Highlights in Exodus: The Plagues of Egypt

Highlights in Exodus: The Plagues of Egypt

In our last segment of Highlights in Exodus, The Confrontation, Moses had finally accepted his commission from Yahweh, and returning to Egypt he met with Aaron along the way. With that meeting, it is important to observe the fact that they had met at Sinai, the “mountain of God”, and by that we know that the Mount Sinai of the Exodus was in the northern part of the Sinai peninsula, and could not have been far from the common route that was customarily traveled between Midian and Egypt. We know this because Moses had embarked on a routine journey with his family to return to Egypt, where no precautions had made it necessary to use any alternate routes, and the common route would have been the most comfortable, as there had been at least one inn where he had stopped in along the way. Likewise, Aaron was sent by Yahweh to meet Moses on his way, so Aaron also must have taken the common route and traveled until he encountered him coming in the opposite direction. With this simple understanding of this chapter, all of the insane theories about the location of Sinai having been in the extremely mountainous southern part of the peninsula are entirely discredited.

Now we shall discuss the plagues of Egypt, but first we shall have a presentation of a section of the Wisdom of Solomon. This is because many Bible commentators have for a long time connected these plagues of Egypt to the idols of ancient Egypt, and often attest that Yahweh God is mocking the idols of the Egyptians by having natural phenomena related to their own idols turn against them. Those connections are highly creditable, and to a great extent I agree, but far too often those commentators do not reveal the original source of that assessment, which is the Wisdom of Solomon. In his Wisdom, Solomon made that exact association, as the greater scope of the work compared the fate of the impious, for which Egypt was an example, with the fate of the pious, for which the children of Israel were his example.

So speaking of idolatry and the making of idols in Wisdom chapter 15, the chapter closes where Solomon wrote:

18 And they worship the most loathsome animals. For being compared in folly it is the worst of all others. 19 Neither is it so much as to be desired, that the sight of a beast attains beauty, but escapes even the approval of God and His blessing.

Yahweh created beasts, and they were good, and some of them are graceful and attractive, but they were not made to be beautiful so that they may be venerated. Most of the beasts are very unseemly. So as he had proceeded, in chapter 16, Solomon described the fact that the Egyptians had been punished with their own idols, but in contrast, Israel had been granted mercy in the wilderness where they were overcome by beasts, where we read:

1 Therefore on account of these same things they are punished worthily and tormented by a multitude of beasts, 2 instead of which punishment, working kindly for Your people for their longing of appetite You prepared quail-mothers, meat of a strange taste, 3 in order that they, on the one hand desiring food, on account of the ugly sight of the things sent upon them, then they would turn away from the necessity of appetite while they having been a little needy [the Israelites] also had been partakers of a strange taste [referring to the quail-mothers] it was necessary for them that while unmerciful poverty came upon those ruling as tyrants [the Egyptians], on the other hand to these alone [the Israelites] it was shown how their enemies had been tormented. 5 For even when a terrible wrath of beasts came upon them, and they were destroyed by the bites of crooked serpents [the Israelites], Your wrath did not abide to an end. 6 But for an admonishment they were troubled for awhile, having a token of salvation [the bronze serpent in the wilderness] for a reminder of the commandment of Your law. 7 For he having turned was not saved by that thing having been seen but by You, the Savior of all. 8 Then even in this, You had persuaded our enemies that You are the Deliverer from every evil.

9 Indeed for them [the Egyptians] the bites of grasshoppers and flies have killed [Exodus chapters 10 and 8], and there has not been found a remedy for their life because they were worthy to be punished by such things. 10 But Your sons not even the teeth of poisonous dragons had overcome [the flying serpents in the wilderness], for Your mercy had permeated and healed them.… 

16 For refusing to know You, the impious [the Egyptians] with the strength of Your arm had been scourged with unusual rains and hailstones and storms, being persecuted unavoidably and in fire being consumed, 17 since it is most incredible that the fire works more in the water which extinguishes all things; for the Order [κόσμος] is a defender of the righteous.

Here Solomon speaks of the plague of hail and fire upon Egypt, which is found in Exodus chapter 9 (9:18-26). Here he also says that the κόσμος, the natural order or world in that sense, is a defender of the righteous, and if Yahweh redeems Israel from its current captivity in the manner in which he had in ancient Egypt, we are also reminded of that in Revelation chapter 12:

15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. 16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.

There is no doubt now that the flood from the mouth of the serpent has come upon the woman, who represents the children of Israel, so His deliverance is awaited once again. Returning to Solomon, he described the fire and ice of the plague as having worked together to accomplish the judgment of God:

18 For indeed at times the flame was softened in order that it would not consume the creatures sent against the impious [the Egyptians], but those seeing, they know that they were attacked by the judgment of God. 19 And then another time the flame of fire is capable beyond water that it may destroy the produce of the unrighteous land, 20 instead of which having fed Your people the food of messengers then You provided bread prepared from heaven for them without labor, prevailing for all pleasure and every agreeable taste. 21 For indeed Your substance manifested Your sweetness to the children, and transformed itself to the desire of he taking it to himself, ministering to any who were willing.

