7:1 So the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God 1 to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet. 2 7:2 You are to speak 3 everything I command you, 4 and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh that he must release 5 the Israelites from his land. 7:3 But I will harden 6 Pharaoh’s heart, and although I will multiply 7 my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt, 7:4 Pharaoh will not listen to you. 8 I will reach into 9 Egypt and bring out my regiments, 10 my people the Israelites, from the land of Egypt with great acts of judgment. 7:5 Then 11 the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord, when I extend my hand 12 over Egypt and bring the Israelites out from among them.
7:6 And Moses and Aaron did so; they did just as the Lord commanded them. 7:7 Now Moses was eighty years old and Aaron was eighty-three years old when they spoke to Pharaoh.
7:8 The Lord said 13 to Moses and Aaron, 14 7:9 “When Pharaoh says to you, ‘Do 15 a miracle,’ and you say to Aaron, ‘Take your staff and throw it down 16 before Pharaoh,’ it will become 17 a snake.” 7:10 When 18 Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh, they did so, just as the Lord had commanded them – Aaron threw 19 down his staff before Pharaoh and his servants and it became a snake. 20 7:11 Then Pharaoh also summoned wise men and sorcerers, 21 and the magicians 22 of Egypt by their secret arts 23 did the same thing. 7:12 Each man 24 threw down his staff, and the staffs became snakes. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs. 7:13 Yet Pharaoh’s heart became hard, 25 and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted.
7:14 26 The Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is hard; 27 he refuses to release 28 the people. 7:15 Go to Pharaoh in the morning when 29 he goes out to the water. Position yourself 30 to meet him by the edge of the Nile, 31 and take 32 in your hand the staff 33 that was turned into a snake. 7:16 Tell him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to you to say, 34 “Release my people, that they may serve me 35 in the desert!” But until now 36 you have not listened. 37 7:17 Thus says the Lord: “By this you will know that I am the Lord: I am going to strike 38 the water of the Nile with the staff that is in my hand, and it will be turned into blood. 39 7:18 Fish 40 in the Nile will die, the Nile will stink, and the Egyptians will be unable 41 to drink water from the Nile.”’” 7:19 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over Egypt’s waters – over their rivers, over their canals, 42 over their ponds, and over all their reservoirs 43 – so that it becomes 44 blood.’ There will be blood everywhere in 45 the land of Egypt, even in wooden and stone containers.” 7:20 Moses and Aaron did so, 46 just as the Lord had commanded. Moses raised 47 the staff 48 and struck the water that was in the Nile right before the eyes 49 of Pharaoh and his servants, 50 and all the water that was in the Nile was turned to blood. 51 7:21 When the fish 52 that were in the Nile died, the Nile began 53 to stink, so that the Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile. There was blood 54 everywhere in the land of Egypt! 7:22 But the magicians of Egypt did the same 55 by their secret arts, and so 56 Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, 57 and he refused to listen to Moses and Aaron 58 – just as the Lord had predicted. 7:23 And Pharaoh turned and went into his house. He did not pay any attention to this. 59 7:24 All the Egyptians dug around the Nile for water to drink, 60 because they could not drink the water of the Nile.
7:25 61 Seven full days passed 62 after the Lord struck 63 the Nile. 8:1 (7:26) 64 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and tell him, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Release my people in order that they may serve me! 8:2 But if you refuse to release them, then I am going to plague 65 all your territory with frogs. 66 8:3 The Nile will swarm 67 with frogs, and they will come up and go into your house, in your bedroom, and on your bed, and into the houses of your servants and your people, and into your ovens and your kneading troughs. 68 8:4 Frogs 69 will come up against you, your people, and all your servants.”’” 70
8:5 The Lord spoke to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Extend your hand with your staff 71 over the rivers, over the canals, and over the ponds, and bring the frogs up over the land of Egypt.’” 8:6 So Aaron extended his hand over the waters of Egypt, and frogs 72 came up and covered the land of Egypt.
