Exodus 7–8

Then the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God^c to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet.^d You are to say everything I command you, and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go out of his country. But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart,^e and though I multiply my signs and wonders^f in Egypt, he will not listen^g to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment^h I will bring out my divisions,ⁱ my people the Israelites. And the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord^j when I stretch out my hand^k against Egypt and bring the Israelites out of it.”

Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord commanded^l them. Moses was eighty years old^m and Aaron eighty-three when they spoke to Pharaoh.

Aaron’s Staff Becomes a Snake

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “When Pharaoh says to you, ‘Perform a miracle,^a’ then say to Aaron, ‘Take your staff and throw it down before Pharaoh,’ and it will become a snake.”^b

So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as the Lord commanded. Aaron threw his staff down in front of Pharaoh and his officials, and it became a snake. Pharaoh then summoned wise men and sorcerers,^c and the Egyptian magicians^d also did the same things by their secret arts:^e Each one threw down his staff and it became a snake. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs. Yet Pharaoh’s heart^f became hard and he would not listen^g to them, just as the Lord had said.

The Plague of Blood

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is unyielding;^a he refuses to let the people go. Go to Pharaoh in the morning as he goes out to the river.^b Wait on the bank of the Nile^c to meet him, and take in your hand the staff that was changed into a snake. Then say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to say to you: Let my people go, so that they may worship^d me in the wilderness. But until now you have not listened.^e This is what the Lord says: By this you will know that I am the Lord:^f With the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water of the Nile, and it will be changed into blood.^g The fish in the Nile will die, and the river will stink;^h the Egyptians will not be able to drink its water.’ ”ⁱ

The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff^j and stretch out your hand^k over the waters of Egypt—over the streams and canals, over the ponds and all the reservoirs—and they will turn to blood.’ Blood will be everywhere in Egypt, even in the wooden buckets and stone jars.”

Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord had commanded.^l He raised his staff in the presence of Pharaoh and his officials and struck the water of the Nile,^m and all the water was changed into blood.ⁿ The fish in the Nile died, and the river smelled so bad that the Egyptians could not drink its water. Blood was everywhere in Egypt.

But the Egyptian magicians^o did the same things by their secret arts,^p and Pharaoh’s heart^q became hard; he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said. Instead, he turned and went into his palace, and did not take even this to heart. And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile to get drinking water^r, because they could not drink the water of the river.

The Plague of Frogs

Seven days passed after the Lord struck the Nile. ^*Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they may worship^a me. If you refuse to let them go, I will send a plague of frogs^b on your whole country. The Nile will teem with frogs. They will come up into your palace and your bedroom and onto your bed, into the houses of your officials and on your people,^c and into your ovens and kneading troughs.^d The frogs will come up on you and your people and all your officials.’ ”

^*Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your staff^e over the streams and canals and ponds, and make frogs^f come up on the land of Egypt.’ ”

So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs^g came up and covered the land. But the magicians did the same things by their secret arts;^h they also made frogs come up on the land of Egypt.

Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Prayⁱ to the Lord to take the frogs away from me and my people, and I will let your people go to offer sacrifices^j to the Lord.”

Moses said to Pharaoh, “I leave to you the honor of setting the time^k for me to pray for you and your officials and your people that you and your houses may be rid of the frogs, except for those that remain in the Nile.”

“Tomorrow,” Pharaoh said.

Moses replied, “It will be as you say, so that you may know there is no one like the Lord our God.^l The frogs will leave you and your houses, your officials and your people; they will remain only in the Nile.”

After Moses and Aaron left Pharaoh, Moses cried out to the Lord about the frogs he had brought on Pharaoh. And the Lord did what Moses asked.^m The frogs died in the houses, in the courtyards and in the fields. They were piled into heaps, and the land reeked of them. But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief,ⁿ he hardened his heart^o and would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said.

The Plague of Gnats

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

Since the gnats were on people and animals everywhere, the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger^e of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart^f was hard and he would not listen,^g just as the Lord had said.

The Plague of Flies

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning^a 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 worship^b me. 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.

“ ‘But on that day I will deal differently with the land of Goshen,^c where my people live;^d no swarms of flies will be there, so that you will know^e that I, the Lord, am in this land. I will make a distinction between my people and your people.^f This sign will occur tomorrow.’ ”

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.^g

Then Pharaoh summoned^h Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God here in the land.”

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

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 pray^l for me.”

Moses answered, “As soon as I leave you, I will pray to the Lord, and tomorrow the flies will leave Pharaoh and his officials and his people. Only let Pharaoh be sure that he does not act deceitfully^m again by not letting the people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord.”

Then Moses left Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord,ⁿ and the Lord did what Moses asked. The flies left Pharaoh and his officials and his people; not a fly remained. But this time also Pharaoh hardened his heart^o and would not let the people go.