22 But snow and ice survived the fire and did not melt, in order that they would know that fire burning in the hail and flashing in the rain had destroyed the fruits of the enemies (Exodus 9:24). 23 Yet again even this had forgotten its own strength, in order that the righteous may be nourished. 24 For the creation which is serving You the Maker augments itself for punishment against those of the unrighteous and relaxes in kindness for the sake of those who are complying before You, 25 on which account at that time also being transformed into all things within Your all-nourishing gift, it had served for the favor of those in want, 26 in order that Your sons, O Yahweh, whom You love, may learn that it is not the productions of fruits which nourish a man but Your word which maintains those who are believing in You. 27 For that which by fire is not destroyed, simply by a little ray of the sun, being warmed was melted 28 so that it may be known that it is necessary to rise before the sun for which to give You thanks and to entreat You at the dawning of light. 29 For the hope of the ungrateful shall melt as wintry frost and shall flow as useless water.

While there are many other parallels between Egypt and Israel which had been made by Solomon in his Wisdom, here it is clear that the Egyptians had worshipped the things by which Yahweh God had punished them at the time of the Exodus, so that He was indeed mocking both them and their idols. 

Returning to Exodus, thus far there have been two confrontations between Moses and the pharaoh. The first, in chapter 5, was a simple plea for him to let the people go off alone to sacrifice to Yahweh in the desert, which the pharaoh had summarily refused. Then in the second encounter, in chapter 7, the tension became escalated as the magicians of Egypt had been able to match the feat of Aaron’s staff, which had turned into a serpent when cast down before pharaoh, but before Aaron took up his staff again, it had eaten all of the serpents produced by the staffs of the magicians. Now we shall continue with Exodus chapter 7, and a third confrontation which marks the beginning of the plagues of Egypt.

14 And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaoh's heart is hardened, he refuseth to let the people go. 15 Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water; and thou shalt stand by the river's brink against he come; and the rod which was turned to a serpent shalt thou take in thine hand.

Where we read “and thou shalt stand by the river's brink against he come”, the New American Standard Bible has “and station yourself to meet him on the bank of the Nile”, and Brenton’s Septuagint “and thou shalt meet him on the bank of the river”, either of which clauses are far more understandable. 

16 And thou shalt say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness: and, behold, hitherto thou wouldest not hear. 17 Thus saith the LORD, In this thou shalt know that I am the LORD: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood. 18 And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall lothe to drink of the water of the river.

Some schools, such as the jewish Schechter Institute in Jerusalem, which claim that blood is a late addition to the text here, and that the plague was actually only a plague of fish, which would force major revisions to the text. There is no authentic basis for this claim. Doing so, they take advantage of the fact that in Hebrew, the word for blood is דם or dam while the word for fish is דג or dag. [1] But the changes to the text would have needed to be far greater than the manipulation of a single letter. They also claim that these revisions occurred at a very early time, before any of our earliest manuscript evidence. But as early as the 78th and 105th Psalms, there is testimony that the rivers or waters of Egypt had been turned into blood.

Speaking of the Egyptians, we read from the 105th Psalm:

25 He turned their heart to hate his people, to deal subtilly with his servants. 26 He sent Moses his servant; and Aaron whom he had chosen. 27 They shewed his signs among them, and wonders in the land of Ham. 28 He sent darkness, and made it dark; and they rebelled not against his word. 29 He turned their waters into blood, and slew their fish. 30 Their land brought forth frogs in abundance, in the chambers of their kings. 31 He spake, and there came divers sorts of flies, and lice in all their coasts. 32 He gave them hail for rain, and flaming fire in their land. 33 He smote their vines also and their fig trees; and brake the trees of their coasts. 34 He spake, and the locusts came, and caterpillers, and that without number, 35 And did eat up all the herbs in their land, and devoured the fruit of their ground. 36 He smote also all the firstborn in their land, the chief of all their strength. 37 He brought them forth also with silver and gold: and there was not one feeble person among their tribes. 38 Egypt was glad when they departed: for the fear of them fell upon them.

So it was more than just the Nile River which had been turned to blood, but all the waters of Egypt, which is also found here in Exodus chapter 7:

19 And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone. 20 And Moses and Aaron did so, as the LORD commanded; and he lifted up the rod, and smote the waters that were in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants; and all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood. 21 And the fish that was in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the water of the river; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt. 22 And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the LORD had said. 23 And Pharaoh turned and went into his house, neither did he set his heart to this also. 24 And all the Egyptians digged round about the river for water to drink; for they could not drink of the water of the river. 25 And seven days were fulfilled, after that the LORD had smitten the river.