8:7 The magicians did the same 73 with their secret arts and brought up frogs on the land of Egypt too. 74
8:8 Then Pharaoh summoned 75 Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray 76 to the Lord that he may take the frogs away 77 from me and my people, and I will release 78 the people that they may sacrifice 79 to the Lord.” 8:9 Moses said to Pharaoh, “You may have the honor over me 80 – when shall I pray for you, your servants, and your people, for the frogs to be removed 81 from you and your houses, so that 82 they will be left 83 only in the Nile?” 8:10 He said, “Tomorrow.” And Moses said, 84 “It will be 85 as you say, 86 so that you may know that there is no one like the Lord our God. 8:11 The frogs will depart from you, your houses, your servants, and your people; they will be left only in the Nile.”
8:12 Then Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried 87 to the Lord because of 88 the frogs that he had brought on 89 Pharaoh. 8:13 The Lord did as Moses asked 90 – the 91 frogs died out of the houses, the villages, and the fields. 8:14 The Egyptians 92 piled them in countless heaps, 93 and the land stank. 8:15 But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, 94 he hardened 95 his heart and did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted. 96
8:16 97 The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Extend your staff and strike the dust of the ground, and it will become 98 gnats 99 throughout all the land of Egypt.’” 8:17 They did so; Aaron extended his hand with his staff, he struck the dust of the ground, and it became gnats on people 100 and on animals. All the dust of the ground became gnats throughout all the land of Egypt. 8:18 When 101 the magicians attempted 102 to bring forth gnats by their secret arts, they could not. So there were gnats on people and on animals. 8:19 The magicians said 103 to Pharaoh, “It is the finger 104 of God!” But Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, 105 and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted.
8:20 106 The Lord 107 said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning and position yourself before Pharaoh as he goes out to the water, and tell him, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Release my people that they may serve me! 8:21 If you do not release 108 my people, then I am going to send 109 swarms of flies 110 on you and on your servants and on your people and in your houses. The houses of the Egyptians will be full of flies, and even the ground they stand on. 111 8:22 But on that day I will mark off 112 the land of Goshen, where my people are staying, 113 so that no swarms of flies will be there, that you may know that I am the Lord in the midst of this land. 114 8:23 I will put a division 115 between my people and your people. This sign will take place 116 tomorrow.”’” 8:24 The Lord did so; a 117 thick 118 swarm of flies came into 119 Pharaoh’s house and into the houses 120 of his servants, and throughout the whole land of Egypt the land was ruined 121 because of the swarms of flies.
8:25 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God within the land.” 122 8:26 But Moses said, “That would not be the right thing to do, 123 for the sacrifices we make 124 to the Lord our God would be an abomination 125 to the Egyptians. 126 If we make sacrifices that are an abomination to the Egyptians right before their eyes, 127 will they not stone us? 128 8:27 We must go 129 on a three-day journey 130 into the desert and sacrifice 131 to the Lord our God, just as he is telling us.” 132
8:28 Pharaoh said, “I will release you 133 so that you may sacrifice 134 to the Lord your God in the desert. Only you must not go very far. 135 Do 136 pray for me.”
8:29 Moses said, “I am going to go out 137 from you and pray to the Lord, and the swarms of flies will go away from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people tomorrow. Only do not let Pharaoh deal falsely again 138 by not releasing 139 the people to sacrifice to the Lord.” 8:30 So Moses went out from Pharaoh and prayed to the Lord, 8:31 and the Lord did as Moses asked 140 – he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people. Not one remained! 8:32 But Pharaoh hardened 141 his heart this time also and did not release the people.
