Exodus 9ESV
Books
All books

Exodus9

English Standard Version

1Then the Lord to , Go to and to him, the Lord, the of the , my , that they may me.

2 you to let them and still them,

3 , the of the Lord will with a upon your are in the , the , the , the , the , and the .

4But the Lord will make a the of and the of , so that of belongs to the of shall .

5And the Lord a , , the Lord will in the .

6And the the Lord . the of the , but of the of the of .

7And , and , of the of was . But the of was , and he did the .

8And the Lord to and , of from the , and them in the in the of .

9It shall become the of , and become in and throughout the of .

10So they from the and . And it in the , and it became in on and .

11And the of the , for the upon the and upon the .

12But the Lord the of , and he did to them, the Lord had to .

13Then the Lord to , Rise up in the and and to him, the Lord, the of the , my , that they may me.

14 I will my on you , and on your and your , so that you may there is like me in the .

15 by I could have put my and you and your with , and you would have been the .

16 for I have raised you , to you my , so my may be the .

17You are still against my and will let them .

18 , about this I will to , has been in the it was .

19 therefore , your and you have in the into , for and that in the and is not will when the them.

20Then the of the Lord among the of his and his into the ,

21but did to the of the Lord his and his in the .

22Then the Lord to , Stretch your , so that there may be in the of , and of the , in the of .

23Then his , and the Lord and , and ran the . And the Lord the of .

24There was and continually in the of the , hail, as had been in the of it became a .

25The was in the in the of , and . And the of the and of the .

26Only in the of , the of , was there .

27Then and and and to them, This I have ; the Lord is in the , and I and my are in the .

28 with the Lord, for there has been of and . I will let you , and you shall .

29 to him, As soon as I have gone of the , I will my to the Lord. The will , and there will be , so you may that the is the Lord ’s.

30But as for you and your , I you do not Lord .

31(The and the were , the was in the and the was in .

32But the and the were , are late in .)

33So of the from and his to the Lord, and the and the , and the upon the .

34But when that the and the and the had , he yet and his , he and his .

35So the of was , and he did the of , the Lord had .

Study Guide

Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Exodus 9.

Full AI study →

Chapter Summary

In this chapter: The murrain of beasts. (1–7). The plague of boils and blains. (8–12). The plague of hail threatened. (13–21). The plague of hail inflicted. (22–35).

vv1-7

God will have Israel released, Pharaoh opposes it, and the trial is, whose word shall stand. The hand of the Lord at once is upon the cattle, many of which, some of all kinds, die by a sort of murrain. This was greatly to the loss of the owners; they had made Israel poor, and now God would make them poor. The hand of God is to be seen, even in the sickness and death of cattle; for a sparrow falls not to the ground without our Father. None of the Israelites' cattle should die; the Lord shall sever. The cattle died. The Egyptians worshipped their cattle. What we make an idol of, it is just with God to remove from us. This proud tyrant and cruel oppressor deserved to be made an example by the just Judge of the universe. None who are punished according to what they deserve, can have any just cause to complain. Hardness of heart denotes that state of mind upon which neither threatenings nor promise, neither judgements nor mercies, make any abiding impression. The conscience being stupified, and the heart filled with pride and presumption, they persist in unbelief and disobedience. This state of mind is also called the stony heart. Very different is the heart of flesh, the broken and contrite heart. Sinners have none to blame but themselves, for that pride and ungodliness which abuse the bounty and patience of God. For, however the Lord hardens the hearts of men, it is always as a punishment of former sins.

vv8-12

When the Egyptians were not wrought upon by the death of their cattle, God sent a plague that seized their own bodies. If lesser judgments do not work, God will send greater. Sometimes God shows men their sin in their punishment. They had oppressed Israel in the furnaces, and now the ashes of the furnace are made a terror to them. The plague itself was very grievous. The magicians themselves were struck with these boils. Their power was restrained before; but they continued to withstand Moses, and to confirm Pharaoh in his unbelief, till they were forced to give way. Pharaoh continued obstinate. He had hardened his own heart, and now God justly gave him up to his own heart's lusts, permitting Satan to blind and harden him. If men shut their eyes against the light, it is just with God to close their eyes. This is the sorest judgment a man can be under out of hell.

vv13-21

Moses is here ordered to deliver a dreadful message to Pharaoh. Providence ordered it, that Moses should have a man of such a fierce and stubborn spirit as this Pharaoh to deal with; and every thing made it a most signal instance of the power of God has to humble and bring down the proudest of his enemies. When God's justice threatens ruin, his mercy at the same time shows a way of escape from it. God not only distinguished between Egyptians and Israelites, but between some Egyptians and others. If Pharaoh will not yield, and so prevent the judgment itself, yet those that will take warning, may take shelter. Some believed the things which were spoken, and they feared, and housed their servants and cattle, and it was their wisdom. Even among the servants of Pharaoh, some trembled at God's word; and shall not the sons of Israel dread it? But others believed not, and left their cattle in the field. Obstinate unbelief is deaf to the fairest warnings, and the wisest counsels, which leaves the blood of those that perish upon their own heads.