Notice that “the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments”, indicating that they could also make the water appear as blood, and apparently, seeing that they could perform the feat, pharaoh’s heart was hardened. But it is evident that they could not undo that which Yahweh had done, and restore the water so it could be used by the people, and that alone renders their magic tricks useless. Soon the magicians shall admit defeat, but even then the pharaoh will not relent. Here we are also told that the duration of this plague was seven days, which must have caused some suffering in the land of Egypt. But we are not told the duration of all of these plagues, or of the extent of intervening time. Altogether they seem to have passed rather quickly, over a period of a couple of months, at the most. 

Typically, there was an annual flooding of the Nile River from July to October which was a season of heavy rains to the south and its sources in Ethiopia (Lake Tana) and modern Uganda (Lake Victoria). Lake Tana is the source for the branch called the Blue Nile, and Lake Victoria the branch called the White Nile. The two branches merge in Sudan before flowing northwards into Egypt. From Egypt, the appearance of the star Sirius in the south marked the start of the new year, and forewarned of the annual flooding event. So the flood season regulated the agricultural season in Egypt. The Egyptians had an idol god, Hapi, which was the personification of this flood, and believed to have been the spirit of the Nile River, and this idol would be mocked by this plague.

The flood season was followed by a planting season, beginning in November, and a harvest season which was typically from March to June. Since the Passover seems to have coincided with the Vernal Equinox, here it seems that we must be in the planting season, and perhaps late in that season, as the water was at its lowest level in the time of the harvest. However by the time of the plague of hail in Exodus chapter 9, it must be in the beginning of the harvest season, which we learn in the description of the plague of hail where we read:

31 And the flax and the barley was smitten: for the barley was in the ear, and the flax was bolled. 32 But the wheat and the rie were not smitten: for they were not grown up.

With this, it is evident that the harvest may not have yet begun here at this point in the plagues, as the start of the harvest season must have been hampered by the first of these plagues, so the flax and barley were destroyed in the fields. Therefore we must interpret the plagues of Egypt as having happened on a more compressed schedule, only lasting no more than a couple of months. By the time of the plague of hail, the planting must have been well past finished, and the flax and barley were already ready for harvest, a harvest which had evidently not yet started. The only other plague for which we have a duration is the three-day plague of darkness which had preceded the last plague, the death of the first-born which occurred on the same night as the Passover after which the children of Israel departed from Goshen.

Entering chapter 8, the plague of frogs is the second plague, and seems to have been very brief, so once the pharaoh refused to relent after the plague of blood we read:

1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Let my people go, that they may serve me. 2 And if thou refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all thy borders with frogs: 3 And the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into thine house, and into thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and into the house of thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thine ovens, and into thy kneadingtroughs: 4 And the frogs shall come up both on thee, and upon thy people, and upon all thy servants. 5 And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch forth thine hand with thy rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come up upon the land of Egypt. 6 And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt. 7 And the magicians did so with their enchantments, and brought up frogs upon the land of Egypt.

At this time it is not made evident how it could be even noticed, that the magicians were able to summon frogs up from the river, if frogs had already covered the land. The same could have been said where the magicians mimicked the plague of blood. But in any event, the abilities of the magicians seems to end here, and once again, there is no word of their even trying to reverse what Yahweh had done. So while it seems that the pharaoh had not petitioned Moses to lift the plague of blood, and it lasted seven days, here he does break somewhat and petition him to lift the plague of frogs: 

8 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, Intreat the LORD, that he may take away the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the LORD. 9 And Moses said unto Pharaoh, Glory over me: when shall I intreat for thee, and for thy servants, and for thy people, to destroy the frogs from thee and thy houses, that they may remain in the river only? 10 And he said, To morrow. And he said, Be it according to thy word: that thou mayest know that there is none like unto the LORD our God. 11 And the frogs shall depart from thee, and from thy houses, and from thy servants, and from thy people; they shall remain in the river only.

Moses himself called the lifting of the plague, and must by now have been confident that Yahweh would uphold his words. But Yahweh did not withdraw the frogs, rather, He had them die, and that was evidently a bigger mess for the Egyptians to suffer:

12 And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh: and Moses cried unto the LORD because of the frogs which he had brought against Pharaoh. 13 And the LORD did according to the word of Moses; and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the villages, and out of the fields. 14 And they gathered them together upon heaps: and the land stank. 15 But when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart, and hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.

