Exodus 8:20–9:12

THE FOURTH PLAGUE: SWARMS OF FLIES

²⁰The Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning and present yourself to Pharaoh when you see him going out to the water. Tell him: This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they may worship^B me.^{e 21}But if you will not let my people go, then I will send swarms of flies^C against you, your officials, your people, and your houses. The Egyptians’ houses will swarm with flies, and so will the land where they live.^{D 22}But on that day I will give special treatment to the land of Goshen, where my people are living;^f no flies will be there. This way you will know that I, the Lord, am in the land. ²³I will make a distinction^E between my people and your people. This sign will take place tomorrow.”

²⁴And the Lord did this. Thick swarms of flies went into Pharaoh’s palace and his officials’ houses. Throughout Egypt the land was ruined because of the swarms of flies.^{g 25}Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Go sacrifice to your God within the country.”

²⁶But Moses said, “It would not be right^F to do that, because what we will sacrifice to the Lord our God is detestable to the Egyptians.^h If we sacrifice what the Egyptians detest in front of them, won’t they stone us? ²⁷We must go a distance of three days into the wilderness and sacrifice to the Lord our God as he instructs us.”

²⁸Pharaoh responded, “I will let you go and sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness, but don’t go very far. Make an appealⁱ for me.”

²⁹“As soon as I leave you,” Moses said, “I will appeal to the Lord, and tomorrow the swarms of flies will depart from Pharaoh, his officials, and his people. But Pharaoh must not act deceptively again by refusing to let the people go and sacrifice to the Lord.” ³⁰Then Moses left Pharaoh’s presence and appealed to the Lord. ³¹The Lord did as Moses had said: He removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, his officials, and his people; not one was left. ³²But Pharaoh hardened his heart this time also and did not let the people go.

THE FIFTH PLAGUE: DEATH OF LIVESTOCK

9Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and say to him: This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me. ²But if you refuse to let them go and keep holding them, ³then the Lord’s hand will bring a severe plague against your livestock in the field—the horses, donkeys, camels, herds, and flocks. ⁴But the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing of all that the Israelites own will die.” ⁵And the Lord set a time, saying, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this thing in the land.”^{j 6}The Lord did this the next day. All the Egyptian livestock died,^k but none among the Israelite livestock died. ⁷Pharaoh sent messengers who saw that not a single one of the Israelite livestock was dead. But Pharaoh’s heart was hard,^l and he did not let the people go.

THE SIXTH PLAGUE: BOILS

⁸Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of furnace soot, and Moses is to throw it toward heaven in the sight of Pharaoh. ⁹It will become fine dust over the entire land of Egypt. It will become festering boils^a on people and animals throughout the land of Egypt.” ¹⁰So they took furnace soot and stood before Pharaoh. Moses threw it toward heaven, and it became festering boils on people and animals. ¹¹The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils were on the magicians as well as on all the Egyptians.^{b 12}But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart^c and he did not listen to them, as the Lord had told Moses.