9:1 142 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and tell him, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, “Release my people that they may serve me! 9:2 For if you refuse to release them 143 and continue holding them, 144 9:3 then the hand of the Lord will surely bring 145 a very terrible plague 146 on your livestock in the field, on the horses, the donkeys, the camels, 147 the herds, and the flocks. 9:4 But the Lord will distinguish 148 between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, and nothing 149 will die of all that the Israelites have.”’” 150
9:5 The Lord set 151 an appointed time, saying, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this 152 in the land.” 9:6 And the Lord did this 153 on the next day; 154 all 155 the livestock of the Egyptians 156 died, but of the Israelites’ livestock not one died. 9:7 Pharaoh sent representatives to investigate, 157 and indeed, not even one of the livestock of Israel had died. But Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, 158 and he did not release the people.
9:8 159 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot 160 from a furnace, and have Moses throw it 161 into the air while Pharaoh is watching. 162 9:9 It will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt and will cause boils to break out and fester 163 on both people and animals in all the land of Egypt.” 9:10 So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh, Moses threw it into the air, and it caused festering boils to break out on both people and animals.
9:11 The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for boils were on the magicians and on all the Egyptians. 9:12 But the Lord hardened 164 Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted to Moses.
9:13 165 The Lord said 166 to Moses, “Get up early in the morning, stand 167 before Pharaoh, and tell him, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews: “Release my people so that they may serve me! 9:14 For this time I will send all my plagues 168 on your very self 169 and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is no one like me in all the earth. 9:15 For by now I could have stretched out 170 my hand and struck you and your people with plague, and you would have been destroyed 171 from the earth. 9:16 But 172 for this purpose I have caused you to stand: 173 to show you 174 my strength, and so that my name may be declared 175 in all the earth. 9:17 You are still exalting 176 yourself against my people by 177 not releasing them. 9:18 I am going to cause very severe hail to rain down 178 about this time tomorrow, such hail as has never occurred 179 in Egypt from the day it was founded 180 until now. 9:19 So now, send instructions 181 to gather 182 your livestock and all your possessions in the fields to a safe place. Every person 183 or animal caught 184 in the field and not brought into the house – the hail will come down on them, and they will die!”’”
9:20 Those 185 of Pharaoh’s servants who feared the word of the Lord hurried to bring their 186 servants and livestock into the houses, 9:21 but those 187 who did not take 188 the word of the Lord seriously left their servants and their cattle 189 in the field.
9:22 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand toward the sky 190 that there may be 191 hail in all the land of Egypt, on people and on animals, 192 and on everything that grows 193 in the field in the land of Egypt.” 9:23 When Moses extended 194 his staff toward the sky, the Lord 195 sent thunder 196 and hail, and fire fell to the earth; 197 so the Lord caused hail to rain down on the land of Egypt. 9:24 Hail fell 198 and fire mingled 199 with the hail; the hail was so severe 200 that there had not been any like it 201 in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation. 9:25 The hail struck everything in the open fields, both 202 people and animals, throughout all the land of Egypt. The hail struck everything that grows 203 in the field, and it broke all the trees of the field to pieces. 9:26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites lived, was there no hail.
9:27 So Pharaoh sent and summoned Moses and Aaron and said to them, “I have sinned this time! 204 The Lord is righteous, and I and my people are guilty. 205 9:28 Pray to the Lord, for the mighty 206 thunderings and hail are too much! 207 I will release you and you will stay no longer.” 208
9:29 Moses said to him, “When I leave the city 209 I will spread my hands to the Lord, the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth belongs to the Lord. 210 9:30 But as for you 211 and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear 212 the Lord God.”
9:31 (Now the 213 flax and the barley were struck 214 by the hail, 215 for the barley had ripened 216 and the flax 217 was in bud. 9:32 But the wheat and the spelt 218 were not struck, for they are later crops.) 219
9:33 So Moses left Pharaoh, went out of the city, and spread out his hands to the Lord, and the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain stopped pouring on the earth. 9:34 When Pharaoh saw 220 that the rain and hail and thunder ceased, he sinned again: 221 both he and his servants hardened 222 their hearts. 9:35 So Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, 223 and he did not release the Israelites, as the Lord had predicted through Moses.