Inquiring as to whether the ancient Egyptians drank blood, or otherwise had used blood improperly, there is a mixed bag of results. The ancient Egyptian idol goddess Sekhmet was said to have been so bloodthirsty that she nearly destroyed all humanity, until the Sun god idol Ra dyed beer to look like blood, got Sekhmet drunk, and ended her rampage. So ancient Egyptians had a drunken festival with similarly-colored beer and wine in order to commemorate that event. [2, 3] But the Egyptians did worship certain fish, and primarily Abtu and Anet, two fish which were said to protect the boat, or the sun barque, of Ra as it crossed the sky each day and entered into the netherworld. These fish were portrayed in art as native tilapia fish, and were esteemed as having been sacred to Ra, the sun god, and also to have been one of his manifestations. [4] So the plague of blood killed the fish of the Nile, which was the original native habitat of tilapia fish. Egyptians also worshipped frogs, in the form of the frog goddess Heqet or Heket, who was said to have personified regeneration, rebirth, and fertility, and was portrayed as either a frog with the head of a woman, or a woman with the head of a frog. [5] There was also an Egyptian idol god called Kek, who was sometimes portrayed with the head of a frog, but sometimes a cat, who was associated with darkness or night. [6]

So the plague of frogs seems to have ended quickly, even if it must have taken awhile for the Egyptians to clean up the mess. But Yahweh once again hardened the heart of the pharaoh, which would remain hardened until He had made a full example of the Egyptians. Towards that end, there is now a plague of lice:

16 And the LORD said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt. 17 And they did so; for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust of the earth, and it became lice in man, and in beast; all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt. 18 And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not: so there were lice upon man, and upon beast. 19 Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh, This is the finger of God: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.

In the pagan Egyptian theology, Atum-Re, the sun god, was the original god, and bore Shu and Tefnut miraculously. These in turn bore Nut, the sky god, and Geb, the earth god. Here many commentators have associated the lice, which were seen as pests in Egypt, with Geb, since the lice had come out of the dust of the earth. This is plausible, since the lice themselves certainly were not worshipped in Egypt.

The magicians of Egypt could not repeat the plague of lice, and therefore they were compelled to admit that the plagues coming upon Egypt were sent by God, or by a god, from their perspective, and by that they acknowledge that the God of Moses was greater than themselves. So they admitted that to pharaoh, and he wouldn’t have it. Now as the chapter continues, it is not immediately clear that the lice have departed, and we read:

20 And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water; and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Let my people go, that they may serve me. 21 Else, if thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are. 22 And I will sever in that day the land of Goshen, in which my people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall be there; to the end thou mayest know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth. 23 And I will put a division between my people and thy people: to morrow shall this sign be. 24 And the LORD did so; and there came a grievous swarm of flies into the house of Pharaoh, and into his servants' houses, and into all the land of Egypt: the land was corrupted by reason of the swarm of flies.

Perhaps on account of their perceived persistence, flies were symbols of military prowess in Egypt. The pharaohs had awarded soldiers with fly pendants to reward achievements. Necklaces decorated with amulets in the form of flies were worn as symbols of protection. There is a surviving record from an 18th Dynasty soldier whom Thutmose I had awarded with quite a few items, among which were six golden flies. A fly pendant was even found in the tomb of a queen buried at Thebes. [7] So while perhaps flies were not worshipped, and there is no fly god which can be readily identified, they were nevertheless esteemed for their characteristics, and regardless of how filthy they actually are they became symbols which had evidently been worn with pride. 

In the closing verses of Exodus chapter 8, pharaoh once again calls Moses and seems to relent, telling them to go sacrifice to their God. But Moses challenges him:

26 And Moses said, It is not meet so to do; for we shall sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians to the LORD our God: lo, shall we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, and will they not stone us? 27 We will go three days' journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the LORD our God, as he shall command us.

This response by Moses, that Israel would “sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes”, was made in response to the statement of pharaoh that they would be allowed to go, but with an admonition saying “only ye shall not go very far away” while begging Moses to lift the plague of flies. So Moses agreed on the basis of having a three days’ journey, under the pretense that Israel would not be stoned if the Egyptians did not witness them sacrificing their abominations, and we read:

31 And the LORD did according to the word of Moses; and he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; there remained not one. 32 And Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also, neither would he let the people go.

Where the swarm of flies is said to have ended, it is evident that although the end of the swarm of lice is not mentioned, the infestation of the lice must also have ended by this time. Of course, more plagues would be necessary before Egypt was truly humbled, and even after that, it is apparent that this pharaoh himself would never be entirely humbled, no matter his losses. However he would have to live for as long as another twenty-five years ruling over a debilitated Egypt, an Egypt whose gods and magicians had been disgraced, whose people had been impoverished, and maybe that was a sufficient punishment.

