Exodus 8:1–20

The Second Plague: Frogs

^8oThen the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: Let my people go, so that they may serve me.^{* 2}If you refuse to let them go, I will plague your whole country with frogs. ³The Nile shall swarm with frogs; they shall come up into your palace, into your bedchamber and your bed, into the houses of your officials and of your people,^p and into your ovens and your kneading bowls.^{* 4}The frogs shall come up on you and on your people and on all your officials.’ ” ^5qAnd the Lord said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, the canals, and the pools, and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt.’ ”^{* 6}So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt.^{* 7}But the magicians did the same by their secret arts and brought frogs up on the land of Egypt.^*

⁸Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray to the Lord to take away the frogs from me and my people, and I will let the people go to sacrifice to the Lord.”^{* 9}Moses said to Pharaoh, “Kindly tell me when I am to pray for you and for your officials and for your people, that the frogs may be removed from you and your houses and be left only in the Nile.” ¹⁰And he said, “Tomorrow.” Moses said, “As you say! So that you may know that there is no one like the Lord our God,^{* 11}the frogs shall leave you and your houses and your officials and your people; they shall be left only in the Nile.” ¹²Then Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried out to the Lord concerning the frogs that he had brought upon Pharaoh.^{* 13}And the Lord did as Moses requested: the frogs died in the houses, the courtyards, and the fields. ¹⁴And they gathered them together in heaps, and the land stank. ¹⁵But when Pharaoh saw that there was a respite, he hardened his heart and would not listen to them, just as the Lord had said.^*

The Third Plague: Gnats

¹⁶Then the Lord said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the earth, so that it may become gnats throughout the whole land of Egypt.’ ” ¹⁷And they did so; Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff and struck the dust of the earth, and gnats came on humans and animals alike; all the dust of the earth turned into gnats throughout the whole land of Egypt.^{* 18}The magicians tried to produce gnats by their secret arts, but they could not. There were gnats on both humans and animals.^{* 19}And the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God!” But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, just as the Lord had said.^*

The Fourth Plague: Flies

²⁰Then the Lord said to Moses, “Rise early in the morning and present yourself before Pharaoh, as he goes out to the water, and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: Let my people go, so that they may serve me,^*