Exodus8
King James Version · Public Domain
1And the Lord spake unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
2And if thou refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all thy borders with frogs:
3And the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into thine house, and into thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and into the house of thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thine ovens, and into thy kneadingtroughs:
4And the frogs shall come up both on thee, and upon thy people, and upon all thy servants.
5And the Lord spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch forth thine hand with thy rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come up upon the land of Egypt.
6And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt.
7And the magicians did so with their enchantments, and brought up frogs upon the land of Egypt.
8Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, Entreat the Lord, that he may take away the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the Lord.
9And Moses said unto Pharaoh, Glory over me: when shall I entreat for thee, and for thy servants, and for thy people, to destroy the frogs from thee and thy houses, that they may remain in the river only?
10And he said, To morrow. And he said, Be it according to thy word: that thou mayest know that there is none like unto the Lord our God.
11And the frogs shall depart from thee, and from thy houses, and from thy servants, and from thy people; they shall remain in the river only.
12And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh: and Moses cried unto the Lord because of the frogs which he had brought against Pharaoh.
13And the Lord did according to the word of Moses; and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the villages, and out of the fields.
14And they gathered them together upon heaps: and the land stank.
15But when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart, and hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had said.
16And the Lord said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt.
17And they did so; for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust of the earth, and it became lice in man, and in beast; all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt.
18And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not: so there were lice upon man, and upon beast.
19Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh, This is the finger of God: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had said.
20And the Lord said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water; and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
21Else, if thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are.
22And I will sever in that day the land of Goshen, in which my people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall be there; to the end thou mayest know that I am the Lord in the midst of the earth.
23And I will put a division between my people and thy people: to morrow shall this sign be.
24And the Lord did so; and there came a grievous swarm of flies into the house of Pharaoh, and into his servants' houses, and into all the land of Egypt: the land was corrupted by reason of the swarm of flies.
25And Pharaoh called for Moses and for Aaron, and said, Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land.
26And Moses said, It is not meet so to do; for we shall sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians to the Lord our God: lo, shall we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, and will they not stone us?
27We will go three days' journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the Lord our God, as he shall command us.
28And Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away: entreat for me.
29And Moses said, Behold, I go out from thee, and I will entreat the Lord that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, to morrow: but let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully any more in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the Lord.
30And Moses went out from Pharaoh, and entreated the Lord.
31And the Lord did according to the word of Moses; and he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; there remained not one.
32And Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also, neither would he let the people go.
Study Guide
Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Exodus 8.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: The plague of frogs. (1–15). The plague of lice. (16–19). The plague of flies. (20–32).
vv1-15
Pharaoh is plagued with frogs; their vast numbers made them sore plagues to the Egyptians. God could have plagued Egypt with lions, or bears, or wolves, or with birds of prey, but he chose to do it by these despicable creatures. God, when he pleases, can arm the smallest parts of the creation against us. He thereby humbled Pharaoh. They should neither eat, nor drink, nor sleep in quiet; but wherever they were, they should be troubled by the frogs. God's curse upon a man will pursue him wherever he goes, and lie heavy upon him whatever he does. Pharaoh gave way under this plague. He promises that he will let the people go. Those who bid defiance to God and prayer, first or last, will be made to see their need of both. But when Pharaoh saw there was respite, he hardened his heart. Till the heart is renewed by the grace of God, the thoughts made by affliction do not abide; the convictions wear off, and the promises that were given are forgotten. Till the state of the air is changed, what thaws in the sun will freeze again in the shade.
vv16-19
These lice were produced out of the dust of the earth; out of any part of the creation God can fetch a scourge, with which to correct those who rebel against him. Even the dust of the earth obeys him. These lice were very troublesome, as well as disgraceful to the Egyptians, whose priests were obliged to take much pains that no vermin ever should be found about them. All the plagues inflicted on the Egyptians, had reference to their national crimes, or were rendered particularly severe by their customs. The magicians attempted to imitate it, but they could not. It forced them to confess, This is the finger of God! The check and restraint put upon us, must needs be from a Divine power. Sooner or later God will force even his enemies to acknowledge his own power. Pharaoh, notwithstanding this, was more and more obstinate.