Moving on to Exodus chapter 9, the plagues seem to become even more grievous, as their food supply becomes even more greatly diminished.

1 Then the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me. 2 For if thou refuse to let them go, and wilt hold them still, 3 Behold, the hand of the LORD is upon thy cattle which is in the field, upon the horses, upon the asses, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep: there shall be a very grievous murrain. 4 And the LORD shall sever between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt: and there shall nothing die of all that is the children's of Israel. 5 And the LORD appointed a set time, saying, To morrow the LORD shall do this thing in the land. 6 And the LORD did that thing on the morrow, and all the cattle of Egypt died: but of the cattle of the children of Israel died not one. 7 And Pharaoh sent, and, behold, there was not one of the cattle of the Israelites dead. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.

The Egyptian idol god Apis was depicted with the head of a bull, and to him were attributed the realms of fertility, agriculture and the royal power of the king [8], so that there are definite parallels to the Canaanite idols called Baal. So here the power of both the pharaoh and the god who supposedly provides his power are both mocked, and Egypt also loses a lot of its potential food supply, as it has already lost much of its grain and its fish. There were no Chinese fish farms exporting sewage-fed tilapia in those days. Now Yahweh responds once again to the insolence of the pharaoh:

8 And the LORD said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh. 9 And it shall become small dust in all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast, throughout all the land of Egypt. 10 And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward heaven; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast. 11 And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boil was upon the magicians, and upon all the Egyptians. 12 And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had spoken unto Moses.

Here the disgrace of the magicians of Egypt, who had evidently enjoyed great esteem up to the point of the plague of frogs, must have been greatly exacerbated. Not only could they no longer equal the achievements of the God of Moses, but now they themselves were personally stricken with reproach, and could not even stand before Moses. While they had already admitted their defeat to pharaoh, now their defeat is fully manifest before all, yet pharaoh will still not relent. 

Of course, this plague would continue to challenge the Egyptian gods of healing, and since it was portrayed as having begun with the dust, the god of the earth as well, which is the source of dust. But the dust came from a furnace, and Sekhmet, the goddess idol of war and destruction, who was also one of the healing goddesses of Egypt, was also a goddess of fire. Sekhmet was portrayed with the head of a lioness. But power over fire was attributed to other idols, including Ra, the sun god, and Wadjet, an idol goddess portrayed with the head of a serpent. However in early Old Kingdom Egypt, a serpent god named Denwen was also depicted as a fiery dragon and had power over fire. That, however, is an interpretation which is contested by at least some modern academics. [9]

Now we have seen six plagues upon Egypt, the plagues of blood, frogs, lice, flies, dead beasts, and boils. There are four plagues yet remaining, and what follows is the plague of hail mingled with fire which Solomon had used so many words to describe: 

13 And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me. 14 For I will at this time send all my plagues upon thine heart, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people; that thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth. 15 For now I will stretch out my hand, that I may smite thee and thy people with pestilence; and thou shalt be cut off from the earth. 16 And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.

Here Yahweh is telling pharaoh that He raised him up, so that He could bring him down, using him to make an exposition of His Own power. Of course, it is spoken of many men in Scripture who were explicitly raised up by Yahweh for one purpose or another, and the same could be said for all men, and women, no matter how small or great the purpose. But this pharaoh had a great purpose, even though it is not any purpose which he himself may have ever imagined. We have already spoken of the long reign and great military accomplishments which this pharaoh had already enjoyed, and how he had come to rule over more territory than Egypt would ever rule again, and which Egypt had ever ruled in the past. So he had great reason to be proud, and his pride was the ultimate cause of the destruction of his empire. Before the Exodus, Egypt held territory and vassal states as far north as Lebanon, Syria, and the Euphrates River. After the Exodus, with a few small exceptions, it is apparent that Egypt would not extend its power outside of its own borders again in any significant manner for over a hundred years, in the time of Ramesses II and his successor Merneptah in the last decades of the 13th century BC. But they never made any permanent gains and their holdings had been very much diminished.

Now the plague of hail is announced, and the account is concise, because Yahweh is instructing Moses, and Moses is reported as having proceeded, but perhaps a repeat account of Moses relaying the message to pharaoh would have been repetitive and superfluous:

17 As yet exaltest thou 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 the foundation thereof even until now. 19 Send therefore now, and gather thy cattle, and all that thou hast in the field; for upon every man and beast which shall be found in the field, and shall not be brought home, the hail shall come down upon them, and they shall die. 20 He that feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his cattle flee into the houses: 21 And he that regarded not the word of the LORD left his servants and his cattle in the field. 22 And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch forth thine hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man, and upon beast, and upon every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt. 23 And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt. 24 So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. 25 And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field. 26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail.

