Exodus 10:21–11:10
21 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that darknesst spreads over Egypt—darkness that can be felt.” 22 So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and total darknessu covered all Egypt for three days. 23 No one could see anyone else or move about for three days. Yet all the Israelites had light in the places where they lived.v
24 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and said, “Go,w worship the Lord. Even your women and childrenx may go with you; only leave your flocks and herds behind.”y
25 But Moses said, “You must allow us to have sacrifices and burnt offeringsz to present to the Lord our God. 26 Our livestock too must go with us; not a hoof is to be left behind. We have to use some of them in worshiping the Lord our God, and until we get there we will not know what we are to use to worship the Lord.”
27 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart,a and he was not willing to let them go. 28 Pharaoh said to Moses, “Get out of my sight! Make sure you do not appear before me again! The day you see my face you will die.”
29 “Just as you say,” Moses replied. “I will never appearb before you again.”
11 Now the Lord had said to Moses, “I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt. After that, he will let you goc from here, and when he does, he will drive you out completely.d 2 Tell the people that men and women alike are to ask their neighbors for articles of silver and gold.”e 3 (The Lord made the Egyptians favorably disposedf toward the people, and Moses himself was highly regardedg in Egypt by Pharaoh’s officials and by the people.)
4 So Moses said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘About midnighth I will go throughout Egypt.i 5 Every firstbornj son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sits on the throne, to the firstborn son of the female slave, who is at her hand mill,k and all the firstborn of the cattle as well. 6 There will be loud wailingl throughout Egypt—worse than there has ever been or ever will be again. 7 But among the Israelites not a dog will bark at any person or animal.’ Then you will know that the Lord makes a distinctionm between Egypt and Israel. 8 All these officials of yours will come to me, bowing down before me and saying, ‘Go,n you and all the people who follow you!’ After that I will leave.”o Then Moses, hot with anger, left Pharaoh.
9 The Lord had said to Moses, “Pharaoh will refuse to listenp to you—so that my wondersq may be multiplied in Egypt.” 10 Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh, but the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart,r and he would not let the Israelites go out of his country.