Exodus 8:16–28

The Plague of Gnats

16 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your staffk and strike the dust of the ground,’ and throughout the land of Egypt the dust will become gnats.” 17 They did this, and when Aaron stretched out his hand with the staff and struck the dust of the ground, gnatsl came on people and animals. All the dust throughout the land of Egypt became gnats. 18 But when the magiciansm tried to produce gnats by their secret arts,n they could not.

Since the gnats were on people and animals everywhere, 19 the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the fingero of God.” But Pharaoh’s heartp was hard and he would not listen,q just as the Lord had said.

The Plague of Flies

20 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morningr and confront Pharaoh as he goes to the river and say to him, ‘This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they may worships me. 21 If you do not let my people go, I will send swarms of flies on you and your officials, on your people and into your houses. The houses of the Egyptians will be full of flies; even the ground will be covered with them.

22 “ ‘But on that day I will deal differently with the land of Goshen,t where my people live;u no swarms of flies will be there, so that you will knowv that I, the Lord, am in this land. 23 I will make a distinctionb between my people and your people.w This sign will occur tomorrow.’ ”

24 And the Lord did this. Dense swarms of flies poured into Pharaoh’s palace and into the houses of his officials; throughout Egypt the land was ruined by the flies.x

25 Then Pharaoh summonedy Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God here in the land.”

26 But Moses said, “That would not be right. The sacrifices we offer the Lord our God would be detestable to the Egyptians.z And if we offer sacrifices that are detestable in their eyes, will they not stone us? 27 We must take a three-day journeya into the wilderness to offer sacrificesb to the Lord our God, as he commands us.”

28 Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to offer sacrifices to the Lord your God in the wilderness, but you must not go very far. Now prayc for me.”