This “hail, and fire mingled with the hail” was a marvel to Solomon, and a wonder that elements so contrary to one another could work together in such a manner. Hailstorms occur quite regularly in North America, although only a handful of people have actually ever been killed by them. In 1970 in Coffeyville, Kansas, a hailstorm produced one stone which was reportedly seventeen-and-a-half inches in diameter and weighed one-and-two-thirds pounds. Other storms have produced hailstones nearly as large. Since then, many hailstorms have caused billions of dollars in property damage in various Norther American cities, reporting baseball and softball-sized stones. [10]

In earlier ages, in 9th century India a hailstorm is said to have killed several hundred religious pilgrims. In the 14th century a thousand English soldiers are said to have been killed by a hailstorm outside of Chartres, France. In late 15th century China, more than ten thousand deaths were caused by an event which was not known to have been from a hailstorm or from a comet which had broken up in the atmosphere. In India in 1888, a hailstorm with stones as large as oranges reportedly caused two hundred and thirty deaths and killed sixteen hundred unfortunate sheep and goats. In 1986, ninety-two deaths resulted in a hailstorm said to have produced stones the size of grapefruits which weighed about a kilogram each. Another hailstorm in China in 2002 killed twenty-five and injured hundreds. [11]

In ancient Egypt, Tefnut was the idol goddess of rain, water and moisture, and here the Egyptians had once again suffered at the hands of what they had worshipped. Tefnut was also depicted as a woman with the head of a lioness. Today White men and women often suffer at the hands of the beasts they worship, generally on television and in movies, and more often than not, those beasts which they worship as they play at sports. But here it is evident, that if in historical times hailstorms have sometimes caused the deaths of many hundreds of people out in the open, such as the English soldiers at Chartres, that here in ancient Egypt it would have killed many more men and beasts caught out in the fields, as the Word of Yahweh had attested in relation to this plague.

Where pharaoh had responded to this plague, he seems to have been repentant, but then as it turned out, and the plague was lifted, he rather quickly became recalcitrant once again:

27 And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time: the LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked. 28 Intreat the LORD (for it is enough) that there be no more mighty thunderings and hail; and I will let you go, and ye shall stay no longer. 29 And Moses said unto him, As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will spread abroad my hands unto the LORD; and the thunder shall cease, neither shall there be any more hail; that thou mayest know how that the earth is the LORD'S. 30 But as for thee and thy servants, I know that ye will not yet fear the LORD God.

At this point there is another indication of the time of year, that the flax and barley were ready to harvest, and had not been harvested, but the wheat and rye were not really damaged, as they required much more time, and were probably harvested in June, closer to the end of the harvest season. 

31 And the flax and the barley was smitten: for the barley was in the ear, and the flax was bolled. 32 But the wheat and the rie were not smitten: for they were not grown up. 33 And Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread abroad his hands unto the LORD: and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not poured upon the earth. 34 And when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders were ceased, he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants. 35 And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, neither would he let the children of Israel go; as the LORD had spoken by Moses.

Here the wheat and the rye seem not even to have yet sprouted. But if they had, they will not survive the next plague, as we enter into Exodus chapter 10, where there is a plague of locusts, the eighth plague upon Egypt: 

1 And the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh: for I have hardened his heart, and the heart of his servants, that I might shew these my signs before him: 2 And that thou mayest tell in the ears of thy son, and of thy son's son, what things I have wrought in Egypt, and my signs which I have done among them; that ye may know how that I am the LORD. 3 And Moses and Aaron came in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me. 4 Else, if thou refuse to let my people go, behold, to morrow will I bring the locusts into thy coast: 5 And they shall cover the face of the earth, that one cannot be able to see the earth: and they shall eat the residue of that which is escaped, which remaineth unto you from the hail, and shall eat every tree which groweth for you out of the field: 6 And they shall fill thy houses, and the houses of all thy servants, 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 himself, and went out from Pharaoh.

Here Yahweh has assured Moses that reports of the wonders of Egypt would be passed down from generation to generation. So it is very likely that Solomon, in his recounting of the plagues of Egypt, had such lore passed on to him through David, since he was only about five hundred years removed from these events. But now the courtesans of the Egyptians, which also must have included the failed magicians, and who can not countenance the God of Moses, grow weary of the messenger instead:

7 And Pharaoh's servants said unto him, How long shall this man be a snare unto us? let the men go, that they may serve the LORD their God: knowest thou not yet that Egypt is destroyed? 8 And Moses and Aaron were brought again unto Pharaoh: and he said unto them, Go, serve the LORD your God: but who are they that shall go? 9 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 must hold a feast unto the LORD. 10 And he said unto them, Let the LORD be so with you, as I will let you go, and your little ones: look to it; for evil is before you. 11 Not so: go now ye that are men, and serve the LORD; for that ye did desire. And they were driven out from Pharaoh's presence. 12 And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail hath left. 13 And Moses stretched forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind upon the land all that day, and all that night; and 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 coasts of Egypt: very grievous were they; before them there were no such locusts as they, neither after them shall be such. 15 For they covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left: and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the field, through all the land of Egypt.