Cross References

Exodus 9
v16Romans 9:17quotation

Paul explicitly quotes Exodus 9:16 to establish the doctrine of God's sovereign purpose in raising up Pharaoh.

Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole

Paul quotes the exact truth declared here: 'the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof.'

Supported by Matthew Poole, John Calvin

v29Psalms 24:1thematic

Declares that 'the earth is the Lord's,' directly corresponding to Moses' words of sovereign ownership.

Supported by Matthew Poole

The 'iron furnace' of Egypt is converted to ashes of judgment to chastise Israel's oppressors.

Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB

v23Psalms 105:32thematic

Direct historical poetic reflection on God sending hail and flaming fire upon Egypt.

Supported by Matthew Poole, John Calvin

v23Psalms 78:47thematic

Poetic recounting of the plague destroying Egyptian vines and sycamore trees with frost and hail.

Supported by Matthew Poole, John Calvin

v34Exodus 8:15thematic

Matches Pharaoh's pattern of hardening his heart as soon as he saw there was respite.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v7Romans 9:18thematic

Paul uses Pharaoh's hardening to illustrate that God has mercy on whom He will, and hardens whom He will.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v8Jeremiah 11:4thematic

Verbal link to the 'furnace' symbolizing Egypt's crucible of cruel oppression.

Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB

The 'botch of Egypt' is threatened as a covenant curse, referencing these historical boils and blains.

Supported by JFB

v112 Timothy 3:8thematic

Paul names Jannes and Jambres, the magicians who withstood Moses but could not stand before his miracles.

Supported by Matthew Poole

v21Deuteronomy 4:20thematic

Refers to Egypt as the 'iron furnace,' reflecting the symbolic source of the ashes of plague.

Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB

v231 Samuel 12:17thematic

Parallel where God sends unseasonable thunder and rain at a prophet's word to show his power.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v35Romans 9:17thematic

Paul cites Pharaoh's hardening to demonstrate God's sovereign purpose in raising him up.

Supported by Matthew Poole

v9Job 2:7thematic

Job is smitten with sore boils from head to foot, using the same physical affliction.

Supported by JFB

v14Leviticus 26:21thematic

Calvin notes the grading of judgments: sevenfold plagues are sent on those who remain obstinate.

Supported by John Calvin

v16Proverbs 16:4thematic

God has made all things for himself, even the wicked Pharaoh for the day of evil.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v20Hebrews 11:7thematic

Like Noah, those Egyptians who 'feared the word' took warning of unseen events and housed cattle.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v21Genesis 19:14thematic

Those who mock warnings perish, mirroring Pharaoh's servants who disregarded God's word.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v21Proverbs 22:3thematic

A prudent man foresees evil and hides, while the simple pass on and are punished.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v22Revelation 16:21thematic

Eschatological parallel where men blaspheme God due to a great plague of plague-like heavy hail.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v26Exodus 10:23thematic

Parallels the strict geographical separation between the plagued Egyptians and the light-filled dwellings of Israel.

Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB

v27Exodus 10:16thematic

Pharaoh's identical, insincere confession of sin under the pressure of the next severe plague.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v4Exodus 8:22thematic

Repeats the divine severing/distinction between Goshen and Egypt to demonstrate Yahweh's unique presence.

Supported by Matthew Henry, John Calvin

v11Exodus 8:19thematic

Magicians who previously confessed 'the finger of God' are now utterly overcome by the boils.

Supported by Matthew Poole

v12Exodus 4:21fulfillment

Fulfills the early prediction that God would progressively harden Pharaoh's heart.

Supported by Matthew Poole

v14Micah 6:13allusion

Poole links God making Pharaoh's heart sick with the wording of making sick by smiting.

Supported by Matthew Poole

v271 Samuel 15:24thematic

Saul's insincere 'I have sinned' confession, driven by fear of consequences rather than true repentance.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v28Acts 8:24thematic

Simon Magus, like Pharaoh, asks others to entreat God to avert consequences without true repentance.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v12Revelation 16:10thematic

The plague of darkness and sores in Revelation causes the obstinate to blaspheme rather than repent.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v15Exodus 9:15thematic

Refers to the potential of immediate pestilential destruction which God has withheld to display power.

Supported by Matthew Poole