Exodus 10:21

21 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Lift your hand toward the sky, and a darkness [so thick] that it can be felt will come over Egypt."

Exodus 10:21 Meaning and Commentary

Exodus 10:21

And the Lord said unto Moses
About the eleventh day of the month Abib: stretch out thine hand toward heaven;
where the luminaries are, and from whence light comes: that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which
may be felt;
that is, what caused it, the gross vapours and thick fogs; for otherwise darkness itself, being a privation of light, cannot be felt: Onkelos paraphrases it,

``after that the darkness of the night is removed;''

so Jonathan; that it might appear to be different from that, and be much grosser.

Exodus 10:21 In-Context

19 Then the LORD changed the wind to a very strong west wind. It picked up the locusts and blew them into the Red Sea. Not one locust was left anywhere in Egypt.

20 But the LORD made Pharaoh stubborn, so he did not let the Israelites go.

21 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Lift your hand toward the sky, and a darkness [so thick] that it can be felt will come over Egypt."

22 Moses lifted his hand toward the sky, and throughout Egypt there was total darkness for three days.

23 People couldn't see each other, and no one went anywhere for three days. But all the Israelites had light where they were living.