There was a minor Egyptian god idol named Senehem, who was believed to have been able to protect fields from locusts and grasshoppers. But this plague, as well as some of the others, would be a much greater reproach to some of the more significant of the idols of the Egyptians, such as Osiris, the god of agriculture and vegetation, Nepri, the god of grain, including barley and wheat, and Seth, a god of crops in general. The God of Moses pronounced all of these plagues in advance, announced the end of each plague in advance, and the supposedly great gods of Egypt were absolutely powerless to do anything to resist, so they were only worthy of being objects of ridicule.

So once again the pharaoh professes repentance, and once again he cannot find repentance:

16 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste; and he said, I have sinned against the LORD your God, and against you. 17 Now therefore forgive, I pray thee, my sin only this once, and intreat the LORD your God, that he may take away from me this death only. 18 And he went out from Pharaoh, and intreated the LORD. 19 And the LORD turned a mighty strong west wind, which took away the locusts, and cast them into the Red sea; there remained not one locust in all the coasts of Egypt. 20 But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go.

Now we shall encounter the ninth plague of Egypt, the plague of darkness, and we shall also present Solomon’s description of that, which is rather interesting because it is more detailed: 

21 And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt. 22 And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all 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. 

As we had suggested earlier, Solomon seems to have known more of the Exodus account that what is recorded, and as Yahweh had said to Moses, there would be accounts passed down from generation to generation of these wonders which happened in Egypt. So as we had recounted most of his perspective on these plagues in Wisdom chapter 16, which we provided here earlier, he continued in chapter 17 and 18, and discussed this plague of darkness at length, and also addressed the plague of the firstborn. So, reading from our own translation of the Wisdom of Solomon: 

1 For greater are Your judgments and hard to explain, for which reason uninstructed souls have wandered. 2 Then the lawless [the Egyptians] having undertaken to oppress the holy nation [the children of Israel], captives of darkness and prisoners of a long night, were laid shut up under roofs, fugitives of Eternal Providence. 3 For supposing for their hidden sins to be unnoticed, with a dim covering of oblivion being terribly astonished they were scattered and troubled by hallucinations. [Solomon elaborates on this, however it is not found in the concise Exodus account.] 4 Then neither did the innermost room containing them protect them from fear but agitating noises sounded around them and obscure apparitions with gloomy countenances became visible. 5 And indeed, not any power of fire had prevailed to give light, neither did the quite bright flames of stars abide to shine upon that hateful night, 6 but there only appeared to them a spontaneous fire full of terror, and being terribly frightened they thought the things being observed worse than that which is not seen.

So according to the Wisdom of Solomon Yahweh had sent dreams and visions among the Egyptians during their three days of darkness, which had assisted in their destruction. Here he also speaks of the failures of the magicians, who “themselves were made sick”, as he says, just as we have seen that they had also been stricken with the plague of boils: 

7 But delusions of magic craft were laid prostrate, and a contemptuous rebuke of the pretense for wisdom. 8 For they promising to drive away terrors and troubles from a sick soul, themselves were made sick from a ridiculous devotion. 9 For even if nothing terrible frightened them, in the passing of beasts and hissing of serpents having been terrified, trembling they had perished, even refusing to look at the air that from no place could be avoided. 10 For cowardly is wickedness condemned by her own witness and always takes hardships to herself, being afflicted in conscience.

The continuing lesson here is that the sinners in Egypt were punished with their own delusions. This evokes the Word of Yahweh found in Isaiah chapter 66:

4 I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears upon them; because when I called, none did answer; when I spake, they did not hear: but they did evil before mine eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not.

Returning to Solomon’s description of the plague of darkness:

11 For fear is nothing but a betrayal of the resources of reason, 12 and the expectation from within being weaker considers ignorance better than that which provides the cause of torment. 13 But they on a night that was actually powerless and coming upon them from the innermost recesses of powerless Hades, sleeping in the same sleep 14 while they were persecuted by wonders of phantoms, then they were released from life by betrayal. For a sudden and unexpected fear had poured over them. 15 Then in that manner indeed, whoever at that time was there falling was garrisoned, having been shut into a prison without iron bars.

