Exodus 8:1-15

Plague Two: Frogs

1 And Yahweh said to Moses, "Go to Pharaoh, and say to him, 'Thus says Yahweh, "Release my people so that they may serve me."

2 And if you [are] refusing to release, look, I [am going to] plague all of your territory with frogs.

3 And the Nile will swarm with frogs, and they will go up and come into your house and into your {bedroom} and onto your bed and into the house of your servants and among your people and into your ovens and into your kneading troughs.

4 And the frogs will go up against you and against your people and against all of your servants.'"

5 And Yahweh said to Moses, "Say to Aaron, 'Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, over the canals, and over the pools, and bring up the frogs on the land of Egypt.'"

6 And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs went up and covered the land of Egypt.

7 And the magicians did likewise with their secret arts, and they brought up frogs over the land of Egypt.

8 And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, "Pray to Yahweh, and let him remove the frogs from me and from my people, and let me release the people so that they can sacrifice to Yahweh."

9 And Moses said to Pharaoh, "{I leave to you the honor} over me. When shall I pray for you and for your servants and for your people to cut off the frogs from you and from your houses? They will be left only in the Nile."

10 And he said, "Tomorrow." And he said, "[Let it be] according to your word so that you will know that there is no one like Yahweh our God.

11 And the frogs will depart from you and from your house and from your servants. They will be left only in the Nile."

12 And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried out to Yahweh over the matter of the frogs that he had brought on Pharaoh.

13 And Yahweh did according to the word of Moses, and the frogs died from the houses, from the courtyards, and from the fields.

14 And they piled them [in] countless heaps, and the land stank.

15 And Pharaoh saw that there was relief, and he made his heart {insensitive}, and he did not listen to them, as Yahweh had spoken.

Exodus 8:1-15 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS 8

In this chapter Pharaoh is threatened with the plague of frogs, in case he refused to let Israel go, which accordingly was brought upon him, Ex 8:1-6 and though the magicians did something similar to it, yet these were so troublesome to Pharaoh, that he promised to let the people go, and sacrifice to God, if they removed; and a time being fixed for the removal of them, it was accordingly done at the entreaty of Moses and Aaron, Ex 8:7-14 but there being a respite, Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and the plague of lice is ordered, and which was executed; and though this the magicians essayed to do, and could not, but owned it to be the finger of God, yet Pharaoh's heart was hardened, Ex 8:15-19 wherefore he is threatened with a swarm of flies, which should not infest Goshen, only the places where the Egyptians dwelt, and it was so, Ex 8:20-24 upon which Pharaoh called for Moses, and declared himself willing the people would sacrifice in the land; but this not being satisfactory, he agreed they should go into the wilderness, but not so far; and on the account of the entreaty of Moses, the plague was removed; but still Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he would not let the people go, Ex 8:25-32.

Footnotes

• [a]. Exodus 8:1-32 in the English Bible is 7:26-8:28 in the Hebrew Bible
• [b]. Literally "the inner room of your bed"
• [c]. Literally "glorify yourself"
• [d]. Literally "heaps, heaps"
• [e]. Literally "heavy"