Top of Page
Page Style
the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him: ‘This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: “Let My people go, so that they may worship Me. 2 But if you refuse to let them go and continue to hold them back, 3 behold, the hand of the Lord will bring a severe plague on your livestock in the field—on the horses and donkeys and camels, and on the herds and flocks. 4 But the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of Egypt, so that nothing will die of all that belongs to the Israelites” ’.” 5 Then the Lord set a time, saying, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this in the land.”
6 And the next day the Lord did this. All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one of the livestock died that belonged to the Israelites. 7 Pharaoh sent men to investigate and found that not even one of the livestock of the Israelites had died. But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not let the people go.
8 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from a furnace, and have Moses toss it into the air in the sight of Pharaoh. 9 It will become fine dust over all of the land of Egypt, and festering boils will break out on men and animals throughout Egypt.”
10 So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh. Moses threw it into the air, and it became festering boils that broke out on men and animals. 11 The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils were on the magicians and on all the Egyptians. 12 But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had said to Moses.
13 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning, present yourself before Pharaoh, and say to him: ‘This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: “Let My people go, so that they may worship Me. 14 Otherwise this time I will send all My plagues against you and your officials and your people. Then you will know there is no one like Me in all the earth. 15 For by now I could have stretched out My hand and struck you and your people with a plague that would have wiped you off the earth. 16 But I have raised you up for this very purpose, so that I might show you My power and that My name might be proclaimed in all the earth. 17 But you still exalt yourself against My people and will not let them go. 18 Behold, tomorrow about this time I will send very heavy hail, such as never has fallen in Egypt from the day it was founded until now. 19 So give orders to bring your livestock and everything you have in the field to a place of shelter. The hail will fall on every person and animal left in the field, and they will die” ’.”
20 Those officials of Pharaoh who feared the word of the Lord hurried to bring their slaves and their livestock inside. 21 But those who did not take the word of the Lord seriously left their slaves and livestock in the fields.
22 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be hail throughout the land of Egypt—and it will fall on men and animals and every plant of the field in the land of Egypt.”
23 So Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, and the Lord sent thunder and hail. Lightning flashed to the ground, and the Lord rained hail on Egypt. 24 Heavy hail with lightning flashing through it fell to the ground. It was so severe that nothing like it had ever occurred in Egypt since it became a nation. 25 Throughout all of the land of Egypt the hail struck down everything in the fields, both men and animals. It flattened all the plants growing in the fields and shattered every tree. 26 The only area where there was no hail was the land of Goshen where the Israelites were.
27 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “This time I have sinned. The Lord is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. 28 Pray to the Lord, for there has been enough of God’s thunder and hail. I will let you go; you don’t have to stay any longer.”
29 Moses replied, “As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the Lord. The thunder will cease and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth is the Lord’s. 30 But as for you and your officials, I know that you still do not fear the Lord God.”
31 (The flax and the barley were destroyed because the barley was headed and the flax was in bud, 32 but the wheat and the spelt were not ruined, for they ripen later.)
33 Moses went out from Pharaoh and left the city. He spread out his hands toward the Lord, and the thunder and hail stopped, and the rain no longer poured down on the land. 34 But when Pharaoh saw that the rain, hail, and thunder had ceased, he sinned again and hardened his heart, he and his officials. 35 So Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not let the Israelites go, just as the Lord had said through Moses.