Now there is an interesting passage in Wisdom, referring to “one chain of darkness”, which seems to explain the idiom as it had been used of the fallen angels in the epistles in Jude and Peter:

16 For whether any man was a husbandman, or a shepherd or a laborer toiling in the desert, having been overtaken he awaited that inescapable necessity. For with one chain of darkness they all had been bound. 17 Whether a whistling wind or a musical sound of birds in surrounding widespread branches or a rhythm of water being driven with force or a crash of hard stones being thrown down 18 or an unobserved course of leaping creatures or a voice of howling of the roughest beasts or a sound echoing from the hollow mountains, being terrified it undid them. 19 For the whole Society shined with bright light, and continued in works without disturbance. 20 Over them alone there was spread a heavy night, an image of the darkness about to receive them, but they themselves were more heavy than darkness.

We would assert that being deluded, rejecting God and being punished with one’s own carnal devices, a man is blinded, having been bound in a chain of darkness. This is true whether a man is only a mere apostate, or whether he is an actual enemy of God, as Christ said of His adversaries, as it is found in Matthew chapter 15, “14 Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.” 

References to the plague of darkness continue in Wisdom chapter 18:

1 But upon Your saints there was a great light of things while hearing the voice of them but not seeing the shape of them, then because they had not suffered those things they were blessed. 2 And because they did not injure those having first done wrong, they gave thanks and for their differences they begged kindness, 3 in return for which You had provided a flaming pillar, both to be a guide for the unknown journey and a harmless sun for a generous hospice. 4 Indeed the others, worthy to be deprived of light and imprisoned in darkness, having imprisoned Your sons confined, by whom the uncorrupt light of the law was about to be given unto the age, 5 and them being determined to slay the infants of the holy ones, then for one child being exposed and saved [referring to Moses] for a reproach You have taken away and a multitude of their children then with like passion You destroyed in violent water [the Egyptian army in the Red Sea], 6 that night being made known beforehand to our fathers in order that knowing with certainty, having faith in the oaths they would rejoice.

Evidently, after the three days of darkness were completed, pharaoh appears willing to compromise with Moses once again, but this time Moses is not accepting his offer. So chapter 10 ends where we read: 

24 And Pharaoh called unto Moses, and said, Go ye, serve the LORD; only let your flocks and your herds be stayed: let your little ones also go with you. 25 And Moses said, Thou must give us also sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice unto the LORD our God. 26 Our cattle also shall go with us; there shall not an hoof be left behind; for thereof must we take to serve the LORD our God; and we know not with what we must serve the LORD, until we come thither. 27 But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he would not let them go. 28 And Pharaoh said unto him, Get thee from me, take heed to thyself, see my face no more; for in that day thou seest my face thou shalt die. 29 And Moses said, Thou hast spoken well, I will see thy face again no more.

These final words of Exodus chapter 10 are foreboding, and in chapter 11 the text is ambiguous as to whether Moses had addressed pharaoh directly, but in verse 8 we read “And he went out from Pharaoh in a great anger,” a statement which the Septuagint and other translations also contain, so perhaps there Moses at least made a broader declaration to the people and servants of pharaoh, rather than directly addressing the pharaoh personally.

This leaves one final plague which is yet to come upon Egypt, which is the death of the firstborn of all the Egyptians, immediately followed by the Exodus of Israel out of the land. Yahweh willing, we shall return for that discussion in the near future. 

Footnotes

1 From the Plague of Fish (דג) to the Plague of Blood (דם), (((David Frankel))), The Schechter Institutes, https://schechter.edu/from-the-plague-of-fish-%D7%93%D7%92-to-the-plague-of-blood-%D7%93%D7%9D/, accessed September 10th, 2026.

2 Ancient Near Eastern Texts Related to the Old Testament 3rd edition, James Pritchard, editor, 1969, Harvard University Press, pp. 10-11.

3 Sekhmet, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sekhmet, accessed September 10th, 2026.

4 Sacred Fish Deities – Abtu and Anet, Iseum Sanctuary, https://iseumsanctuary.com/2022/01/03/ sacred-fish-deities-aptu-and-anet/, accessed September 10th, 2026.

5 Heqet, Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Heqet, accessed September 10th, 2026. 

6 Kek (mythology), Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kek_(mythology), accessed September 11th, 2026. 

7 The Symbolism of the Fly in Ancient Egypt, Nile Scribes, https://nilescribes.org/2021/02/28/fly-symbolism-ancient-egypt/, accessed September 10th, 2026. 

8 Apis (deity), Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apis_(deity), accessed September 11qth, 2026.

9 Denwen: Ancient Terror or Modern Error?, Lloyd D. Graham, Birmingham Egyptology Journal 11: 1–15. 2025/2026, https://more.bham.ac.uk/birminghamegyptology/birmingham-egyptology-journal/volume-11-2025-2026-birmingham-egyptology-journal/, accessed September 11th, 2026.

10 List of costly or deadly hailstorms, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_costly _or_deadly_hailstorms, accessed September 11th, 2026.

11 ibid.