors for articles of silver and gold.”(BY) (The Lord made the Egyptians favorably disposed(BZ) toward the people, and Moses himself was highly regarded(CA) in Egypt by Pharaoh’s officials and by the people.)

So Moses said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘About midnight(CB) I will go throughout Egypt.(CC) Every firstborn(CD) 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,(CE) and all the firstborn of the cattle as well. There will be loud wailing(CF) throughout Egypt—worse than there has ever been or ever will be again. But among the Israelites not a dog will bark at any person or animal.’ Then you will know that the Lord makes a distinction(CG) between Egypt and Israel. All these officials of yours will come to me, bowing down before me and saying, ‘Go,(CH) you and all the people who follow you!’ After that I will leave.”(CI) Then Moses, hot with anger, left Pharaoh.

The Lord had said to Moses, “Pharaoh will refuse to listen(CJ) to you—so that my wonders(CK) may be multiplied in Egypt.” 10 Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart,(CL) and he would not let the Israelites go out of his country.

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 9:16 Or have spared you
  2. Exodus 10:10 Or Be careful, trouble is in store for you!
  3. Exodus 10:19 Or the Sea of Reeds