Exodus 8:1–20

THE SECOND PLAGUE: FROGS

8Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and tell him: This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me.^{k 2}But if you refuse to let them go, then I will plague all your territory with frogs.^{l 3}The Nile will swarm with frogs; they will come up and go into your palace, into your bedroom and on your bed, into the houses of your officials and your people, and into your ovens and kneading bowls. ⁴The frogs will come up on you, your people, and all your officials.”

⁵The Lord then said to Moses, “Tell Aaron: Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, canals, and ponds, and cause the frogs to come up onto the land of Egypt.”^{m 6}When Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, the frogsⁿ came up and covered the land of Egypt. ⁷But the magicians did the same thing by their occult practices and brought frogs up onto the land of Egypt.

⁸Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Appeal^o to the Lord to remove the frogs from me and my people. Then I will let the people go and they can sacrifice to the Lord.”

⁹Moses said to Pharaoh, “You may have the honor of choosing. When should I appeal on behalf of you, your officials, and your people, that the frogs be taken away from you and your houses, and remain only in the Nile?”

¹⁰“Tomorrow,” he answered.

Moses replied, “As you have said, so that you may know there is no one like the Lord our God,^{a 11}the frogs will go away from you, your houses, your officials, and your people. The frogs will remain only in the Nile.” ¹²After Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, Moses cried out to the Lord for help concerning the frogs that he had brought against Pharaoh. ¹³The Lord did as Moses had said: the frogs in the houses, courtyards, and fields died. ¹⁴They piled them in countless heaps, and there was a terrible odor in the land. ¹⁵But when Pharaoh saw there was relief, he hardened his heart^b and would not listen to them, as the Lord had said.

THE THIRD PLAGUE: GNATS

¹⁶Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron: Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the land, and it will become gnats^A throughout the land of Egypt.” ¹⁷And they did this. Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff, and when he struck the dust of the land, gnats were on people and animals. All the dust of the land became gnats throughout the land of Egypt. ¹⁸The magicians tried to produce gnats using their occult practices, but they could not. The gnats remained on people and animals.^c

¹⁹“This is the finger of God,”^d the magicians said to Pharaoh. But Pharaoh’s heart was hard, and he would not listen to them, as the Lord had said.

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