Exodus 9:2-12

2 If however thou wilt not send my people away, but yet detainest them:

3 behold, the hand of the Lord shall be upon thy cattle in the fields, both on the horses, and on the asses, and on the camels and oxen and sheep, a very great mortality.

4 And I will make a marvellous distinction in that time between the cattle of the Egyptians, and the cattle of the children of Israel: nothing shall die of all that is of the children's of Israel.

5 And God fixed a limit, saying, To-morrow the Lord will do this thing on the land.

6 And the Lord did this thing on the next day, and all the cattle of the Egyptians died, but of the cattle of the children of Israel there died not one.

7 And when Pharao saw, that of all the cattle of the children of Israel there died not one, the heart of Pharao was hardened, and he did not let the people go.

8 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, Take you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses scatter it toward heaven before Pharao, and before his servants.

9 And let it become dust over all the land of Egypt, and there shall be upon men and upon beasts sore blains breaking forth both on men and on beasts, in all the land of Egypt.

10 So he took of the ashes of the furnace before Pharao, and Moses scattered it toward heaven, and it became sore blains breaking forth both on men and on beasts.

11 And the sorcerers could not stand before Moses because of the sores, for the sores were on the sorcerers, and in all the land of Egypt.

12 And the Lord hardened Pharao's heart, and he hearkened not to them, as the Lord appointed.

Exodus 9:2-12 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS 9

This chapter relates the plague of murrain upon the cattle, and which yet was not upon the cattle of the Israelites, Ex 9:1-7 and the plague of boils and blains on man and beast, Ex 9:8-11 and Pharaoh's heart being hardened, Moses is sent to him with a message from the Lord, threatening him that all his plagues should come upon him, and particularly the pestilence, if he would not let Israel go; and signifying, that to show his power in him, and declare his name throughout the earth, had he raised him up, and a kind of amazement is expressed at his obstinacy and pride, Ex 9:12-17, and he is told that a terrible storm of hail should fall upon the land, and destroy all in the field; wherefore those that regarded the word of the Lord got their cattle within doors, but those that did not took no care of them, Ex 9:18-21 and upon Moses's stretching out his hand, when ordered by the Lord, the storm began, and destroyed every thing in the field throughout the land, excepting the land of Goshen, Ex 9:22-26 upon which Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron, acknowledged his sin, and the justice of God, begged they would entreat for him, which Moses did; but when the storm was over, Pharaoh's heart was still more hardened, and he refused to let the people go, Ex 9:27-35.

Footnotes

• [a]. death.