Exodus 09
The Fifth Blow: Disease
Ex 09 1Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and tell him, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, “Release my people that they may serve me!
This was the fifth request of Moses.
2For if you refuse to release them and continue holding them, 3then the hand of the Lord will surely bring a very terrible plague on your livestock in the field, on the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the herds, and the flocks.
The Egyptians worshiped a sacred bull named Apis. He was to be kept only in the field. Therefore, God would bring a plague on every cow in the field. However, the plague would not affect the bulls in the barns.
4But the Lord will distinguish between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, and nothing will die of all that the Israelites have.”’”
Goshen bulls will not be affected at all.
5The Lord set an appointed time, saying, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this in the land.”
Warning was given to Egypt. This would give the Egyptians time to move all of their cattle indoors.
6And the Lord did this on the next day; all the livestock of the Egyptians died, but of the Israelites’ livestock not one died.
All of the Egyptian cattle in the field died. Israel was not touched,
7Pharaoh sent representatives to investigate, and indeed, not even one of the livestock of Israel had died. But Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, and he did not release the people.
The investigators find out that Moses was a true prophet of God. This was another tremendous testimonial message to Egypt. The intellect of Pharaoh was hardened even more.
The Sixth Blow: Boils
8Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from a furnace, and have Moses throw it into the air while Pharaoh is watching.
There will be no warning for the sixth plague. Moses will just simply take soot from the furnace and throw it into the air. These furnaces were the same ones that Israel used to make bricks for Pharaoh.
9It will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt and will cause boils to break out and fester on both people and animals in all the land of Egypt.”
The soot from the furnace would cause boils to break out on all people and animals. Since no one could enter a pagan Egyptian temple unless they were clean, this plague shut down every religious temple in Egypt.
10So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh, Moses threw it into the air, and it caused festering boils to break out on both people and animals.
The Egyptian gods of health, healing, and medicine were unable to stop or reverse these effects.
11The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for boils were on the magicians and on all the Egyptians.
All of the priests and magicians of Egypt were unclean and incapacitated.
12But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted to Moses.
This miracle hardened Pharaoh even more.
The Seventh Blow: Hail
13The Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning, stand before Pharaoh, and tell him, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews: “Release my people so that they may serve me!
Moses made his seventh request to Pharaoh.
14For this time I will send all my plagues on your very self and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is no one like me in all the earth.
The purpose of the seventh plague was to demonstrate the power of God.
15For by now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your people with plague, and you would have been destroyed from the earth.
God had the power to exterminate Egypt. Instead, he showed them mercy and compassion. He gave them a chance to become believers in the one true God.
16But for this purpose I have caused you to stand: to show you my strength, and so that my name may be declared in all the earth.
God’s treatment towards Egypt would declare Jehovah’s name to the entire known world. When Joshua entered Canaan, those in Jericho were scared of the Israelites, because they knew of God’s treatment of Egypt.
17You are still exalting yourself against my people by not releasing them.
Pharaoh elevated his human opinion above that of God. This is the same mistake that modern liberals make today.
18I am going to cause very severe hail to rain down about this time tomorrow, such hail as has never occurred in Egypt from the day it was founded until now.
Egypt was one of the oldest nations in the world. The judgment of hail was an attack of the Egyptian sky god.
19So now, send instructions to gather your livestock and all your possessions in the fields to a safe place. Every person or animal caught in the field and not brought into the house – the hail will come down on them, and they will die!”’”
God showed mercy. He gave the Egyptians time to remove their slaves and livestock from the field.
20Those of Pharaoh’s servants who feared the word of the Lord hurried to bring their servants and livestock into the houses,
Many of the Egyptians became believers through these miracles.
21but those who did not take the word of the Lord seriously left their servants and their cattle in the field.
Unbelievers did not listen and they ended up losing all of their material wealth.
22Then the Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand toward the sky that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, on people and on animals, and on everything that grows in the field in the land of Egypt.”
The last set of three plagues all came from the hand of Moses.
23When Moses extended his staff toward the sky, the Lord sent thunder and hail, and fire fell to the earth; so the Lord caused hail to rain down on the land of Egypt.
Notice that Jehovah caused the thunder and the hail. The hail was not made of ice, but of fire.
24Hail fell and fire mingled with the hail; the hail was so severe that there had not been any like it in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation.
Similar hail storms will be repeated during the Great Tribulation.
25The hail struck everything in the open fields, both people and animals, throughout all the land of Egypt. The hail struck everything that grows in the field, and it broke all the trees of the field to pieces.
All of the people and cattle in the fields died. The trees were struck down, so there was no more shade. The indoor cattle did not die.
26Only in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites lived, was there no hail.
Goshen was exempt from this plague. These miracles were tremendous testimonies to the Egyptians.
27So Pharaoh sent and summoned Moses and Aaron and said to them, “I have sinned this time! The Lord is righteous, and I and my people are guilty.
Pharaoh offered a false and pious confession. He was attempting to control God with his confession. Modern prosperity preachers and healers attempt to control God with their confessions, works, and material gifts.
28Pray to the Lord, for the mighty thunderings and hail are too much! I will release you and you will stay no longer.”
Pharaoh promised to release Israel if Moses would stop the plague.
29Moses said to him, “When I leave the city I will spread my hands to the Lord, the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth belongs to the Lord.
Moses gave credit to Jehovah.
30But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the Lord God.”
Moses knew the condition of Pharaoh’s heart.
31(Now the flax and the barley were struck by the hail, for the barley had ripened and the flax was in bud.
The next plague would come after the harvest.
32But the wheat and the spelt were not struck, for they are later crops.)
The wheat was reaped in March and April. Therefore, there will be an eight week period between the seventh and eighth plagues.
33So Moses left Pharaoh, went out of the city, and spread out his hands to the Lord, and the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain stopped pouring on the earth.
Moses spread out his hands to the Lord and the hail stopped.
34When Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder ceased, he sinned again: both he and his servants hardened their hearts.
Pharaoh did not keep his promise.
35So Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, and he did not release the Israelites, as the Lord had predicted through Moses.
Pharaoh violated the Abrahamic Covenant again, which continued to endanger his people.