vv20-32
Pharaoh was early at his false devotions to the river; and shall we be for more sleep and more slumber, when any service to the Lord is to be done? The Egyptians and the Hebrews were to be marked in the plague of flies. The Lord knows them that are his, and will make it appear, perhaps in this world, certainly in the other, that he has set them apart for himself. Pharaoh unwillingly entered into a treaty with Moses and Aaron. He is content they should sacrifice to their God, provided they would do it in the land of Egypt. But it would be an abomination to God, should they offer the Egyptian sacrifices; and it would be an abomination to the Egyptians, should they offer to God the objects of the worship of the Egyptians, namely, their calves or oxen. Those who would offer acceptable sacrifice to God, must separate themselves from the wicked and profane. They must also retire from the world. Israel cannot keep the feast of the Lord, either among the brick-kilns or among the flesh-pots of Egypt. And they must sacrifice as God shall command, not otherwise. Though they were in slavery to Pharaoh, yet they must obey God's commands. Pharaoh consents for them to go into the wilderness, provided they do not go so far but that he might fetch them back again. Thus, some sinners, in a pang of conviction, part with their sins, yet are loth they should go very far away; for when the fright is over, they will turn to them again. Moses promised the removal of this plague. But let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully any more. Be not deceived; God is not mocked: if we think to cheat God by a sham repentance and a false surrender of ourselves to him, we shall put a fatal cheat upon our own souls. Pharaoh returned to his hardness. Reigning lusts break through the strongest bonds, and make men presume and go from their word. Many seem in earnest, but there is some reserve, some beloved, secret sin. They are unwilling to look upon themselves as in danger of everlasting misery. They will refrain from other sins; they do much, give much, and even punish themselves much. They will leave it off sometimes, and, as it were, let their sin depart a little way; but will not make up their minds to part with all and follow Christ, bearing the cross. Rather than that, they venture all. They are sorrowful, but depart from Christ, determined to keep the world at present, and they hope for some future season, when salvation may be had without such costly sacrifices; but, at length, the poor sinner is driven away in his wickedness, and left without hope to lament his folly.
Key Words
אָמַר: to say (used with great latitude)
מֹשֶׁה: Mosheh, the Israelite lawgiver
בּוֹא: to go or come (in a wide variety of applications)
פַּרְעֹה: Paroh, a general title of Egyptian kings
כֹּה: properly, like this, i.e. by implication, (of manner) thus (or so); also (of place) here (or hither); or (of time) now
עַם: a people (as a congregated unit); specifically, a tribe (as those of Israel); hence (collectively) troops or attendants; figuratively, a flock
שָׁלַח: to send away, for, or out (in a great variety of applications)
עָבַד: to work (in any sense); by implication, to serve, till, (causatively) enslave, etc.
אִם: used very widely as demonstrative, lo!; interrogative, whether?; or conditional, if, although; also Oh that!, when; hence, as a negative, not
מָאֵן: unwilling
Cross References
Exodus 8The 'finger of God' phrase is also used for the writing of the Law on stone tablets.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole, JFB
Jesus casts out demons 'by the finger of God,' showing His superior power over Satanic magicians.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Paul names Jannes and Jambres, the magicians who resisted Moses through deceptive, demonic counterfeits.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The magicians' folly is made manifest to all when they fail to produce the lice.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Retrospective Psalm describing the swarm of flies sent as a judgment on Egypt.
Supported by JFB
Explains the concept of the 'abomination of the Egyptians' regarding Hebrew occupations and sacrifices.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Repeats the original divine mandate to go a three days' journey into the wilderness to sacrifice.
Historical psalm celebrating how the waters of Egypt brought forth frogs abundantly in royal chambers.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Pharaoh repeatedly begs for intercession to remove plagues, only to harden his heart afterward.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole, JFB
Praise celebrating that there is 'none like unto the Lord our God' in power and glory.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Psalmic recount of God speaking and causing the plague of lice throughout their coasts.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Historical psalm commemorating the plague of flies and lice sent by God's command.
Echoes the theme of God putting a clear division between Egypt and Israel.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Parallels Moses' warning to Pharaoh not to mock or deal deceitfully with God.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Parallels the warning against dealing deceitfully when requesting prayer and promising obedience.
Highlights the repeating pattern of Pharaoh hardening his heart as soon as there was respite.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, echoing this plague.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Like Pharaoh, the Jews falsely repented during crisis but quickly turned back to their sins.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The Philistines warn against hardening hearts as Pharaoh and the Egyptians did.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Theological parallel of God making a distinction between those who serve Him and those who do not.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Subsequent plague repeats the miraculous severing of Goshen to spare Israel's livestock.
Reiterates that Israel must leave completely to serve God precisely as He commands.
Pharaoh repeatedly begs Moses to entreat the Lord for relief under duress.
The consistent demand of Yahweh to Pharaoh: 'Let my people go, that they may serve me.'
Supported by John Calvin
The pattern of desperate sinners pleading for intercession to take away divine judgments.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
A parallel description of a plague rotting and making the land stink with stench.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Moses is again commanded to confront Pharaoh early in the morning by the water's edge.
Supported by JFB